The invasion of Ukraine and talk of its relationship to Russia made me recall a Ukraininan-American woman I enjoyed seeing at a library where I used to work. She took Russian as her foreign language in college, but the professor was wise to her background and wouldn't let her "Russify" Ukrainian. It was easy to relate to that difference when I once acquired a Bible I thought was in Russian to help me learn to read Russian. It was in Ukrainian and useless for my purpose. Found it a Ukrainian home.
Hearing the Ukrainian capitol is called Kyiv and not Kiev made me think of those two incidents. Wikipedia's article on the Ukrainian language began to show just how complicated their history and culture are. I went looking for books of Ukrainian folklore I own, but none are in the Public Domain. Looking on Project Gutenberg I was surprised to find the only folklore in English is by R. Nisbet Bain, whose book of Russian Fairy Tales is a source of Russian folklore I enjoy. Not only that, but the Ukrainian folklore is in Cossack Fairy Tales and Folk Tales. Bain was quite a linguist using over twenty languages. (I drool and think about Lawrence Block's series about The Spy Who Could Not Sleep -- look it up and enjoy!) Bain went from translating Russian to Ruthenian, which Wikipedia explains is the earlier name for Ukrainian. The Cossacks are a vital part of Ukraine's history and culture which admittedly has been intertwined and at other times separated from Russia. I was surprised to see it included a NATO partnership back in 1994. There's a reason it was long called "Little Russia." Clearly there are ties and antagonisms which feel rather like a large family where much is shared, but also fights spring up from time to time.
Cossack Fairy Tales and Folk Tales has some interesting stories including some well worth saving for Halloween, but these three brief tales, for all their brevity give a view into Ukrainian spirit even when they seem at their most helpless. The first is one of those cumulative tales rather like the old woman who must cross over a stile and her pig won't do it until she asks help from a long string of reluctant helpers. (Joseph Jacobs' "Fire! Fire! Burn Stick!" is a good example.) I love assigning members of the audience these "reluctant helpers" for some audience participation. It also helps remember the long string of participants needed to accomplish a task.
There are many illustrations throughout the book by Bain's brother, Noel, but none for these short bits. Here's a glimpse of his work from the title page.
A pair of footnotes follow at the end of the three stories. I'll also add "tussle with" could be substituted for "touzle" in "The Old Dog."
THE SPARROW AND THE BUSH
THE SPARROW AND THE BUSH
A sparrow once flew down upon a bush and said, “Little bush, give
good little sparrow a swing.”––“I won’t!” said the little
bush. Then the sparrow was angry, and went to the goat and said,
“Goat, goat, nibble bush, bush won’t give good little sparrow a
swing.”––“I won’t!” said the goat.––Then the sparrow
went to the wolf and said, “Wolf, wolf, eat goat, goat won’t
nibble bush, bush won’t give good little sparrow a swing.”––“I
won’t!” said the wolf.––Then the sparrow went to the people
and said, “Good people, kill wolf, wolf won’t eat goat, goat
won’t nibble bush, bush won’t give good little sparrow a
swing.”––“We won’t!” said the people.––Then the
sparrow went to the Tartars and said, “Tartars, Tartars, slay
people, people won’t kill wolf, wolf won’t eat goat, goat won’t
nibble bush, bush won’t give good little sparrow a swing.”––But
the Tartars said, “We won’t slay the people!” and the people
said, “We won’t kill the wolf!” and the wolf said, “I won’t
eat the goat!” and the goat said, “I won’t nibble the bush!”
