This document discusses the history and importance of folklore. It defines folklore as the creative expressions of traditional beliefs and customs that are shared orally. The practice of oral storytelling has existed since humans could speak, as it was used to entertain, inform, instill values, and preserve cultures. In the Caribbean, oral traditions are still important as nearly half the population cannot read or write. Folklore provides insights into how people lived in the past and what they believed. It is also culturally significant as different regions often feature similar trickster characters. Overall, folklore holds historical and literary value.

1. WARM-UP
×Please list the names of your
favorite nursery rhymes or
children stories as a child. Please
be prepared to discuss.

2. The History of African
Folklore

3. Defintion of folklore
Folklore, which is
basically the creative
expression of the
traditional beliefs and
customs of people that
is shared through oral
story telling, is not
studied or valued for
its literary quality but
for its’ historical

4. History of folklore
The practice of oral
story telling has
existed since man has had
the ability to speak.
Its’ purpose was to
entertain, inform, instill
morals and values in
people and perhaps most
importantly it was and
still is a means for the

5. The tradition of
oral story telling
has connotations of
“the old days” when
people had nothing
better to do than
roll up a stone, sit
around the fire and
spin tales of days
gone by, but in
The Caribbean

6. preservation of
the oral
tradition is
simply the fact
that almost
half of the
Caribbean
population can
not read or
write. This fact
holds true for
many under
developed
countries around
the world
boasting a world
wide literacy6

7. What can we learn?
× By looking closely at the
details in a story we can
learn how people lived, what
they believed, what they
valued and much more.

8. Haitian folklore
surrounds itself with
proverbs and stories which
teach a lesson. They also
love to tell jokes and
riddles, thus it is not
surprising to find their
stories featuring
pranksters and tricksters
in the form of personified
animals, such as the
Haitian characters Bouqui
Haitian folklore

9. Comparison to other cultures
A similar prankster found
in African and Caribbean
folklore is Anansi the
spider, who is often
portrayed as wise and
skillful. The Anansi tales
of West Africa are
synonymous with the Native
American tales of Coyote
or Raven, a factor which

10. Why is folklore
important?
Folklore and
the oral
tradition hold a
significant place
in the world of
literary and
social sciences
for the vast
historical 10

11. YOUR TURN
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