Simon Tootoos in Thomas White’s Tale

Overview

Simon’s mother used to send him to church. After her death he goes into the woods on Sunday to inspect a bird trap, called a colbon in the account, and finds a snake instead of a bird. He initially leaves it, but it sings commands addressing him by name. The text says that his dead mother causes the snake to sing. He returns for the trap and brings the snake home. Repeated refrains then direct him through stretching it out, preparing it, washing a pot and arranging a meal. Song does more than accompany the action: each new command supplies the next step he follows.

The commanding voice continues through laying the table and eating, and the account explicitly identifies the meal as his dead mother. It then directs him to call a grave-digger and carpenter, say his prayer and go to bed. Once he lies down, his mother comes out of his belly, and the teller ends Simon’s story. The narrative connects his departure from his mother’s churchgoing discipline with an escalating sequence of obedience to the strange voice. Beckwith’s note says that she heard the story more than once and compares a separate manuscript tale using a similar song. Here the distinctive sequence remains Thomas White’s snake-and-mother account, rather than a combined version assembled from those parallels.

Origins & earliest records

Tale 66, Simon Tootoos, credited to Thomas White of Maroon Town, Cock-pit country, in Beckwith’s Jamaica Anansi Stories (1924), pp. 71–73.

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.

1. 01

   Jamaica Anansi Stories

   Martha Warren Beckwith, collector/editor; selected tale credited to Thomas White; music recorded by Helen Roberts · 1924

   Complete tale 66, pp. 71–73, comparative note, supplementary music reference and attached footnotes 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.

1. Historical teller-attributed edited folklore transcriptionBeckwith 1924 — Thomas White’s complete Simon Tootoos 66, framing and notesResearch access: 2026-10-23

Image credits

AI interpretation of Simon Tootoos with an empty bird trap.

Appearance, clothing and scene are imagined story illustration.