Features of Russian Folk Tales

Fairy tales in Rus' have been known since ancient times. In ancient literature, there are plots, motifs, and images reminiscent of fairy tales. Storytelling is an old Russian custom. Even in ancient times, the performance of fairy tales was accessible to everyone: men, women, children, and adults. There were people who preserved and developed their fairy tale heritage. They were always respected among the people.

The word "skazka" (fairy tale) has been known since the 17th century. Before that, the terms "bayka" or "basen" were used, derived from the word "bat," meaning "to tell." This word was first used in a charter by the voivode Vsevolodsky, which condemned people who "tell unprecedented fairy tales." However, scholars believe that the word "skazka" was used among the people even earlier. Talented storytellers have always existed among the people, but no records of most of them have survived. Nevertheless, by the 19th century, people emerged who set themselves the goal of collecting and systematizing oral folk art.

In the first half of the 17th century, ten fairy tales were recorded for the English traveler Collins. In the 18th century, several collections of fairy tales appeared, which included works with characteristic compositional and stylistic fairy tale features: "The Tale of the Gypsy" and "The Tale of the Thief Timashka."

In V.I. Dal's dictionary, a fairy tale is defined as "a fictional story, an unprecedented and even implausible tale, a narrative." Several proverbs and sayings related to this genre of folklore are also provided there: "Either do the work, or tell fairy tales." "A fairy tale is a fabrication, but a song is the truth." "A fairy tale is beautiful in its structure, a song in its harmony." "Neither can it be told in a fairy tale, nor described with a pen." "Don't throw away the pointer before finishing the tale." "A fairy tale begins from the beginning, is read to the end, and is not interrupted in the middle." From these proverbs, it is clear: a fairy tale is a fiction, a product of folk fantasy—a "well-structured," vivid, interesting work with a certain integrity and special meaning.

The all-Russian collection by A.N. Afanasyev, "Russian Folk Tales" (1855–1865), gained significant importance: it includes tales that were widespread in many regions of Russia. Most of them were recorded for Afanasyev by his closest correspondents, among whom V.I. Dal deserves special mention. At the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries, a number of fairy tale collections appeared. They provided an understanding of the distribution of works in this genre, its state, and introduced new principles of collection and publication. The first such collection was D.N. Sadovnikov's book "Tales and Legends of the Samara Region" (1884). It contained 124 works, with 72 recorded from just one storyteller, A. Novopoltsev. Following this, rich collections of fairy tales appeared: "Northern Tales," "Great Russian Tales of the Perm Province" (1914). The texts are accompanied by explanations and indexes. In Russian fairy tales, wealth never had intrinsic value, and the rich were never kind, honest, or decent people. Wealth was significant only as a means to achieve other goals and lost this significance once the most important life values were attained. In this regard, wealth in Russian fairy tales was never earned through labor: it came by chance (with the help of fairy tale helpers like Sivka-Burka, the Little Humpbacked Horse…) and often left just as unexpectedly.

During the Soviet period, collections began to be published, presenting the repertoire of a single performer. Names such as A.N. Baryshnikova (Kupriyanikha), M.M. Korguev (a fisherman from the Astrakhan region), E.I. Sorokovikov (a Siberian hunter), and others have come down to us.

In Russian fairy tales, recurring definitions are often found: a good horse; a gray wolf; a fair maiden; a brave youth, as well as word combinations: a feast for the whole world; to go wherever the eyes look; hung his wild head; neither can it be told in a fairy tale, nor described with a pen; the tale is told quickly, but the deed is done slowly; be it long or short…

Often in Russian fairy tales, the definition follows the word it defines, creating a special melodiousness: my dear sons; the red sun; a beauty beyond description…

Typical for Russian fairy tales are short and truncated forms of adjectives: the red sun; hung his wild head—and verbs: "khvat" instead of "skhvatil" (grabbed), "pod" instead of "poidi" (go).

An important feature of folk spiritual life is "sobornost" (communal spirit), which is also reflected in fairy tales. Labor is not portrayed as a burden but as a celebration. Sobornost—the unity of action, thought, and feeling—stands in opposition to selfishness, greed, and everything that makes life dull, boring, and prosaic. All Russian fairy tales that embody the joy of labor end with the same refrain: "Then, in their joy, they all started dancing together…" The fairy tale also reflects other moral values of the people: kindness, as pity for the weak, which triumphs over selfishness and manifests in the ability to give away the last thing one has or even one's life for another; suffering as a motive for virtuous deeds and feats; the victory of spiritual strength over physical strength. The embodiment of these values gives the fairy tale a profound meaning, in contrast to the naivety of its purpose. The affirmation of the victory of good over evil, order over chaos, defines the meaning of the life cycle of all living things. The meaning of life is difficult to express in words; it can be felt or not, and then it is very simple.

The images of Russian fairy tales are transparent and contradictory. Any attempts to use the image of a fairy tale hero as a representation of a person lead researchers to the idea of the existence of a contradiction in folk tales—the victory of the fool, the "lowly hero." This contradiction is overcome if the simplicity of the "fool" is viewed as a symbol of everything alien to Christian morality and condemned by it: greed, cunning, self-interest. The hero's simplicity helps him believe in miracles, surrender to their magic, for only under this condition is the power of the miraculous possible.

The Russian folk tale is a treasure trove of folk wisdom. It is distinguished by the depth of its ideas, the richness of its content, poetic language, and a high educational focus ("the fairy tale is a lie, but there is a hint in it"). The Russian fairy tale is one of the most popular and beloved genres of folklore, not only because of its entertaining plot and amazing characters, but also because it conveys a sense of true poetry, which opens the reader to the world of human feelings and relationships, affirms kindness and justice, and introduces them to Russian culture, the wise folk experience, and the native language.

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Features of Russian Folk Tales

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