Julian Krzyżanowski
"Polska bajka ludowa w układzie
systematycznym", Julian
Krzyżanowski, Warszawa 1947 :
[recenzja]
Literary Studies in Poland 8, 133-153
Book Reviews
Comptes rendus de livres
J u l i a n K r z y ż a n o w s k i , Polska bajka ludowa w układzie system a
tycznym (The System atic C atalogue o f the Polish Folk Tale),
W a r s z a w a 1947.
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T h e c o m p lex o f p ro b le m s fro m w hich th e p re se n t w o rk grew, is so alien to Polish scholarship, a n d at the sam e tim e so vast, th a t its full a p p re c ia tio n w o u ld d e m a n d a s e p a ra te a n d c o m p re h e n siv e study. A n d yet despite its strangeness it is n o t in the least new. M o re th an th irty years ago o n e o f the m o st in d u s tr io u s e th n o g ra p h e r-co lle c to rs, Sew eryn Udziela, pub lish ed a n article in the j o u r n a l “ L u d ” (F o lk ) u n d e r the title O po trzeb ie zestaw ienia i uporządkow ania opow iadań
ludow ych ( On the N e ed f o r C om piling a n d A rranging Folk Tales), in
w hich he stated the necessity o n p ra c tic a l g r o u n d s for a “ B ook o f F o lk T a le s ,” o u tlin e d its o rg a n iz a tio n , a n d stressed in co n clu sio n :
O n e m ust still co n sid er the fact that ou r literature sh o w s m ore or less 6000 folk tales. T h e in d exin g o f all o f this m aterial, th erefo re, will d em and co n sid er a b le lab or and tim e. If so m e o n e cou ld —in a d d itio n to his o th e r p rofession al o b li g a t io n s —a n a ly ze and w ork into such a co lle c tio n ju st o n e tale a day. he w ou ld need tw en ty years' tim e to put in order and arrange o u r present c o lle c tio n . But we sh o u ld n o t, nor can w e w ait so lon g.
U d ziela saw a m e a n s o f s u r m o u n tin g the obstacles in a collective w o r k u n d e r “ a single direction a c c o rd in g to an accu rately w o rk e d o u t p l a n . ” T his appeal re m a in e d , h ow ever, w ith o u t echo. F o r ty years h av e passed a n d d u r in g this time we have n o t achieved even a partial re a liz a tio n o f this re aso n ab le p o stu la te , a l t h o u g h it w as recalled on m o r e th a n o n e occasion. F o r this r e a so n the first a t t e m p t at a
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m atics o f tra d itio n a l folk tale still d e m a n d s to d a y a c e rta in ju s t i fication w hich is n o t evident p e r h a p s o n ly b ecau se it is m a n ifo ld a n d to u ch es o n m a tte rs o f a theoretical as well as practical nature.
Beginning with the latter, it is n o t difficult to see th a t a systema- tics o f the folk tale as well as o t h e r types o f tra d itio n a l stories w hich are re p e a te d a n d h a n d e d d o w n orally —a n im a l tales (fables), le gends, edifying a n d h u m o ristic stories —is a b so lu tely necessary for an e th n o g ra p h e r-c o lle c to r w ho n o tes d o w n o r re c o rd s o n p h o n o g r a p h ic re c o rd o r m agnetic ta p e the v a rio u s specim ens o f a folk n a rra tio n . T h e re are certainly items a m o n g them w hich m erit p re se rv a tio n a n d items w hich do n o t m erit it a t all. R a r e tales, m et o n ly exceptionally, m u st by the very n a tu r e o f things be c o n sid e re d m o re v aluable t h a n those w hich are c o m m o n , a p p e a r universally, a n d are k n o w n to every story-teller. W h e n e n c o u n te rin g th em it is possible to sto p at a sh o rt su m m a ry , fixing the t o p o g r a p h ic a n d c h ro n o lo g ic a l ran g e o f the given type. T h e tales w hich a re rare, ho w ev er, a n d th erefore h a rd e r to c o m m it to m e m o ry , d eprived as they are o f the m e a n s o f diffusion rep resen ted by fre q u e n t rep etitio n , d e m a n d special a n d the m o st a c c u ra te n o ta tio n .
A review o f the d ev e lo p m e n t o f Polish folklore studies in the c o u rse o f the last forty years will convince o n e o f the fairness o f this position. While the o ld e r volum es o f folkloristic p u b lic a tio n s like “ L u d ” (Folk), “ M a te ria ły a n tro p o lo g ic z n e , a rc h e o lo g ic zn e i etn o g ra fic zn e ” ( A n th ro p o lo g ic a l, A rc h aeo lo g ical a n d E th n o g r a p h ic M aterials), M a teriały i pra c e j ę z y k o w e ” (Linguistic M a te ria ls a n d Studies) a n d o th e rs were to o o ften b u r d e n e d w ith a n excess o f th e ra w n a rra tiv e m a t e rial, this has b e c o m e a rarity in the new er p u b licatio n s. T h is m a y d o u b tle ss be a ttr ib u te d to the reso lu tio n s o f the 1905 C o n g re ss o f Polish E t h n o g r a p h e r s w hich em p h a siz e d the p ro b le m a tic value o f g a th erin g m a te ria ls w ith o u t their sim u lta n e o u s analysis. E ven earlier, in 1888, A d o l f D ygasiński h a d d efen d ed J a n Karłow icz, the e d ito r o f Podania i b a jk i ludowe zebrane na L itw ie (P opular Legends a n d
Tales C ollected in L ith u a n ia), fro m the a c c u s a tio n s th at “he p u b lish e d
the tales w ith o u t c o m p a r a tiv e c o m m e n ta rie s, th a t he h as a rra n g e d th em in a geo g rap h ical o rd e r, a n d th a t som e o f th e m o r at least so m e resem bling th e m have a lre a d y been p r in te d so m e tim e a g o . ” W h e n in the c o u rse o f tim e such acc u sa tio n s were acc e p ted in the f o r m o f principles b in d in g collectors, then a d o u b ly negative result w as o b
ta in e d : a “scientific” r e w o rk in g o f the folk tale m a te ria l was n o t a cco m p lish ed , a n d “non-scientific” p r in tin g w as a b a n d o n e d .
T h e p resent systematics a tte m p ts to p u t a n en d to the a n o m a lo u s c o n d itio n s w hich have prevailed fo r m a n y years in the field o f w ork o n the folk tale. It su m m a riz e s the c e n t u r y ’s w o rk o f Polish e th n o g ra - p her-collectors beginning with W ójcicki, Baliński a n d Siemieński, a n d inventories, p e rh a p s exhaustingly, all previously r u b l i '-*ed materials. T h is a u to m a tic a lly o p e n s the way to fu r th e r siudy in facilitating a n im m e d ia te o rie n ta tio n o f the territo ria l extension o f a given subject —w h a t districts it is k n o w n in a n d to w h a t extent —a n d by sp arin g the collector the tim e a n d energy th a t w o u ld be w asted o n the acquisition o f unnecessary items, c o m m o n items w hich are well k n o w n . H e w o u ld th u s be able to direct his a t t e n tio n to p h e n o m e n a which are w o r th preserving as u n k n o w n o r a t least insufficiently kno w n .
This affects also a n o th e r very m e r ito r io u s c a te g o ry o f folk tale collectors w ho g ath ered their texts for linguistic a n d n o t folkloristic pu rposes. Review ing the re su m e o f their m a n y y e a rs ’ w ork which K. N itsch pub lish ed in his W ybór p o lsk ic h te k stó w gw arow ych (S e
lected Polish D ialect T e x ts , 1929, 2 n d ed. 1960), it is no t difficult to
ob serv e a h o st o f items o f very d o u b tf u l value, re c o rd e d f ro m the m o u t h o f school children w h o by their m e m o ry o r im ag in a tio n c o u ld n o t m a n a g e to m a ste r the c o m p lic a te d n a rra tiv e m aterial. T h is defect u n d o u b te d ly does n o t d im in ish the usefulness o f the given texts for a k now ledge o f the dialect in which they were recorded. It is, how ever, difficult to u n d e r s t a n d why the peculiarities o f the dialect have to be d e m o n s tr a te d by o b v io u sly i n a d e q u a te exam ples, since it is possible to do the sam e thing w ith m aterial possessing the sam e au th e n tic ity plus som e a esth etic values. T h e Silesian texts o f L. M alinow ski, o r the K a s h u b i a n texts o f L orentz, re c o rd e d with ped a n tic linguistic accuracy, p ro v e th a t linguistic d e m a n d s m ay be perfectly reconciled with th o se o f folklorists. T h e re is no need how ever, to dwell o n the subject o f the a d v a n ta g e o f c o o p e r a tio n over its lack in tw o scientific fields w hich o p e r a te with c o m m o n m aterial.
