The Kappa Legend

Age: 21

Text: The Kappa: a Japanese legend

Context: “I’m not Japanese, but many of my classmates in my elementary school were from Japan and China, so I heard a lot about the Kappa creature. In eighth grade, my school did a trip to Japan, and all my friends who lived there warned me of Kappas. Any time we walked by a river, my classmates would tell me that there was a Kappa in there, waiting to drown us. I remember some of the rivers even had signs that would show children getting attacked by Kappas. I never saw a Kappa, but they described them as scaly, green reptiles that were almost like a cross between turtles, humans, and dragons. My friends always told me that if we encountered one, it would attack me, and not them, because they know how to treat a Kappa as a Japanese, but because I was not Japanese, it would come for me first.”

Analysis: The story of the Kappa is an example of a legend rooted in Japanese culture. Although the interviewee is not Japanese, he still participates in folklore. This shows how folklore can be inclusive, as he is able to learn about and understand this legend. However, it also shows how folklore is exclusive, as even though he can learn the folklore, he is never truly part of it. His classmates told him that the Kappa would attack him only, because he did not know how to properly respect it, as he is not Japanese. This relates to ethnonationalism, and how folklore can be tied to ethnonational identity. This also shows the difference between emic vs etic perspectives. His classmates represent an emic perspective, as the Kappa is part of their internal worldview. For the interviewee, though, it is an external observation. He becomes a partial participant in the folklore through performance.

This story also shows how folklore becomes institutionalized in everyday life. The fact that it is common for there to be signs warning people of Kappas in the water, shows that the creatures are not just legendary, but also pedagogical. The creature acts as a warning to prevent children from going in the water, making the legend a cautionary tale. Although the creature itself will not drown you, a young child swimming in the water when they are unable to, can cause drowning, and the Kappa is a way to prevent this.

Lastly, this also shows how folklore can be a part of memory and rites of passage. This school trip is defined and remembered by the Kappa, which shows how folklore can create cultural learning. Even though he never had a personal encounter with a Kappa, the creature became part of how he understood not only Japan, but also his status as an outsider within Japanese culture. The personal connection into lived experiences gives the legend power.

Legend of Chupacabra

Age: 20

Text: The Legend of Chupacabra

Context: “My parents told my sister and I about many different Spanish creatures and figures, one of them being the chupacabra. The chupacabra is a vampire-like animal that sucks on the blood of other animals. I grew up on a farm, so we had pigs and cows that we took care of. My sister and I grew up with the fear of the chupacabra attacking our animals, so we had to be extra cautious at the farm. My parents made us have a bucket of water beside the animals, because allegedly, chupacabras are scared of water, and pouring water on them would “drown” them. One time, one of our cows got mange, and my sister and I were so worried that a chupacabra attacked him. It took us a while to get over our fear because we genuinely believed that they were coming to suck the blood of our animals. We realized later on that our parents told us this story for two reasons. The first is, even though I’m Mexican, I did not grow up speaking Spanish well, and my parents were worried I would not have a strong connection to my ethnicity. They told my sister and I this story as a way to understand our culture more. The second was more for teaching purposes, as they wanted us to learn how to take care of our animals properly and be extra cautious in order to prevent them from getting diseases.”

Analysis: This story about the chupacabra is a classic legend. The chupacabra is a folkloric, legendary figure based on Spanish culture. This creature exists in the real world, but the truth value behind it is unknown.

The actions described in the story is an example of ostension, as the belief has led to real actions. The interviewee placed water buckets next to the animals because they believed it would protect them in case they had to come in contact with a chupacabra. Even though this protection mechanism has no scientific evidence or reasoning, it gives the family a sense of control. When one of the cows got mange, the chupacabra was blamed, which shows how folklore can become a cultural model that explains misfortune and negative consequences. Folklore can work as a way to try to explain the unexplainable. Although the legend may not seem believable, the belief is contextual. Since the interviewee grew up on a farm where hsi animals encountered unknown illnesses and death, the legend was a way to explain this. 

The story is also an example of polygenesis, as there are similar stories of blood-drinking animals in many different cultures. For example, the most notable one I could think of is vampires in European culture. It is also often compared to Sasquatches, which are another common predatory figure. These creatures are a reflection of shared fears among different cultures. For example, the sickness and death of animals and humans due to environmental experiences. Without scientific knowledge of why this happened, people turn to folklore to explain it. Many cultures experienced this fear, which is why they came up with legendary creatures, and as a result, the creation of allomotifs. These narrative figures fulfill the same role within their cultures, but are slightly different based on the region.

As the interviewee mentioned, the story also reflects the role of folklore in intergenerational education. By telling their children stories about chupacabras, the interviewee’s parents are not only passing down a story, but also teaching them how to care for their animals. The legend is able to shape the behavior, as a memorable narrative can be more effective than instruction.

The Legend of La Llorona

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 24
Occupation: College Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Language: English

Legend:

“The most popular legend in Mexico is “The Legend of La Llorona.” That of a lower class woman who fell in love with a wealthy man, who was already married. This woman had two children with him, and hoping he would leave his wife, she lost control one day. Filled with despair, she decided to drown her children in a river, and, since then, her soul wanders in sorrow through the streets every dawn, mourning the murder of her children. La Llorona walks each night with disturbing cries of regret, saying “Ay mis hijos!” which means “Oh, my children!” Dressed in a white gown that covers her entire body, down to her bare feet. There are those who say they have seen her: according to them, the ghost also has long hair, and her face resembles a skull. Many have also claimed that this woman also attacks midwives, doctors, and nurses who help pregnant women end the lives of their unborn babies.”

