I really like the moral of this story: we tend to force ourselves on things and people, and the consequences are because of our own forcing and manipulation. I think most people and relate to and learn from this lesson because humans often try to control others, even if they're not explicitly selfish.
I love the mental picture of a little tortoise singing and playing the harp! It makes me laugh!
Like in the story I wrote about yesterday, this story deals with someone who takes advantage of a kind and selfless helper. The tortoise agrees to sing for the hunter, even going to his hut with him, and doesn't ask for the hunter to do anything in return. All she asks is that he keeps her singing a secret, and he can't even give her that. It's extremely frustrating when someone who is only trying to help is completely taken advantage of.
However, I do understand the hunter's desire to share his knowledge of the tortoise and to show her off. It is a human desire to have something beautiful for ourselves and show it off to others.
The tortoise is so sweet throughout the whole story, but she really gets the hunter in the end! I was surprised that she let the hunter be killed. It was a pretty harsh punishment, but I was proud of her for sticking up for herself when she was manipulated.
I like what the tortoise says about the hunter's need for more. She gave him plenty by offering to sing for him, but that wasn't enough for him and he brought her home with him. Then, her constant song in his home wasn't enough for him and he told everyone about her even though she told him not to. Eventually, he let his pride grow so large that he tried to force her to sing for the king like a show animal. Nothing the tortoise gave him could be enough, and he had to force himself on her more and more until it came time for him to pay.
The irony of the tortoise's song is beautiful. She sings the moral of the story over and over every day for the tortoise, and not only does he not hear the lesson, but he forces himself on the tortoise because he is so enraptured by the song.
Tortoise on a rock. Source: Public Domain Pictures.
Bibliography: West African Folktales by William H. Barker and Cecilia Sinclair. Link to the reading.
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