Children's Folklore and Adult's Folklore

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(2) D o ro ta S im onides. C hildren’s F olklore and A d u lts’ Folklore F o lk lo re h as b eco m e such a n a m b ig u o u s term w ith so m any d ifferen t m ean in g s th a t a n y o n e w ho is d ealin g w ith th a t d o m a in o f c u ltu re feels o b lig ed to sta te clearly his o w n p o in t o f view o n the m a tte r. T h is is a ll th e m o re necessary since in P o la n d in o rd e r to b eco m e a specialist in fo lk lo re you have to ta k e u p research on y o u r o w n a fte r stu d y in g an a rts su b ject. T h is fact influences the ch o ice o f th e aspects o f fo lk lo re w hich are stu d ied (a m usicologist will stu d y m usical folk lo re, an e th n o g ra p h e r —th e fo lk lo re o f ethnic c o m m u n itie s, a literary critic —fo lk lo re in literatu re , etc.), an d there is a p a rtic u la r in terest in th o se asp ects w hich are re late d to the re se a rc h er’s line o f stu d ies o r p ro fessio n . A g ro w in g n u m b er o f p eo p le in te re ste d in fo lk lo re are u n d e rta k ing the task o f estab lish in g a u n ifo rm term in o lo g y , since otherw ise th e resu lts o f fo lk lo re stu d ies will n o t be c o m m u n ic a tiv e , w hich co uld lead to th e a p p e a ra n c e o f m an y differen t “stu d ies o f fo lk lo re .” T h is m a tte r is a lrea d y being d iscussed in som e research c e n tre s .1 H o w ev er, it is n o t easy to arriv e a t a co n siste n t in te rp re ta tio n o f te rm in o lo g y o n a c c o u n t o f d iverging a im s a n d the fact th a t there a re m an y d ifferen t co n cep ts o f folk lo re. T h e effectiveness o f research an d th e fu rth e r dev elo p m en t o f fo lk lo re stu d ies d e m a n d also th a t th e c o n te n t a n d scope o f the term s u sed be clearly defined. It o fte n h a p p en s, h ow ever, th a t w hen using th e w o rd “fo lk lo re ” we refer to differen t d o m a in s o f c u ltu re o r 1 See F. L. U t l e y , Folk L ite r a tu re — An O p era tio n a l Definition. In P olish transl. by E. A um er and M. W aliriski, “ Literatura L u d o w a ,” 1974, no. 1. p. 45..

(3) 94. D o ro ta Sim onides. their v a rio u s aspects. Since the m a te ria ls w hich are stu d ie d in the p resen t w o rk m ay also p ro v o k e a discussion o n w h eth er o r n o t they are a p a rt o f fo lklo re, it is n ecessary to state precisely o u r p o in t o f view a n d a cc o u n t fo r it. E specially since ow ing to the ev er-in creas ing n u m b e r o f definitions o f fo lk lo re an d tra d itio n the m a tte r has b e com e even m o re co n fu sed in stead o f being cleared u p . T h e lack o f u n a n im ity ca n be seen in th e fact th a t a com prehensive, A m erican d ic tio n a ry o f f o lk lo re 2 c o n ta in s as m an y as 21 d efinitions o f the term , each by a different sch olar. T he la te F. L. U tley, an A m e ric an fo lk lore re se arc h er, fo rm er secretary general o f the In te rn a tio n a l Society fo r F o lk -N a rra tiv e R esearch , w hen lo o k in g fo r a w o rk in g definition, an aly zed all the existing o n es a n d drew a tte n tio n to th e vario u s o rie n ta tio n s , schools a n d cen tres w hich have diverging c o n c ep tio n s o f fo lk lo re .3 T h is exam ple s h o u ld m ak e us realize th a t th e lack o f p recisio n in defining fo lk lo re is q u ite general. T h e te rm “fo lk lo re ” alm o st fro m the very b eg in n in g , i.e. fro m the year 1846, has been a so u rce o f m any m isu n d ersta n d in g s. A t first its m ea n in g w as to o re stric te d , cov ering o nly a rtistic fo lk c u ltu re ; th en its scope was to o w ide, as it d e n o te d b o th the subject o f research a n d the stu d y o f fo lk lo re as su ch ; next it w as tre a te d as a sy n on ym o f “e th n o g ra p h y ” o r o f “e th n o lo g y ,” a n d finally in v ario u s c o u n trie s its m ean in g w as lim ited o nly to the “o ra l p ro d u c tio n s o f the w o rk in g p e o p le .” T h e re have been m any a tte m p ts a t a b a n d o n in g the w o rd “fo lk lo re ,” b u t alw ays a fte r a w hile it w as used as b e fo re .4 It w o u ld a p p e a r th a t V. Y. G u sev , a R u ssian fo lk lo re resea rc h er, is rig h t w hen he w rites: “ It is d o u b tfu l w h eth er n o w a d a y s the use o f the w o rd ‘fo lk lo re ’ in its ety m o lo gical m ean in g w o u ld be ju stifiable, since th e h istory o f every term is irreversible a n d its real m ean in g in ev itab ly ch an g es w ith the d ev elop m en t o f the subject o f study an d w h at is know n a b o u t it.” 5 2 Funk a n d W agnalls S ta n d a rd D ictio n a ry o f F olklore, M y th o lo g y a n d Legend, vol. I, ed. M. L each, N ew Y ork 1949, p. 398 —403. 3 U t l e y , op. cit. 4 S ee V. Y . G u s e v , Folklor.. H istoria i aktu aln e zn aczen ie term inu (F olklore.. Its H isto ry a n d T o d a y ’s M eaning o f the Term ), transl. by T . Z ielich ow sk i, “ Litera tura L u d o w a ,” 1974, no. 4/5, p. 63. 5 V . Y. G u s e v , E ste ty k a fo lk lo ru (T h e A e sth etics o f F olklore), transl. by T. Z ie lich o w sk i, W roclaw 1974, p. 90..

