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Saturday, November 28, 2015

Lang - Wali Dad, the Simple-Hearted - Keeping the Public in Public Domain

Today I want people to know the story which inspired this entire month of tales about gratitude, "Wali Dad, the Simple-Hearted."  For those who love to compare and contrast versions, there are two lovely picture book editions. 


That second version is also available as a Reader's Theater script or you may find it in Aaron Shepard's collection of such scripts in his
Here's the contents for that book:
"The Adventures of Mouse Deer" (Indonesia)
"The Calabash Kids" (Tanzania)
"The Hidden One" (Native America)
"The Boy Who Wanted the Willies" (Europe)
"The Princess Mouse" (Finland)
"The Legend of Slappy Hooper" (U.S.)
"The Gifts of Wali Dad" (India, Pakistan)
"The Baker's Dozen" (U.S.)
"Master Maid" (Norway)
"The Magic Brocade" (China)
"Forty Fortunes" (Iran)
"Master Man" (Nigeria)
"Savitri" (India)
"The Enchanted Storks" (Iraq)
"The Crystal Heart" (Vietnam)
"The Sea King's Daughter" (Russia)
There's also another place for ideas on performing the story at Tell It My Way
But each of those is a retelling.  As Aaron Shepard notes: This is a retelling of the “Story of Wali Dâd the Simple-hearted,” found in Andrew Lang’s Brown Fairy Book (1904). The tale was given to Lang by a Major Campbell—a British army officer stationed in India’s Punjab—who heard it from “an Indian.” Since the Punjab was later split between India and Pakistan, I have thought it best to attribute the tale to both countries. The dominant influences of the story are Islamic and Zoroastrian rather than Hindu.

I want you to know the original as collected by Andrew Lang.
Illustrated by H.J. Ford

My own copy is not up to the rigors of scanning, but the story can be found online and I'd really hate for you to miss it.  Here's the text, minus the book's original illustration, from Lit2Go.  (Lit2Go also gives two activities, one mathematical and one outlining the cause and effect of each action within the story as it is part of the Educational Technology Clearinghouse which supports K-12 education.)

I am, however, scanning that original illustration because the Peris -- and Wali Dad -- should be seen -- along with Aaron's explanation of them.  His own research tells us "Peris are an import from Persian mythology. Originally considered evil, their image changed gradually to benevolent beings akin to fairies or angels. It is said they feed only on the odor of perfume."  Mmmm, how sweet an idea!





Both Aaron Shepard and Lit2Go remind you the story comes from Lang's The Brown Fairy Book.  You may notice that's a Dover Publications book cover.  At one time they published the entire "Rainbow series" by Lang.  Unfortunately they now only offer some of the series and the Brown Fairy Book is not one of them.  For affordable hard copies of what they still provide, go to Dover Publications books by Andrew Lang  where the good news is they have even more than just the Rainbow series, as they include such books as Lang's Arabian Nights Entertainments.  For an online copy of the whole book, thank heavens for Project Gutenberg, who have some other unusual Lang books as well as, so far, ten of the twelve Rainbow -- as of this writing omitting Orange and Lilac.  For a full list of contents, go to Wikipedia's article on Andrew Lang's Fairy Books to find all the stories in these wonderful books which Lang produced between 1889 and 1910.

Now for a bit of a personal suggestion on the telling of this story.  The story is fairly long, 3,522 words according to Lit2Go or 10 pages of text + illustration in my copy.  Dear Wali manages quite a few gifts on his limited budget.  (Just shows how much good we all can do!)  That Lit2Go activity about each action's cause and effect is a great tool to have near the teller, or at least keep a list of the gifts.

Here are a few interesting additional tidbits I discovered.
  • Wikipedia's article on the meaning of the Arabic word "Wali" tells us the word means "custodian", "protector", "helper", etc., but the most common meaning of the word is that of a Muslim saint or holy person.  Wali Dad certainly fits that in the story.  
  • Rudyard Kipling uses the name in his short story, "On the City Wall."
  • There actually is a city in Pakistan called Wali Dad.  Here in the U.S. it's the start of our winter, but there Weather.com gives this week's forecast as in the 80s and sunny.
Here in the United States, whether sunny or not, the fourth Thursday in November has been declared Thanksgiving Day.  Recently people seem to want to call it Turkey Day, after the most common dish eaten and now I've seen one commercial trying to call it Thanks Getting Day!  I absolutely never plan to shop on Thanksgiving Day.  It's a day to celebrate with your family and think about the many reasons you may have for gratitude.  I hope this month's stories have given you ways to enjoy and tell about your gratitude.  As today's story shows, this isn't limited by religion, and Keeping the Public in Public Domain isn't limited in time, we all have such reasons if we only look.
*************
This is part of a series of postings of stories under the category, "Keeping the Public in Public Domain."  The idea behind Public Domain was to preserve our cultural heritage after the authors and their immediate heirs were compensated.  I feel strongly current copyright law delays this intent on works of the 20th century.  My own library of folklore includes so many books within the Public Domain I decided to share stories from them.  I hope you enjoy discovering new stories.  


