Cultural Barriers

Cultural Barriers: Shakespeare In The Bush by Laura Bohannan

This article is a piece of writing from Laura Bohanan, an American anthropologist who did an extensive fieldwork in Africa between theyears 1949 and 1953.
Living in a small village in Nigeria, she is having a bonfire with the local people who belong to the “Tiv” tribe who traditionally light bonfires, drink and share stories. Sheis asked to share a story and at the beginning she refuses because she is not a very good story teller: “Storytelling is a skilled art among them; their standards are high, and the audiencescritical—and vocal in their criticism. I protested in vain”
She decided to tell the story of hamlet, or at least that’s what she tried, because she wanted to prove that such a play like hamlet would beuniversally intelligible. Due the cultural differences it was only a matter of time for her to see that she was wrong. As soon as the story starts the misunderstanding begins:
“One night three men werekeeping watch outside the homestead of the great chief, when suddenly they saw the former chief approach them.”
“Why was he no longer their chief?”
“He was dead, I explained. “That is why theywere troubled and afraid when they saw him.”,
“Impossible,” began one of the elders, handing his pipe on to his neighbor, who interrupted,
“Of course it wasn’t the dead chief. It was an omensent by a witch. Go on.”
When they were alone, Hamlet’s dead father spoke.”
“Omens can’t talk!” The old man was emphatic
The natives had a different interpretation of what really happened;According to their interpretation, the father of hamlet is misinterpreted as a “sign” sent by a witch, and not as his father’s ghost. Apparently they didn’t knew or believe in ghosts so the inhabitants werenot able to fully understand the story and always a part of the story would be uncertain.

….“He had no other wives,” I told him.
“But a chief must have many wives! How else can he brew beer...