AI interpretation of Sammy the Comferee holding an unstrung bow and lowered arrow.
Appearance, clothing and scene are imagined story illustration.
Overview
Sammy is introduced as a son who is unruly toward his parents and spends his time with a bow and arrow. One arrow falls into Massa Jesus’s yard. Sammy goes to retrieve it while the householder is away, and the wife keeps him there all day. Rain soaks the clothes that had been left outside to air. Returning wet and finding no dry clothes, Massa Jesus questions his wife. She explains Sammy’s presence and praises the boy’s beauty above her husband’s. The story has Massa Jesus reply that he made Sammy and will act if the boy is prettier than his maker.
Summoned to explain himself, Sammy says that he entered only for his arrow and could not get away because the woman detained him. He is nevertheless ordered to climb an iron rod heated red. As he melts away he repeatedly sings a version of his name, and the account ends with fat remaining around the rod. The final explanation says that handsome men receive some of Sammy’s fat, while others do not. His beauty thus becomes both the occasion of punishment and the material of the tale’s ending. The printed account supplies no exact age, facial description, complexion or costume, and does not add the further plots suggested in the collector’s comparative note.
Origins & earliest records
Tale 68, Sammy the Comferee, credited to Thomas White of Maroon Town in Beckwith’s Jamaica Anansi Stories (1924), pp. 75–76.
Records & interpretation
Beckwith credits this version to Thomas White at Maroon Town in Jamaica. Her 1924 collection presents material obtained during visits in 1919 and 1921. The preface acknowledges that dictation loses gesture, voice and aspects of the vernacular performance; Helen Roberts recorded music during the second visit. This profile follows the selected printed account, with teller and collector roles kept distinct.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Jamaica Anansi Stories
Complete tale 68, pp. 75–76, comparative note and shared collector/teller context 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.
- Historical teller-attributed edited folklore transcriptionBeckwith 1924 — Thomas White’s complete Sammy the Comferee 68, framing and noteResearch access: 2026-10-23
Image credits
AI-generated folklore interpretationAI interpretation of Sammy the Comferee holding an unstrung bow and lowered arrow.
Appearance, clothing and scene are imagined story illustration.
