Folklore (in translation from Eng."folklore" means "folk wisdom") is a folk art that embraces all cultural layers of society. The life of people, their views, ideals, moral principles - all this is reflected both in artistic folklore (dance, music, literature) and in material (clothing, kitchen utensils, dwelling).
Back in 1935, the great Russian writer MaximGorky, speaking at the First Congress of Writers of the USSR, accurately described folklore and its significance in public life: "... the most profound artistic images of heroes exist in folklore, oral creativity of the people." Svyatogor and Mikula Selyaninovich, Vasilisa the Wise, ironic Ivanushka the fool who never disheartened, Petrushka, who always conquers all. "These images are created by folklore and they are an inseparable part of the life and culture of our society."
Folklore ("people's knowledge") is a separatethe scientific discipline on which research is conducted, abstracts are created, theses are written. In Russian literature of the 19th century, the terms "folk poetry" and "folk literature" were widely used.
Oral folk art, genres of folklore
Songs, fairy tales, legends, bylinas are far from beingfull list. Oral folk art is an extensive layer of Russian culture that has been formed over the centuries. Genres of folklore are divided into two main directions - non-order and ritual.
The category of ritual folklore includes the following types:
- Calendar - Carnival, Christmas carols, spring songs and other examples of folk songs.
- Family folklore - wedding songs, lamentations, lullabies, family stories.
- Occasional - spells, counters, conspiracies, zalichki.
The folklore of the uncultivated includes four groups:
1. Folk drama - religious, vertepnaya, the theater of Petrushka.
2. Folk poetry - ballads, epics, spiritual verses, lyric songs, ditties, children's songs-poems.
3Folklore prose is divided into fabulous and unspeakable. The first includes fairy tales about animals, household, magic, fairy tale chains (for example, the story about Kolobka). Non-fabulous prose is life stories telling about human encounters with images of Russian demonology — mermaids and watermen, sorcerers and witches, ghouls and ghouls. This subcategory also includes stories about the shrines and wonders of the Christian faith, about higher powers. Forms of fiction prose:
- legends;
- mythological stories;
- epics;
- dream books;
- legends;
4. Folklore verbal speech: patter, good wishes, nicknames, proverbs, curses, riddles, teasers, sayings.
The genres of folklore, examples of which are given here, are considered major.
Folklore genres in literature
These are poems and prose - epics,fairy tales, legends. Many literary forms belong to folklore, which reflects three main directions: dramatic, lyrical and epic. Of course, the genres of folklore in literature are not limited to this, there are much more of them, but the listed categories are a kind of empiricism that has been developed over the years.
Dramatic images
To dramatic folk art includefolk dramas in the form of fairy tales with an unfavorable development and a happy ending. Any legend in which the struggle between good and evil takes place can be dramatic. The characters defeat each other with varying success, but in the end the good triumphs.
Genres of folklore in literature. Epic component
Russian folklore (epic) is based onhistorical songs with an extensive theme, when guslars can tell stories about life in Russia for silent strings for hours. This is a true folk art, passed down from generation to generation. In addition to literary folklore with music, there is folklore, legends and epics, legends and tales.
Эпическое искусство обычно тесно переплетается с dramatic genre, since all the adventures of the epic heroes of the Russian land are somehow connected with battles and feats in honor of justice. The main representatives of the epic folklore are the Russian warriors, among whom Ilya Muromets and Dobrynya Nikitich stand out, and also the imperturbable Alyosha Popovich.
Genres of folklore, examples of which can be citedad infinitum, are built on heroes fighting monsters. Sometimes an inanimate object with fabulous power helps the hero. This could be a quadened sword, chopping the dragon's head at one go.
Epic tales tell about the colorfulcharacters - Baba Yaga, living in a hut on chicken legs, Vasilisa the Beautiful, Ivane Tsarevich, who is nowhere without the Gray Wolf, and even about Ivan the Fool - a happy fairy-tale character with an open Russian soul.
Lyrical form
This folk genre includes worksfolk art is mostly ceremonial: love songs, lullabies, funny chastooshkas and lamentations. Much depends on intonation. Even sentences, spells, frills with the purpose of bewitching a loved one, and those can sometimes be counted among the folklore lyrics.
Folklore and authorship
Works of fabulous literary genre(author) often can not be formally attributed to folklore, such as "The Tale of the Horse-Gorbunka" by Yershov or the tale of Bazhov "The Copper Mountain Mistress" due to their belonging to a certain writer. Nevertheless, these stories have their own folklore source, were told somewhere and by someone in one form or another, and then transferred by the writer to a book form.
Folklore genres, examples of which are well known,popular and recognizable, do not need clarification. The reader can easily figure out which of the authors came up with their story, and who borrowed it from the past. Another thing is when the genres of folklore, examples of which are well-known to most readers, are challenged by someone. In this case, experts should understand and make competent conclusions.
Controversial art forms
There are examples when the tales of modern authorsin its structure they literally ask for folklore, but at the same time it is known that the plot has no sources from the depths of folk art, but it was invented by the author himself from beginning to end. For example, the work of Edward Uspensky "Three in Prostokvashino." There is a folk outline - one postman Pechkin is worth something. And the story itself is fabulous in essence. However, if authorship is defined, then folklore affiliation can only be conditional. Although many authors believe that differences are not at all necessary, art is art, regardless of form. What genres of folklore coincide with the literary canons, can be determined by a number of signs.
The difference between folklore and literary works
Literary works, such as the novel,story, story, essay, are measured, unhurried narration. The reader gets the opportunity to analyze what they read while going deep into the idea of the plot. Folklore works are more impulsive, moreover, they contain only their inherent elements, such as, admonition, beginnings, chatter or singing. Often the narrator slows down the action for greater effect, applies the duality or triplicity of the narration. Open folklore is widely used in folklore, sometimes even accented. In the course of parallelism and exaggeration. All these techniques are organic for folklore works, although completely unacceptable in the ordinary literature.
Different nations that are incompatiblementality, often unite the factors of a folk character. Folk art contains universal motives, such as, for example, the common desire of all to harvest a good harvest. Both the Chinese and the Portuguese think of this, although they live at different ends of the mainland. The population of many countries combines the pursuit of a peaceful existence. Since people are everywhere the same in nature, their folklore is not much different, if not to refer to external signs.
Geographical proximity of different nationalitiespromotes convergence, and this process also begins with folklore. First of all, cultural ties are established, and only after the spiritual unification of the two peoples do politicians come to the fore.
Small genres of Russian folklore
Small folk works usuallydesigned for children. A child does not perceive a long story or a fairy tale, but with pleasure he listens to the story of the Gray Top, which can grasp the flank. In the process of raising children, small genres of Russian folklore appeared. Each work of this form contains a special semantic grain, which in the course of the narrative turns into either morality or a small morale.
However, the majority of small forms of the folklore genre are useful chants, songs, and jokes for the development of a child. There are 5 genres of folklore that are successfully used in raising children:
- Lullaby is the most ancient way to lull a child. Usually the melody melody is accompanied by the rocking of the cradle or crib, so it is important to find the rhythm while singing.
- Pestushki - simple rhymes, melodious wishes, affectionate parting words, soothing lamentations for a newly awakened child.
- Rhymes - recitative songs accompanying the game with baby's arms and legs. Contribute to the development of the child, encourage him to action in an unobtrusive game form.
- Jokes - short tales, often in verses,funny and sonorous, which the mother tells her children every day. Growing up kids need to tell jokes according to their age, so that the children understand every word.
- Readators are small rhymes that develop well the arithmetic abilities of a child. They are an obligatory part of collective children's games when you need to draw.