(4) C h ild ren ’s an d A d u h s’ F olklore. 95. T h e n o tio n o f “fo lk lo re ” m u st have b eco m e deeply em b ed ed in th e c u ltu ra l co n scio usness o f m o d e rn m an , since we seldom realize th a t “the co m m o n p e o p le ” as a social class in th e n in e te e n th -c e n tu ry sense o f the w o rd no lo n g er exist, th o u g h we keep talk in g a b o u t th eir know ledge, th eir c u ltu re a n d skills. In the m ean tim e the second p a rt o f the w o rd “fo lk lo re ” h as gained im p o rta n c e , a n d this h as led to a w idening o f the field o f research . W e m ay a d d th a t E nglish fo lk lo re research ers, w hen p re se n tin g th e fo lk lo re o f a given social g ro u p , ta k e aw ay th e first h a lf o f th e w o rd “fo lk lo re ” a n d rep lace it w ith the nam e o f the social g ro u p w hich is being stu d ied . T h u s fo r ex am p le a m o n o g ra p h o n th e fo lk lo re o f ch ild re n h as been given the title The Lore o f C hildren. 6 In this case “ lo re ” does n o t refer to th e e n tire su b c u ltu re c rea te d by ch ild re n , b u t o nly to w h at we in P o la n d call fo lk lo re. Since we do n o t have any o th e r term a t o u r disp o sal, we give th e n am e o f “fo lk lo re ” to any unofficial texts p ro d u c e d by a given g ro u p a n d passed o n by w o rd o f m o u th . W e m ay th ere fo re sp eak o f the fo lk lo re o f m in ers, steelw o rkers a n d p o tte rs ; o f w o rk in g -class, c o u n try a n d to w n fo lk lo re ; o f the fo lk lo re o f c e rta in v o c a tio n s o r social sp h eres; o f the fo lk lo re o f different age g ro u p s: sc h o o l c h ild re n , stu d en ts, etc. T h e folk lo re o f a social g ro u p is g enerally b ase d o n tra d itio n a l p e a s a n ts’ fo lk lo re, th o u g h we sh o u ld keep in m in d th a t in te rn a tio n al m o tifs fo rm the s u b stra tu m o f tra d itio n a l fo lk lo re —they are n o t c re a te d by the p eople, b u t o n ly a d o p te d a n d tra n sfo rm e d by them . T h is tra d itio n a l fo lk lo re has given b irth to all the varieties o f fo lk lo re w hich are lin k ed w ith v o c a tio n a l circles o r social spheres. Jo in t w o rk , co m m o n in terests, the sam e level o f kn ow ledge a n d a sim ilar a ttitu d e to w a rd s life help to fo rm g ro u p s w hose m em b ers have a sen se o f b elo n g ing a n d sim ilar needs. T h is k in d o f g ro u p ch erishes its ritu a ls, cu sto m s, its lite ra tu re reflecting its v o c a tio n a l interests, a n d th e type o f w o rk h a n d e d d o w n by tra d itio n . O n th e ir basis the m em b ers o f the g ro u p c re a te new c u sto m s a n d lite ra tu re in a c c o rd ance w ith their needs. T h e fact o f rea ch in g o u t fo r tra d itio n a l ideas in o rd e r to revive them , en rich th em w ith c o n te m p o ra ry , m o re co m m u n ic a tiv e realities, b re a th e new life in to them —this fact d e m o n stra te s the vivid, ever-active fo rce o f fo lk lo re a n d c o n stitu te s an in cessan t act o f creatin g , o f re in te rp re tin g tra d itio n . T o d a y it h as 6 1. and P. O p ie , The L o re a n d L anguage o f S ch oolch ildren , O xford 1959, p. 417..

(5) 96. D orota Sim onides. becom e o b v io u s th a t fo lk lo re c a n n o t be identified w ith those w ho pass it o n o r w ith the social c o n d itio n s w hich in the p ast have given b irth to fo lk lo re. T h e fa ct th a t o ld p eople die o r th a t social c o n d itio n s c h an g e does n o t m ean th a t fo lk lo re has to disap p ear. R ecen t research c o n d u c te d n o t on ly in E u ro p e b u t all o v er the w orld h as clearly sh o w n th a t the m o st in d u strialize d u rb a n societies create a n d h a n d d o w n th e ir ow n fo lk lo re, w hich, th o u g h it is well ro o te d in tra d itio n , c o n ta in s w holly new ideas. M uch o f w h at h as been h an d e d d o w n h as c h a n g e d its fu n c tio n a n d has a d a p te d itself to c o n te m p o ra ry m en tality a n d needs, so th a t it is difficult to d istin guish it from w h at is bein g p ro d u c e d to d a y .7 T h is m o dification, a d a p ta tio n a n d c o n s ta n t ch an g e w hich can be o b serv ed proves th at the w ho le p ro cess is very m uch alive. It is this o rg a n ic fo rce o f fo lk lo re w hich h as b eco m e th e o b ject o f n u m e ro u s discussions and m uch c o n tro v e rsy . T h e q u e stio n co n c ern in g the ch an g eab ility o f fo lk lo re is o f p a rtic u la r im p o rta n c e n o w adays, in this age o f m ass c u ltu re . T h o u g h as yet th ere are no studies w hich m ight show the re la tio n s b etw een fo lk lo re a n d m ass c u ltu re, there are, how ever, clearly visible ten d en cies to w a rd s w idening the scope o f the n o tio n o f “fo lk lo re ” so as to co v er novelties w hose o rig in is closely linked w ith th e m ass m ed ia, as for exam ple in the case o f television doggerels, w hich will be discussed later. T h ere exist c erta in c o m m o n featu res, w hich link u p these tw o varieties o f cu ltu re. A nd so for ex am p le fo lk lo re is k e p t alive by elem ents w hich have becom e to a g reat ex ten t objective a n d w hich suit the co m m u n ity in question.. In the sam e w ay in m ass cu ltu re all th a t is subjective a n d too in d iv id u al h as to be m ad e objective, as o nly then will it stan d a ch an ce o f success a n d m ay becom e w idely know n. It is then fo r these re a so n s th a t b o th fo lk lo re an d m ass c u ltu re reach o u t for u n iv ersal, w ell-know n m otifs, w hich suit the m ajo rity . B oth fo lk lo re an d m ass c u ltu re ow e th e ir p o p u la rity to sim ple, schem atic, alm ost 7 L.. D égh,. N eue Sagenerscheinungen. in der industriellen. U m w elt der. U SA,. [in:] P ro b lem e der Sagenforschung, ed. L. von R öh rich , Freiburg 1973, p. 3 4 —52; L. V i r t a n e n , S agen traditio n b e i Kindern, ibidem , p. 190 — 195; D. S i m o n i d e s , W spół czesn ość a tra d y cja w n ow szych opow iadaniach lu dow ych (C o n tem p o ra ry L ife an d Tra dition in T o d a y ’s F olklore), [in:] Z zagadnień tw ó rczo ści lu dow ej (P ro blem s o f Folklore), ed. by R . G ó rsk i, J. K rzyża n ow sk i, W roclaw 1972, p. 13 7— 153, Studia F o lk lo ry styczne..