Passing fro m a c o n s id e ra tio n o f the e t h n o g r a p h e r - c o lle c to r to o th e r m atters, equally practical, it is im possible to o v e rlo o k the significance o f a system atics o f the folk tale for p u r p o s e s o f o ra l a n d literary p o p u larizatio n , fo r rad io a n d stage re c ita tio n s, for p u b lic a tio n s which aim to m a k e accessible to children the “ tr e a s u r e s ” o f the im a g in a
tion o f the folk etc. T o the p re se n t tim e we still have no exem plary collection o f o u r folk tales sim ilar to the collection o f the G r im m B ro th ers in G e r m a n y , A fa n a se v in R u ssia o r Sebillot ( C o n tes des
provinces de France, 1920) in Fran ce. F o r this reaso n we still have
recourse to the p o o r B ajarz p o ls k i (Polish S to r y Teller) o f G liń sk i and are u n a b le to ap p re c ia te the real scope o f the Polish folk tale. It is sufficient to indicate such d rastic facts as the s u m m a r y o f P u s h k i n ’s p o em R uslan a n d L udm ila included in the collection o f G liński a n d also p u b lish e d indep en d en tly , o r the L a tv ia n tale in the n o w fo rg o tte n c h ild r e n ’s collection o f G a w r o ń s k a fro m the en d o f the last century. Such m is u n d e rs ta n d in g s are n o t su rp risin g w hen we co n sid e r the great a m o u n t o f m aterial scattered in inaccessible j o u r n a l s o r in lo n g out o f print collections. T h e tim e has com e, however, to d e m o n s tr a te the a u th e n tic specim ens o f Polish folklore.
T h e range o f applicability o f a system atics o f the folk tale a p p e a rs very extensive in the theoretical field fo r scientific p u rp o se s o f a gen eral n a tu re , a n d for those which are m o r e specialized, associated p articu larly with studies o f the folk tale.
I shall begin with the first, d e m o n s tr a tin g so m e c o n s id e ra tio n s by m eans o f exam ples d r a w n f ro m o u r new er folk loristic studies, not o f c o u rse to dep reciate them by p o in tin g o u t v a rio u s inad eq u acies, but to show th a t studies o f the spiritual c u ltu re o f the Polish village are im possible w ith o u t du e reference to folk tale m aterial. T h e last few years a n d the n o te w o rth y g ro w th o f regional interests have called fo rth a w hole series o f scientific studies d e v o te d to research in to the c u ltu re o f o n e district o r a n o th e r . In the p ic tu re o f spiritual o r intellectual c u ltu re it is o b v io u sly im possible to o v e rlo o k p ro se n a r ratio n s, b u t their c h aracteristics rest o n r a t h e r casu al o b s e rv a tio n s w hich fail to c a p tu r e the essence o f things. Since significant o b serv atio n s d e m a n d a system atic review o f the b ro a d e s t possible m aterial, the p r e p a r a tio n o f such a review m u st tra n s c e n d the stren g th o f a synthesist a tte m p tin g to define the to ta l general picture, despite his g o o d inten tio n s. T his is well illustrated by the o th erw ise excellently conceived p u b lic a tio n K aszubi. K ultura ludowa i ję z y k ( The K ashub-
ians. Their Folk C ulture an d L an g u a g e, 1934), a collective w ork o f such
specialists as F. L orentz, A. Fischer, a n d T. Lehr-S pław iński. T h e characteristics o f the K a s h u b i a n tales were described by their best s tu d e n t Lorentz, while their relatio n to general Polish m aterial was
d e te rm in e d by Fischer. T h e first gave a series o f re m a r k s w hich were far fro m c a p t u r i n g the basic features o f the ch a ra c teriz e d m aterial, while the second, falling b ack o n the c o m p e n d iu m o f Bolte a n d P olivka, states tim e an d again th a t the K a s h u b i a n tales a re c o m m o n in o t h e r districts o f P o lan d , th a t the tale o f the M agic G ifts ( a b o u t the self-covering tab leclo th a n d the self-beating sticks), “ so w id e sp re a d in all o f P o lan d , is also k n o w n a m o n g the K a s h u b i a n s , ” that “ the K a s h u b ia n j o k e o f the stu p id fellow w ho never k n ew a ghost a n d w a n te d to meet o n e possesses n u m e r o u s a n a lo g u e s in the C r a c o w area a r o u n d W a d o w ice a n d N o w y S ącz” etc., etc. All these assertions are u n d o u b t e d l y fair, b u t they c o u ld also be m a d e with sim ilar success with G e r m a n , R ussian, B elorussian o r C zech m a te ria l e x tra c te d from the s a m e c o m p e n d iu m a n d achieving the sa m e results. Inferences o f real c o n s e q u e n c e fo r K a s h u b ia n fo lk lo re can be gained o n ly against the b a c k g r o u n d o f system atically collected, possibly c o m p le te o r at least a b u n d a n t , Polish m aterial. In this a p p r o a c h we are struck by the significant absence a m o n g the K a s h u b ia n s o f the tale o f the d ra g o n slayer, a n d the richness, o n the o th e r h a n d , o f the tale o f the three spinners. In the first case (T 300) there a re only 4 K a s h u b ia n v a ria n ts fo r 30 Polish, while in the second (T 501) we have 13 K a s h u b ian v a ria n ts to only o n e Polish. C o n s id e ra b ly m o re such exam ples co u ld be cited a n d the task o f the researcher o f the folk tale w ould be th en to explain the extent to which the p o p u la rity o r u n p o p u l a r ity o f c e rta in subjects can be a ttr ib u te d to som e special peculiarities o f K a s h u b i a n folk culture. It is possible to explain certain cases with little effort. T h e fact surprises no o n e th a t o f 10 v a ria n ts o f the tale o f the fisherm an a n d his greedy wife, 7 are o f K a s h u b ia n o rigin, in a d d itio n to w hich som e o f them are d istinguished by an u n u sual artistry flowing from a love o f a n d fam iliarity with the sea. It w o u ld likewise be easy to u n d e r s ta n d the richness o f mill folklore a g a in st the b a c k g r o u n d o f K a s h u b i a n e c o n o m ic c o n d itio n s . T h is is re p re s e n te d b o th by specifically K a s h u b ia n tales a b o u t the m ille r’s boy w h o wins a princess, o r the m iller’s boy w ho seats the devil on a revolving mill stone, as well as by individual v aria n ts o f general Polish types. T h is applies p a rtic u la rly to the a m u s in g story o f B elfagar (T. 1164), the c h ief m o tif o f which, the flight o f a devil fro m quarrel so m e wife, was p o p u la riz e d by M ickiew icz’s b a llad P ani Tw ardow ska In Polish a n d no n -P o lish v a ria n ts the devil rep ay s the p e a s a n t whc
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h elps him get a w ay f ro m the shrew by directing him to h eal girls p o s sessed by him. K a s h u b i a n v a ria n ts have so m e th in g else here. T h e devii spoils the wind mills, the p e a s a n t p u ts them b ack in w o rk in g o rd e r a n d th a n k s to this acquires a fo rtu n e . Briefly, only a g a in s t the b a c k g r o u n d o f co m p le te folk m a te ria l, g a th e re d sy stem atically, can there a p p e a r in all their fullness the p a rticu larities o f the fo lk lo re o f given territories a n d its c o n n e c tio n s w ith the m aterial a n d social culture o f the milieux in w hich it b lossom s.