At the same time, my own involvement in storytelling regularly creates projects requiring research as part of my sharing stories with an audience.  Whenever that research needs to be shown here, the publishing of Public Domain stories will not occur that week.  This is a return to my regular posting of a research project here.  (Don't worry, this isn't dry research, my research is always geared towards future storytelling to an audience.)  Response has convinced me that "Keeping the Public in Public Domain" should continue along with my other postings as often as I can manage it.  
 


There are many online resources for Public Domain stories, none for folklore is as ambitious as fellow storyteller, Yoel Perez's database, Yashpeh, the International Folktales Collection.  I recommended it earlier and want to continue to do so.  He has just loaded Stith Thompson's Motif Index into his server as a database so one can search the whole 6 volumes for whatever word or expression he likes by pressing one key. http://folkmasa.org/motiv/motif.htm

He also loaded to his server the doctorate thesis of Prof. Dov Noy (Neunan) "Motif-index of Talmudic-Midrahic literature" Indiana University, 1954, as a PDF file.
in the hope that some of you would make use of it.

You can see why that is a site I recommend to you.

Have fun discovering even more stories!

Saturday, November 21, 2015

Afanas'ev - At the Behest of the Pike - Keeping the Public in Public Domain

Depending on how you transliterate the Cyrillic, today's story is by Alexander Afanasev or Aleksandr Afanas'ev.  Either way he's the main collector of Russian Folklore with Wikipedia telling us he published roughly 600 stories, one of the world's largest folktale collections.  He started as a librarian for 13 years at the Archives of Moscow, but was fired when his Russian Popular Religious Legends caused a scandal for its satirizing the Russian Orthodox clergy.  He was definitely not the stereotype of a librarian and, as the frequent phrase in pre-revolutionary Russian literature might say:  Бог знает (God knows), his starting the collecting of Russian folktales was needed.  Unfortunately, Бог знает what he needed was a job.  Censorship in Russia meant, after successfully publishing the сказки we translate as "fairy tales", his next type of tales meant he was considered blasphemous and much of his remaining writing was unpublishable in Russia.  (His Russian Forbidden Tales were published anonymously in Geneva, satirizing both the clergy and landowners.)  He didn't even live 10 years after his popular сказки were published.  Penniless, after selling his personal library, he died of tuberculosis at only 45.

Many of his stories were initially translated in 1916 by Leonard Arthur Magnus.  I sometimes say the summation of the Russian philosophical attitude is "Life is a dismal swamp."  Magnus summarized the difference of Russian folktales from that of the German tales as having an outlook "of a careful observer, who has become callous, because he is helpless" and further notes "the prevailing note is sadness; but there is no absence of humour; yet fun merely happens, and is inherent; there is no broad, boisterous fun."  He points out the absence of fairies, giants, gnomes and personifications of nature; but the inclusion of the supernatural with the witch and also the magician "Koschey the Deathless" (Lois: I love telling about the witch, Baba Yaga, & also Stravinsky's Firebird ballet from those tales about Koschei), the difference in Russian legends of the Russian peasant-style Christ and the Saints, plus the personification of Death and Sorrow.  Find his 1916 Russian Folk-Tales at Archive.org.  It's the Public Domain source of today's tale, but don't stop there.  The Pantheon Fairy Tale & Folklore Library has the 1945 Russian Fairy Tales translated by Norbert Guterman still under copyright.  It has far more stories than Magnus translated and the publisher points out about the series: The folkloric traditions of cultures throughout the world come brilliantly to life in these fairy tale and folk tale compilations by world-class scholars and anthropologists.  I recommend the series for a first stop in developing your own telling stories of the 17 cultures in their series.

One of my favorite tellable versions of Russian tales has been mentioned here before, Old Peter's Russian Tales by Arthur Ransome, take a look back by clicking that hotlink.  Checking the book for a Russian tale of gratitude or ingratitude, I found a Russian parallel of the well-known tale from the Brothers Grimm, "The Fisherman and His Wife" called "The Golden Fish."  I kept looking and went to Magnus because Ransome's story was quite long.