(6) C h ild ren ’s an d A d u lts ’ Folklore. 97. black a n d w hite poetic m eans, w holly a d a p te d to the m en tality an d p ercep tiv e capab.ilities o f the public. Little w o n d er then th a t q u ite a large g ro u p o f fo lk lo re research ers are p o stu la tin g research into new , u n tra d itio n a l n a rra tiv e s c ircu latin g in so cie ty .8 T h is co n cern s b o th the re p e rto ire o f a d u lts a n d ch ild ren . In b o th cases the texts w hich are being tra n sm itte d have o rig in a te d in m ass cu ltu re. It is en o u g h th a t the given g ro u p o r sphere sh o u ld c o n sid e r them in teresting a n d th a t they sh o u ld suit the m ajo rity , fo r this assu res them a sp o n ta n e o u s o ral circu latio n . M o reo v er, in any p erio d o f histo ry, a p a rt fro m the classical types o f fo lk lo re w hich b elo n g to a great exten t to the in te rn a tio n a l re p e rto ire , th ere is a w hole g ro u p o f m otifs, o f them es, w hich are th e p ro d u c t o f a p a rtic u la r g e n e ra tio n , a p a rtic u la r p erio d , a n d w hich as it seem s m u st have answ ered the m en tal needs o f the co m m u n ity in q u e stio n since they p ro v ed to be so lasting. T h is is w h at has tu rn e d the in terest o f to d a y ’s fo lk lo re re se a rc h ers to w a rd s u n tra d itio n a l texts, p ro d u c e d directly in o u r tim es and o fte n sp re a d by the m ass m edia. In the U n ite d S tates, w here m ass c u ltu re is m ost developed, they have split up in to tw o g ro u p s, d e p e n d in g o n th eir a ttitu d e to w a rd s the new m o tifs w hich fu n c tio n in fo lk lo re a n d w hich are passed o n by w ord o f m o u th . T h e first g ro u p is m ade up o f tho se w ho include the p ro d u c ts o f m ass c u ltu re in fo lk lo re, for they see in them th e expression o f o u r tim es; the second is co n stitu te d by th o se w ho have se p ara ted them selves fro m the first g ro u p in the co n v ictio n th a t if the p ro d u c ts o f m ass c u ltu re are allow ed to e n te r folk lo re, it will cease to exist. T h e first g ro u p believe fo lk lo re to be d y n am ic, ev er-chang in g an d c a p a b le o f c o n s ta n t reb irth , the second lim it fo lk lo re to tra d itio n , to fo lk lo re p ro d u c e d by an illiterate, prim itiv e co m m u n ity . F o r them tra d itio n do es n o t m ean c o n sta n t selection a n d is n o t a ch an g in g process w hich req u ires incessant verification o f th e tra n sm itte d m otifs, b u t is a sy n on ym o f “ the a rc h a ic ,” o f “ s u p e rstitio n .” 9 T o these tw o com pletely o p p o se d views we m ay a d d a n o th e r, re. x T h is cou ld be seen at the C on gress o f F olk lore Stu d ies in P ragu e-L iblice in 1966. S ee H . B a u s i n g e r , G attungsdäm m erung. Tagung der E rzäh lforsch er in P rag, “S tu ttgarter Z e itu n g ,” 1966, n o. 210. g U t l e y , op. eit.. 1. -. L iterary Studies in P oland.

(7) 98. D orota Sim onides. p re se n te d by the w ell-know n C a n a d ia n sch o lar M c L u h a n . H e has in tro d u c e d the c o n cep t o f “ the fo lk lo re o f in d u strial m a n ,” w here fo lk lo re is n o t a p ro d u c t o f tra d itio n , a n d is n o t co m p o sed o f o ld elem ents, ch an g ed a n d b ro u g h t to life again, b u t is a p ro d u c t o f th e m ass m edia. W e c a n n o t h elp n oticing the to ta lly different s itu a tio n in w hich the text is p ro d u c e d in this case. W h at the m ass m ed ia offer o n television, in film s, in com ics a n d so o n is o ften accep ted th ro u g h lack o f a n y th in g else, how ever it all lacks the n ecessary sp o n ta n e ity a n d c o n c o rd a n c e w ith the needs o f the social g ro u p s w ho are the p o te n tia l c a rrie rs o f fo lk lo re .10 In this case fo lk lo re does n o t sp rin g up fro m th e c u ltu re o f a given gro u p , it does n o t express the a ttitu d e s, beliefs, b eh av io u r an d views o f the g ro u p , b u t only “the m a n a g e rs’” ideas o f the g ro u p ’s needs. O u t o f all the different views a n d o p in io n s, th a t o f F. L. U tley seem s m o st so u n d w hen he w rites: “folk lite ra tu re is lite ra tu re passed on by w o rd o f m o u th , in d e p e n d e n tly o f w here we m eet it: in p rim itiv e isolated a re a s o r in civilized c u ltu ra l o u tsk irts o f u rb a n o r c o u n try co m m u n ities, in the ru lin g o r su b o rd in a te classes.” 11 F a r aw ay fro m all these c o n tro v ersies a new, sp o n ta n e o u s k ind o f creativ ity is being develo p ed . T h o u g h it does n o t fit w ith in the b o u n d s o f the tra d itio n a l c o n cep t o f fo lk lo re, it has to be n o te d , c a ta lo g u ed an d stu d ied w ithin the field o f fo lk lo re. T h is is all the m ore necessary since in th e h isto ry o f fo lk lo re th ere have been cases o f c ertain genres, c ertain m otifs bein g left u n n o te d because they lay o u tsid e the accep ted definition o f fo lklo re. In o rd e r n o t to m ak e the sam e m istak e, we have to ex tend th e scope covered by the n o tio n o f fo lk lo re. N o o n e can g u a ra n te e th a t the new spo k en texts p ro d u c e d to d a y will n o t e n te r o u r c h ild re n ’s o ra l re p e rto ire fo r g o o d . T hey a p p e a r a n d fu n c tio n ac co rd in g to th e rules w hich fo r cen tu ries have been b in d in g in fo lk lore, in a c c o rd a n ce w ith the law s a n d th eo ry o f fo lk lo re. T h ey are subject to th e ev er-p resen t objective law s o f the p ro c e ss o f tra n s fo rm a tio n in fo lk lo re, w hich are in d e p e n d en t o f the will o f th e research er. E ven th o u g h we are aw are th a t n o t every th in g w hich circu lates a m o n g ch ild re n to d a y is in fact p ro d u c e d by th em , we. 10 See M. L on d on 1967.. M cL uhan.. 11 U t l e y , op. cit.. p. 56.. The. M ech an ical Bride.. F olklore. o f In du strial. M an ,.

