In the time before the world grew noisy with machines and cities, when stories were passed from mouth to ear under moonlit skies, there lived the cunning spider-man, Kwaku Ananse. He was small and wiry, with quick hands and an even quicker tongue. Though he often boasted of his cleverness, his tricks did not always end as he planned. For in the Ashanti lands of Ghana, Ananse was known not only as a master of wit but also as a creature whose greed and foolishness often brought him shame.
One bright morning, Ananse walked through the village square. The air smelled of roasted yam and palm wine, and the women pounded fufu with heavy wooden pestles, their rhythm echoing across the fields. Men prepared for the day’s work, and children played in the dust. As Ananse passed, his eyes caught sight of something that made his mouth water, a pot of steaming hot porridge, golden and thick, placed carelessly on a low stool to cool.
Ananse licked his lips. “Ah, what fortune smiles upon me today,” he muttered, rubbing his hands together. He glanced around. No one was watching. The pot sat there, alone, and the sweet smell of millet porridge curled into his nostrils like a call too strong to resist.
Being Ananse, he hatched a plan. “If I take just a taste, no one will notice,” he whispered. But Ananse’s weakness was never in the taking of “just a little.” He always wanted more.
He dipped his hand into the pot, scooped up a steaming handful, and stuffed it greedily into his mouth. The hot porridge burned his tongue, but he swallowed quickly. Then, unable to stop himself, he reached again and again, gulping until the pot was nearly half empty. His stomach bulged, and his eyes gleamed with satisfaction.
Suddenly, Ananse heard footsteps. Someone was coming back for the food! In his panic, he searched for a place to hide the evidence. His greedy eyes fell upon the most foolish idea: the pot itself. Without thinking, he jammed the entire pot onto his head, hoping it would cover his face and conceal his guilt.
But the pot was still blazing hot from the fire. The moment it touched his head, Ananse yelped. “Eii! Eii! Fire! My head!” he cried. The pot clung tightly, burning his scalp. He staggered and stumbled, clawing at it with both hands, but it would not come off.
The villagers gathered quickly. They saw Ananse flailing with the pot stuck fast on his head. Some laughed, some scolded, and others shook their heads knowingly. “Ah, Ananse,” they said, “your greed has caught you again.”
At last, after much struggle, the pot was broken off his head. But by then, the damage was done. His once thick hair was singed away, and his scalp was bare and raw. From that day forward, Ananse carried his bald head as a reminder of the foolish trick that backfired.
The Folktale’s Turning Point: Ananse’s Shame
Ananse, proud as he was, tried to hide his baldness with headscarves and hats. Yet wherever he went, the people remembered the day he burned himself with porridge. Children teased him in songs, and elders used his story as a warning: “Do not be like Ananse, whose greed left him bald.”
Though Ananse still played tricks and boasted of his cleverness, his bald head became part of every tale told about him. It was said that whenever he spun a new plan, his shiny scalp glistened in the sun, reminding everyone of the punishment that comes when one’s appetite outweighs wisdom.
Moral Lesson
This Ashanti folktale teaches that greed often leads to shame. Ananse’s desire for more than his share caused him not only pain but lasting humiliation. The story reminds us to practice self-control, to respect what belongs to others, and to remember that cleverness without discipline can turn against us.
Knowledge Check
1. Who is the main character in the Ashanti folktale “How Kwaku Ananse Became Bald”?
The story centers on Kwaku Ananse, the trickster spider-man of Ghanaian folklore.
2. What food tempted Ananse and led to his baldness?
He could not resist a steaming pot of hot millet porridge.
3. Why did Ananse put the pot on his head?
He panicked when someone approached and tried to hide his theft by jamming the pot onto his head.
4. How did Ananse become bald?
The hot pot burned his scalp, singeing off all his hair.
5. What lesson does the story teach?
The folktale warns against greed and shows that selfish actions often bring shame and consequences.
6. What is the cultural origin of this folktale?
The story comes from the Ashanti people of Ghana, known for their rich oral storytelling traditions.
Source: Ashanti folktale, Ghana
