Notebooks
Story: The monster ||khwai-hemm's speech
Title
The monster ||khwai-hemm's speech
Collection
Summary
The visit of the Mantis to the houses of the Ticks, - who, excepting one boy, have hidden themselves away in the fleeces of their sheet, –evil thoughts of the Mantis with regard to this boy, who is left in charge of the pots of food which are upon the fire, –return of the Ticks, –their attack upon the Mantis, –his flight home, –his revenge upon the Ticks for their inhospitality and ill-treatment of him, –the consequent destitution of the Ticks, which is lamented by the relatives of the Mantis, –the monster //khwái-hemm is now, by the wish of the Mantis, unwillingly summoned by his daughter, the Porcupine, to swallow for them a portion of the Ticks’ flock of sheep,- his fearful appearance and unlimited voracity, –he swallows the Mantis, and the brave /kwámmana as well, –fiery trial of the young sons of the Mantis and /kwámmana by the Porcupine, –the monster //khwái-hemm slain, –re-appearance of all the animals and things which had just been swallowed by him, –removal of the survivors from the place where he lay dead. (L II. – 32. 2916–2965, 33. 2966–3057, 34. 3058–3149, translated). The monster //khwái-hemm’s speech to the Mantis and the reply of the latter are given separately. (B XXIII. 2161–2210, 2234–2247). ||khwai-hemm tells this story of his fight with |kaggen (the Mantis) on the hunting-ground. |kaggen is peacefully hunting when he mistakenly crosses the spoor of !goe !kweitentu. !goe !kweitentu and |kaggen fight. |kaggen then visits the Ticks but they fall upon him and beat him in anger (because they are 'black'). |kaggen flies away into the water telling his things to follow him and then takes away the Ticks' things while they are sleeping so that they might feel hunger and cold. He comes home to his wife and Ichneumon laughs at him because he has been beaten, thinking he is the one who started the fighting.
Comments
1) The monster's name '||khwai hemm' is spelt in different ways throughout the stories in which he appears; ||khwai hemm is the porcupine's father; a note on '!kubbu': a word from a very old language of people who died before the First Bushmen lived (and the |xam name for them), 2) p.2190v: the 'spectre lion' (||khuga mmummu) or the lion's ghost that ||kabbo (Jantje) saw, 3) p.2194v: !arruxu is another name for |huntu !kat !katten, or the Dassie (|kaggen's wife), 4) p.2196v: '||kan doro' is another of |kaggen's names, 5) p.2203v: a note on stupidity and 'angry actions' (a wise man is one who is 'afraid' and he lives longer), 6) p.2209v: see The Cat's Song, 7) p.2243v: |xam names of spoor from different times of the week, 8) See also The monster ||khwai hemm’s speech to the Mantis and the Mantis's reply and The Mantis and ||khwai hemm (in Lloyd's notebooks), 9) This story is found in Book XXIII
Contributors
Date
30 August 1873 (started)
Categories
Keywords
monster (||khwai-hemm's speech) , ||khwai-hemm (speech of the monster) , ||khwai-hemm (fire and) , ||khwai-hemm (is the Porcupine's father) , ||khwai-hemm (eats things) , ||khwai-hemm (devourer of things) , ||khwai-hemm (doings of) , ||khwai-hemm (actions of) , ||khwai-hemm (and |kaggen) , |kaggen (the Mantis) , |kaggen (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , |kaggen (starts fights) , |kaggen (beating of) , |kaggen (and |kwammana) , |kaggen (and !goe !kweitentu) , |kaggen (names of) , |kaggen (shoes of) , |kaggen (things of) , |kaggen (friends of) , |kaggen (flies away) , |kaggen (relations of) , |kaggen (house of) , |kaggen (arm feathers of) , |kaggen (doings of) , |kaggen (actions of) , |kaggen (and the Ticks) , |kaggen (wife of is |huntu !kat !katten) , |kaggen (and the Ichneumon) , |kaggen (quarrels of) , |kaggen (fights of) , |kaggen (fights on the hunting-ground) , |kaggen (blood of) , |kaggen (goes into water) , Porcupine (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , Porcupine (and |kaggen) , Porcupine (her father of is the monster ||khwai-hemm) , Ticks (bushlice) , Ticks (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , Ticks (actions of) , Ticks (doings of) , Ticks (fight with |kaggen) , Ticks (steal) , Ticks (house of) , Ticks (are 'black' men) , Ticks (beat |kaggen) , Ticks (things of) , Ticks (kraal of) , fight (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , fight (between |kaggen and !goe !kweitentu) , fight (|kaggen and the Ticks) , fight ('anger's fight') , fight (and the fights of |kaggen) , fight (|kaggen's angry actions) , tinderbox (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , tinderbox (owner of) , tinderbox (the possessor of) , eye's warts (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , wart (eye's warts) , wart (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , thinking strings (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , dreams (|kaggen's) , dreams (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , Ichneumon (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , Ichneumon (laughs at |kaggen) , Dassie (|huntu !kat !katten) , Dassie (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , Dassie (other names for) , Dassie (is |kaggen's wife) , Cat (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , Cat (appearance of) , Cat (song of) , angry actions (wisdom) , angry actions (foolishness) , angry actions (of the 'grown-up person') , angry actions (understanding) , angry actions (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , angry actions (and the fights of |kaggen) , angry actions (|kaggen's) , Lynx (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , !goe !kweitentu (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , !goe !kweitentu (fights with |kaggen) , !goe !kweitentu (|kaggen crosses its spoor) , Ostrich (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , Ostrich (eggs of) , |kwammana (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , spectre (-lion) , spectre (ghost) , spectre (apparition) , spectre (seen by ||kabbo) , Early Race (language of) , Early Race (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech and) , Early Race (the First Bushmen) , Early Race (a very old language of people who died before the First Bushmen lived and the |xam name for them) , song (the Cat's) , song (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , spoor (|kaggen crosses that of !goe !kweitentu) , spoor (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , understanding (and |kaggen's angry actions) , understanding (and the behaviour of the 'grown-up person') , understanding (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , understanding (about wisdom and foolishness) , ghost (the lion-spectre) , ghost (seen by ||kabbo) , ||kabbo (sees a spectre-lion) , ||kabbo (sees a ghost) , apparition (the spectre-lion) , apparition (seen by ||kabbo) , lion (||kabbo sees a spectre-lion) , lion (its apparition) , lion (ghost of) , language (spoken by the First Bushmen) , language (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , language (a very old one spoken by people who died before the First Bushmen lived and the |xam name for them) , speech (a very old language of people who died before the First Bushmen lived and the |xam name for them) , speech (the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , things (of the Ticks) , things (|kaggen's) , things (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , wife (of |kaggen is Dassie) , wife (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , name (a very old one spoken by people who died before the First Bushmen lived and the |xam name for them) , name (Dassie's other) , name (|kaggen's other) , water (|kaggen goes into) , water (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , shoes (|kaggen's) , shoes (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech) , feathers (|kaggen's arm's) , feathers (and the monster ||khwai-hemm's speech)
Story Pages
2161-2210, 2234-2247
