Tale
Bouqui and Malice
Bouki ak Malis
Anonymous · 1900
Synopsis
A cycle of folk tales in which two companions recur: Uncle Bouqui, gullible, greedy and clumsy, and his nephew Malice, cunning, lying and a smooth talker, who tricks him endlessly. In one, Malice spies on Bouqui to find out where he hides the ox he is fattening in secret, and waits for him to be away; in another, he persuades him to make a long journey barefoot over sharp stones, to spare his new shoes. The storyteller opens the session with “Krik?”, and the audience answers “Krak!”.
Context
The two characters come from the oral traditions of West Africa, brought by the slaves: in Senegal, Bouki is the hyena, in Wolof, and Malice the hare. Jean Price-Mars saw in Bouki good-natured strength without malice, and in Ti Malice cunning, according to the Buala article. The tales are told at night, and taboos forbid telling them by day. Alibée Féry was the first to set them down in writing, and Suzanne Comhaire-Sylvain devoted Le Roman de Bouqui to them in 1940.
Who it is for
Short tales, made to be told aloud, found in Creole and in French in collections and picture books for young readers.
Prizes and reception
The pair has its counterparts in Guadeloupe, in Martinique and in the tales of Louisiana, under other names.