A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
Overview
Ezekiel Williams tells of Dry-head falling from a tree while Anansi thinks about his favoured food. The stranger poses a dilemma: carrying him means trouble, but setting him down means abandoning luck. Anansi proposes killing a fat pig. When it cooks, he stipulates that anyone unable to use a spoon must not eat. Because this Dry-head has no hands, Anansi consumes everything. The account supplies this bodily limitation without explaining a skeleton, detached skull or origin in death.
Beckwith prints a longer Go-long-go version headed with George Parkes’s name and Mandeville location, but notes that its continuation follows a Lacovia version. She identifies Go-long-go as corresponding to Dry-head in other tellings. Anansi feigns illness and impersonates a doctor so that his wife sacrifices her valuable pig for him. Preparing it privately, he is interrupted by Go-long-go, who threatens his breathing and eats all the meat. Anansi then lures him into plant refuse and burns it. This violent conclusion differs from the spoon trick; the editorial correspondence does not make their anatomy or outcome identical.
Origins & earliest records
Martha Warren Beckwith published these attributed narratives in Jamaica Anansi Stories (1924). Her preface identifies collecting visits in summer1919 and winter1921; the heading locates each teller without supplying an individual interview date. Publication is not claimed as the beginning of the oral tradition.
Records & interpretation
Complete stories30a and30b read; the editorial footnote linking Go-long-go was checked. The separate Brother Dead item is not silently incorporated as another identical name.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Jamaica Anansi Stories
Stories30a–b, Dry-head and Anansi, printed pp.37–38: 30a Go-long-go, George Parkes, Mandeville, with explicitly marked Lacovia continuation; 30b Dry-head, Ezekiel Williams, Harmony Hall. Complete selected narratives and attribution headings read.
Family & connections
A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Primary textBeckwith1924: Stories30a-b, Dry-head and Anansi, printed pp.37-38.Research access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
