Octopi have been a common theme in political cartoons ever since they came into the popular eye in the 1870s with the first depiction of Russia as an octopus hailing over Eastern Europe. Continually, the octopus was then used as a symbol of unwanted spread and conquest. Therefore, the octopus talked about in the “What is the Third World?” transcript draws from this long history of the beast of the octopus being a monster and a threat to the world. “But these very important events have only weakened this octopus” (What is the Third World?). In this context, the octopus is a depiction of the colonial powers, so I find it interesting that octopus is something that is eaten by many of the places that were once colonized or were in some way oppressed by the colonial powers. It is also significant that octopus is prepared on both the African and Asian continents. I already knew about octopus in Asian cuisine but I was surprised to learn about it in African cuisine. One recipe I found was of a Tanzanian dish called Pwezi wa nazi, which means “octopus and coconut” in Swahili. This dish, made mostly in Zanzibar is even invoked similar spices to Indian curry by using cardamom, turmeric, cloves, ginger, anise, and tomatoes in its recipe. In a way, this shows the solidarity that Afro-Asia can have in symbolically taking down the octopus of colonialism and enjoying the fruits of its demise.
Resources
Akhalbey, Francis. “Pweza Wa Nazi, the Mouthwatering Zanzibari Seafood Dish Prepared with Octopus and Coconut Milk.” Face2Face Africa, 13 July 2018, face2faceafrica.com/article/pweza-wa-nazi-the-mouthwatering-zanzibari-seafood-dish-prepared-with-octopus-and-coconut-milk.
Ottens, Nick. “The Octopus in Political Cartoons.” Never Was, 19 Apr. 2020, neverwasmag.com/2017/08/the-octopus-in-political-cartoons/.
“What is the Third World?” Triple Jeopardy, vol.1, no. 2, november, 1971, p. 16.
Thank you Kaitlyn for this interesting discussion on octopi in political symbolism and its prevalence in colonized countries’ cuisine. That Tanzanian dish sounds delicious and I also wonder that its coastal location also provided easy access to seafood, like other octo-friendly places like Turkey, Greece, Portugal and Korea.