This introduction to today's tale has been long, too.  Afanasev's methods often gave more than one version of the same story.  Today's сказки is Afanas'ev via Magnus in a far different view of what might happen if you catch a magic fish.
That's about as close to "and they all lived happily ever after" as you might hope to find in a Russian tale.
******************
This is part of a series of postings of stories under the category, "Keeping the Public in Public Domain."  The idea behind Public Domain was to preserve our cultural heritage after the authors and their immediate heirs were compensated.  I feel strongly current copyright law delays this intent on works of the 20th century.  My own library of folklore includes so many books within the Public Domain I decided to share stories from them.  I hope you enjoy discovering new stories.  


At the same time, my own involvement in storytelling regularly creates projects requiring research as part of my sharing stories with an audience.  Whenever that research needs to be shown here, the publishing of Public Domain stories will not occur that week.  This is a return to my regular posting of a research project here.  (Don't worry, this isn't dry research, my research is always geared towards future storytelling to an audience.)  Response has convinced me that "Keeping the Public in Public Domain" should continue along with my other postings as often as I can manage it.  
 


There are many online resources for Public Domain stories, none for folklore is as ambitious as fellow storyteller, Yoel Perez's database, Yashpeh, the International Folktales Collection.  I recommended it earlier and want to continue to do so.  He has just loaded Stith Thompson's Motif Index into his server as a database so one can search the whole 6 volumes for whatever word or expression he likes by pressing one key. http://folkmasa.org/motiv/motif.htm

He also loaded to his server the doctorate thesis of Prof. Dov Noy (Neunan) "Motif-index of Talmudic-Midrahic literature" Indiana University, 1954, as a PDF file.
in the hope that some of you would make use of it.

You can see why that is a site I recommend to you.

Have fun discovering even more stories!

Saturday, November 14, 2015

Jacobs - Androcles and the Lion - Keeping the Public in Public Domain

This is also sometimes called Europa's Fairy Book
For the next three weeks I've selected stories appropriate for Thanksgiving storytelling. Chestnuts may sometimes be part of stuffing, so here's a non-edible Chestnut with a story so traditional it almost defines a Tale Type.  This definitely is the Stith Thompson Motif called The Grateful Animals.  The Aesop's fable about the Lion and the Mouse and the Jataka tale about a thorn removed from an elephant's foot are all related and show the way this story traveled to become part of what the noted folktale collector, Joseph Jacobs, saw as an important part of European traditional folklore.  While he was Australian, Jacobs is best known for his collections of English and Celtic folklore and I've earlier posted a little of his Aesop fables.  Here's the Wikipedia overview of him, but it doesn't begin to tell why his versions are still valued...they are flat out well told.  It's why I chose his version of Androcles and the Lion.

For five of his books,  Sur La Lune gives his text, but omits the illustrations by John D. Batten which fit the works so well.  (My family has Batten ancestors, so he may even be part of my ancestry, who knows?!?)

Beyond Sur La Lune try: The Earliest English Version of the Fables of Bidpai and the Fables of Aesop, which Wikipedia mentions, but that article omitted mentioning The Book of Wonder Voyages and The Most Delectable History of Reynard the Fox.  He wrote beyond folklore, but it's the focus here.

That's enough of an introduction.  The tale is blessedly succinct.



































































































O.k. my only reservation is I'm not about to test the story with an actual lion, but poor Androcles had no choice.  Both he and the lion had plenty of reason for gratitude and Thanksgiving.

I called that story a Chestnut, but next week's story will be a distinctly Russian version of gratitude and thanksgiving from Afanasev.  I trust you'll be grateful to know it.
******************
This is part of a series of postings of stories under the category, "Keeping the Public in Public Domain."  The idea behind Public Domain was to preserve our cultural heritage after the authors and their immediate heirs were compensated.  I feel strongly current copyright law delays this intent on works of the 20th century.  My own library of folklore includes so many books within the Public Domain I decided to share stories from them.  I hope you enjoy discovering new stories.  


At the same time, my own involvement in storytelling regularly creates projects requiring research as part of my sharing stories with an audience.  Whenever that research needs to be shown here, the publishing of Public Domain stories will not occur that week.  This is a return to my regular posting of a research project here.  (Don't worry, this isn't dry research, my research is always geared towards future storytelling to an audience.)  Response has convinced me that "Keeping the Public in Public Domain" should continue along with my other postings as often as I can manage it.  
 


There are many online resources for Public Domain stories, none for folklore is as ambitious as fellow storyteller, Yoel Perez's database, Yashpeh, the International Folktales Collection.  I recommended it earlier and want to continue to do so.  He has just loaded Stith Thompson's Motif Index into his server as a database so one can search the whole 6 volumes for whatever word or expression he likes by pressing one key. http://folkmasa.org/motiv/motif.htm

He also loaded to his server the doctorate thesis of Prof. Dov Noy (Neunan) "Motif-index of Talmudic-Midrahic literature" Indiana University, 1954, as a PDF file.
in the hope that some of you would make use of it.