and the bush said, “I won’t give the good little sparrow a
swing.”––“Go!” said the bush, “to the fire, for the
Tartars won’t slay the people, and the people won’t kill the
wolf, and the wolf won’t eat the goat, and the goat won’t nibble
the bush, and the bush won’t give the dear little sparrow a
swing.”––But the fire also said, “I won’t!” (they were
all alike)––“go to the water,” said he.––So the sparrow
went to the water and said, “Come water, quench fire, fire won’t
burn Tartars, Tartars won’t slay people, people won’t kill wolf,
wolf won’t eat goat, goat won’t nibble bush, bush won’t give
good little sparrow a swing.”––But the water also said, “I
won’t!” So the sparrow went to the ox and said, “Ox, ox, drink
water, water won’t quench fire, fire won’t burn Tartars, Tartars
won’t slay people, people won’t kill wolf, wolf won’t eat goat,
goat won’t nibble bush, bush won’t give little sparrow a
swing.”––“I won’t!” said the ox.––Then the sparrow
went to the pole-axe and said, “Pole-axe, pole-axe, strike ox, ox
won’t drink water, water won’t quench fire, fire won’t burn
Tartars, Tartars won’t slay people, people won’t kill wolf, wolf
won’t eat goat, goat won’t nibble bush, bush won’t give little
sparrow a swing.”––“I won’t!” said the pole-axe.––So
the sparrow went to the worms and said, “Worms, worms, gnaw
pole-axe, pole-axe won’t strike ox, ox won’t drink water, water
won’t quench fire, fire won’t burn Tartars, Tartars won’t slay
people, people won’t kill wolf, wolf won’t eat goat, goat won’t
nibble bush, bush won’t give little sparrow a swing.”––“We
won’t!” said the worms.––Then the sparrow went to the hen and
said, “Hen, hen, peck worms, worms won’t gnaw pole-axe, pole-axe
won’t strike ox, ox won’t drink water, water won’t quench fire,
fire won’t burn Tartars, Tartars won’t slay people, people won’t
kill wolf, wolf won’t eat goat, goat won’t nibble bush, bush
won’t give little sparrow a swing.”––“I won’t!” said
the hen, “but go to the sparrow-hawk, he ought to give the first
push, or why is he called the Pusher!”[14]––So
the sparrow went to the sparrow-hawk and said, “Come, pusher, seize
hen, hen won’t peck worms, worms won’t gnaw pole-axe, pole-axe
won’t strike ox, ox won’t drink water, water won’t quench fire,
fire won’t burn Tartars, Tartars won’t slay people, people won’t
kill wolf, wolf won’t eat goat, goat won’t nibble bush, bush
won’t give little sparrow a swing.”
Then the sparrow-hawk began to seize the hen, the hen began to
peck the worms, the worms began to gnaw the pole-axe, the pole-axe
began to hit the ox, the ox began to drink the water, the water began
to quench the fire, the fire began to burn the Tartars, the Tartars
began to slay the people, the people began to kill the wolf, the wolf
began to eat the goat, the goat began to nibble the bush, and the
bush cried out:
|
“Swing away, swing away, swi-i-i-i-ing!
Little daddy
sparrow, have your fli-i-i-ing!”
|
THE OLD DOG
THE OLD DOG
There was once a man who had a dog. While the dog was young he was
made much of, but when he grew old he was driven out of doors. So he
went and lay outside the fence, and a wolf came up to him and said,
“Doggy, why so down in the mouth?”––“While I was young,”
said the dog, “they made much of me; but now that I am old they
beat me.” The wolf said, “I see thy master in the field; go after
him, and perchance he’ll give thee something.”––“Nay,”
said the dog, “they won’t even let me walk about the fields now,
they only beat me.”––“Look now,” said the wolf, “I’m
sorry, and will make things better for thee. Thy mistress, I see, has
put her child down beneath that wagon. I’ll seize it, and make off
with it. Run thou after me and bark, and though thou hast no teeth
left, touzle me as much as thou canst, so that thy mistress may see
it.”
So the wolf seized the child, and ran away with it, and the dog
ran after him, and began to touzle him. His mistress saw it, and made
after them with a harrow, crying at the same time, “Husband,
husband! the wolf has got the child! Gabriel, Gabriel! don’t you
see? The wolf has got the child!” Then the man chased the wolf, and
got back the child. “Brave old dog!” said he; “you are old and
toothless, and yet you can give help in time of need, and will not
let your master’s child be stolen.” And henceforth the woman and
her husband gave the old dog a large lump of bread every day.
THE FOX AND THE CAT
THE FOX AND THE CAT
In a certain forest there once lived a fox, and near to the fox
lived a man who had a cat that had been a good mouser in its youth,
but was now old and half blind. The man didn’t want puss any
longer, but not liking to kill it, took it out into the forest and
lost it there. Then the fox came up and said, “Why, Mr Shaggy
Matthew! How d’ye do! What brings you here?”––“Alas!”
said Pussy, “my master loved me as long as I could bite, but now
that I can bite no longer and have left off catching mice––and I
used to catch them finely once––he doesn’t like to kill me, but
he has left me in the wood where I must perish miserably.”––“No,
dear Pussy!” said the fox; “you leave it to me, and I’ll help
you to get your daily bread.”––“You are very good, dear
little sister foxey!” said the cat, and the fox built him a little
shed with a garden round it to walk about in.
Now one day the hare came to steal the man’s cabbage.
