Gray wolf: a character from fairy tales or a formidable predator? Images of animals in Russian folk tales and Slavic mythology

Wolf's image
Russian folk
fairy tales
Vekshin Yaroslav 3a class

Purpose of the study
The goal of my research was to understand why
The wolf in fairy tales is always depicted differently. That
like a stupid and narrow-minded animal, then how
faithful friend and assistant, then both creepy and
evil enemy.
Let's try to figure it all out.

It is not in vain that the wolves are shrouded in a peculiar aura of mystery
became heroes of legends and horror films, songs and novels.
They are credited with mystical abilities and incredible strength.
Which, strictly speaking, they don’t have. Yes, wolves can smell prey
or each other at a distance of 1.5 km, and if necessary, they
many hours will pass without fatigue.
Besides the fact that wolves are still one of the most dangerous
predators (yes!), they also make a huge contribution to the cleansing
territory of their residence from the sick, weak and even dead
animals. It was not for nothing that they were given such a nickname.

All over the world, people tell stories to entertain each other.
Sometimes fairy tales help you understand what is bad in life, and
what well. Fairy tales appeared long before the invention of books, and
even writing.
In fairy tales about animals, they argue, talk, and
animals quarrel, love, are friends, are at enmity: the cunning “fox”
there is beauty in conversation”, stupid and greedy “wolf-wolf - from under a bush
grabby", "gnawing mouse", "cowardly bunny - bow-legged,
skok slide." All this is implausible, fantastic.
The appearance of various characters in Russian fairy tales about animals
initially determined by the circle of representatives of the animal
peace, which is typical for our territory. That's why
It is natural that in fairy tales about
animals we meet with the inhabitants of forests, fields, steppes
open spaces (bear, wolf, fox, wild boar, hare, hedgehog, etc.). IN
In fairy tales about animals, animals themselves are the main characters -
characters, and the relationship between them determines the character
fairy tale conflict.

In fairy tales about animals one of
the main characters are
wolf. It's straight
the opposite of the image
foxes. In fairy tales the wolf is stupid, he
easy to deceive. No, it seems
such trouble, no matter what
this unlucky guy got caught
an eternally beaten beast. So,
the fox advises the wolf to catch
fish, lowering the tail into the hole.
The goat offers to the wolf
open your mouth and stand under
mountain so he can jump into
mouth The goat knocks over
wolf and runs away (fairy tale “Wolf-
fool"). The image of a wolf in fairy tales
always hungry and lonely. He
always gets into something funny
ridiculous situation.

However, in the ancients
cultures image of a wolf
associated with death
that's why in fairy tales this
animal character
often eats someone
("The wolf and the seven Young goats")
or disturbs the peace
animal life (“Zimovie”
animals"). But in the end they are good
fairy tale characters
Russian fairy tales always
cheat or win
wolf For example, the wolf in
fairy tale "Little Fox-Sister"
and the wolf" remains without a tail.

"... meets young
warrior gray wolf..." This
also a symbol. The symbol itself
Perun. Mighty Storm God,
God of justice, light and
military valor,
appearing on earth
prefers the appearance of a wolf.
Wolf-Perun is wise, brave and
very fast. It's on him
other fairy tales Ivan Tsarevich
covers huge
distances. Moreover, Perun
becoming a knight is not easy
friend, but also brother. ABOUT
what does this say? That,
having himself as a brother
Peruna, Russian hero
capable of crushing anyone
whatever.

So now let's think
why is there a wolf in all fairy tales
so different? For this you need
remember that fairy tales were originally
no one wrote it down, they
were transmitted exclusively from
word of mouth. And only in a narrow circle.
It's impossible to imagine that
some merchant's son was listening
a fairy tale from an ordinary peasant.
Who could be afraid of wolves?
That's right, peasants. Wolves
could attack livestock, people,
and the peasants could suffer from this
terrible losses. For these people
a terrible wolf, that's in their fairy tales
he was scary, but still
conquerable. Yes, and peasants
children were told such tales,
so that it is discouraging to go into the forest
walk "a little gray top will come
and bites you on the side.”

Department of Education of the Yustinsky District Administration municipality

Municipal government educational institution
"Harbin average comprehensive school»

Regional correspondence competition “My small homeland: nature, culture, ethnicity"

Nomination "Humanitarian-ecological research"

The image of a wolf in Kalmyk and Russian folk tales.

Angarikov Angrik Alekseevich,

7th grade student of MKOU "Harbin Secondary School" of Yustinsky district

Supervisor: Angarikova Bain Anatolyevna, teacher of Russian language and literature MCOU "Harbin Secondary School" of Yustinsky district

Kharba, 2015.

Content:

Introduction. 2.

1.1. Relevance of the topic.

1.2. Area of ​​study, object of study.

1.3. Goals and objectives of the study.

1.4. Stages of research. Research methods.

1.5. Literature review

Main part. 4.

2.Theoretical research. Tales about animals. 4.

3. Practical research:

3.1. The image of a wolf in fairy tales about animals. 8.

3.2. Comparative analysis the image of a wolf in Kalmyk and Russian folk tales about animals 10.

Conclusion 12.

Bibliography. 13.

Introduction

“The fairy tale is a lie, but there is a hint in it! Good fellows lesson".
A.S. Pushkin. "The Tale of the Golden Cockerel"

Fairy tale - amazing world, where real and fictional events and characters are intricately intertwined , there is its own unusual poetics, the beauty of the language, and there is certainly a moral that is hidden or obvious in the fairy tale.

Getting acquainted with fairy tales, we notice that Kalmyk and Russian fairy tales are very similar. What do the fairy tales of different nations have in common? How are they different? I had questions that I wanted to find answers to.

