Grassfields Stories from Cameroon , livre ebook

Langaa RPCIG - W. Vakunta

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105 pages

English

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Grassfields Stories from Cameroon is an anthology of short stories. It comprises animal trickster tales, bird survival tales, and human-interest stories. The compendium is a reflection of the mores, cultures, and value systems of the indigenous peoples of the Northwest Province of Cameroon. It is motivated by the author's keen interest in the preservation of Cameroonian oral traditions in written form. These stories deal with the day-to-day life of the sedentary and the globe-trotter. Each story is sufficient onto itself. The author has intentionally avoided chronology in the order of presentation of the stories. Whether you read the stories in the order in which they are presented or dart about as your fancy dictates, you will feel the abundance of richness and entertainment the book contains. The didactic value of this collection of short stories resides in its suitability to readers of all age groups. The uniqueness of the volume lies in its universal appeal. Peter Wuteh Vakunta was born and raised in the village of Bamunka-Ndop in Cameroon where he worked as senior translator at the Presidency of the Republic before immigrating to America. He is an alumnus of Sacred Heart College-Mankon. Vakunta obtained his Bachelor degrees in Cameroon and Nigeria; MA and MSE degrees in Cameroon and the U.S.A. At present, Vakunta and his family live in Madison, U.S.A. He teaches in the Department of French and Italian at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he is also completing his PhD dissertation titled: Translation in Literature: Indigenization in the Francophone Text. Vakunta is poet, storyteller and essayist. His published works include Better English: Mind Your P's and Q's, Lion Man and Other Stories (short stories), Brainwaves (poems), Pandora's Box (poems). African Time and Pidgin Verses (poems), Square Pegs in Round Holes (essays) and It Takes Guts (essays). Vakunta's literary works have earned him several awards in the U.S.A, U.K and Africa.

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Fiction

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Publié par	Langaa RPCIG
Date de parution	15 janvier 2008
Nombre de lectures	6
EAN13	9789956715077
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	3 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0855€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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t stories. It comprises StoriesGrass-Grassfield fields from Cameroon Stories from Cameroon

Peter Wuteh Vakunta Pe er Wuteh Vakunta

Grassfields Stories from Cameroon

Peter W. Vakunta

Langaa Research & Publishing CIG Mankon, Bamenda i

Publisher: LangaaResearchand PublishingCommonInitiativeGroup P.O. Box 902 Mankon Bamenda North West Province Cameroon Langaagrp@gmail.com www.langaapublisher.com

ISBN: 9956558117

First Published 2008

Dedication

To Ma of blessed memory, for her gift of storytelling

iii

Acknowledgement am intellectually indebted to the custodians of folklore and indigenous knowledge in the grassfields of the INa Mbiayuh, who instilled the desire for learning in me Republic of Cameroon. Special thanks go to my mother, from the cradle. I wish to express my sincere gratitude to all those who share my deep conviction that African oral literatures are on the brink of extinction and need to be preserved in print for posterity. As Malian writerAmadou Hampâté Bâ, points out,”En Afrique, quand un vieillard meurt, c’est une bibliothèque qui brûle” [In Africa, when an old man dies, it’s a library burning.] (1960 at UNESCO)

CONTENTS

Foreword 1. Marriage of Convenience 2. Libation 3. King of the Skies 4. Charlatan 5. The Ordeal 6. Banga 7. Bobee-Tree 8. Lord of the Harem 9. Afoa-Kom 10 The Green Card Notes

vi 1 14 23 28 34 39 43 46 56 71 92

FOREWORD rassfields Stories from Cameroon is an anthology of short stories culled from the folklore of the G grassfields in the Republic of Cameroon. It comprises animal trickster tales, bird survival tales, and human-interest stories. The compendium is a reflection of the mores, cultures, and value systems of the indigenous peoples of the Northwest province of Cameroon. These stories deal with the day-to-day life of the sedentary and the globe-trotter. Each story is sufficient onto itself. The author has intentionally avoided chronology in the order of presentation of the stories. Many readers will want to turn first to one story, the title of which captures their fancy the most. Whether you read the stories in the order in which they are presented or dart about as your fancy dictates, you will feel the abundance of richness and entertainment the book contains. We hope that it will be placed where every member of the family can enjoy its contents, where guests can turn to it with pleasure. The didactic value of this collection of short stories resides in its suitability to readers of all age groups. Pre-college pupils would find them fascinating. College and university students with an interest in African culture, history, anthropology, languages, and literatures would find this collection priceless. The uniqueness of the volume lies in its universal appeal. The crafting of this book was motivated by the author’s keen interest in the preservation of Cameroonian oral traditions in written form. It is hoped that the publication of the book would meet this end.