“Kreem-kreem-kreem!” he squeaked. But the cat popped his head out
of the window, and when he saw the hare, he put up his back and stuck
up his tail and said, “Ft-t-t-t-t-Frrrrrrr!” The hare was
frightened and ran away and told the bear, the wolf, and the wild
boar all about it. “Never mind,” said the bear, “I tell you
what, we’ll all four give a banquet, and invite the fox and the
cat, and do for the pair of them. Now, look here! I’ll steal the
man’s mead; and you, Mr Wolf, steal his fat-pot; and you, Mr
Wildboar, root up his fruit-trees; and you, Mr Bunny, go and invite
the fox and the cat to dinner.”
So they made everything ready as the bear had said, and the hare
ran off to invite the guests. He came beneath the window and said,
“We invite your little ladyship Foxey-Woxey, together with Mr
Shaggy Matthew, to dinner”––and back he ran again.––“But
you should have told them to bring their spoons with them,” said
the bear.––“Oh, what a head I’ve got! if I didn’t quite
forget!” cried the hare, and back he went again, ran beneath the
window and cried, “Mind you bring your spoons!”––“Very
well,” said the fox.
So the cat and the fox went to the banquet, and when the cat saw
the bacon, he put up his back and stuck out his tail, and cried,
“Mee-oo, mee-oo!” with all his might. But they thought he said,
“Ma-lo, ma-lo[15]!”––“What!”
said the bear, who was hiding behind the beeches with the other
beasts, “here have we four been getting together all we could, and
this pig-faced cat calls it too little! What a monstrous cat he must
be to have such an appetite!” So they were all four very
frightened, and the bear ran up a tree, and the others hid where they
could. But when the cat saw the boar’s bristles sticking out from
behind the bushes he thought it was a mouse, and put up his back
again and cried, “Ft! ft! ft! Frrrrrrr!” Then they were more
frightened than ever. And the boar went into a bush still farther
off, and the wolf went behind an oak, and the bear got down from the
tree, and climbed up into a bigger one, and the hare ran right away.
But the cat remained in the midst of all the good things and ate
away at the bacon, and the little fox gobbled up the honey, and they
ate and ate till they couldn’t eat any more, and then they both
went home licking their paws.
[14]
Shulyak means both sparrow-hawk and push.
[15]
What a little! What a little!
***
Looking at the many former countries gobbled up by the old Soviet Union, let's hope these "Cossacks" remain free to choose their own destiny. history, and culture.
Just found this link for resources to discuss the invasion of the Ukraine with young people, including military families.
********************
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.
Other
Public Domain story resources I recommend-
There
are many online resources for Public Domain stories, maybe none for
folklore is as ambitious as fellow storyteller, Yoel Perez's
database, Yashpeh,
the International Folktales Collection. I have long
recommended it and continue to do so. He has loaded
Stith Thompson's Motif Index into his server as a database so
you can search the whole 6 volumes for whatever word or expression
you like by pressing one key. http://folkmasa.org/motiv/motif.htm
- You may have noticed I'm no
longer certain Dr. Perez has the largest database, although his
offering the Motif Index certainly qualifies for those of us seeking
specific types of stories. There's another site, FairyTalez
claiming to be the largest, with "over 2000 fairy tales,
folktales, and fables" and they are "fully optimized for
phones, tablets, and PCs", free and presented without ads.
Between those two sites, there
is much for story-lovers, but as they say in infomercials, "Wait,
there's more!"
The
email list for storytellers, Storytell,
discussed Online Story Sources and came up with these additional
suggestions:
-
Story-Lovers - http://www.story-lovers.com/ is now only accessible
through the Wayback Machine, described below, but the late Jackie Baldwin's
wonderful site lives on there, fully searchable manually (the Google
search doesn't work), at https://archive.org/ . It's not easy, but go to Story-lovers.com snapshot for October 22 2016 and you can click on SOS: Searching Out Stories to scroll down through the many story topics and click on the story topic that interests you.
You're
going to find many of the links on these sites have gone down, BUT
go to the Internet Archive
Wayback Machine to find some of these old links. Tim's
site, for example, is so huge probably updating it would be a
full-time job. In the case of Story-Lovers, it's great that
Jackie Baldwin set it up to stay online as long as it did after she
could no longer maintain it. Possibly searches maintained it.
Unfortunately Storytell list member, Papa Joe is on both Tim
Sheppard's site and Story-Lovers, but he no longer maintains his old
Papa Joe's Traveling Storytelling Show website and his Library
(something you want to see!) is now only on the Wayback Machine. It
took some patience working back through claims of snapshots but finally
in December of 2006 it appears!
Somebody
as of this writing whose stories can still be found by his website
is the late Chuck Larkin - http://chucklarkin.com/stories.html.
I prefer to list these sites by their complete address so they can
be found by the Wayback Machine, a.k.a. Archive.org, when that
becomes the only way to find them.
You
can see why I recommend these to you. Have fun
discovering even more stories!