The study is devoted to the analysis and comparison of the image of the wolf in fairy tales about animals - Russian folk and Kalmyk folk tales. The fulfillment of this goal began with an acquaintance with the history of fairy tales: defining the genre, collecting and studying fairy tales, and their classification.

I did the research purpose which was a comparison of the image of a wolf in Russian folk and Kalmyk folk tales about animals

Object of study- the image of a wolf in folk tales about animals.

Subject of study– general and distinctive features the image of a wolf in Russian folk and Kalmyk folk tales about animals.

Research objectives:

Learn about the history of folk tales.

Analyze the features of folk tales about animals.

To establish common and distinctive features of the image of a wolf in Russian and Kalmyk folk tales about animals.

Working methods:

Studying literary sources on the problem.

Search method.

Comparison of two fairy tales (analogy, contrast, generalization).

Analysis of results.

Project work plan:

Choosing a topic, drawing up a work plan

Working with literature, searching for information on the issue

Reading fairy tales.

Comparison of the plot, composition and language features of the Russian folk tale “Beasts in the Pit” and the Kalmyk folk tale “ Leopard, wolf, fox and camel»

Comparison and analysis of results, description.

Literature review:

In the textbooks for schools Moiseev A.I., Moiseeva N.I. “History and culture of the Kalmyk people (XVII - XVIII centuries)” and V.T. Sarangov “Kalmyk folk poetry: Fairy tales” reveals the form of existence, the structure of the Kalmyk fairy tale

The book by V. Ya. Propp (1895-1970), the greatest folklorist of the 20th century, “Russian Fairy Tale” is a kind of textbook on fairy tales, a popular encyclopedia of fairy tales. The final work on the fairy tale includes a set of information about the collection, study, structure and development, form of existence of all types of Russian fairy tales.

For comparison, a Russian folk tale is taken “Beasts in the Pit” from the collection “Russian folk tales” (compilation and introductory article by Anikin V.P.) and a Kalmyk folk tale “ Leopard, wolf, fox and camel ” from book“Kalmyk tales about animals. Mouse and camel. Translation from Kalmyk" (compiled by V.D. Badmaeva)

Practical value of the work: the results of the study can be used in the study of Russian and Kalmyk folklore.

The work consists of an introduction, main part, conclusion and list of references. The introduction indicates the goals and objectives of the study and justifies the relevance of the chosen topic. The main part examines the image of the wolf in fairy tales of the peoples of the world as a whole, examines the images of the wolf in Russian and Kalmyk folk tales, and identifies similar features and characteristics of the wolf in the fairy tales of different peoples. In conclusion, conclusions are given based on the material studied.

Main part.

2. Features of fairy tales about animals.

In big explanatory dictionary modern Russian language" D.N. Ushakova fairy tale defined as narrative work oral folk art about fictional events. We love fairy tales since childhood, they warm the heart, awaken the mind and imagination. Fairy tales are filled incredible events, fantastic adventures, in fairy tales, animals and birds speak and act like people, they reason, deceive, quarrel and make friends. A fairy tale is the soul of the people, embodied in words, the richest source of folk wisdom.

Modern science distinguishes the following genres of fairy tales:

1) about animals;

2) magical;

3) novelistic;

4) legendary;

5) fairy tales-parodies;

6) children's fairy tales.

In Kalmyk folklore, researchers note four main fairy tale genres: a) magical, b) heroic, c) everyday, d) fairy tales about animals.

V.Ya. Propp gives the following definition of animal tales: “By animal tales we will mean those tales in which the animal is the main object or subject of the narrative. On this basis, tales about animals can be distinguished from others, where animals play only a supporting role and are not the heroes of the story.”

Tales about animals are called those in which the characters are wild animals, less often domestic animals. These tales arose in an era when the main occupations forced a person to often encounter animals, i.e. in the era of hunting and cattle breeding. In this era, fighting animals was very dangerous due to poor human weapons; man seemed weak to himself compared to a number of predatory animals; on the contrary, many animals must have seemed unusually powerful to him. Under the influence of an animistic worldview, people attributed human properties to animals, even in exaggerated proportions: the cry of an animal or bird was incomprehensible to humans, but human speech understandable to animals and birds; the beast and the bird know more than man and understand the aspirations of man. During this era, a belief arose in the possibility of turning into a beast and back. The growth of human power should have gradually weakened these views and beliefs, and this should have been reflected in the content of fairy tales about animals.

At first, simple stories were formed about animals and birds and fish, about their relationships with each other and with humans. Later, with the development of artistic thinking, the stories turned into fairy tales. The genre was formed long time, was enriched with plots, types of characters, developing certain structural features.

The identification of similar features in animals and humans (speech - cry, behavior - habits) served as the basis for combining their qualities with human qualities in the images of animals: animals speak and behave like people. V.Ya. Propp wrote: “Strength artistic realism so great that we do not notice that, despite the subtly noticed properties of animals, animals in fairy tales often do not act like animals at all and their actions are not consistent with their nature. The animal epic is widely reflected human life, with her passions, greed, greed, deceit, stupidity and cunning and at the same time with friendship, loyalty, gratitude, i.e. wide range human feelings and characters, as well as realistic image human, in particular, peasant life." This combination led to the typification of animal characters, which became the embodiment certain qualities: fox - cunning, wolf - stupidity and greed, bear - gullibility, hare - cowardice. This is how fairy tales were acquired allegorical meaning: animals began to mean people of certain characters. But there is hardly any reason to believe that in all fairy tales human traits are depicted in animal images. The uniqueness of the image of an animal in fairy tales lies precisely in the fact that the human features in it never completely supplant the animal features.

In fairy tales about animals, animal figures are realistic; they are very different from the fantastic firebird fairy tales: There is no such bird in reality, but the fox, wolf, bear, hare, crane are taken from real life.

