Reading Notes: Nigeria Part A

Why the Bat Flies at Night by Elphinstone Dayrell: This story was very interesting and one of my favorites this week. It is the telling of how the bat came to be nocturnal. He had told his friend, the rat, how to make soup especially delicious: by boiling himself in the water. When the rat tries to do the same, he dies. As a result everyone tries to catch the bat, but he hides in his bush and only comes out at night. I enjoy tales where the end comes to a conclusion about something that is true of that animal...like how the bat has to now hide and that is why he is nocturnal. This is a very tragic story because the bat had no intention of killing the rat, but it makes for an interesting story.

Why a Hawk Kills Chickens by Elphinstone Dayrell: This story was pretty gruesome and tragic as well, but it is another story that explains animal behavior so I chose to write notes on it. Basically the hawk is able to kill the chickens because once upon a time the chicken that was marrying a hawk was too poor to pay her dowry to him. As a result, the king said that the hawk could kill any chicken and have no consequences. I like that these Nigerian stories are used to explain things that we see animals do today. I also see the trend that their stories are a bit brutal and sad. 

Hawk Wikimedia