Lane - An Illiterate Schoolmaster - Keeping the Public in Public Domain

I couldn't resist this story of "An Illiterate Schoolmaster" from the many tales commonly called The Arabian Nights.  It stands on its own, but I always would encourage finding as many translations as possible before re-telling.

Edward William Lane did this version and the Wikipedia article gives an interesting insight into how this 19th century British son of a minister and grandnephew of the artist, Gainsborough, came to fall in love with Egypt and move there. 

As the article mentions, there are varying opinions on his translations.  Such opinions seem to follow the many interpretations of these stories, but it's also interesting to compare the way a translator working in the 19th century differs from contemporary versions by Husain Haddawy and still more from re-tellings for children or oral storytelling.

Lane calls it an anecdote and he includes annotations in this story of a slippery trickster.  The annotations, unfortunately, are in a smaller font

 

Gifted author and anthologist  Carolyn Sherwin Bailey has so many books in Public Domain, the trick is selecting just one of her many offerings.  That will be a tough choice, so check back to see what appears.

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This is part of a series of bi-weekly posting 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.  I hope you enjoy discovering new stories. 

Currently I'm involved in projects taking me out of my usual work of sharing stories with an audience.  My own library of folklore includes so many books within the Public Domain I decided to share stories from them.  This fall I expect to return to my normal monthly posting of a research project here.  Depending on response, I will decide at that time if "Keeping the Public in Public Domain" should continue along with my monthly postings. 

Andersen - It's Perfectly True! - Keeping the Public in Public Domain

There have been many translations of the master storyteller, Hans Christian Andersen.  This is by Mrs. H.B. Paull.  I encourage you to compare many of them before telling this story.  One change I make when telling this story is to make a refrain of "It's Perfectly True!" every time the story is retold.  You will notice that isn't the way Mrs. Paull handled it.  I was unsuccessful in getting a completely readable copy from my own very old and undated copy, but love the story I went prowling online versions of her work.  There seem to have been many.  My copy titles the story, "It Is Quite True", but nowhere could I find that.  The story is so delightful that the best and clearest version that claims to be by her in 1872 is "There Is No Doubt About It."  You'll have to click the link to see it, but it's worth it!

Her translation is different there from in my book.  My suspicion is that she loved this and other Andersen tales so much she kept trying to get it exactly right.

Similarly many have tried to get the Arabian Nights stories exactly right.  Next time we'll look at a tale of an Illiterate Schoolmaster. 

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This is part of a series of bi-weekly posting 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.  I hope you enjoy discovering new stories. 

Currently I'm involved in projects taking me out of my usual work of sharing stories with an audience.  My own library of folklore includes so many books within the Public Domain I decided to share stories from them.  This fall I expect to return to my normal monthly posting of a research project here.  Depending on response, I will decide at that time if "Keeping the Public in Public Domain" should continue along with my monthly postings. 

Allen - The Enchanted Wine-Jug; or Why the Cat and Dog Are Enemies - Keeping the Public in Public Domain

My daughters are Korean and as a result I've especially enjoyed collections of Korean folktales.  It's interesting to see how their stories are the same and different.  I've told a version of Why Cats and Dogs Are Enemies before discovering this Korean tale, but love the way this combines the explanation of their enmity with yet another theme: a magic object that continually replenishes itself.  The two make for a richer, more detailed story as collected by H.N. Allen, M.D. in Korean Tales; Being a Collection of Stories Translated from the Korean Folk Lore, 1889.

I also confess that in telling this story, there are ways I would condense or simplify the written version.  See what you think.

And now you know why.

Next will be my favorite story by Hans Christian Andersen.  Unlike this tale, it's quite short.  Watch for it!
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This is part of a series of bi-weekly posting 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.  I hope you enjoy discovering new stories. 

Currently I'm involved in projects taking me out of my usual work of sharing stories with an audience.  My own library of folklore includes so many books within the Public Domain I decided to share stories from them.  This fall I expect to return to my normal monthly posting of a research project here.  Depending on response, I will decide at that time if "Keeping the Public in Public Domain" should continue along with my monthly postings. 

Alden - Fairies' Weather - Keeping the Public in Public Domain

Here is a great story for all those times when we wish to change the weather.  This comes from the book, The Boy Who Found the King by Raymond MacDonald Alden.  I would also recommend that title story, too, but couldn't resist, at this time when spring transitions back and forth from winter to summer, a look at weather.  Alden wrote many stories and verse, but is best known for his Christmas story, Why the Chimes Rang -- both the book and title story.  It was even made into a one-act play.  If this selection leads you to try reading some of the other stories in any of these books then I have succeeded in keeping the work of these authors alive.  That is the intended purpose of Public Domain!

Search online to borrow a copy of the book.  It was later republished as Once There Was a King; A Tournament of Stories.  The illustrator for that version, however, is Evelyn Copelman.  As of this writing, May 18, 2013, none of the public domain sites have yet added The Boy Who Found the King.  Interlibrary loan and antiquarian book dealers currently are your only way to see the book.