(8) 99. C h ild ren ’s an d A d u lts’ F olklore. c o n sid er to be fo lk lo re all th o se o ra l texts w hich have a sp o n ta n e o u s c h a ra c te r, w hich ch ild ren sp read a ro u n d a n d feel to be th e ir ow n. F o r these reaso n s we sh o u ld p e rh a p s d ev ote a little tim e to d iscu ss ing th e w ays in w hich these texts an d these m o tifs reach th e re p e r to ire o f to d a y ’s ch ild ren . O nce we have discovered the so u rc e o f this re p erto ire , we shall be ab le to stud y the m ech an ism w hich leads to the a p p e a ra n ce o f new fo lk lo re , in o u r c a s e —c h ild re n ’s fo lk lo re, a n d this will pave th e w ay fo r stu dies o n the fo lk lo re o f a d u lts in the fu tu re. A lread y a t the stage w hen we w ere g a th erin g m ate rials a n d then w hen a re p o rt discussing som e o f the resu lts w as p resen te d in dif feren t research cen tres (S w itzerland, P o z n a ń , K a rp ac z), d o u b ts were expressed as to w h eth er these m a te ria ls c o u ld in fact be classed as fo lk lo re. In su p p o rt o f o u r arg u m en ts we th erefo re q u o te th e views o f several w ell-know n fo lk lo re researchers, w hich sh o u ld p rove once again th a t such d o u b ts are n o t ty pical o f o u r tim es o n ly , b ut th a t they have o ften been voiced in th e p ast, in every age and land. T h e usual q u estio n is: can th e texts w hich are p a rt o f c h ild re n ’s re p e rto ire be called c h ild re n ’s fo lk lo re ? U sin g the lan g u ag e o f fo lk lo re research ers a n d tra n sp o sin g ce rtain n o tio n s for o u r p u rp o se —fo lk lo re is all th a t h as been a c ce p ted by the p eo p le as th eir ow n . T h ese do n o t have to be o rig in a l folk m otifs, o r in o u r p a rtic u la r case: c h ild re n ’s m otifs. “F o lk lo r e —says the distin g u ish ed Ita lian fo lk lo re re search er M . B arbi —is all th a t the peop le m ake their ow n in th eir fa v o u rite form s, w hich are accep ted g ra d u a lly .” 12 T he p o p u la rity a n d d istrib u tio n o f a given fo rm is a w itness to the needs o f the c o m m u n ity in w hich it th riv es. T he a ttitu d e o f R u ssian research ers is very co n v in cin g : “T h e fact th a t cer ta in m otifs do n o t ta k e o rig in in the c o u n try sid e is n o t a t all im p o rta n t, the significant m a tte r is th eir fu n ctio n , th eir selection an d tra n s fo rm a tio n .” 1^ F inally it is im p o rta n t to n o te the fact th a t trad i-. 12 M. B a r b i,. q u oted from : G . C o c c h i a r a ,. S to ria d e l f o lk lo r e. in Europa.. In P olish : D zieje fo lk lo r y s ty k i w E uropie, transl. W . Jekiel, W arszaw a 1971. p. 554. o P. B o g a t y r e v . R . J a k o b s o n . Folklor ja k o sp ecyficzn a fo rm a tw ó rczo ści (F o lklo re a s a. Specific. Form. L u d o w a ,” 1974, n o. 3, p. 35.. o f E xpression ),. transl.. by. A.. Bereza,. “ Literatura.