T h e sam e thing, m u ta t is m u ta n d is, o n e can likewise discern in the a tte m p ts to g ra s p the to ta lity o f o u r folk p ro s e t r a d itio n even fro m the b ib lio g ra p h ic p o in t o f view. It is c h a ra c teristic , a lth o u g h u n d e rs ta n d a b le , t h a t such a tte m p ts are usually in c o m p le te since they o v e rlo o k s u p p o se d ly n o n -P o lish items. 1 have in m in d specifically so-called U k r a in ia n a n d B elorussian collections like th o se o f Sad o k Barącz a n d M ich ał F ed ero w sk i, for exam ple. N o n e o f th em fo u n d a way into the Bibliografia ludoznaw stw a p o lsk ie g o (B ibliography o f
Polish Folklore) o f G a w elek , while in foreign b o o k s , such as those
o f S avchenko a n d P olivka, b o th figure as w o rk s o f U k r a in ia n a n d Belorussian folklore. Basically, the m a t t e r lo o k s quite different. F a th e r Barącz, a rep resen tativ e o f R o m a n tic syncretism in the field o f fo lklore, did not differentiate Polish things from U k r a i n i a n a n d b ro u g h t to g e th e r u n d e r a c o m m o n title gentry a n e c d o te s f ro m the m a n o r o r m o n astery , s tu d e n ts ' a n ecd o tes, U k r a in ia n a n d A r m e n ia n tales a n d Jewish stories. F ed ero w sk i also p u b lish ed in his L u d białoruski i Belorussian Folk) a host o f tales collected a m o n g the c o u n try gentry fro m th e districts o f G r o d n o , V ilna a n d M in s k , tales in the Polish language, P olish-B elorussian tales in which n o n - p e a s a n t c h a r acters speak in Polish, a n d finally Belorussian tales o f Polish origin so strongly b o u n d up with Polish folklore th a t it is im possible to slight them in an y general pictu re o f Polish folklore. T h e sam e s itu a tion holds true for o th e r collections fro m the b o r d e r regions, like the C hełm collection o f K o lb e rg o r the sam e a u t h o r ’s Przemyśl c o l lection c o n ta in in g Polish v a ria n ts m ixed with U k r a in ia n .
F r o m the tim e o f U dziela, a n d even m o re so o f K arłow icz, we are sep a ra te d by years o f a very rich d e v e lo p m e n t o f E u ro p e a n folklores studies in which studies o f the folk tale have ad v a n c e d so far that to d ay they are b eginning to claim to be w o r th y o f re p re s e n ta tio n as an in d e p e n d e n t science. Such studies, d o c u m e n t e d by work o f the scope o f the five-volume c o m m e n ta r y o f Bolte and Polivka
to the co llectio n o f the G r i m m B ro th e rs a n d the nearly 200 volum es o f the F F C series i F o lk lo re Fellow s C o m m u n ic a tio n s ) , p u b lish e d by the F in n ish A c a d e m y , h av e n o t p assed w ith o u t echo also in Polish scholarship. Studies u n d e r ta k e n o n ce by J a n K a rło w icz a n d S. C i szewski have b een c o n tin u e d by W. K linger, A. Fischer, J. J a n ó w , a n d the a u t h o r o f the p re se n t b o o k . B oth the old a n d the new studies, how ever, c o n tin u o u s ly s t o p p e d a n d sto p sh o rt, since the a u th o r s never succeeded in m a s te rin g all the m a te ria l. T h e result was th a t lacunae, o fte n very serious ones, a p p e a r e d a fter the p u b lic a tio n o f th eir w orks. W ith o u t h a v in g to search far, I can m e n tio n my o w n sketch D w a ża r ty G onelli iv “D w orzaninie p o ls k im ” ( Two J o k e s o f
Gonella in “ The Polish C o u rtie r”) w here I t o o k up the m a tte r o f the
rare h u m o r e s q u e s a b o u t the b r e a k in g o f the pots, in o n e case after the affair o f the sorcerer -T 616), in the o t h e r th a n k s to the jo k e o f the je ste r w h o puts a tin d e r in the m a r e 's ear iT 1679). F o r the first, I cited v a ria n ts f ro m a B yzantine ch ro n ic le a n d a R ussian
b ylina, for the seco n d two v a ria n ts fro m the P o d h a le a n d O lk u sz dis
tricts, w i th o u t k n o w in g t h a t the seco n d a n e c d o te is k n o w n in the K a s h u b i a n reg io n a m o n g the Slovincians, a n d th a t the Polish version o f the first story was p u b lish e d as early as o v e r a h u n d r e d years ago by Wójcicki. N eedless to say t h a t these a d d e n d a co n sid e ra b ly ch an g e the view o f the territo rial sp an o f b o t h tales a n d m u st be ta k e n into a c c o u n t in fu r th e r studies o f them .
In this very s itu a tio n were f o u n d a n d are f o u n d those re p re s e n tatives o f E u r o p e a n folkloristics who, u n d e r ta k in g studies o f folk tales, necessarily e m b r a c e d Polish te rra in as well. E ven in such very precise studies as, for ex am p le, the m o n o g r a p h s o f W. A n d e r s o n a b o u t the a n e c d o te o f The K ing a n d the A b b o t iT. 922) o r N. A n d re e v a b o u t the R obber M a d e y iT. 756 B), tim e a n d again lacu n ae a n d u n certainties co n firm th em selves as a result o f the inaccessibility o f the Polish m a te ria l. T h e m o s t a u t h o r ita tiv e w o rk o f p re se n t-d a y s c h o la r ship, the a b o v e - m e n tio n e d c o m p e n d i u m o f Bolte a n d Polivka, in which P olivka c o n scien tio u sly w o r k e d o v e r the Polish m aterial, gives m o re th a n o n c e o n ly h a lf ie.g. T 670) o f the Polish v a ria n ts k n o w n today. T h e p resent system atics, a p a r t fro m inevitable lacunae, re n d e rs the Polish folk tale accessible to i n te r n a tio n a l studies, th u s m a k in g up fo r the lack o f a central Polish F o lk lo ristic archive. A t the sam e time, it lays the f o u n d a t i o n for studies o f this type in P o la n d where they are beginning to a ro u s e in creasingly g re a te r interest.
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A n d finally, a system atic in v en to ry o f folkloristic p ro se is no t w ith o u t significance for h isto rio -literary studies fro m the b o r d e r region o f literature a n d folklore. F o r som e tim e in P o la n d th ere has been a m o re o r less casual in terest in such p ro b le m s. A tte n tio n , fo r example, has been directed to the folk elem en ts in R o m a n tic p o e try beginning with Mickiewicz. T h e re a p p e a r e d even a p r e m a tu r e a n d therefore a b o rtiv e a t te m p t at a synthetic d e m o n s tr a tio n o f Pierw ia stek ludowy
w p o e zji p o lsk ie j < The Folk E lem ent in Polish P o e try , 1901 ) b y S. Z d z ia r
ski. I say a b o rtiv e n o t only because it did no t solve the p ro b le m , b u t because it did n o t even p re se n t it as it s h o u ld have, becom ing e n tan g led in m assive a n d u n m a s te r e d m aterial. T h e w o rk s o f A. B rückner, I. C h rz a n o w s k i a n d my o w n o n the o ld e r literature, especially o n m edieval s e rm o n s a n d R en aissan ce a n d B a ro q u e a n e c dotes, threw light o n the m a n y c o n n e c tio n s betw een w ritten a n d oral literature, b u t even here we a re still very far fro m satisfactory con clu sio n s since these studies all lacked the k in d o f a basis which a systematic a r r a n g e m e n t o f the m aterial affords.
I tried to ta k e a d v a n ta g e o f the results o f foreign as well as my o w n researches, in d icatin g w here possible the c o n n e c tio n s o f b o th spheres. T h u s I p o in te d o u t o ld allusions to these o r o th e r tales (e.g. T. 1030, 1228) which p e rm it us to confirm a kn o w led g e ó f them in P o la n d in the 16th a n d 17th centuries, as well as the p e n e tra tio n o f folk tale m otifs into literary w o rk s an d , conversely, literary echoes in the folk tra d itio n . Such o b s e rv a tio n s necessarily have a casual a n d m arg in a l c h a r a c te r , b u t so m a n y were g a th e re d that on their basis it is now p e rm itte d to dismiss the incorrect fo rm u la o f P olivka that “ it is very d o u b tf u l th a t the o ld a risto c ra tic literature o f P o la n d exercised an y influence o n the real folk tr a d i t i o n .” N u m e r o u s items I included in the present b o o k confirm —especially in the area o f tra d itio n a l h u m o ristic s —a p h e n o m e n o n well k n o w n from o u r folk p o e try in which c o n n e c tio n s have been f o u n d between the “g e n try ” past a n d the “ p e a s a n t ” present, c o n n e c tio n s which the a u t h o r o f Pan Tadeusz c a p tu r e d with su p e rb in tu itio n w hen he closed his “gentry t a l e ” with a distich ta k e n o v er fro m the folk tale:
I ja tam 7 pość mi byłem , m iód i w in o piłem , A c o m w idział i słyszał, w księgi u m ieściłem .
