the third brother (Tale 34)

Role: third son · First appears: Tale 34 · The Omanhene Who Liked Riddles

In Tale 34 · The Omanhene Who Liked Riddles, the third brother set out to see the world with the father’s permission, despite their mother urging him to stay. She feared he would meet the same fate as the eldest and the second son, who had died in the town he was travelling toward. She prepared cankey filled with poison for him, but he survived and continued on his way.

During the night, he exchanged the solution to the Omanhene’s riddle for the ruler’s garments, explaining it once he had them safely. In the morning at Assembly Place, he revealed that the Omanhene had obtained the answer by cheating, and the Assembly judged the ruler to have failed. After the Omanhene was beheaded, the third brother was appointed Omanhene in his place.

Relationship record

Life events

• Their mother poisoned the cankey she prepared for the third brother.(Tale 34 · The Omanhene Who Liked Riddles)
  • With: their mother (Tale 34)
  • “She prepared for him a food called cankey—which she filled with poison.”
• The third brother survived the poisoned food and continued on his way.(Tale 34 · The Omanhene Who Liked Riddles)
  • “The young man then went on his way.”
• The Omanhene obtained the riddle’s solution from the third brother in exchange for his costume.(Tale 34 · The Omanhene Who Liked Riddles)
  • With: the Omanhene
  • “When the young man had the garments quite safely, he explained the riddle fully to the crafty Omanhene.”
• The third brother exposed the Omanhene’s cheating, and the Assembly judged him to have failed.(Tale 34 · The Omanhene Who Liked Riddles · 📍 Assembly Place)
  • With: the Omanhene
  • “The stranger then told what had happened in the night, and how the ruler had got the answer to the riddle by cheating. The Assembly declared that the Omanhene had failed to find out the riddle and must die.”
• The third brother was appointed Omanhene in the ruler’s place.(Tale 34 · The Omanhene Who Liked Riddles)
  • “Accordingly he was beheaded—and the young man was appointed Omanhene in his place.”

Tale 34 · The Omanhene Who Liked Riddles

• parent: the father (Tale 34) “A certain Omanhene had three sons, who were very anxious to see the world. They went to their father and asked permission to travel.”
• parent: their mother (Tale 34) “His mother did all in her power to persuade him to stay at home.”
• siblings with the eldest (Tale 34) “She was sure that if he also reached the town where his brothers had died, the same thing would happen to him.”
• siblings with the second son (Tale 34) “She was sure that if he also reached the town where his brothers had died, the same thing would happen to him.”
• enemies with the Omanhene “The stranger then told what had happened in the night, and how the ruler had got the answer to the riddle by cheating.”

⭐ Constellation map → · 📖 Read the original → · 🗂 Character index → · 🕰 Chronicle → · 📍 Places →

Extracted from the original text of West African Folk-Tales. Made with Rho MD.