(9) 100. D orota Sim onides. tio n al, collective m ean s o f expression are u s e d .14 In this sense all the o ra l texts circu la tin g am o n g ch ild ren are fo lk lo re. In th e p erio d betw een the w ars th ere a ro se a violent c o n tro versy a m o n g sch o lars c o n cern in g the creative p o te n tia l o f the low er classes. T h e o p in io n s expressed w ere th o se w hich h ad alrea d y been voiced in the year 1854, w hen R . B erw ihski’s b o o k O literaturze ¡udow ej i On Folk L itera tu re) 15 w as p u b lish ed . T h e w ell-know n G erm an e th n o lo g ist H . N a u m a n n p ro n o u n c e d then his fa m o u s sentence: “V o lk sg ut w ird in d er O b ersch ich t g e m a c h t.” 16 T h e m o st h o tly d e b ate d issue w as the creativ e ind ep en d en ce o f the people. T h e m otifs fu n c tio n in g in fo lk lo re w ere exam ined, a n d this show ed th a t m o st o f them h a d th eir source in the cu ltu re o f th e literary élite a n d in w ritten w orks. M o re a n d m o re p eo ple to o k p a rt in the d isc u ssio n ; how ever they sta rte d to stray from the subject o f fo lk lo re a n d focused th eir a tte n tio n o n b o rro w e d ideas in c u ltu re in general. W e m e n tio n this because the fact th a t q u e stio n s c o n cern in g th e o rig in o f p a rtic u la r m o tifs in fo lk lo re w ere shifted o u t o f the scope o f fo lk lo re research, the stress being p u t o n the social process o f the tra n sm issio n a n d re p ro d u c tio n o f o ra l texts, w as an excellent w ay o u t o f the im passe an d saved fo lk lo re research from being tran sfo rm e d into a b ra n ch o f k n o w ledge stu d y in g only “relics” an d “a rc h e ty p e s.” N o w ad ay s in m ost c o u n trie s “fo lk lo re ” im plies so m eth in g “tra n s fo rm ed by the p e o p le ” a n d not “c re a te d by the p e o p le .” 17 T his sam e view is rep resen ted by the o u ts ta n d in g P olish a u th o rity o n folk lo re, the late Ju lia n K rzyżan ow sk i. D iscussing folk tales, he w ro te: "It is n o t the source w hich d eterm in es w h eth er o r n o t a tale belongs to fo lklore, b u t the fact th a t it c ircu lates in o ra l tra d itio n a n d has been re c o rd e d .” Is F o llo w in g this line o f reaso n ing , let us stress o n ce again th a t we 14 See V. G u s e v , O k o llek tivn o sti v folk lore, [in:] S pecifik a fo lk lo rn y k h zhanrov, M oskva 1966, p. 19, Russkij F olk lor, vol. 10. 1' See R. B e r w i ń s k i , S tu dia o litera tu rze lu dow ej ze sta n ow isk a h istoryczn ej i n au kow ej k r y ty k i ( F olklore C on sidered fro m S ch o la rly C riticism ), P ozn ań 1854.. the P oin t o f View o f H isto rica l an d. 16 H . N a u m a n n , P rim itive G em einschaftskultur. B eiträg e zur M y th o lo g ie, Jena 1921.. V olkskunde und. 17 See the view s o f M. Pidal in: C o c c h i a r a , op. c it., p. 561. Is J. K r z y ż a n o w s k i , B ajka ludowa, [in:] S łow n ik fo lk lo r u p o lsk ie g o (A D ictio n ary o j P olish Folklore). W arszaw a 1965, p. 28..

(10) C h ildren ’s a n d A d u lts ’ Folklore. 101. c o n sid e r to be c h ild re n ’s fo lk lo re all the texts w hich circu late am o n g c h ild ren a n d have been tra n sfo rm e d by them in im itatio n o f w hat they them selves pro d u ce. In this situ a tio n every c u ltu ral fact, every text w hich is p o p u la r am o n g ch ild ren m ay becom e c h ild re n 's folklore if: a) it is know n to a wide co m m u n ity o f ch ild ren , b) circu lates in a sp o n ta n e o u s w ay, orally , c) has a collective an d .a n o n y m o u s ch aracter. T h ese featu res are generally ta k e n to be the c rite ria fo r a text to be p a rt o f fo lklore. A s to the first c o n d itio n , o u r in v estig atio n s have show n that in a given co m m u n ity som e texts a re so generally know n th at it w o uld in fact be en o ug h to d istrib u te a q u e stio n n a ire to o ne class o f sch o o lch ild ren in o rd e r to o b ta in a review o f the rep erto ire o f a ce rta in age g ro u p . All the c h ild re n listed the sam e texts w ith o n ly slight v ariatio n s. O f co u rse so m e o f th e pu p ils “copied from th eir n e ig h b o u r,” a n d as a resu lt several c h ild ren alm o st literally d u p lic a te d w hat th eir friends h a d w ritten i in clu ding m istakes). T his, h ow ever, does n o t ch an g e the fact th a t the re p e rto ire w as generally k n o w n , as this w as p ro v ed o ver an d o v er again. F o r if children do n o t like so m eth in g, then —as alw ays h a p p e n s in fo lk lo re —it does not sta n d a chance o f en terin g th eir c u rre n t rep erto ire. “T h e only way in w hich in d iv id ual in sp ira tio n —w rites B. M alinow ski —can becom e a c u ltu ra l reality is w hen it is c a p a b le o f sh ap in g the o p in io n o f a g ro u p .” 19 It m u st th erefo re be very stro n g o r suit the interests a n d needs o f the g ro u p . T h e lack o f social accep tan ce is an o b sta c le w hich c a n n o t be o v erco m e, a n d there is no use in keeping any texts artificially alive by p ro p a g a tin g them at school and in b o o k s .20 T h e second featu re —sp o n ta n e o u s o ra l c ir c u la tio n - is m ost clearly visible. T h e m o tifs fo u n d in the texts are sufficient p ro o f o f this. B esides, we k ep t co m in g across the fact th a t ch ild ren had a m anifest aw aren ess o f the d istinctness o f th eir re p e rto ire . W e were surprised to find o v er a n d o v er again th a t they w an te d to conceal from ad u lts m o st o f the texts from their re p e rto ire . T hey w ere glad th a t a d u lts d id n o t know w hat am u sed them . T h ey w ere p a rticu la rly delighted |l) B. M a l i n o w s k i , S zk ic e z teorii k u ltu ry i E ssays on the Theory o f Culture). W arszaw a 1958, p. 38. 20 B o g a t y r e v . J a k o b s o n . op. cit.. p. 32..