I A n d I w as there a m o n g the guests, and there drank w ine and m ead; A nd w hat I saw and heard I w rote, that all o f you m ight read.]
2
A p p r o a c h i n g a system atics o f folk tale m a te ria ls in P o la n d , I h ad to c o n sid e r the a r r a n g e m e n t w hich w o u ld p ro v id e the greatest possi bility o f a c cu racy a n d clarity. T h e re were m a n y possibilities. It was possible, for exam ple, to create m y o w n system, o r to m o d e rn iz e the “p h ilo s o p h ic a l” system o f K a rło w icz or, finally, to follow o n e o f the system s in use in c o n t e m p o r a r y E u r o p e a n folklore studies. I chose the last alte rn a tiv e b o t h because o f the o b v io u s necessity for m a in ta in in g c o n t a c t with E u r o p e a n study in the field a n d to preserve th e high level a lre a d y re a c h e d by it. But here I e n c o u n te re d difficulties. C o n t e m p o r a r y f o lk lo re s tu d y h a s a p a r t f r o m m e th o d ic system s also system s which are casual, a d o p t e d o n different g ro u n d s by leading specialists o f tra d itio n a l literature. T h u s Bolte a n d P o liv k a in the previously cited c o m p e n d i u m preserv ed the casual o r d e r o f tales in the Kinder- und
H ausm archen o f the G r i m m B rothers, which Bolte tra n sfe rre d to the
gigantic collection o f P a u li’s h u m a n istic a n e c d o te s, a n d P enzer to Basile’s classic o f Italian B a ro q u e tales. T h e easy a n d co n v en ien t system o f c o m m e n t a r y is distin g u ish ed inevitably by a tw o fo ld defect. First o f all, it is casual, a n d because o f this unclear. T h e n it illu m in ates o n ly a c e rta in q u a n tity o f m a te ria l included in the c o l lection c o m m e n te d o n , while it c onsiders o th e r m aterial, how ever, only in a f r a g m e n ta r y m a n n e r a n d o n the least expected occasions. I did n o t follow then the r o a d ta k e n by the a b o v e - m e n tio n e d researches o f the folk tale, n o r did I follow the Czech system o f V. Tille who, so m e w h a t in a m a n n e r rem iniscent o f K arłow icz, g ro u p e d the folk tale m a te ria l u n d e r m a n y h eadings. T h e fact re m a in s th a t there is only a relatively small n u m b e r o f folk tales w hose essence it w ould be possible to c a p t u r e u n d e r a single heading. F u r th e r m o r e , we c a n n o t alw ays be certain t h a t the h e a d in g c h o se n w o u ld be the m o s t suitable. It suffices to c o n s id e r the a r r a n g e m e n t o f a n y type n o te d d o w n by a d o z e n o r so co llecto rs in o r d e r to be c o n v in ced o f the significance o f the divergence b etw een the titles o f the v a ria n ts which ta k e place o f the headings o r at least c o n s titu te their surrogate.
Sim ilar r e a so n s did n o t p e rm it me to a d o p t the system o f the em in e n t A m e ric a n sch o lar S. T h o m p s o n , w ho p re p a r e d a huge reg ister o f folk tale motifs, o p e r a tin g with alp h a b e tic al a n d num erical signs. T h e reg istra tio n o f m o tifs does no t give an idea, however.
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o f their m u tu a l relations in the larger entities o f w hich they are o n ly c o m p o n e n ts , th a t is in the folk tale units, in w h a t G e r m a n sch o larsh ip designates by the term M ä rch en -T yp u s (M t) a n d the English by the term T ype iT). W h a t this m e a n s 1 shall try to indicate by a sim ple exam ple. In the P entam er on o f Basile, o n e o f the f u n d a m e n ta l collections o f E u r o p e a n folk tales, we m eet the h u m o re s q u e a b o u t the a d v e n tu re s o f stu p id Vardiello w h o spoiled a w hole supply
o f his m o t h e r ’s dishes because he was u n a b le to keep h o u se (A),
was sent to the m a r k e t w ith clo th , sold it to som e ro a d sid e holy
im age, d e m a n d e d m o n e y f ro m it, a n d w hen he received none, bea it with a stick, tu rn e d it over, a n d f o u n d a pitch er o f golden coin: (B); the s im p le to n ’s m o th e r , o u t o f fear th a t her son w o u ld talk a b o u t his find, strew ed him with a rain o f figs a n d raisins, an d w hen Vardiello in fact b lu rte d o u t the secret, explaining th a t he f o u n d the m o n e y d u rin g r a in s to r m , his story was n o t believed an d his m o th e r c o u ld keep the m o n e y peacefully <C). T h e c o n te n ts o f Vardiello can be expressed by m e a n s o f the h e a d in g s: “T h e P e a sa n t K eeping H o u se In ste a d o f H is W ife” —“T h e S im p le to n a n d the Im a g e ” —“T h e T a lk a tiv e Wife a n d the T r e a s u r e ,” a c c o rd in g to which each title indicates here a n in d e p e n d e n t folk tale T y p e a p p e a rin g in Basile in the fu n c tio n o f m o tif-c o m p o n e n t. U sin g T h o m p s o n ’s system o f signs, the follow ing fo rm u la w o u ld be o b t a i n e d : “V a r diello = J.2442 -f J.1853 + N.521 + J . 2351.” Since three in d e p e n d e n t them es a p p e a r in the fu n c tio n o f c o m p o n e n t s o f the Basile variant, as it has been said, the desired f o rm u la c o u ld be expressed still m o re simply as the sum o f the ty pes T 1 4 0 8 + 1 6 4 3 + 1 3 8 1 , where the n u m b e rs indicate the titles cited ab o v e. T h u s “T h e Peasant K eeping H o u s e In stead o f his W ife” = T 1408, “T h e S im pleton a n d the Im age = T 1643, “T h e T a lk a tiv e Wife a n d the T r e a s u r e ” = T 1391. In a m o m e n t it will be necessary to state why the system b ased o n n o ta tio n o f ty pes for still o t h e r r e a so n s is m o re useful th a n the system o f n o ta tio n o f m otifs. F o r the present it suffices to indicate th a t the first o f these systems, alre a d y widely a d o p te d , is k n o w n as the so-called “ F in n ish sy ste m .”