Context:

My informant told me that many Mexican legends are passed down from generation to generation, taught in class, or even shared from neighbor to neighbor on the street. She had heard this legend on the playground when she was 6-7 years old. She said that children would share this legend with each other as a way to frighten other children.

Analysis:

In class, we read an article and talked about the legend of La Llorona. In the article “The Politics of Taking: La Llorona in the Cultural Mainstream,” Domino Renee Perez writes that La Llorona “wails at night as she wanders dark roads searching for her children or any other potential victims” (154). We had talked about La Llorona mainly targeting children, so this variation of the legend is interesting because it instead is about the spirit of La Llorona going after people who terminate their pregnancies/their unborn children. One can argue, that instead of La Llorona attacking children, she is going after people who are making the same choice she did to end (by ending their unborn babies’ lives) that doomed her to haunt the streets. This view/belief depends on one’s own view of terminating a pregnancy, but it is interesting to think about the different interpretations of the La Llorona legend. I find this variation between different versions of the legend of La Llorona fascinating.

Ijapa the Tortoise Legend/Tale

Nationality: Nigerian
Age: 21
Occupation: College Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Language: English

Legend:

“Ijapa is a tortoise in the village and every year, the birds have a festival in the sky to celebrate some type of feast. And this festival is super coveted, like there’s lots of food and everything, and [it’s] in the trees and high up. Ijapa, who’s a tortoise, obviously can’t get to the trees, so he starts picking feathers from every bird and makes a set of wings for himself, and he flies up to this festival disguised as a bird with all these feathers that he’s gathered and goes to this banquet. At the banquet, he’s eating all their food, and somehow, someone discovers he’s not a bird and so they go around telling everyone he’s not a bird and he’s infiltrated the banquet. As each of them leave, they take one feather [from Ijapa’s set of wings] and fly away. So, because Ijapa is so big-backed [informant’s words], hungry, and greedy, he’s staying late and doesn’t realize [the birds] are taking his feathers. By the time the last guest has gone, he realizes that he no longer has his set of wings. So, he shouts down from the tree to [get] someone to tell his wife, who, I can’t remember what creature it is, but it’s another animal, that hears him shouting from the tree. He [Ijapa] tells the animal to tell his wife to come and arrange, like a bed of soft things, so that when he jumps from the tree height, he lands on the soft things. But this animal, who also does not like Ijapa because Ijapa is greedy, arranges stones instead, and mimics the voice of his [Ijapa’s] wife, saying, “Jump down! I’ve arranged the bed of soft things” and Ijapa jumps down and cracks his shell.

That’s why tortoises’ shells are cracked.”

Context:

My informant told me that Ijapa (“tortoise” in Yoruba) is a character that shows up in a lot of Yoruba stories/tales that parents share with their children. Many of the Ijapa stories are didactic and usually have some sort of moral lesson: why you shouldn’t lie, why you shouldn’t be arrogant, etc. He compared this story to the tale of the Tortoise and the Hare, explaining that there are different variations of these stories in different regions. This is the version he remembers hearing from his parents.

Analysis:

This story is very interesting because not only is it a legend about why tortoises’ shells are cracked, but it is also a tale that has a moral lesson for children. Is it likely that a tortoise was able to gather loose feathers to create wings and fly up into the trees? I think that it is highly unlikely; but the fact that the phrase “That’s why tortoises’ shells are cracked” is included after the story transforms this tale into a seemingly legendary story. This story could be true, because tortoises’ shells can be cracked. Had it been described as a story of why someone should never lie or be greedy, then this would not be considered a legend. In my opinion, this story does not necessarily clearly fit in to one category of a legend or a tale. There is the part about why the tortoises’ shell is cracked, which shifts the story into the legend category, but then there is the moral lesson of why someone should not lie or be greedy, as well as the tortoise flying into the tree, which is more commonly found in tales.

El Callejón in Guanajuato, Mexico – The Kissing Alley Legend

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 24
Occupation: College student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Language: English

Legend:

“It [the tale] follows the tragedy of Carmen and Luis. They were two lovers who lived a street apart; their balconies faced each other. Carmen’s dad found out about their constant sightings that eventually turned into a relationship and in a moment of rage, he killed Carmen. After, Luis said goodbye to Carmen and then he killed himself. The legend says that if a couple kisses on the third step of the narrowest area of the alley, they will have 15 years of prosperity and love.”

Context

My informant told me that this legend is centered around a popular tourist destination in Guanajuato, Mexico. The tourist destination is an alley with stairs underneath where the two balconies face each other. Many couples walk the steps and take pictures kissing on the third step of the stairs in the alley. Couples stand specifically on the third step because, there, they are directly under the two balconies that face each other.

Analysis

When my informant told me this legend, I immediately thought of Shakespeare’s play Romeo & Juliet and the forbidden romance between the two main characters. I find it interesting that the idea of forbidden love is so appealing to a lot of people, specifically when the couple ends up ending their lives to be with each other (something the play and this legend have in common). There is something to be said about audiences enjoying a tragic love story. The idea of this legend being the thing that attracts tourists to this location reminds me of the idea of the “Legend Quest” we talked about in class. A “Legend Quest” is when people hear a legend and go on a “quest” to find out if it is true. In this case, tourists find out that if they go to the third step and kiss underneath the balcony, essentially recreating the romance between Carmen and Luis, if they will be guaranteed 15 years of love. So, they go, hoping that the legend is true.