Commensality

There are two main themes in this chapter: ethnic banter and commensality. In many parts of West Africa, the consumption of food is associated with a sense of discomfort, especially in a group environment or when the eater is within observable distance. The reasons behind the uneasiness may be evolutionary; however, empirical evidence based on observations and knowledge of the culture of food in West Africa point to the fact that food is linked with toilet humour. The fact that defecation is seen as the result of food ingestion appears at the core of this shame associated with eating. However, with commensality being almost like a ritual in Africa, partakers found a commodious way of easing the tensions by engaging in a traditional form of banter known as kàll. What characterises the banter is an exchange of harsh jokes and serious-sounding invectives between partakers who know not to take offence, in view of the rules already set long ago by ancestors who used the banter as a medium for defusing social tensions between ethnic groups. This chapter will first treat the nature of the banter in its different forms before delving into the culture of food in West Africa.