It was invented by A ntti A a rn e , o n e o f the c re a to rs o f the
“ Finnish s c h o o l” which, t h a n k s to its p u b lic a tio n s, especially the F F C series e m b ra c in g the w ork o f the m ost e m in e n t E u r o p e a n a n d A m e r i can folklorists, h as a d v a n c e d to a leading place in the p resen t-d ay study o f the history a n d n a tu r e o f the folk tale. A a r n e e m b ra c e d
the to ta lity o f folk tale m aterial in a fra m e w o r k n u m b e r in g up to 2500 item s a n d div ided into three basic g ro u p s : I —a n im a l tales (fa b u la , fable, Tierm drchen)\ II —g enuine tales, oth erw ise k n o w n as fairy-tales ico n ic dc fe e s . M drchen. s k a z k a ), to which he a d d e d also legends, novellae. edifying stories a n d h u m o r e s q u e s a b o u t the d e - ' ceived o g r e ; finally 111 — v ario u s j o k e s a n d a n ecd o tes. T h e first g ro u p received the n u m e r a tio n T 1 —229, the second T 3 0 0 — 1199, the third T 2000 — 2400. A a r n e h im self filled o u t only a p a r t o f the fra m e ol the system. F u r th e r a u g m e n ta tio n s were m a d e by his A m e ric a n tra n s lator, Stith T h o m p s o n . T h e a r r a n g e m e n t o f A a r n e —T h o m p s o i l = A T ) has serious faults a n d significant virtues. O n the credit side the system h as m a d e possible a ra p id acq u isitio n o f a n in tern a tional key a n d has p ro v id e d the m odel for inventories o f F innish E s th o n ia n , N o rw e g ia n , F inno-S w edish, Flem ish, a n d L ivonian folk talei, pu b lish ed in the F F C series as well as the U k a za te l ska zo c h n y k h
syu zh eto v p o sistem e A arne (index o f R u ssia n fairy-tale types) com p iled
by A n d reev , a n d such impressive collections o f folk tales as the w o rk o f the L atv ian P. Smits. T h a n k s to these studies a vast q u a n tity o f m aterial in m a n y languages h as been a rra n g e d , re d u c e d to a c o m m o n d e n o m i n a t o r , a n d m a d e available to c o m p a r a tiv e studies. T h e Finnish system likewise is being a d a p t e d m o re a n d m o re frequently in m o n o g rap h ic studies, such as the a b o v e -m e n tio n e d e d itio n o f the P enta-
m eron, F is c h e r’s studies o f the K a s h u b ia n folk tale, B y s tr o n ’s w o rk o n
the j o k e s a b o u t s tu p id n eig h b o u rs, a n d my o w n P arallels. T h e greatest virtues o f the Finnish system re m a in its universality a n d relative clarity, relative because it stu m b les o n the difficulties k n o w n from the a r r a n g e m e n t o f headings. As an exam ple, I s h o u ld like to cite once m o re Basile’s tale a b o u t Vardiello. T h o m p s o n designated it as T 1642, w hich is p ro b a b ly an e r r o r in p rin tin g a n d s h o u ld read T 1643. A c cep tin g the c o rre c tio n , it is still im possible to re g a rd the n o ta tio n as c o rre c t, for it to u c h e s o n ly o n e o f the c o m p o n e n t s o f the Italian v a ria n t, thus o v e r lo o k in g tw o o th e r s which are ef equal im p o rta n c e . T h is m eans th a t there is the im plication o f a single structure, w hen there are really three. T h e i m p r o p e r a p p lic a tio n o f the system d o e s n o t m ean , how ever, th at the system is worthless. T h e a b o v e -c o m p o s e d fo rm u la in dicates sim ply th a t the to tality o f the Vardiello sto ry m u st be expressed m o re precisely a n d in keeping with its tru e n atu re.
perfectly well o rie n te d in A n g l o - G e r m a n a n d U g r o - F in n ic folklore, were less fam iliar with the m aterial o f the Slavic a n d R o m a n people. T h is is the reason why to o little space was a c c o rd e d to ce rta in g ro u p s o f them es. F o r the a n e c d o te s n u m b e r e d T 1200— 1999, fo r exam ple, e m b r a c in g 800 entries, A n d re e v in the U k r a in e re c k o n e d 1350 a n e c d o te subjects. F lu m o resq u es a b o u t the deceived o g re have 200 entries (T 1000— 1199) in the A T system ; it is im possible to fill o u t this q u a n tity any m o re even by a d o p tin g the system o f A T , i.e. b re a k in g the ty pes into c o n s titu e n t m o tifs which a re then tre a te d as a u t o n o m o u s unities. O n the o th e r h a n d , the system atics o f legends a n d edifying stories o f the folklore o f the C a th o lic a n d O r t h o d o x c o u n tr ie s c a n n o t be e nclosed in only 100 entries (T 7 5 0 —849), desig n ated fo r this p u r pose by A a rn e . A c c o rd in g to the e n u m e r a tio n s o f A n d re e v , U k r a in ia n fo lk lo re reveals 196 subjects in this sam e g ro u p . W h a t is no less d is tu rb in g is th at the m a k e rs o f the F in n ish system lightly tre a te d c e rta in f a b u la r subjects o f q u ite extensive ra n g e a n d r a t h e r old age. F o r e x a m p le : the tale o f the Treacherous W ife , d e sig n a te d by me as T 568. It tells the a d v e n tu re s o f the h u s b a n d w hose wife tries to dispose o f him three tim es a n d who, th a n k s to his m e ta m o r p h o s e s in to a n a p p le tree, an a n im a l o r a bird, recovers a n d eventuall> tr iu m p h s . T his tale belongs to the o ld e st; its m otifs a p p e a r as far back as the a n c ie n t E gy p tian tale o f the Two B rothers. Similarly, with the tale a b o u t the devil fe e in g the shrewish wife, en terin g as a m a k e shift T 1164. it is difficult to realize th a t we are dealing with Belfagor. an item a p e e a rin g no t only in E s th o n ia n , Finnish, L a p p a n d R ussian fo lk lo re, b u t also equally k n o w n in the lite ra tu re o f all o f E u r o p e a n d f ro m the tim e o f the w riter w ho gave it the fo rm o f an excel lent novella, M achiavelli. O n e can find m a n y m o re such s h o r t c o m ings in the system o f A T , resulting fro m an in a d e q u a te o r ie n ta tio n in general E u r o p e a n p o p u l a r lite ra tu re as well as a lack o f s t u d ies o n the m a jo rity o f the tra d itio n a l subjects. T h e m o st d is tu rb in g o f the sh o rtc o m in g s is the previously m e n tio n e d t r e a tm e n t o f c o n s ti tu e n t m otifs as in d e p e n d e n t types. D espite this, the practice o f the last tw enty years has e lo q u en tly d e m o n s tr a te d the great usefulness o f the Fin n ish system a n d has exh ib ited its d o u b tle ss m o re flexible f r a m e w ork. It is especially this latter c ir c u m s ta n c e th a t inclined me to c h o o se the A T system for the a r r a n g e m e n t o f o u r tra d itio n a l prose.
o f the types, d e p a r tin g fro m this o n ly where the a b o v e -m e n tio n e d weaknesses m a k e it necessary to do so. T h e greatest d e p a r tu r e affects the g r o u p o f aitiological stories explaining the c re a tio n o f the world, m an, an im a ls, plants, etc. T h is g ro u p , in general very h o m o g e n e o u s , which c a n be explained by its origin in m edieval a p o c ry p h s, is a lm ost entirely passed o v e r in the F innish system. It s ta n d s at the beginning o f the classification in T h o m p s o n ’s In d ex o f M o tifs , a n d in the Polish a r r a n g e m e n t goes at the en d (T 2441a). A n o th e r d e p a r ture to u c h e s m otifs o r their sm aller units a p p e a r in g in in d ep e n d e n t form a p a r t from the types o f which they n o rm a lly represent c o n s tituent parts. T h u s the m otifs o f them e T 400 such as the freeing o f the e n c h a n te d princess fo r the price o f three-nights suffering, or the fairy-tale o f the princess-sw an who Hies aw ay fro m her h u s b a n d after a c q u irin g wings, I g r o u p separately, the first as T 400C, the second as T 400A. T h e sam e applies to the m o t i f o f the jo u r n e y th ro u g h hell after a c o m p a c t with the devil, re p re se n tin g usually the p ro lo g u e o f the R obber M atlev o r the legends a b o u t T w a rd o w sk i. Since the “ M a d e y ” is d istinguished as T 756B, the trip th ro u g h hell receives the d e sig n a tio n T 756B*. Differently, finally, from the Finnish system I co n sid e r in the Polish a r r a n g e m e n t a c e rta in n u m b e r of stories b ased o n superstition, p o p u l a r beliefs a b o u t brow nies, witches lamias, w ater spirits, d e m o n s in h a b itin g rain a n d hail clouds, an d kelpies, simply because o f the fact th at in the texts they frequently have a decidedly fa b u la r c h a r a c te r a n d because as a result o f the o b lite ra tio n o f their original c h a r a c te r they do n o t d e m a n d a s ep arate c o m m e n ta r y exten d in g into the sphere o f su p erstitio n a n d beliefs.