You can see why that is a site I recommend to you.

Have fun discovering even more stories!

Saturday, November 7, 2015

A Month of Gratitude

For November I need to work ahead a bit.  I have my usual wonderful assortment of work commitments, but also expect to spend some time in Chicago while my husband, Tom, stays home keeping the rest of things going.  A while back I asked my accountant if I should make him an official employee.  NO WAY!,  she said emphatically.  It's not worth the paperwork and other problems.  So my ever-loving Roadie often, but not always, comes along to my gigs, transporting me and other equipment and sometimes playing his banjo.

Tom loves his banjo and also loves adding it to some of my programs.  Something else about it that he loves is how he only started playing after we got married.  He guesses it was maybe 2006.  It's his first and only playing experience.  Back in his youth he loved folk music, especially the 5-string banjo playing by Dave Guard of the Kingston Trio.  When people say they wish they played an instrument, he points out how he's a Late Bloomer and they can bloom, too.  In my programs I pick on the poor banjo player, but Tom's playing has often been praised by my audiences.  He's a benefit not written into my contracts.  (He's a benefit in oh so many ways, but this blog is about storytelling.)

November is the month in the U.S. where we officially celebrate Thanksgiving.  In the past I posted two enjoyable Public Domain tales in recognition of it.  The first one, The Plaisham, is also good for Audience Participation.  It occurs to me that the word's pronunciation might be something you want to know.  The story makes it clear there is no such thing as a plaisham, so it's not surprising no pronunciation is found.  Long ago I learned there are differences in Irish dialects which may let you know the speaker's region.  They're mainly in three regions: Munster (Cork and Kerry), Connemara and Ulster (Donegal), but I appreciate An Gael, the online Irish language magazine's offering of a system and their saying:
if you've memorized this system and somebody says to you 'Your pronunciation is wrong, it should be said this way...,' don't worry about it.  Most likely they just haven't heard another dialect's way of pronouncing it...  
That came from their section on How To Pronounce Irish for Beginners.  From there you will learn to silence the "s" as the "h" is aspirated.  As for the "ai" you are told to "take your choice" of what I would call ah, long a, or long i.  I'm grateful for the internet's ability to put such answers right on my computer.  As for the husband in the story, he's got his own reasons to be grateful.

Talking about the second story, Madge Bigham's Little Wee Pumpkin's Thanksgiving,  I said: Don't let the overly cute "Wee" in the title turn you off.  It's a good story that might benefit from updating the name of the pumpkin in the title to something a bit less likely to draw unintended snickers.  That's what I said two years ago, but I'm now going to reverse myself.  This year's pumpkin crop has produced much smaller than normal pumpkins.  I'm even hearing canned pumpkin filling may have a shortage because it requires bigger pumpkins.  Aren't you grateful for the warning?  I'm grateful that it gives me a reason to produce a tiny pumpkin and explain the Celtic word "wee."

The queen in that illustration is saying "You must help me find the best pumpkin in all your patch."  While this might not be the best year for pumpkins, what the queen does with that Little Wee Pumpkin is indeed a heart-warming idea ending with a sick child's gratitude.

I'll be posting stories related to Thanksgiving or at least gratitude this month.  It would be a poor unhappy person indeed who couldn't find at least one reason for gratitude.  You don't have to wait until next week for something to stir up your gratitude.  There are always tons of self-help books.  A favorite author is Regina Brett, who also is available online in many ways to give you a variety of ways to read her.
 
Regina Brett and her books



She's a columnist for the Cleveland Plain Dealer and they post her weekly articles in a blog.  That's more current than her website's posting of her articles.  (Ah, yes, website's are always Under Construction because there's always more to do to update them.  I speak from personal experience and consider sites with the Under Construction sign a mark of being a newbie in website maintenance.)  Her site is a great starting point, though, to find out more about this award-winning, funny woman who was unlikely to become a writer, especially not of self-help books.  Her articles are regularly passed around the internet, including her most requested column which she updated in 2008 to Regina Brett's 45 life lessons and 5 to grow on.  Her first book's title came from the start of all this in a column her editor had to be convinced to publish, only to find a huge favorable response wanting even more.  She's been a Pulitzer Prize finalist more than once.  Don't think she's Pollyanna unaware of life's problems.  Among her many "life lessons", she's a cancer survivor and does a lot for people facing that diagnosis.  It's not the only reason I say she was unlikely to become a writer of self-help books, but I'll let you discover more.