However, it should be emphasized that the main semantic aspect of fairy tales about animals is moral. In moral terms, two main ideas of animal fairy tales can be distinguished: the glorification of camaraderie, thanks to which the weak defeat the evil and strong, and the glorification of victory itself, which brings moral satisfaction to the listeners.

The structure of animal tales is quite simple. The most notable feature of the structure of this type of tale is the stringing of episodes. The meeting of animals with each other is very characteristic of the development of action. Perhaps only in fairy tales about animals is the composition distinguished by such pronounced functionality. All parts of the plot are structured in such a way as to reveal the essence of phenomena and convey the nature of the relationships between the characters with the utmost speed in a short episode.

Each hero has his own individual character and unique traits. Characteristics of animals in a fairy tale includes several distinct characters, personifying strength and cunning, anger and brute force.

National traits fairy tales are determined by the folklore traditions of the people. Fairy tales reflect the animal and plant world of the country where these fairy tales appeared. Animals - the heroes of fairy tales - in their speech and behavior resemble the people of the country where these fairy tales exist. And it cannot be otherwise, since a fairy tale has always been a reflection of people's life, a mirror of people's consciousness.

2.1. Russian fairy tales about animals

Animal Tales- one of oldest species Russian fairy tales. The animal world in fairy tales is perceived as an allegorical image of the human. Animals personify the real carriers of human vices in everyday life (greed, stupidity, cowardice, boasting, trickery, cruelty, flattery, hypocrisy, etc.).

V.Ya. Propp in his book “Russian Fairy Tale” (Chapter 6 “Tales of Animals”) identifies six groups of tales about animals:

1) tales about wild animals;

2) tales about wild and domestic animals;

3) tales about humans and wild animals;

4) tales about domestic animals;

5) tales about birds, fish, etc.;

6) tales about other animals, plants, etc.

Allegory is manifested in the characterization of the characters: the depiction of the habits of animals and the peculiarities of their behavior resembles the depiction of human behavior and introduces critical principles into the narrative, which are expressed in the use of various techniques of satirical and humorous depiction of reality.

Humor is based on reproduction ridiculous situations, which the characters fall into (the wolf puts his tail into the hole and believes that he will catch a fish).

The language of fairy tales is figurative, reproducing everyday speech, some fairy tales consist entirely of dialogues ("The Fox and the Black Grouse", "The Bean Seed"). In them, dialogue dominates the narrative. They move the action, reveal situations, show the state of the characters. The text includes small songs ("Kolobok", "Goat-dereza"). Fairy tales about animals are characterized by bright optimism: the weak always come out of difficult situations.

The composition of fairy tales is simple, based on the repetition of situations. The plot of the fairy tales unfolds rapidly ("The Bean Seed", "Beasts in the Pit"). Tales about animals are highly artistic, their images are expressive.

2.2. Kalmyk tales about animals.

Kalmyk tales about animals are simple in plot, uncomplicated in composition and small in volume. Wild animals and animals act in them - wolves, foxes, leopards, lions, elephants, hares; domestic animals - rams, camels, goats; birds - sparrows, crows, peacocks, roosters, owls; rodents - gophers, mice; The most common insect is the mosquito.

These tales are allegorical: khans, noyons, and zaisangs were bred under the guise of predators. In the image of a leopard, a lion, a wolf, stupid, ruthless people are depicted, in the image of a fox - deceivers, cunning, liars, in the image of an elephant and a camel - strong, but lazy and not loving to work. It is absolutely clear that these tales condemn bad, unjust deeds and negative actions of representatives of the exploiting class that are incompatible with popular morality. In the image of birds, obviously, innocent people were depicted, who, due to their naivety, fell into the networks of deceivers, oppressors, and various oppressors in the class society of that time.

Fairy tales written in Kalmyk language, provide an opportunity to get acquainted with traditions, culture and oral creativity. For example, Buryat fairy tales, in which the main characters are animals, teach the reader to distinguish the good, bright principle from the evil, to empathize and help the weak, and to believe in justice. Wait for the happy completion of the tests.

The entire plot of the fairy tale is built on the constant clash of good and evil. The power of evil is softened by humor, which occupies a significant place in fairy tales. Evil heroes are constantly ridiculed and often end up in ridiculous, comic situations. Usually the fairy tale ends with the victory of good. Evil is punishable.

The peoples of the world live on one planet and develop according to the general laws of history. Each people has its own path and its own destiny, its own language and living conditions. In the similarity of historical folk life we ​​should look for the answer to the question of what are the reasons for the similarity and closeness of fairy tales of peoples living on different continents.

Speaking about fairy tales of different peoples with similar plots, it is necessary to note three cases:

1. Fairy tales are formed among some people, and then move to other countries, but they are influenced by their own folklore traditions(beginnings, motives), adapt to local customs.

2. There are similar fairy tales that arise independently of each other in different countries due to the commonality of life, psychology, conditions and laws socially - historical development peoples

3. Fairy tales can also be transmitted through a book.

3. The image of a wolf in folk tales

Who is cold in winter b an evil one will give birth in the forest, hungry?

Wolf - beast of prey, common in the northern hemisphere of planet Earth. The wolf looks quite ferocious and terrifying. The wolf is a traditional hero of folk tales and epics of most peoples of the world. In our minds the image of a wolf is endowed for the most part negative characteristics:

You are cold snow beasts.

Your losses are incalculable...

The night will split with terrible crying.

That's it, no one can help me.

A mad howl will freeze under the windows -

These snow wolves came for me.

V. Butusov “Snow Wolves”

IN " Etymological dictionary of a schoolchild" by G.N. Sycheva the word "wolf" is defined as a common Slavic, Indo-European character. There is an opinion that the name "wolf" is derived from the verb drag, i.e. "drag". The wolf is a predatory animal, it often drags away and drags away livestock. Therefore, literally - “dragging” (livestock).