F o r these sam e c o n s id e ra tio n s 1 was u n a b le in m y a rra n g e m en t to pass o v e r certain legends, n am ely th o se which m anifest a deci sive a d m ix tu r e o f fa b u la r elem ent. 1 have in m in d the Sleeping
K nights. Bandit Janosik. Tw ardow ski, a n d the legends a b o u t the
unsuccessful d eliverance o f the e n c h a n te d princess (T 464). T h e last is the easiest to justify. A m o n g the K a s h u b ia n s , where a h o st o f v arian ts o f T 464 have been recorded, the th em e a p e e a rs com pletely clearly in b o th form s, the f a b u la r a n d the legendary. A sim pleton meets the princess either in som e fixed place, by the ruins o f a kn o w n ch u rch o r castle, o r in som e u n d e te rm in e d place, in the non-localized w orld o f the folk tale. T h e a d v e n tu re s also o f J a n o s ik a n d T w a r dow ski a p p e a r m o re th a n o n c e as the a d v e n tu re s o f som e
term ined ro b b e r o r sorcerer. C onversely, k n o w n f a b u la r themes are met a m o n g the legends, to r n from their n o rm a l en v iro n m e n t, th a n k s to the tr a n s f o r m a tio n o f the a n o n y m o u s hero es into p e r s o n ages b e a rin g legendary nam es.
F r o m the system o f A a r n e — T h o m p s o n I accepted f u r th e r the stru c tu ral schemes o f types so m etim es in their o riginal fo rm , so m etim es c o rre sp o n d in g ly modified. T h is is especially true w here the a p p r o a c h o f T h o m p s o n does no t suffice because it does n o t e x h a u s t the c o m m o n alternatives o f m otifs clustering in a given type. F o r ex am p le, in the
G host Searcher (T 326) T h o m p s o n k n o w s only the g h o s t's falling
d o w n the chim ney o r the g am e o f ninepins, while in Polish v arian ts m u c h m o re c o m m o n is the g reeting o f the gho.st with a dish which he first refuses a n d la ter d e m a n d s in vain, a m o tif by the way very o ld a n d doubtlessly m o re original th a n the o n e c h o se n by the A m erican systematizer. Likewise, in the h u m o r e s q u e The T h ie f o f Thieves <T 1525) 1 a d d the tric k s te r’s m a n e u v e r b ased o n the th ru s tin g o f the stolen o x ’s h ead a n d tail in to a m arsh , etc., etc. T h e m a tte r o f the ap p lic a tio n o f the stru c tu ra l schem es o f A a r n e - T h o m p s o n is m o r e c o m p lic a te d a n d explains why I prefer the type a r r a n g e m e n t to the m o t i f a r r a n g e m ent, in o th e r w o rd s why 1 ch o se the system o f A a r n e —T h o m p s o n a n d not the system o f T h o m p s o n alone. T h e s tru c tu ra l system a c
cepted by the F innish school reflects the ideal, n o r m a l fo rm o f the fa b u la r type, rarely met in a p u re state. T h e s tru c tu ra l schem e e m b races as m u c h as possible all the a lte rn a tiv e s which m ay figure in this type, a lth o u g h these e n te r usually o n ly in a limited n u m b er. D e p a r tures o f n o rm a l v a ria n ts from the n o r m a l ideal fo rm usually follow three courses, i.e. v a ria n ts show 1) a lack o f certain m otifs, 2) a c h a n g e o f their o rd e r, a n d 3) a n excesses o f m o tifs resulting fro m the c ro ss ing o f m otifs a n d w hole types. 1 pass o v e r the first case because it is im p o r ta n t only where there is a loss o f c e rta in m o tifs a n d the p re se rv a tio n o f their sequences causes the v a ria n ts to be unintelligi ble, m utilated . T h e second case, the tra n s p o s in g o f o rd e r, can be g rasped only by the a p p lic a tio n o f th e m a tic structures. It c a n n o t be grasped, how ever, by use o f a system o f motifs. T h e a b o v e - m e n tioned h u m o re s q u e . The T h ie f o f Thieves (T 1525A), en d s usually with the transfer to the m a n o r a n d the p u ttin g into a ro o st o f the priest ingeniously lured into a bag. In this way the m a s te r avenges himself fo r the ta u n ts th a t he allow ed him self to be deceived a few tim es
by a cle ver thief w hose p ractices the earliest stru c tu re s establish as a stage. V a ria n ts are met, how ever, in which the thief begins his stu n ts by sn atc h in g the p a r s o n a n d only later stealing the m a s te r ’s horse, sheet, etc. In o th e r w o rd s : instead o f the o r d e r l a b c —II ab, we m eet here the reverse: I la b — labc. If we were to designate the s tr u c tu r e by signs o f m otifs as in d e p e n d e n t unities, as T h o m p s o n does, a n d n o t by signs indicating their role as c o m p o n e n ts o f types, it w o u ld be difficult to d e te rm in e w h e th e r they c o n s titu te a n integral pari o f a type c o n s tru c te d in a certain c o n sisten t m a n n e r, o r whethei they are a n accidental elem ent, shifting a n d changeable. U sin g T h o m p s o n 's sign K 841 for the incident o f the priest I indicate th a t the incident is k n o w n in the w orld o f the folk tale a n d th a t it can e n ter eith er in d e p e n d e n tly o r as a c o m p o n e n t o f these o r othei types. D esig n a tin g the given incident as T 1525 A IV, I a u to m a tic a ll) assert th a t it is an integral c o m p o n e n t o f the h u m o r e s q u e The Thief
o f T hieves, a n d in tro d u c in g the sam e sym bol in to the stru c tu re o f
so m e o t h e r type, I indicate th a t the type is an illustration o f the third o f the a b o v e -m e n tio n e d cases, i.e. the c rossing o f types, a p h e n o m e n o n quite n o rm a l in the w orld o f tra d itio n a l prose.
T h e sym bolics o f this c rossing presents p e rh a p s the greatest difficulties. It so h a p p e n s t h a t the crossing rests o n a m echanical s u m m in g up o f the incidents associated with the figure o f the hero. C o m m o n , for exam ple, are the tales o f the a d v e n tu re s o f the fox w ho steals fish fro m a c a rt (T 1), convinces a w olf to freeze his tail in a hole in the ice (T 2), invites him to a w ed d in g (T 3), a n d o r d e r s him to take him h o m e after he has been beaten (T 4). T h e f o rm u la fo r such a tale w o u ld be the sim ple e q u a tio n : T 1 + 2 + • 3 + 4 . Similarly, the K a s h u b i a n tale a b o u t M a c ie k who saves people t r a n s f o r m e d into sheep, receives as a re w a rd a m agic shirt (T 471) an d with its help releases the princess who tears her shoes while d a n c in g (T 306) c a n be expressed as T 471 + 306. T h e difficulties begin w hen we meet the m o st varied in te rp o la tio n s o f o n e origin o r an o th ei T h e f o rm u la o f the story The G host Searcher in the fo rm T 32( l a b — l i e * + T 8 18+ 326 11 hi m e a n s th a t the h e ro o f the given v a r iant e n c o u n te rs the g host in the castle a n d reacts to his sneeze with a greeting, since T 818 is the edifying tale o f the sneezing ap p a ritio n . In this fo r m u la the u n it lie* I set off with an asterisk in o r d e r to indicate th a t it deviates fro m the n o r m a l fo rm , the difference being
so slight, however, th a t a detailed d escription o f it w o u ld belong r a th e r to a separate study, to a m o n o g r a p h o n the given tale. In an in v e n to ry which aim s at c a p tu r in g the basic featu res it is possible to o m it it. T h e interesting tale fro m the district o f Sieradz, fo r exam ple, b eg in n in g like the medieval Vaticinium (T 671) with the a n ta g o n is m o f the fa th e r for the son w ho u n d e r s ta n d s the speech o f birds, a d ro itly interweaves m otifs o f the th em e o f “T h e S im p le to n P a stu rin g H a r e s ” (T 570) with the a d v e n tu re s o f “ G o ld e n H a i r ” w h o helps the king in w ar (T 314), a n d en d s with an epilogue fro m the h u m o r e s q u e a b o u t the prodigial son w ho p a s tu re s swine a n d m a rrie s a princess (T 395). T o express this c o m p lic a te d c o n te n ts in a fo r m u la , it is nec essary to use a series o f signs: T671 + 5 7 0 + 314 V I a c + 5 7 0 I l i a + 314 VI l a + 3 9 5 I He.