(11) 102. D orota Sim onides. to be able to show o ff w ith th eir “o w n ” language. T h is u sually co n sisted in d efo rm in g the stru c tu re o f a w o rd by ad d in g a few letters to each syllable, so th a t the u n in itia te d m igh t n o t be able to u n d e rsta n d . J. S. B ystroń w rites th a t such tra n sfo rm a tio n s, w hich have been know n fo r centuries, w ere at one tim e used in co n spiracy, an d he calls this lan g uage: “secret .can t.” H e a d d s how ever: “n o w ad ay s it is only used in sc h o o lc h ild re n ’s g am es.” 21 T h e th ird in v ariable featu re o f fo lk lo re —its an o n y m ity , an d at the sam e tim e collective c h a ra c ter, is also fully reflected in ch ild re n ’s folklore. A ccord in g to V. G usev, c o n te m p o ra ry fo lk lo re can include also those texts w hich have a definite a u th o r, no m a tte r if he is nam eless o r k n o w n by nam e, b u t w hich have been actively, creatively a d o p te d by a co m m u n ity an d subjected to tra n s fo rm a tio n s .22 Let us q u o te a n o th e r fo lk lo re re se a rc h er’s o p in io n on the m a tte r: “O n e m a n ’s song becom es e v e ry o n e 's song if w hen it is c o m p o sed it finds itself in the best p ossible c o n d itio n s fo r a long-lasting existence, a n d it is k ep t alive because it c o rre sp o n d s w ith the n a tu ra l feelings, cu sto m s an d tra d itio n s o f the p e o p le .” 2^ T h is is tru e in the case o f the tw o w ell-know n Polish songs Góra lu, czy ci nie ża l a n d C zerw ony pas. Few people rem e m b er th a t the first w as w ritten by M . B ałucki, th e second by J. K orzeniow ski. T h is confirm s the th eo ry th a t o ra l texts are p ro d u ce d by individuals, b u t passed o n a n d tra n sfo rm e d collectively. T h u s the m ere fact o f b rin gin g a m o tif into being by a n individual is not a sufficient creative act for folklore. W e m e n tio n e d th a t social a ccep tan ce w as necessary. W e sh ou ld keep in m in d th a t w ithin the ca d re o f this accep tan ce th ere is so m eon e w ho is the first to m ak e the text circu late, to include it in the c o m m u n ity 's re p erto ire . A m o n g ch ildren these individu als are generally those w ho enjoy a u th o rity in the gro u p . T h is is w hy so o ften w hen ask ed a b o u t the source o f a story, text, rid dle o r jin gle they had heard, the ch ild ren p o in te d to their “lead ers.” C h ild re n 's fo lk lo re is subject to the sam e rules, the sam e law s as the fo lk lo re o f ad u lts. It has. how ever, a different sto re o f them es an d - 1 J. S. B y s t r o ń . K om izm I The C om ic). W roclaw I960, p. 24. -- G u s e v , E stetyk a folkloru , p. 25. 2* C o c c h i a r a , op. cit., p. 389..

(12) C hildren's a n d A d u lts’ F olklore. 103. motifs, a different scale o f freq uency in the a p p e a ra n c e o f certain genres. In o r d e r to see the que stio n m o re clearly, it m ust be c o n sidered fro m yet a n o th e r angle. Basically there is only o n e k in d o f folklore, even thou gh we talk a b o u t the folklore o f different vo cation al gro up s, social spheres, age o r generation gro up s. T h is a p p r o a c h allow s us to see m o re clearly the p o sitio n o f ch ildren 's folklore. P. B ogatyrev a n d R. Ja k o b s o n , the R u ssian folklore researchers referred to earlier on, who studied fo lk lo re from this p o in t o f view, have state d w hat follows: “ B ecause o f their rep erto ire o f folklore, there are differences not only w ithin ethic a n d regional gro ups, b u t also w ithin g ro u p s whose division d e pe nd s o n : sex —m e n ’s a n d w o m e n ’s folklore, age —children, a do le sc e nts a n d old people, vo c a tio n —shepherds, fishermen, soldiers, crim in als, etc .” 24 F r o m the social p oint o f view, folklore is the sam e everywhere, its rules a n d tran sm issio n are alw ays the same. T h e repertoire, how ever, is different in every case, a n d it determ ines the n am e we m igh t give to the folklore o f a p a rtic u la r social o r vo cational group. It has to be stressed on ce again th at the n o tio n o f c h ild ren ’s folklore does not cover only those features which are typical o f child ren , b u t ab ov e all those ideas which are passed o n by them. So a p a r t from nursery rhym es a n d jingles there are also texts which be lo n g to o th e r reperto ires a n d o th e r social spheres, o r even literature. Since, how ever, you n g people have accepted them , since they have given th em their o w n “p o lis h ” a n d in te gra ted them into their re p e r toire, we have h a d to take these texts into c o n sid era tio n as well. T h e fo lklore o f a given social g ro u p , in o u r case basically two age g ro u p s, is expressed in a rep e rtoire k n o w n to the g r o u p ’s m e m bers, to a great extent shaped a n d m odified by them. Since it m ust agree with those m em bers, it m u st c o n ta in ideas which are acceptable to tljem. A s for the m e m b e rs representin g the folklore o f a gro u p — o r o f a v o c a ti o n —they c o n trib u te their o w n folklore, either the tr a d i tional kin d, h a n d e d d o w n in their respective families, o r th at o f their n earest circle o f friends. T h e folklore o f a g ro u p is then generally a s eco nd ary, h e tero geneo us kind o f folklore. It is b ased n o t o n o ne tra d itio n o r o n o n e cu ltural fo rm a tio n , b u t o n several tradition s - 4 B o g a t y r e v , J a k o b s o n , op. cit., p. 39..