The word “wolf” is widely used in both literal and figurative meanings, for example: don’t go into the wolf’s mouth – when communicating with someone, expose yourself to danger and trouble. But nevertheless, the wolf symbolizes freedom, independence in the animal world, and fearlessness. In nature, a wolf is a dangerous, predatory, intelligent, resourceful animal that evokes fear and respect.

3.1.1. The image of a wolf in Russian fairy tales about animals.

In Russian fairy tales There is an image of a wise wolf, a wolf who helps the heroes of fairy tales. In such fairy tales, the wolf appears as an unknown force, a kind of sorcerer (gives advice to Ivan the prince), a healer (heals illnesses), for example, in the fairy tale “Ivan the prince and the gray wolf.” The wolf represents mysterious powers endowed with enormous knowledge.

Wolf in fairy tales about animals already appears with evil traits: he is angry, greedy, gluttonous, but stupid and slow-witted. In ancient cultures, the image of a wolf was associated with death, so in fairy tales this animal character often eats someone (“The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats”) or violates quiet life animals ("") But in the end

A. Pushkin wrote: “The fairy tale is a lie, but there is a hint in it.” The social prototype of the wolf is quite clear. The people knew many scoundrels and criminals from whom they had a hard time. The tale of how a wolf slaughtered a pig (“The Pig and the Wolf”) depicts in the image of a wolf a cruel and unforgiving master who exacted money from the peasants for poisoning.

Good fairy-tale characters in Russian fairy tales always deceive or defeat the wolf: the wolf devours the kids and dies (“The Wolf and the Goat”), fattens a hungry dog ​​in order to eat it, and is left without a tail (“The Wolf the Fool”).

More often than other animals, the wolf is deceived and cruelly laughed at by the fox.ButVIn the Russian fairy tale, we can feel the sympathy and sympathy expressed towards the wolf, even if he was “remained a fool” (“The Tale of the Little Chanterelle and the Wolf”, “How the Fox Sewed a Fur Coat for the Wolf”, “For the Lapotok - a Chicken, for the Chicken” - little goose”, “Fox-midwife”, “Beasts in the pit”). The way the Fox deceives the Wolf actually only speaks in favor of the latter - yes, he is too naive and simple-minded (although in nature this is not the case), because he takes the trickster Fox at his word. Neither give nor take - a simple village peasant.

3.1.2. Wolf in Kalmyk fairy tales.

Wolf among many Mongolian peoples was considered ancient and one of the main totems. The Kalmyks have an ethnic subdivision called “chonos” (“wolves”): “iki chonos” (big wolves) and “baga chonos” (small wolves). The people have preserved a legend about the origin of this clan, the action of which takes place “in pre-Chinggis Khan Mongolia, when tribes and clans lived separately.” The plot of this legend is not new. Romulus and Remus from Roman mythology were also suckled by a she-wolf. The legend about the origin of the Chonos clan was literary processed and used in the novel people's writer Kalmykia Alexey Badmaev “Zulturgan - steppe grass”, written in the Soviet years.

In fairy tales about animals The wolf is strong, but stupid, narrow-minded and often fooled.

An angry, greedy, gluttonous wolf in the fairy tale “The Mouse Brothers,” but the mice in the fairy tale were able to defeat the terrible beast. stupid and slow-witted. In the fairy tale “The Elephant and the Wolf,” the wolf tries to deceive the simple-minded and cowardly elephant, but in the end he himself dies.

The wolf is often depicted as stupid and slow-witted. The fox makes fun of the wolf and deceives him, but the wolf deceives her again every time: “The wolf and the fox”, “The cunning fox”, “The fox, the wolf and the bear”, “The wolf, the fox and the hare”, “Leopard, wolf, fox and camel."

Fairy tales about animals were created not only for the edification of little ones. Many of them use funny fiction and jokes to ridicule vices. The wolf is often the embodiment of stupidity. His stupidity is the stupidity of a cruel and greedy beast.

From the fairy tales discussed above, we can make conclusion, that the wolf is often stupid, but this is not his main feature: he is cruel, ferocious, angry, greedy - these are his main qualities. But such qualities are never encouraged in fairy tales, so the wolf always gets what he deserves.

3.2. Comparison of Russian and Kalmyk folk tales

Our task is to compare Russian folk and Kalmyk folk tales . For example, let's compare the Russian folk tale “Beasts in the Pit” and Kalmyk folk tale “ Leopard, wolf, fox and camel ” .

Comparison of Russian and Kalmyk folk tales.

Elements of a fairy tale

Russian folk tale "Beasts in the Pit"

Kalmyk folk tale “Leopard, Wolf, Fox and Camel”

Scene

Animals fell into the pit.

Time of action

Winter came

Fairy tale characters

cockerel and hen, hare, wolf, fox and bear

Leopard, wolf, fox and camel

Animal actions

They talk and think.

They think and talk.

Problems that heroes solve

Everyone wants to get out of the hole, and need to satisfy your hunger

Food supplies have run out and need to satisfy your hunger

Initiation

Once upon a time there lived a cockerel and a hen.

That was a long time ago. There lived four brothers: a leopard, a wolf, a fox and a camel.

The beginning

Here comes the hail. The hen got scared, the cockerel and the hen ran.

Climax

The fox tricked others into eating someone.

The fox ate part of the camel's meat and blamed it on the wolf. Leopard killed him, but he himself died

Denouement

The fox ate everyone and, with the help of the bird, got out of the hole.

The fox ate the camel's meat, deceived all the animals and lived happily ever after.

Dialogue that drives action.

Animals talk to each other. The fox sings songs that lead to the death of someone

Animals talk to each other. The fox is always the first to start a conversation and deceives others.

