ABSTRACT
Carnival in Bissau is an immense and magnificent event, which has developed its own unique style, and which has been associated with momentous times in Guinea-Bissau. Children play key roles in it as mask makers and masqueraders, and in dancing and singing groups. Monster masks, appealing to Bissau children, suggest the modern idea that big is good, as people view the bigness of buildings, cars, and the churches in the urban area, and in scenes in cinema, videos, and magazines. Children responded enthusiastically in their mask making and masquerading to the 1995 vaccination campaign. Various influences on children and adults have arisen during the rapid population growth of Bissau, now somewhat over fifty years old. Children's involvement in the carnival forms part of a larger pattern of an increasing emphasis on persons of younger ages in the country, and a greater attention to children as performers, whether at school or in masks.