(13) 104. D o ro ta Sim onides. a n d several form a tio n s. W e shall refer to the descrip tion o f cultural f o r m a tio n s introdu c e d by A. K lo s k o w s k a ,25 as they are indispensable for o u r study. In discussing these fo rm a tio n s, we present th e m in the co n te x t o f c h ild ren ’s folklore. T h e first c ultural fo rm a tio n consists o f elem ents o f a strictly local, regional cha ra c ter. This is the first layer o f the cu ltu re o f a given c o m m u n ity . In o u r case it is the family, which h a n d s d o w n to the child its local, family traditions. T h e second f o rm a tio n is the local n e tw o rk o f central o r g a n iz a tions o f cu ltural life. In relation to children this c a n be their schdol, su m m e r c a m p , s c o u ts’ c a m p , etc. T h e third fo r m a tio n c o n c ern s the influence o f far-oflf centres. K lo sk o w sk a points to the strictly passive c ha ra c ter o f the fu n c tio n in g o f this cultu ral f o r m a t i o n —this fact distinguishes it fro m the first two. T his fo r m a tio n covers the recep tion o f all the texts tr a n s m itte d by the m a ss m edia. H o w ever, these fo rm a tio n s have c h a n g in g b o u n d a rie s, a n d n o w a d a y s no social g r o u p o r sphere is c o n te n t with ju s t e.g. the first fo rm atio n. In the age g ro u p in qu e stio n all three fo rm a tio n s are pre se n t alo ng with the elem ents transm itted- by them . T he first fo r m a tio n , as we have seen, function s in a direct c o n ta c t with the family a n d is based o n o ra l transm ission. This is the first a n d m ost lasting fo rm o f the c h ild ’s p a rtic ip a tio n in cu lture. T h o u g h for ad u lts its significance has b e e n steadily decreasing, for children —p a rticularly small c h ild r e n —it is still o f fu n d a m e n ta l im p o rtan c e . W ithin this fo r m a tio n takes place the process o f ac c u m u la tin g trad itio nal lore, o f a b so rb in g folklore, o f gaining experiences which p ro d u c e results later o n in life. T h e second fo rm a tio n , which m ay be described as: children a m o n g st themselves, provides an o p p o rtu n ity for direct p erson a l c o n tacts, helps to m a in ta in social b o n d s a n d form s the c h ild ’s personality. C h ild re n clearly need these m u tu a l perso nal contacts, they need to feel th a t they belo ng to a co m m u n ity , that they have c o m m o n experiences a n d share the sam e gam es a n d pleasures. T h ey also feel a g reat need to have their o w n o rg a n iz e d social gatherings. T h is need is satisfied to a great e xtent at school, at su m m e r c am p s, 25 A . K ł o s k o w s k a , S połeczn e ra m y k u ltu ry ( The S ocial F ram ew ork o f C u ltu re), W arszaw a 1972, p. 6! ff..

(14) C h ild ren ’s a n d A du lts' Folklore. 105. o u t-o f-sc h o o l meetings a n d p la y g ro u n d games. T h e y look o u t for o p p o r tu n itie s enablin g them to exchange w h at they have h e a rd o r experienced, o p p o rtu n itie s for m a k in g tra d itio n a l texts objective a n d lasting, o r for creating their o w n trad itio n. All this c o n trib u te s greately to m a in ta in social b o n d s .26 A dults have their ow n, org a n iz e d social gatherings which satisfy their need for perso n a l c o n ta c ts a n d p ro vide an o p p o r tu n ity for an exchange o f views. Even tho u g h m o re a n d m o re often the disinteg ratio n o f local c o m m u n itie s is c ausing the w eak ening o f these social bonds, they still exist w here they are m o st needed. T h is is w hy they exist a m o n g c hildren. T h e m ain stim ulus for c h ild re n ’s gatherin gs is a p sy c h o logical need. T h e school a n d p la y g ro u n d are not the only places for p erso n a l c o n ta cts —children also like to h old im provised meetings in cellars, «during which they tell on e a n o th e r g host stories. These gath erin gs p rovide new situa tion s for the c re ation o f folklore, a n d this leads us to believe th a t children are at present the only a u t h e n tic c o m m u n ity w here fplklore is p r o d u c e d a n d passed on . T he English folklore researcher D. N e w to n rightly po in ts o u t th at children are the only “b r o t h e r h o o d ” which shows no signs o f dying o u t . 27 I n - t h e old days the family was so to speak left to itself. T he life c o n d itio n s then d e m a n d e d solidarity a n d d o in g o n e ’s duty. T h e child was slowly in tro d u c e d to life a n d w ork , a n d folklore, which to o k up a considerable a m o u n t o f time, was generally for him a different w orld, a fairyland w hose existence was confirm ed by the a u th o r ity o f his g ra n d p a re n ts a n d p aren ts. Even if children met o n pastures, they fo rm e d too small a g rou p, with to o wide an age span, to be able to p ro d u c e their ow n repertoire a n d have their ow n audience. Earlier o n we spo ke o f the h e tero geneo us c ha ra c ter o f the folklore o f a given sphere; at this p o in t we should a d d th a t this heterogeneity h as two con seq uen ces —o n the o n e h a n d it limits the transm ission o f the folklore o f a given sphere to a limited c o m m u n ity within th a t p a rtic u la r sphere, a n d in this way isolates it from o th e rs; on the o th e r h a n d the fact that a c o m m u n ity a b so rb s all kinds o f m otifs an d tra n sfo rm s them acco rd in g to its ow n needs autom atically 2h See K. Z a w i s t o w i c z - A d a m s k a , P rzem ia n y w ięzi w sp ołeczn o ści lokaln ej (C h an ging Bonds in L ocal C om m u n ities), “R oczn ik i S o cjo logii W si,” IV: 1965. 27 O p ie , op. cit., p. 2..