Repetition of situations and words

1) They ran, they ran. A hare meets them:

- Where are you running, cockerel?

- Ay, don't ask me, ask the chicken!

2) And the fox sang:

- Bear-bear is a good name...

Kura-okurava is a bad name!

Here we ate the chicken.

The fox ate the tripe.

What are you doing? The leopard will check and kill us,” the wolf screamed at us.

The camel was stupid, and stupid people don’t have a rumen (omentum).

Artistic means of language: suffixation

Cockerel, chicken, little bear, titmouse.

Conclusions.

The wolf is widely represented in fairy tales of different nations.

In fairy tales, the wolf can play both the main and minor role, but the image of the wolf does not change from this.

In the traditions of both peoples, the wolf is shown as a cruel but stupid animal.

Most often, in the fairy tales of both peoples, the wolf is deceived by the fox.

In Kalmyk fairy tales there is practically no clash between wild and domestic animals.

The Russian fairy tale, although the plot and characters are externally similar to the Kalmyk fairy tale, is more lively, bright, and imaginative. It contains more epithets, onomatopoeia, and songs. It's connected with ancient tradition telling a fairy tale to music and its theatricalization.

Conclusion

Fairy tales are the most ancient creations of the human spirit. The fairy tale is one of the popular and favorite genres in folklore and literature.

We didn’t know how to walk yet, but we had already heard fairy tales from our mothers and grandmothers. Having matured, we will read and study them for a long time. And while reading, we always immerse ourselves in their fantastic, magical and at the same time so alive and real world. Every fairy tale image comes alive vividly in the imagination. And this is no coincidence, a fairy tale is a perfect work of the folk spirit, honed over centuries or even millennia.

Absolutely everyone understands the fairy tale. It seamlessly crosses all linguistic boundaries, from one people to another, and remains alive for thousands of years.

The form of the tale, compact, capacious, and the manner of presentation of the tale, unedifying, seemingly so unpretentious, usually illuminated by the narrator’s soft smile, allows us to convey not only the most characteristic qualities a person, but also to capture his deepest, most hidden features and show in a publicly accessible form for any listener or reader what is good and what is bad. Fairy tale - forever seeking the truth and justice, love and happiness, the soul of the people, embodied in words.

From the material studied, it is clear that the goals and objectives set for us were solved, and we received answers to all the questions that interested us. In our work, we compared Russian folk and Kalmyk folk tales about animals and saw that they have a lot in common, since the peoples of the world live on the same planet and develop according to the general laws of history. But fairy tales simultaneously demonstrate national identity folklore of every nation. And animals - the heroes of fairy tales - resemble both in their speech and behavior the people of the country where these fairy tales exist. It cannot be otherwise, since fairy tales have always been a reflection of people's life.

As long as humanity exists, it needs a dream, and, therefore, it cannot do without a fairy tale that inspires, gives hope, amuses and consoles.

Literature:

1. History and culture of the Kalmyk people (XVII - XVIII centuries): textbook for educational institutions / Moiseev A.I., Moiseeva N.I. – Elista: Kalmyk book publishing house, – 2002. P. 151-163.

   Kalmyk folk poetry: Fairy tales: Tutorial/ V.T. Sarangov; Kalm. State University; Elista, –1998. pp. 3-11.

3. Mouse and camel. Kalmyk tales about animals. Translation from Kalm.: collection. Comp.

V.D. Badmaeva. – Elista: AU RK “ Publishing House“Gerel”, 2012.

Propp V.Ya. Russian fairy tale.

Russian folk tales. Compilation and introductory article by Anikin V.P. – Moscow: Pravda Publishing House, 1990

The wolf in Russian folk tales in most cases is negative character. He is a strong and dangerous opponent, but at the same time he is a naive and not particularly intelligent hero. He often gets into trouble because of his stupidity, maliciousness, and excessive trust in Lisa and other smarter characters. In rare stories, the wolf still becomes a true friend and protector.

Wolf in Russian folk tales

The positive and negative role of the wolf in fairy tales: its origins

The ambiguous portrayal of the character is associated with the same unclear attitude towards the animal among the people. In fairy tales he often becomes collectively, endowed with strength and stupidity at the same time. With the help of instructive stories, it is demonstrated that the physical strength of the enemy is not the main quality for winning a fight. This character is successfully complemented by the proverb “If you have strength, you don’t need intelligence!” But at the same time, when in a fairy tale the cunning Fox mocks the wolf, we empathize with him. His simplicity is closer to us than the cunning of the red-haired cheat.

The image of the simple-minded wolf is refuted in some fairy tales. For example, in the story about Ivan Tsarevich, the wolf hero, on the contrary, demonstrates wisdom, unexpectedly takes the side of good, and plays the role of an adviser and assistant. But this is the exception rather than the rule.

In the picture fairy wolf people have moved far from real qualities animal. If the quality of cunning given to the fox, and cowardice to the hare, seem quite logical, then it is not at all clear why stupidity was attributed to such a dangerous predator. In nature, a wolf is an excellent hunter. He even brings some benefit as a forest orderly. The quality of straightforwardness attributed to him can only be associated with the fact that he is capable of facing danger eye to eye. His style of hunting also speaks of his ingenuousness: the wolf does not chase the prey for a long time, attacks more often in a pack and only on the weakest individuals from the herd.

The character of the wolf in folk tales

First of all, the wolf is a villain character. It’s just that in some fairy tales he poses a threat to other heroes, but in others he is harmless and even useful.