I included the illustration from the original book by W.R. Lohse.  Personally I pictured the girl far younger since Alden calls her a "little girl", but love the old fashioned style having her look medieval.  The book has a medieval framework of stories called "A Tournament of Stories", letting the stories be part of a storytelling contest.

 

 

 

I dropped the frame that followed the story where the children involved in the Tournament of Stories comment.  It may give the book a structure, but is unrelated to the tale of "Fairies' Weather."

Next will be a Korean tale looking at that old rivalry between dogs and cats, but it's part of yet a larger theme.  I hope you'll look for it.

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This is part of a series of bi-weekly posting 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.  I hope you enjoy discovering new stories. 

Currently I'm involved in projects taking me out of my usual work of sharing stories with an audience.  My own library of folklore includes so many books within the Public Domain I decided to share stories from them.  This fall I expect to return to my normal monthly posting of a research project here.  Depending on response, I will decide at that time if "Keeping the Public in Public Domain" should continue along with my monthly postings. 

Alcott - The Frost King and How the Fairies...Keeping the Public in Public Domain

Louisa May Alcott started her writing career as a teenager telling stories to her younger sisters and neighbor children.  They were so popular that she wrote and published them as Flower Fables, opening the door for her successful novels.  Years later they were again published in Lulu's Library, along with other stories "Aunt Lulu" told her young niece.  We may find for re-telling that they need a bit of condensing, but they are interesting fantasies that still hold potential.  This is the longest story to be told here so far.

I hope you enjoyed this view of early "Aunt Lulu" and an interesting fairy tale.

The next story may have fairies and weather, but is very different.  It's a great story for anybody who has wished for the ability to change the weather.

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This is part of a series of bi-weekly posting 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.  I hope you enjoy discovering new stories. 

Currently I'm involved in projects taking me out of my usual work of sharing stories with an audience.  My own library of folklore includes so many books within the Public Domain I decided to share stories from them.  This fall I expect to return to my normal monthly posting of a research project here.  Depending on response, I will decide at that time if "Keeping the Public in Public Domain" should continue along with my monthly postings. 

Afanas'ev - Tale of the Dead - Keeping the Public in Public Domain

A favorite spooky tale is the Irish story of "Mary Culhane and the Dead Man" which can be found online at the late great storyteller Chuck Larkin's website.  Click on Stories on his sidebar and then go down to Halloween Stories to find it.  In print, it's in Betsy Bang's The Goblins Giggle, and Other Stories.  Imagine my delight and fascination to find this Russian version in the works of Aleksandr Afanas'ev as collected by Leonard A. Magnus in Russian Folk-Tales.

Obviously the translation is stripped to its essentials.  For other works of Afanas'ev there are the very tellable tales in Arthur Ransome's Old Peter's Russian Tales.  In addition there's the Pantheon volume translated by Norbert Guterman, Russian Fairy Tales.  According to a search I did a while back, that 1945 title is also Public Domain.  Both Magnus and Guterman keep to strict translation.  Much later, I want to post one of Ransome's versions.

But for now, look for something by "Aunt Lulu", Louisa May Alcott, in something very different from her Little Women et al.   Until then let's all be Keeping the Public in Public Domain.

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This is part of a series of bi-weekly posting 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.  I hope you enjoy discovering new stories. 

Currently I'm involved in projects taking me out of my usual work of sharing stories with an audience.  My own library of folklore includes so many books within the Public Domain I decided to share stories from them.  This fall I expect to return to my normal monthly posting of a research project here.  Depending on response, I will decide at that time if "Keeping the Public in Public Domain" should continue along with my monthly postings. 

John Tenniel's look at Aesop - Keeping the Public in Public Domain

Today's story is not unknown, although many stories I will be sharing are unusual discoveries.  I recently heard it mentioned on the t.v. show, The Good Wife.  The judge had to make a decision on an election ruling and referred to it.  Similarly that storyteller, Abraham Lincoln, must have known it.  I've heard the quote given as "You can please some of the people some of the time, all of the people some of the time, some of the people all of the time, but you can never please all of the people all of the time."  More frequently the word "fool" is used than "please", but either would certainly fit a politician.

So you may know today's story, but thought you'd enjoy the view of it by John Tenniel.  The book doesn't name the anthologer of Aesop's Fables, nor does it give a publication date by Grosset and Dunlap, but Sir John Tenniel died in 1914 and is best known for his illustration of the Alice in Wonderland stories.

Enjoy!

May this story please you and come back next for a Russian version of the spooky Irish tale, Mary Culhane and the Dead Man.

This is part of a series of bi-weekly posting 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.  I hope you enjoy discovering new stories. 

Currently I'm involved in projects taking me out of my usual work of sharing stories with an audience.  My own library of folklore includes so many books within the Public Domain I decided to share stories from them.  This fall I expect to return to my normal monthly posting of a research project here.  Depending on response, I will decide at that time if "Keeping the Public in Public Domain" should continue along with my monthly postings.