1 Marriage Of Convenience

hen Mbionyi received his Baccalaureate degree from the hands of the Vice-Chancellor of the Wthose years of hardship were over. Smiling from University of Penamboko, he said to himself that ear to ear he hugged and shook hands with his relatives who had come to see him graduate. Every member of his family was present at the commencement ceremony. Even his 89-year-old grandmother, enfeebled by Parkinson’s disease, was in attendance. She had served as a surrogate mother for the young man when his mother died following a cesarean section. “I thank you my child. Thank you very much for making me proud today. Who wouldn’t be proud to have a son like you? You can call the white man’s book and speak through your nostrils like the white man. I am a very proud old woman today. I only wish your mother were here to share this great joy with me,” the haggard woman said, wiping abundant tears from her wrinkled face. “It is all because of you, granny. You did your best to see me grow up,” Mbionyi said, holding her emaciated arms. “My creator may call me now. I will go with joy in my heart,” the old woman said, holding her grandson in her bony hands. When the ceremony was over, Mbionyi went home in the company of his jubilant relatives and friends. Dressed in a charcoal gray three-piece suit and a pair of black leather shoes, the 22-year-old man led the homebound procession, holding his Bachelor of Science 1

degree in his muscular hands. He gallivanted on stubby legs and winked at the young ladies in the crowd as if to seduce them. His friends kept badgering him with questions about his future career. When they reached home, his father asked him an unexpected question. “This big certificate of yours will open all kinds of doors for you, isn’t that right, my son?” The sexagenarian hadn’t said a word since they set out on the return journey from Penamboko. Sixty miles separated them from the village of Menka. If they had a car, it would have taken them less than an hour to get home. Hiring a taxi would have meant spending a whole year’s income from their farm produce. They had to walk home. “Papa, with a certificate like this I will be able to work in any office I want in this country,” the young man said confidently. He was very proud of his achievement. He had worked very hard to earn an honors degree in plant science. It was pitch dark when they got home. They were tired but happy. An illustrious son of the soil had just returned with a great booty. Mbionyi’s father, who equated his son’s achievement to killing a lion, had bought a five-year-old cow for his son’s graduation party. The very day his son set foot in the white man's school, he knew that one day he would come back like a hero. Female members of the family had cooked basketsful of delicious food:fufu and njamanjamasoup, kokiand ripe plantains, eroand waterfufu,calabar yams, kpa coco,and egusisoup.There was alcohol galore: manjunga, jobajo, odontol, matango, nkang, kwacha, mbu, fofo and palmwine. They ate and danced to favoritemakossa andmangangbeu tunes till dawn. Mbionyi woke up the following morning feeling ill at ease. In the midst of the excitement, he had not given thought to how he would get to Yaoundé in order to apply

for a job. To apply for a job he had to travel to the nation’s capital. All applicants were required to personally submit their applications at the Ministry of the Public Service and be interviewed there. Yaoundé was some 2200 miles away from home. He couldn’t cover that distance on foot. He needed the sum of 10.000 CFA francs to pay his fare. He didn’t have the money. Worse still, he knew nobody in the capital city. “Where will I live during my job search in Yaoundé?” the young man asked his father. “When you get to Yaoundé, try your best to find Chui Bah’s son. He lives in that city. He’ll give you a place to sleep. A tribesman is a brother,” his father said, giving him the sum of 11.000 CFA francs. “Papa, I don’t know Chui Bah’s son.” Mbionyi said, looking confused. “Chui Bah’s son is called Londu. His parents live in this village. Londu speaks the same language as you do. Go see him and ask for help,” his father said, stroking his graying beard. “Papa, Yaoundé is a big city. How am I going to find Londu in a huge city like that?” “Oh, don’t worry. He looks like his father. He is short and stout. When he comes to see his father and mother, he always wears a blue suit, a pair of brown leather shoes and a gold watch. You can’t miss him,” the old man said confidently. “Papa, hundreds of men wear blue suits, brown leather shoes, and gold watches in Yaoundé. How am I going to pick out Londu from this crowd?” “Well, you just have to try hard and you will find your tribesman. Remember that the woman that never tried hard enough to fall pregnant died childless.” “I will try my best, Papa.”