• “How the wolf was taught intelligence”- the wolf character in this story is stupid and lazy. He shows straightforwardness, which could be regarded as positive feature, if it were not associated with stupidity.
• "Wolf and Goat"- here he is a malicious deceiver, ruthless and greedy, but still not without naivety.
• "Sister Fox and the Wolf"- the wolf hero is depicted as a stupid and naive character who, despite his evil face, suffers from the tricks of the Gossip-Fox.
• "Ivan Tsarevich and the Grey Wolf"- portrayed as a conscientious villain who decided to repay his crime good deed and help a person with advice and action. Here he is revealed as a kind and selfless character.
• "Wolf, Cat and Dog"- here the character demonstrates simple tricks, this is one of the few stories where his ability to deceive is manifested. Not as skilled as the Fox, but still capable of causing harm.

As you can see, the gray wolf is the most instructive, both in positive and negative forms.

The gray wolf occupied almost the entire territory of Eurasia, the Arabian Peninsula and Indochina 200 years ago.

In addition, the animals lived in North America. But today these predators are no longer in the USA, and in Europe they are found only in Russia and northern Spain. In Asia, the gray wolf is also found, but not everywhere: in Turkey, Mongolia, Central Asia and in China. But in Canada, Siberia and Alaska there are quite a lot of these animals.

The “gray” species consists of 30 subspecies. Predators living in the northern regions are much larger than their southern counterparts. Canadian individuals grow to 140-160 centimeters, and in height they reach 85 centimeters. The length of the tail reaches 30-50 centimeters. They weigh at least 38 kilograms, the average weight is 55 kilograms. European brothers weigh no more than 40 kilograms, and Gray wolves those living in Turkey weigh 25 kilograms, representatives living in Pakistan and Iran weigh even less - 13 kilograms. Males are approximately 15% larger than females.

Appearance of a gray wolf

The gray wolf has fluffy and dense fur. From severe frosts, predators are warmed by a short undercoat, which resembles fluff in its structure.

The wool is coarse and long, it also serves as protection from the cold, and it does not get wet. The longest hair grows on the neck and in front of the back. The length of hair on these parts of the body reaches 110-130 millimeters. The ears are framed with short and elastic fur. The same fur is found on the paws. The length of the hair on the back of the back and sides does not exceed 70 millimeters. The fur is so warm that these predators practically do not feel the frost of 40 degrees.

When a gray wolf buries its muzzle into the ground, its warm breath prevents frost from forming on the hairs. U southern residents the fur is much rarer and coarser than that of the northerners.

The color has a large number of shades. Gray wolves living in Alaska are light in color, sometimes dark beige. Taiga wolves have gray-brown skin.

Predators living in the Mongolian steppes and Central Asia have a light red color. In some areas, completely black or dark brown predators live. But the most common color is dark gray. Wolves with such fur are found in the south and north. There is no difference between the color of females and males.

Behavior and nutrition of the gray wolf

Gray wolves know how to dig holes, but they do not like this activity, so they often make a den in thickets or crevices between rocks. These predators live in steppes and forest-steppe areas. They enter the forest extremely rarely.

The diet mainly consists of ungulates: roe deer, saigas. In the southern regions, gray wolves hunt antelope. Pets can also fall prey to these predators.

Gray wolves attack people quite often. These animals engage in cannibalism. They also eat carrion. They enjoy hunting arctic foxes, foxes and rodents. Predators do not refuse wild fruits and berries. A gray wolf can go without food for 2 weeks.

Listen to the voice of the gray wolf

These animals have excellent physical characteristics. While running, they can accelerate to 65 kilometers per hour. But at this pace they can run no more than 20 minutes. In search of food, these hunters travel up to 60 kilometers.

Gray wolves hunt large animals in packs, with some waiting in ambush, while others chase prey into it. If the chase continues for a long time, then predators replace each other. This indicates that gray wolves have high intelligence.

Representatives of the family live in flocks, the number of which reaches 40 individuals. This society is controlled by a dominant couple. After the couple, on the hierarchical step there are her close relatives, mostly young individuals who have not reached sexual maturity. The next step is occupied by wolves who have joined the pack. Children are at the lowest level.

Basically, the dominant female is responsible for procreation. Upon reaching sexual maturity, young animals leave the flock and form own family. Marriages are never formed between brothers and sisters. Gray wolves look for partners on the side.

Reproduction and lifespan

These animals are monogamous, they form pairs for life. There are fewer females than males, so it is easier for females to find a partner. Females come into estrus at the end of winter, and pregnancy lasts 2.5 months. The female gives birth to 5-6 babies, but there can be significantly more of them in the litter, 14-16. Newborn puppies are deaf and blind, they weigh no more than 400-500 grams. 2 weeks after birth, their eyes open, and a month later their teeth erupt.

At 1.5 months, wolf cubs stand confidently on their feet. The mother does not leave her puppies for 2 months. At this time, the male is engaged in obtaining food. He makes a sacrifice, the female eats it, and regurgitates food for the babies. Puppies begin to eat solid food at one month of age. Puppies grow quickly and at the 5th month of life they catch up with their parents in size. In females, puberty occurs at 2 years, and in males 1 year later. The lifespan of these predators is about 15 years.

All over the world, people tell stories to entertain each other. Sometimes fairy tales help to understand what is bad and what is good in life. Fairy tales appeared long before the invention of books, and even writing.

Scientists have interpreted the tale in different ways. A number of folklore researchers called everything that was “told” a fairy tale. The famous fairytale expert E.V. Pomerantseva accepted this point of view: “A folk tale is an epic oral piece of art, predominantly prosaic, magical or everyday in nature with a focus on fiction.”

Tales about animals differ significantly from other types fairy tale genre. The appearance of fairy tales about animals was preceded by stories directly related to beliefs about animals. The Russian fairy tale epic about animals is not very rich: according to N.P. Andreev (ethnographer, art critic), there are 67 types of fairy tales about animals. They make up less than 10% of the entire Russian fairy-tale repertoire, but at the same time this material is distinguished by its great originality. In fairy tales about animals, animals implausibly argue, talk, quarrel, love, make friends, and quarrel: the cunning “fox is beautiful in conversation,” the stupid and greedy “wolf-wolf—grabbing from under a bush,” “gnawing mouse,” “cowardly The little bastard is bow-legged and jumps up the hill.” All this is implausible, fantastic.

