Brent has a Ph.D. in American culture, with a specialization in film studies, from the University of Michigan. She is a freelance writer and teaches courses in the history of American cinema. In the following essay, Brent discusses the themes of cleverness and deceit and poverty and wealth in "The Village Witch Doctor."

As in many folktales, this story revolves around the themes of cleverness and deceit. Osanyin, the witch doctor, cleverly deceives three generations of men out of their inherited fortune. In the end, however, the grandson of the man whom Osanyin originally deceived is able to successfully use his cleverness in order to deceive Osanyin into returning the family fortune.

Throughout the story, the reader is reminded of the many deceptions, small and large, which the village witch doctor visits upon Aro and his descendants. When Aro first comes to Osanyin to report that...