The elders of every culture instruct their youth, by example and often by precept, to negotiate the dangers and intrigues of the wilderness–be they the allures and snares of New York City or of the African bush. The youth must be taught to discern the trustworthy from the crooked. Thus, their elders tell tall tales to pass on their experience, hoping that by invoking the folk wisdom of traditional stories they might prepare the uninitiated. In Africa, moving safely through the wild requires not only skill–mastering the arts of traveling, hunting, and warriorship–but also maintaining alertness for tricksters, forest creatures, or malicious sorcerers. One must be bushwise. The Chokwe people, who live primarily in the savanna of southern Zaire and northeastern Angola, tell traditional stories called yishima (singular chishima) that reflect their bush experiences.

A Woman spreads manioc to dry before she pounds it to make flour. Manioc mush is the staple dish of every meal.

Whether traveling, hunting, farming, or just walking to the river to bathe, the Chokwe traverse the wilderness daily. The mysterious bush intrigues them endlessly, as evidenced in the number of yishima centered there. Bush stories teach Chokwe youth that wise travelers–through their timely actions–not only avoid dangerous sorcerers and their harmful apparitions but can benefit from the assistance of spirit allies. The Chokwe tell and retell these stories; they are mirrors reflecting their lives. The images, both tragic and comic, make them worry and laugh about their daily struggles in gathering food and battling foes.