The appearance of various characters in Russian fairy tales about animals is initially determined by the range of representatives of the animal world that is characteristic of our territory. Therefore, it is natural that in fairy tales about animals we meet the inhabitants of forests, fields, steppes (bear, wolf, fox, wild boar, hare, hedgehog, etc.). In fairy tales about animals, the animals themselves are the main ones. heroes-characters, and the relationship between them determines the nature of the fairy-tale conflict.

My goal research work– compare images of wild animals from Russian folk tales with the habits of real animals.

A hypothesis is my conjectural judgment that the images of wild animals, their characters correspond to the habits of their prototypes.

1. Characters in the animal epic.

Observing the composition of animals acting as acting characters in the animal epic, I note the predominance of wild, forest animals. These are fox, wolf, bear, hare, and birds: crane, heron, thrush, woodpecker, crow. Pets appear in conjunction with forest animals, and not as independent or leading characters. Examples: cat, rooster and fox; sheep, fox and wolf; dog and woodpecker and others. The leading characters, as a rule, are forest animals, while domestic animals play a supporting role.

Tales about animals are based on elementary actions. Fairy tales are built on an ending that is unexpected for the partner, but expected by the listeners. Hence the humorous nature of fairy tales about animals and the need for a cunning and insidious character, such as the fox, and a stupid and fooled one, which we usually have the wolf. So, by animal tales we will mean those tales in which the animal is the main object. The characters are only animals.

The fox has become a favorite hero of Russian fairy tales: Fox Patrikeevna, Fox is a beauty, fox is an oil sponger, fox is a godmother, Lisafya. Here she lies on the road with glassy eyes. She was numb, the man decided, he kicked her, she wouldn’t wake up. The man was delighted, took the fox, put it in the cart with fish: “The old woman will have a collar for her fur coat,” and he touched the horse, he himself went ahead. The fox threw away all the fish and left. When the fox began to have dinner, the wolf came running. Why would a fox give a treat to a wolf? Let him catch it himself. The fox instantly has an idea: “You, little kuman, go to the river, lower your tail into the hole - the fish itself attaches to the tail, sit and say: “Catch it, fish.”

The proposal is absurd, wild, and the stranger it is, the more readily one believes in it. But the wolf obeyed. The fox feels complete superiority over his gullible and stupid godfather. Other fairy tales complete the image of the fox. Infinitely deceitful, she takes advantage of gullibility, plays on the weak strings of friends and foes. The fox has a lot of tricks and pranks in his memory. She chases a hare out of a bast hut, carries away a rooster, luring him out with a song, by deception she exchanges a rolling pin for a goose, a goose for a turkey, etc. up to a bull. The fox is a pretender, a thief, a deceiver, evil, flattering, dexterous, cunning, calculating. In fairy tales, she is faithful to these traits of her character throughout. Her cunning is conveyed in the proverb: “When you look for a fox in front, then she is behind.” She is resourceful and lies recklessly until the time when it is no longer possible to lie, but even in this case she often indulges in the most incredible invention. The fox thinks only about his own benefit.

If the deal does not promise her acquisitions, she will not sacrifice anything of hers. The fox is vindictive and vindictive.

In fairy tales about animals, one of the main characters is the wolf. This is the exact opposite of the fox image. In fairy tales, the wolf is stupid and easy to deceive. There seems to be no such trouble, no matter what this unlucky, always beaten beast finds himself in. So, the fox advises the wolf to fish by dipping his tail into the hole. The goat invites the wolf to open his mouth and stand downhill so that he can jump into the mouth. The goat knocks over the wolf and runs away (fairy tale “The Fool Wolf”). The image of a wolf in fairy tales is always hungry and lonely. He always finds himself in a funny, absurd situation.

In numerous fairy tales, a bear is also depicted: “A Man, a Bear and a Fox”, “A Bear, a Dog and a Cat” and others. The image of the bear, while still remaining the main figure of the forest kingdom, appears before us as a slow, gullible loser, often stupid and clumsy, with club feet. He constantly boasts of his exorbitant strength, although he cannot always use it effectively. He crushes everything that comes under his feet. The fragile little mansion, a house in which a variety of forest animals lived peacefully, could not withstand its weight. In fairy tales, the bear is not smart, but stupid; it embodies great, but not smart, strength.

Fairy tales in which small animals (hare, frog, mouse, hedgehog) act are predominantly humorous. The hare in fairy tales is quick on his feet, stupid, cowardly and fearful. The hedgehog is slow, but reasonable, and does not fall for the most ingenious tricks of his opponents.

Thought fairy tales about animals turns into proverbs. The fox, with its fabulous features of a cheat, a cunning rogue, appeared in proverbs: “A fox does not dirty its tail,” “A fox was hired to keep a poultry yard from the kite and the hawk.” The stupid and greedy wolf also passed from fairy tales into proverbs: “Don’t put your finger in a wolf’s mouth,” “Be a wolf for your sheepish simplicity.” And here are the proverbs about the bear: “The bear is strong, but he lies in the swamp,” “The bear has a lot of thoughts, but he doesn’t go anywhere.” And here the bear is endowed with enormous, but unreasonable strength.

In fairy tales there is constant struggle and rivalry between animals. The fight, as a rule, ends in cruel reprisals against the enemy or evil ridicule of him. The condemned beast often finds himself in a funny, absurd position.

Prototypes of fairy-tale heroes.

