How A Spider Saved Slaves from Insanity

An Anansi rag doll by the author.

Well… not only those from his country of Ghana! But in some places in the Americas, such as Jamaica, as well as in North, South & Central America!

His name is Kweku Anansi, a Spider-Man, meaning “spider” and that he is Wednesday’s child. However, with other known names.

Anansi Alias(es): Ananse, from the Twi language for spider. AKA: Anansi / Annancy / Annansay / Annancey / Anancyi / Anawnsy / Hanansi / Hanaansi / Compe Anansi / John Anansi / Nansi / Nance / Nancy / Mr. Nancy / Brother Anansi / Bro' Anancy / Bra' Nancy / Bre-Nancy / Aunt Nancy in South Carolina, also Miss Nancy / Anansi-Tori / Ti Malice in Haiti, as well as Uncle Bouki / The Spider / Spider-man

(From my website, http://anansistories.com/Anansi_Spider_Man.html)

Treatment of the Enslaved P.O.W.

Do you know how it could feel being enslaved from capture to becoming a Prisoner Of War, seeing many relatives killed? This could drive you insane!

Then facing a foul-smelling ship’s hold with dying and dead captives next to you, some thrown overboard to the slave-ship-following sharks. Then arriving to the enslaving horrors of a new strange land, where flesh-removing whipping was the norm, or the cutting off of skin on the soles of your feet when you tried to escape! This was a Jamaica practice where it was easier to replace a salve than it was to save the life of one.

Q: What saved the sanity of many captives, and allowed a disrupted African society to teach their children the concepts of good and evil?

A: Entertainment through the art of Storytelling, where these ancestral ideals were continued in the form of a spider.

Here's how enslaved Jamaican's did it.

Our folkloric hero saved the sanity of millions of people of African descent.

And this honor goes to one spider, well, actually one ancient Spider-Man named Anansi.

Kweku Anansi was once a man, the son of Nyame the Great Sky God and Asase Ya, the Earth Goddess. The story is that Kweku disrespected his father, who, for this infraction, turned him into a small spider-man. However, Anansi used his brain to outsmart everyone, and he later won his father's contest to become the Keeper of all stories, which are called

Meaning, AnansiStories in Ghana's Twi language. My comic strip recalled some methods still being used today. Here are a couple of examples. These panels are from my graphic novel titled

"How Anansi Came to the Americas from Africa"

PREVIEW

Anansi stole a hunted wild pig killed by his archenemy Osebo the Terrible Leopard. Osebo tried to kill Anansi, but missed.

So, Anansi ran for his life, where he encountered some warriors, leading their P.O.W. war captives.

However, this is the part of the African Slave Trade story nobody likes to tell! The Emglish could not venture inland from the West African coastline. So, they and the Portuguese built forts and traded with the nearby tribal nations. After capturing P.O.Ws…