The Merits of Oral Tradition

[Riverwolf]

Oh, I definitely agree! And as @Kelly of the Phoenix points out, there is pretty good evidence that at least in some traditions there have been considerable changes over fairly short periods of time. I'm all for being adaptable, and any good storyteller knows, you should have long and short versions, as well as variations, to account for differing needs and audiences...

Exactly. That's how these stories stay alive over the centuries. Their relevance is dependent on having actual meaning to the cultures telling and hearing them.

While it's certainly interesting to find the "original" form (for example, the oldest form I know of of the "sleeping princess woken by a prince" narrative is that of the Valkyrie Brunhilda), it's generally little more than a niche interest.

The vast bulk of the fairy tales that the Grimm brothers collected aren't really part of my own oral tradition, and referencing them around friends wouldn't make any sense. But that is partially because these stories didn't have much in the way of relevance to modern culture.

That's why Disney's adaptations of fairy tales completely rework the source material, because their versions have more relevance to the cultures that they cater to.

 

[beenherebeforeagain]

Exactly. That's how these stories stay alive over the centuries. Their relevance is dependent on having actual meaning to the cultures telling and hearing them.

While it's certainly interesting to find the "original" form (for example, the oldest form I know of of the "sleeping princess woken by a prince" narrative is that of the Valkyrie Brunhilda), it's generally little more than a niche interest.

The vast bulk of the fairy tales that the Grimm brothers collected aren't really part of my own oral tradition, and referencing them around friends wouldn't make any sense. But that is partially because these stories didn't have much in the way of relevance to modern culture.

That's why Disney's adaptations of fairy tales completely rework the source material, because their versions have more relevance to the cultures that they cater to.

I recall seeing one of the unabridged (I think) Grimms' at a library many years ago...seemed like more than a few of the tales were simply a short paragraph that might described, for example, how there is reputed to be a snake-like monster living in a particular lake in a particular valley. No real story involved...although at one time, there might have been, amongst the people in the area of that lake...

 

[Riverwolf]

I recall seeing one of the unabridged (I think) Grimms' at a library many years ago...seemed like more than a few of the tales were simply a short paragraph that might described, for example, how there is reputed to be a snake-like monster living in a particular lake in a particular valley. No real story involved...although at one time, there might have been, amongst the people in the area of that lake...

Well, the version that's been available in English for most of the last century is actually not the first edition, but a version that one of the brothers reworked to produce beautiful prose, and protect some pretense of "sanctity of motherhood" by turning all the evil mothers into evil stepmothers. The first edition was only recently translated into English, and indeed, the stories tend to be VERY short, and often don't seem to be stories at all.

But that does make sense. The brothers basically invited lots of people from all over Germany, from farmers to city workers, to their offices just to tell stories, which they'd then write down.