(15) 106. D orota Sim onides. m akes this kind o f folklore lively an d dy nam ic, which results in c o n sta n t a d a p ta tio n s a n d m odifications. A p a r t from that, d e p e nding on the social sphere o r v ocation al group, etc., those w ho create a n d tra n sm it folklore tak e an active p a r t in all three cu ltu ral fo rm a tions, which results in th at c o n te m p o r a r y folklore c o n ta in s the kind o f ideas which totally agree with the m a n o f the second h a lf o f the 20th century. These ideas are th erefo re n o t o u t o f date, for we are no t dealing with folklore in the tra d itio n a l sense o f the w o rd. If in spite o f everything there are certain echoes o r whole sets o f motifs o f tradition al folklore in the folklore o f a given g rou p, then this proves that they are needed, th a t they have n ot lost their original m ean in g o r have been b ro u g h t u p to date. In c o n te m p o r a r y c h ild re n ’s folklore we c an find som e a d a p te d ep ig ram s o f Sztaudy ng er, p a r o dies o f Polish classics, as well as themes a n d m otifs taken, from television b road casts. All these texts are tra n sfo rm e d collectively a n d a no ny m o usly , and are passed o n s p o n ta n e o u sly by w o rd o f m o u th . In this way we have arrived at the th ird fo r m a tio n —the influence o f far-off centres. T h e a p p e a ra n c e o f these new m otifs in c o n te m p o ra r y folklore a ccou nts to a great extent for its grow ing p op ularity. All that has been said u p till n o w is true o f c h ild re n ’s folklore. It differs greatly from trad itiona l folklore, th o u g h it is clearly based on it, a n d b o rro w s fro m it. T h e various k in ds o f tra d itio n a l folk lore fully c o rre s p o n d with p a rtic u la r phases o f a c h ild ’s d evelopm ent. H ow ever, tra ditio na l folklore has been tra n sfo rm e d , a d a p te d to the needs o f a certain age g ro up , a n d as a result it fully reflects not only c h ild re n ’s interests, no t only their way o f expressing them sel ves—b ut it is also a kind o f register o f m otifs a n d form s which for no good reason are being a voided in c h ild r e n ’s literature. If we analyze the repertoire o f schoolchildren a n d c o m p a r e it with literature for children we see that the m otifs a n d fo rm s which are often consciously spread are those which are deliberately avo id ed by teachers o r which — for various reasons —are left unnoticed. S c h o o lc h ild re n ’s folklore is then a kind o f u n d e r g ro u n d literature for children. Secrecy is its m od e o f existence. As it has already been p ointed o u t. children are fully aw are o f this secrecy. W hen telling us the oral texts they knew, the children said that adu lts did n o t like these texts, th a t their p are n ts punished them for saying them , that they h a d to keep quiet a b o u t it, etc. It is clear that not only ethical n o rm s fu nction in a given social.

(16) C h ild ren ’s an d A du lts' F olklore. 107. sphere, b u t also artistic n o rm s. Texts th at children like, th at interest, am u se a n d en te rtain them , leave their pa re n ts u nm o v e d . T his differen ce o f social n o rm s a n d attitu d e s to w a rd s the reperto ire o f children is visible in the reaction o f adults. W hen the children were enjoying themselves, when o p e n -m o u th e d they listened to stories told by their friends, the a dults co u ld n o t wait for it all to end, they show ed signs o f b o r e d o m a n d only affected a smile fro m time to time. H ow ever, since the official literature for children d epen ds on adults, little w on d e r that c h ild re n ’s folklore has so m a n y young followers, w ho take in with great zeal w h a t ad ults c onsider stupid, p o o r o r indecent. S c h oo lch ildren ’s folklore will alw ays be very m uch alive, for no official literature, no official cu lture will satisfy the need for sp o n ta n e o u s creativeness suited to the c h ild re n ’s o w n tastes. T h e fact th a t the child d ra w s from the sam e motifs, has the same needs, w hich he satisfies in a c c o rd a n ce with the c o nv en tion s accepted a m o n g his friends, assures the circulating texts po pularity. A d u lts ’ folklore does n ot suit children, even th o u g h it has always c o n ta in e d motifs destined for children a n d teenagers. T o d a y ’s chil d re n have created a repertoire o f their ow n, different from that which c o rre sp o n d s with a d u lts ’ needs, a n d th an k s to this they have c rea te d their ow n c h ild re n ’s subculture. We are certainly n o t saying that c h ild re n ’s folklore a n d their s u b cu lture are o ne a n d the sam e thing. T h e latter has a wider scope, it includes s c h o o lc h ild re n ’s fashions, their typical m o d e o f behaviour, a n d finally all those elem ents which de te rm ine the image o f to d a y ’s teenagers. If in the old tra d itio n it was th o u g h t n o rm a l for ways o f b eh aviou r set by a d u lts to be passed o n to children a n d adolescents, n ow adays the o r d e r has been reversed. As a result adults, especially in their m iddle years, p a tte rn themselves u p o n the su bcu lture o f teenagers in their w ay o f dressing, their language a n d style o f behav io ur. T he sam e thing h a p pe n s in folklore. M a n y sayings, a necdo tes a n d songs pass fro m c h ild re n ’s to a d u lts ’ folklore, a n d ad ults accept them, pass th em r o u n d a n d are a m u se d by them . This concerns in p a r ticular a b s tr a c t riddles, new sayings a n d jo k e s a b o u t anim als. S o m e tim es even the m ass m edia m ake use o f c h ild re n ’s folklore for en te rta in m e n t. W e have n o t discussed here a n o th e r p rob lem , which has little to.

(17) 108. D o ro ta Sim onides. do with this study, nam ely the utilizatio n o f fo lklore by a u th o rs w ho write for children. T h is is being c o n sta n tly u n d e r ta k e n a n d usually with g o o d results, h ow ev er this issue d o es n o t fit w ithin the scope o f o u r re se a rc h .28 W e can only a d d th a t literature for children, th a t is the official literature, m a k e s use o f fo lklore only w h en, acco rd in g to the o p in io n o f adults, the subject, f o r m a n d genre are suitable for children. H ow ever, for o b v io u s re a so n s it does n o t c o n ta in any o f those texts which are tra n s m itte d spo n ta n e o u sly , have the greatest n u m b e r o f versions a n d are the m o s t p o p u la r, as for exa m p le certain a n ecd otes with scatological references, “d ir ty ” a n ec d o tes w hich adu lts c o nsider indecent. T h e function o f c h ild re n ’s fo lk lo re as the fo lk lo re o f p a rtic u la r age g ro u p s consists then to a great extent in filling in gaps in the official c u ltu re a n d literature, in the p r o g r a m m e tra n s m itte d by the m ass m edia, w ith ideas which are necessary fo r the ch ild ’s d e v e lo p m e n t, b u t which are neglected for v ario us reasons. Transl. by A g n ieszk a K u ku lska - s T h ey are d iscussed by J. C i e ś l i k o w s k i . ( G reat Fun. C h ildren ’s F olklore), W roclaw 1967.. W ielka za ba w a. F olklor d zie cięcy.

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