Episode 678. Emily Zobel Marshall comes on the podcast to discuss her research on trickster characters, particularly the ones in her book, American Trickster: Trauma Tradition and Brer Rabbit. Trickster characters.

Emily Marshall’s concept of the American Trickster explores a

unique archetype that evolved from the fusion of diverse

cultural folklore—primarily African, Indigenous, and

European—into a distinctly American figure.

Unlike traditional European tricksters who often serve as moral

foils or agents of chaos, Marshall’s American trickster is

defined by survival and subversion. This figure often operates

within systems of extreme oppression, using wit, "masking," and

linguistic dexterity to outsmart more powerful adversaries. Emily is a Professor of Postcolonial Literature at

Leeds Beckett University. She is of French-Caribbean and British

heritage and grew up in the mountains of Snowdonia in North

Wales. An expert on the trickster figure in the folklore, oral

cultures and literature of the African Diaspora, she has

published widely in these fields, including her books Anansi’s

Journey: A Story of Jamaican Cultural Resistance (2012, UWI

press) and American Trickster: Trauma Tradition and Brer Rabbit

(2019, Rowman and Littlefield). She develops her creative work

alongside her academic writing and her collection Bath of Herbs

was published by Peepal Tree Press in 2023.

The oldest play about Louisiana, author James Workman wrote it

as a celebration of the Louisiana Purchase. Now it is back in

print for the first time in 222 years. Order your copy today!

Roudanez.

'Is

the Black Code Still in Force?'

    'Sec. 9. If any slave shall strike a white

person, for the first and second offense he shall receive such

punishment as the jury shall think proper, but for the third

offence the said slave shall suffer death; and whenever any

slave shall have grievously and willfully wounded any white

person, although it prove to be the first offense, such slave

shall suffer death; provided the blow, wound, mutilation or

bruises are not made or committed in defense of the person or

property of his master.'

    Does any sane person living in New Orleans

today believe that such a law would, could or should be

enforced by any civil power in this city under existing

circumstances? Yet there it stands, printed in the 'Revised

Statutes of Louisiana,' under the head of the 'Black Code,'

and if we are to be guided by 'high authority' in legal

matters, a judge in one of our anomalous courts would be

derelict in his duty not to pronounce the sentence of death on

a colored person, convicted under this statute, who had

heretofore been held as a slave, and had never been manumitted

according to the laws of Louisiana.

admitted to the Louisiana Bar as "a full fledged

lawyer." 

1921: The first scheduled commercial flight arrived in

New Orleans, marking the beginning of the city's modern

aviation era.

May 15, 2026

Lamar‑Dixon Expo Center, 9039 S. St. Landry Avenue

Gonzales, LA 70737

Held annually on Memorial Day Weekend; the 2026 festival is

coming up later this month

Website: jambalayafestival.net

Email: [email protected]

Phone: (225) 647‑9569

The Gonzales Jambalaya Festival is a South Louisiana tradition

featuring world‑champion jambalaya, live music, carnival

rides, and cooking competitions throughout the long Memorial

Day weekend:

competing for the festival title.

regional bands and family‑friendly performances.

vendors, and community events across the festival grounds.

Kenner Italian Festival. 

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