Now we will look at the habits and lifestyle of real animals. I was guided by the book “The Life of Animals” by the German zoologist Alfred Brem. Thanks to his vivid descriptions of the “lifestyle” and “character” of animals, Brem’s work became for many generations the best popular guide to zoology. So he denies the superior cunning of the fox and asserts the exceptional cunning of the wolf. Wolves do not hunt alone, but together. They usually roam in small flocks of 10-15 individuals. The pack maintains a strict hierarchy. The leader of the pack is almost always a male (the “alpha” wolf). In a flock it can be recognized by its raised tail. Females also have their own “alpha” wolf, who usually walks ahead of the leader. In moments of danger or hunting, the leader becomes the head of the pack. Further on the hierarchical ladder are adult members of the pack and lone wolves. The lowest of all are the grown-up wolf cubs, which the pack accepts only in the second year. Adult wolves constantly test the strength of their superior wolves. As a result, young wolves, growing up, rise higher on the hierarchical ladder, and aging wolves fall lower and lower. Such a developed social structure significantly increases the efficiency of hunting. Wolves never lie in wait for their prey, they chase it down. When chasing prey, wolves are divided into small groups. The prey is divided among members of the pack according to rank. Old wolves, unable to participate in joint hunting, follow the pack at a distance and are content with the remains of its prey. The wolf buries the remaining food in the snow, and in the summer hides it as a reserve in a secluded place, where it later returns to eat what was left uneaten. Wolves have a very acute sense of smell, detecting scent at a distance of 1.5 km. A wolf is a predatory, cunning, intelligent, resourceful, and evil creature.

When I studied the material about the habits of the fox, I found some similarities with fairy fox. For example, a real fox, like a fairy fox, loves to visit the chicken coop. It avoids deep taiga forests, preferring forests in the area of ​​agricultural land. And he is looking for a ready-made mink for himself. Can occupy the burrow of a badger, arctic fox, or marmot. The fox's tail is also mentioned in fairy tales. Indeed, the fluffy tail can be considered its feature. The fox acts as a steering wheel, making sharp turns during pursuit. She also covers herself with it, curling up into a ball while resting and burying her nose in its base. It turns out that in this place there is a fragrant gland that emits the smell of violets. It is believed that this odorous organ has a beneficial effect on the fox’s charm, but its precise purpose remains unclear.

6 The mother fox guards the cubs and does not let anyone get close. If, for example, a dog or a person appears near the hole, then the fox resorts to “cunning” - she tries to take them away from her home, luring them with her.

But the heroes of fairy tales are the crane and the heron. About the non-fairytale, real gray or common crane in A. Brem’s book “The Life of Animals” it is said: “The crane is very sensitive to affection and insult - he can remember the insult for months and even years.” The fairy-tale crane is endowed with the features of a real bird: it is bored and remembers insults. The same book says about the heron that it is evil and greedy. This explains why the heron in the folk tale thinks first of all about what the crane will feed her. She is angry, like a real, not a fairy-tale heron: she accepted the matchmaking unkindly, scolds the wooing groom: “Go away, lanky one!”

In fairy tales and sayings they say “cowardly as a hare.” Meanwhile, hares are not so much cowardly as they are cautious. They need this caution, because it is their salvation. Natural flair and the ability to quickly escape with large leaps, combined with techniques for confusing their tracks, compensate for their defenselessness. However, the hare is capable of fighting back: if it is overtaken by a feathered predator, it lies on its back and fights off with strong blows legs The mother hare feeds not only her cubs, but in general all the discovered hares. When a man appears, the hare leads him away from the hares, pretending to be wounded or sick, trying to attract attention to herself by beating her feet on the ground.

The bear in fairy tales appears to us as slow and clumsy. Meanwhile, the clumsy-looking bear runs extremely fast - at a speed of over 55 km/h, swims excellently and climbs trees well in his youth (in old age he does this reluctantly). And it turns out that the bear is active throughout the day, but more often in the mornings and evenings. They have a well-developed sense of smell, but their vision and hearing are rather weak. In fairy tales, the bear embodies great strength and its prototype is capable of breaking the back of a bull or bison with one blow of its paw.

In studying animal epics, we must beware of the very common misconception that animal tales are really stories from the lives of animals. Before researching this topic, I also held this judgment. As a rule, they have very little in common with the actual life and habits of animals. True, to some extent, animals act according to their nature: the horse kicks, the rooster crows, the fox lives in a hole (however, not always), the bear is slow and sleepy, the hare is cowardly, etc. All this gives fairy tales the character of realism.

The depiction of animals in fairy tales is sometimes so convincing that from childhood we are accustomed to subconsciously determine the characters of animals from fairy tales. This includes the idea that the fox is an exceptionally cunning animal. However, every zoologist knows that this opinion is not based on anything. Each animal is cunning in its own way.

Animals enter into a community and keep company, which is impossible in nature.

But still, I want to note that in fairy tales there are many such details in the depiction of animals and birds that people spy on from the lives of real animals.

After reading the literature about fairy tales, about the life and behavior of animals and comparing the images and their prototypes, I came up with two versions. On the one hand, the images of animals are similar to their prototypes (an angry wolf, a clumsy bear, a fox dragging chickens, etc.). On the other hand, having studied the observations of zoologists, I can say that the images and their prototypes have little in common with the actual habits of animals.

The art of folk tales consists of a subtle rethinking of the true habits of birds and animals.

And one more thing: having studied the history of fairy tales about animals, I came to the conclusion: fairy tales about animals most often take the form of stories about people under the guise of animals. The animal epic widely reflects human life, with its passions, greed, greed, deceit, stupidity and cunning, and at the same time with friendship, loyalty, gratitude, that is, a wide range of human feelings and characters.

Tales about animals are the “encyclopedia of life” of the people. Tales about animals are the childhood of humanity itself!