T h is case is a g o o d illustration o f the difficulty c o n n e c te d with the classification o f types, a n d raises then the q u e s tio n w hich o f them m ust be recognized as p rim a ry a n d where, u n d e r w hich n u m b e r m ust o n e look for the Sie radz varian t. C o n s id e r a tio n o f the m u tu a l rela tio n s o f the c o m p o n e n ts c o m p e ls us to recognize T 570 as the chief o n e a m o n g them a n d it is precisely here th a t I place the Sieradz \ a r i a n t . In o th e r cases, as in the a b o v e - q u o te d K a s h u b i a n c o m p o nent T 884 + 306, the s itu a tio n is m o re difficult because b o t h m e m bers c o u ld claim chief place with equal fairness. T h e sam e situation o b t a i n s for the tales o f the fox a n d the wolf. O n e th in g decides the basis o f the classification —a subjective factor, u n f o r tu n a te ly —the a u t h o r 's intuition, which is the result o f m a n y y e a rs ’ fam iliarity with the w o rld o f the folk tale. It is o n this fam iliarity th a t the g r a d a tio n o f the c o m p o n e n ts is based. In o r d e r to limit subjectivity to a m i n im u m , how ever, I to o k recourse to a w hole net o f cro ss referen ces. th u s en terin g the K a s h u b i a n varian t as T 306, the Sieradz o n e as T 570, while in all o th e r ty pes I include cross references. F o r I 884. for exam ple, I give “cf. T 306,” for T 671, 314, a n d 9 3 5 —“cf. I 570." T h a n k s to this m e th o d there a p p e a r s after the v a ria n ts for each t \ p e an e n u m e r a tio n o f the types which cross it in the m o s t varied m a n n e r a n d attest to its vitality. T h e ir e n u m e r a tio n is given o n pp. 2 6 6 - 2 7 7 .
1 a m well aw are, how ever, t h a t in the analysis o f stru c tu re s a n d c ro ssin g o f types I d o u b tle ss o v e rlo o k e d m o re th a n o n e detail, p e r
T 554 I d o not isolate the different ways o f d iscovering the girl hidden a m o n g h e r d o u b le s ; in T 461 a n d 756 B I do not give the m o n l o f the o g r e ’s sensing the presence o f a living p e rs o n ; an d finally in the v a ria n ts co n c e rn in g the differences in the m a n n e r in which a m an is hid d en u n d e r the bed o r tra n s fo rm e d into the head o f a pin o r an insect (T 461) I indicate only with an asterisk the fact that they d e p a rt from the m o tif o f the n o rm a l form w ith o u t going into any m o re precise definition. System atics is only an in tro d u c tio n to a study o f the folk tale a n d c a n n o t tak e the place o f a direct know ledge *4' the texts themselves.
D ue to the a p p lic a tio n o f this m e th o d , met usually in special am detailed m o n o g r a p h s , the review o f o u r tales has assu m ed the pro p o rtio n s o f a fairly large b o o k . F o r a justification o f its si/e. o n e m u st say th at it gives n o t only the b a re assertion th at a given type exists in o u r tra d itio n , b u t also its not alw ays a c c u ra te description Finally, th r o u g h an analysis o f each v a ria n t the a tte m p t is m a d e to place it ag ain st the c o m p a r a tiv e b a c k g r o u n d o f b o rd e rin g tales and against the b a c k g r o u n d o f an all Polish system. In o th e r w ords, instead o f a generalizing s u m m a ry I give the m o rp h o lo g ic a l c h a r a c teristics o f o u r fa b u la r types a n d point o u t their m u tu a l relations a n d co n n ectio n s.
3
A few re m a r k s now a b o u t the technical side o f the a rra n g e m en t o f the b o o k . A fter the stru c tu ra l schem e I give a bib liography o f studies on a given subject; thus, the volum es an d pages o f Bolte P olivka i = BP), m o n o g r a p h s an d special studies etc. T h e p o v erty o f the b ib lio g ra p h y is explained by the fact th at even basic p u b li c a tio n s o n the folk tale are rarely e n c o u n te re d in o u r public libraries a n d the a u t h o r ’s rich private collection was destroyed d u rin g the b o m b a r d m e n t o f W a rsa w in S e p te m b e r 1936. A fter the bibliography c o m e the “ lite ra ry ” v a ria n ts o f the type, especially the old ones which p e rm it us to see h o w long we know them on a Polish f o u n d a tio n . Finally, I give the folk v a ria n ts in a g e o g ra p h ic o rd e r, from n o rth to so u th a n d fro m west to east. At the head I include the v a ria n ts o f the oldest collectors, Wójcicki, Siemieński. Baliński. Barycz and o th e rs, as a rule not designated to p o g ra p h ic a lly . F o r Gliński I g i\e
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just the general Belorussia. for B arącz L vov, a lth o u g h it w ould be possible here to speak also o f S tan isław ó w o r T a r n o p o l . T h e first n a m e designates the region o r district where the re c o rd was m ade, the second the place. In cases w here o n ly o n e n a m e is given (K a s h u b ia , W arsaw , D o b rz y ń sk ie ) this m e a n s the region o f orig in o f the variant. T h e n am e o f the collector a n d the title assigned by him I put in parentheses, after which a p p e a r s the source in w hich the text was
published. In cases o f r e p rin tin g I use the sign = . fo r exam ple ■ L o
rentz) T P = (N itsch) W P T G m e a n s th a t the item o f N itsch is a reprint fro m the collection o f Lorentz.
After the p o p u l a r v a ria n ts I give tra n s la tio n s o f given items in foreign languages, a n d finally the foreign v a ria n ts re c o rd e d by Polish collectors a n d p rin te d in o u r scientific p u b lic a tio n s . T h e exception is represented only by the o ld e r collections o f W ójcicki, Gliński, o r Barącz. H ere it is frequently im possible to d e te rm in e the origin o f the variants w hich years ago b e c a m e the c o m m o n p r o p e r t y o f the readers a n d which exercised m o re th a n o n ce a c o n s id e ra b le influence on later storytellers a n d collectors. In c o n n e c tio n with this o n e m ust m en tio n the relation o f the m aterial g a th e re d h ere to th a t published in the c o m p e n d iu m o f Bolte —P olivka. F o r all th e a sto n ish in g e r u d i tion o f Polivka, w ho w o rk e d o v e r the Slavic g ro u p , the m aterial from the territo ry o f P o la n d was presen ted o n ly in a fra g m e n ta ry m a n n e r. T h is h o ld s true for Polish as well as Belorussian a n d U k ra in ia n m aterial which h a d been collected by Poles. F o r T 590, for exam ple, rep resen ted here by 14 Polish v a ria n ts a n d as m an y U k ra in ia n , P olivka has only 3 Polish items a n d o n e U k ra in ia n . Similarly, T 403, in which the Polish side is p re se n te d richly, but confusingly, a n d where in d isp en sab le v a ria n ts fro m L u d białoruski are o v e rlo o k e d . O t h e r ex am p les c o u ld be cited. N o n -P o lis h v a ria n ts I note only in p assing; I do n o t give their m o rp h o lo g ic a l analysis, a p a rt from certain cases which for v ario u s re a s o n s merit special atten tio n .
In the selection o f the m aterial I used only p rin te d collections a n d did not ta k e m a n u s c rip ts in to a c c o u n t, with the single exception o f the collections o f L o m p a k n o w n until n o w usually fro m d escriptions a n d su m m aries. T hese collections were, h ow ever, p re p a re d for press a n d were s u p p o s e d to a p p e a r b efore the p rin tin g o f the systematics. 1 tried, f u rth e rm o re , to m a k e m y way to all the items n oted in the
B ibliography o f G aw ełek , to sources no t e x h au sted by him , a n d to
later p u b licatio n s. A c o n sid e ra b le n u m b e r o f item s m en tio n e d by him 1 w as forced to exclude because it a p p e a r e d th at they h ad only an indirect c o n n e c tio n with the Polish tale. I did the sam e with the re w o rk in g s o f the folk tales fo r children, since it seemed to me that they are n o t alw ays o f p o p u l a r origin a n d in so m e cases not even Polish.
