Elements of Folktales

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Elements of Folktales
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What is a Folktale?

• Folktales were passed down from generation to
  generation by word of mouth, which is called oral
  tradition.
• Folktales were made up to explain the wonders of
  the world or to teach morals and lessons.

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Different Types of Folktales

• Trickster Tales
• Fables
• Pourqoui stories
• Fairytales

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Trickster Tales

• One character, usually the protagonist, is a
  clever trickster that causes problems for the
  other characters
• They usually goes unpunished
• Example Trickster Characters
• Anansi the Spider (Africa), Hare (North America),
  Wolf( Europe)

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Fables

• These are stories that teach a lesson or have a
  moral
• The main characters of Fables are usually animals
  with human characteristics
• The moral is never stated, but needs to be
  inferred by the reader
• Examples of Fables Tortoise and the Hare, The
  Ant and the Grasshopper

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Pourquoi Stories

• Explain WHY something is as it is
• Explains HOW something came to be and it usually
  explains something in Nature
• Examples of Pourquoi stories
• Why Mosquitoes Buzz in Peoples Ears
• How the Elephant Got Its Trunk or How the Tiger
  Got Its Stripes
• Most myths and tall tales are considered
  Pourquois

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Fairytales

• Include good and evil characters
• Usually has a hero or heroine
• Has Magic
• Often begins with Once upon a time
• Conflicts are resolved through kindness, courage
  or intelligence
• Examples Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Aladdin

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Common Elements of Folktales

• Rule of Three Items happen in sets of 3 or 7s
  (things happen in 3s, lots of repetition or
  repeated phrases)
• - 3 characters
• - 3 events
• - 3 tests the character must overcome
• Ex Jack and the Beanstalk showed Jack climbing
  the beanstalk three times. The wicked stepmother
  visited Snow White in the forest three times
  before she finally got her to eat the apple.
• Magic is commonly used, to explain the
  unexplainable.
• You will see similar characteristics from stories
  across the world

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Common Elements of a FolktaleThemes

• Characters go through tests to prove something
  (the good character must solve a problem)
• Good v. Evil (has characters that good, others
  are bad)
• Good is rewarded and evil is punished in the end
  (tales have a happy ending)

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Common Elements of a Folktale Characterization

• Characters change only after they have gone
  though the lesson learned during the course of
  the story
• The hero is usually young and fair, kind, brave,
  unselfish, and may possess some sort of special
  power.
• Magic helpers, such as the Fairy Godmother in
  Cinderella, allow for things to occur within a
  story that would otherwise be impossible

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Common Elements of a FolktaleSetting

• Place is usually described easily and briefly,
  leaving the imagination to fill in the gaps. For
  example, folktales take place in a cottage in the
  woods or in a magical kingdom
• Time is fantasy time, such as Once upon a time,
  or A long time ago