Special a tte n tio n is m erited by such cases as, f< i exam ple, the tale Brunhilda >T 519) n o ted d o w n by us o n only a single occasion, in Iwonicz, a n d representing u n d o u b te d ly a p ro d u c t o f R ussian infiltra tion, which is h a rd to u n d e r s ta n d since the v a ria n t co m e s from a district where it w ould be im possible to find any im m ed iate c o n n e c tio n s with R ussian folklore. T h e presence o f T 519 in a Polish syste- m atics, a n d this is by no m e a n s the only case, a lth o u g h exceptionally interesting, u n d erlin es the m u tu a l relatio n s a n d k in sh ip o f o u r folk tr a d itio n with the tra d itio n s o f the n e ig h b o u rin g peoples. F u r t h e r m o re, it a c c e n tu ate s the necessity o f studies which for som e time have re p re se n te d an o b v io u s scientific p o stu la te b u t w hich until n o w only scantily k ep t pace with the general E u r o p e a n progress in this field.
I m u st a d d th a t fro m the collections o f no n -P o lish folk tales w hich, how ever, aro se in P o la n d , I in tro d u c e d into the systematics, a p a r t from a b o v e -m e n tio n e d v a ria n ts recited in the Polish language, a certain n u m b e r also o f Belorussian a n d U k r a in ia n v a ria n ts an d even o n e L atvian iT 975) in so far as they to u c h o n P o la n d o r Poles (the a n e c d o te s a b o u t Radziwiłł P anie K o c h a n k u ) o r w here they reveal featu res a ttestin g to a Polish origin, especially th ose which h av e distinct e quivalents in o ld Polish literature. T h is c o u rse developed fro m the co n v ictio n th at o n c e the tale o f “ G u i d o a n d T y r iu s ” T 975) fro m the G esta R om anorum re a c h e d Latgalia in a Polish version, it is m o re th an p ro b a b le th a t its Polish v a ria n t so o n e r o r later w o u ld a p p e a r in so m e p rin te d p u b lic a tio n which I h a d not succeeded in exam ining, o r in som e as yet u n p r in te d m a n u s c rip t collection. I h ave no d o u b ts th en —especially as a result o f the c o n d itio n s in w hich I was forced to co m p ile my w o rk —th a t the m aterials w hich I succeeded in g ath e rin g will reveal m a n y la c u n a e a n d oversights a n d th a t in the co u rse o f tim e it will be necessary to c o rre c t them o n e way o r a n o th e r. If, despite this confession, I co n sid er the b o o k finished, it is only because I treat it as an i n tr o d u c to r y w ork.
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ren d e rin g accessible a field rarely visited, sh o w in g all its richness, a n d p o in tin g the way to fu r th e r studies: to studies o n collection which s h o u ld be located in a cen tral folkloristic archive (an insti tu tio n which we s h o u ld d evelop a n d which w o u ld g a th e r together m aterial scattered in provincial e th n o g r a p h ic m u seu m s), to biblio g rap h ic studies which w o u ld c o rre c t the in ad eq u acies o f the present systematics, a n d finally to m o n o g r a p h ic studies o n individual themes a n d their m u tu a l relations. If only som e o f these d esid e ra ta are a cco m p lish ed , the goal o f m a n y y ears' w o rk o n the system atics o f the Polish tale will be achieved.
* * *
In con clu sio n , a few w o rd s o f a p erso n al n a tu re , p r o m p t e d in a sense by the p r o g r a m m a tic w ith d ra w a l o f S. Udziela. Indicating the need for a system atics o f the folk tale, he feared the difficulties associated with its realizatio n :
W e d o not forget that in ord er to a cco m p lish the work ab ou t w hich w e are talking, m uch se lf denial is n ecessary, m uch d ed ica tio n . A m an w h o fervently desires to think in d ep en dently, to broad en his h o rizo n s, w ho w ants to a n n o u n c e to the w orld the fruit o f his creative w ork —such a person must ren ou n ce all o f this in order to arrange so m e o n e else's c o lle c tio n s and so m e o n e else s th o u g h ts year in and year ou t for m any long years.
In such a c o n c e p tio n o f the m a tte r I sec a great deal o f e x ag geration. A b o v e everything else, in a well o rd e re d science there
m ust be a division o f la b o r; then, an indispensable c o n d itio n o f studies in which it is possible “ to th in k in d e p e n d e n tly " are p r e p a r a to r y studies, o bservative, b ib lio g rap h ic, editorial, a n d others, do u b tless less sp ectacu lar th an the first, b u t usually m o re lasting. Finally, I m ust confess th at in the c o u rse o f ten y ears' w ork o n a system atics for o u r folk tales, w o rk c o n d u c te d in fits a n d snatches o n the m argin o f o th e r labors, the th o u g h t o f d ed ic a tio n was entirely alien to me. In my studies on the old a n d new literatu re I h a p p e n e d o n m an y o ccasio n s to reach into folklore a n d to regret accordingly the lack o f a system atic guide. T h e c o m p o s itio n o f this b o o k had n o th in g o f the c h a ra c te r o f force a b o u t it. O n the c o n tra ry , there o c c u rre d at each step a h o st o f p ro b le m s, large a n d small, which d e m a n d e d solution a n d the m ost varied researches. T hese led me e ith e r into
areas new a n d u n k n o w n o r into c o n ta c t with folk n a rra tiv e s which c a p tiv a te d m e with their c h a rm . In this way there a ro se new experi m ents, the expression o f w hich w o u ld fill tw o m o re b o o k s , n am ely the selection o f ex e m p la ry folk tales o f P o la n d as well as the synthetic c h a racteristics o f o u r folk tale. Finally, the realizatio n o f this b o o k was possible o n ly because o f the lively a sso c ia tio n with it o f a score o f people who did n o t spare the a u t h o r assistance o f an y sh ap e o r form . If it were n o t fo r this m a n y - h a n d e d w o rk , the. realization o f p ro b le m s f o r m u la te d years ago w o u ld h ave been delayed for decades.
Sum . by Julian K r zy ż a n o w s k i
J e r z y B a r t m i n s k i : O j^zyku folkloru (On the Language o f Folklore), O s s o lin e u m , W ro c la w 1973, pp. 286.
Jerzy B a r tm in s k i’s b o o k is n o t the kind you c a n p u t b a c k o n the shelf o n ce y o u have finished re a d in g it. T h is is n o t o n ly due to the fact th a t it is the first a t t e m p t in Polish folklore studies at d escrib in g p a r tic u la r elem ents o f the lan g u ag e o f folklore. N o r is it because the b o o k c o n ta in s v alu ab le linguistic m a te ria ls w hich will be o f use in fu tu re c o m p a r a tiv e studies o n the lan g u ag e o f fo lk lo re o f o t h e r regions, b u t a b o v e all because its bo ld , p ro v o c a tiv e sta te m e n ts lead to the discovery o f new fields o f research. Jerzy B a r tm in s k i’s b o o k h as been reviewed a g reat m a n y tim es 1 a n d has p r o v o k e d a lively discussion c e n tre d r o u n d finding a definition o f the lan g u a g e o f fo lk lo re .2 T h is goes to sh o w t h a t the p r o b le m s e x a m in e d by the a u t h o r are o f c o n s id e ra b le im p o rta n c e . T h e p resen t review is a c o n tin u a tio n o f th at d iscu ssio n ; it develops so m e o f the ideas pu t fo r
1 See W .J . R z e p k a , Isto ta ję z y k a fo lk lo r u ( The E ssence o f the L angu age o f
F o lk lo re), “ N u r t”, 1974. no 9; K. P i s a r k o w a , rev. in: “Język P o ls k i.” 1974, no 4;
H. W a l i ń s k a . O ję z y k u fo lk lo ru — fo lk lo r y s ty c z n ie (S p e cific Q u a lities o f the L anguage
o f Folklore), “ L iteratura L u d o w a ,” 1974. no. 4 /5 ; O . S i r o v a t k a , O ja zy k u lidove slo v esn o sti. " N a r o d o p isn e A k tu a lity ,” 1974, no 2; M. L e s i v , M o v a fo lk lo r u na p o l- sk o -u k ra in sk o m u p o g ra n y c h y . “ N a sh a K u ltu r a ,” 1974, no 4.
2 B artm in sk i’s b o o k w as d iscu ssed at a n a tio n a l sem in ar “W hat is the lan gu age o f fo lk lo r e ? ” (S y m p o siu m on fo lk lo r e in S łu p sk . 1974, presided by Prof. C z. H ernas).
