Paper Russian fairy tales proverbs and stories Contents Introduction

Comparison of Russian and British Treasures

Britain			Russia
Treasure	Function	Treasure	Function
Dyrnwyn, sword of Rhydderch the Generous	In the hands of a nobleman it would burst into flame from hilt to tip	Mech Kladenets	Helps a kind man with noble aims to defeat an immortal mean monster
The Hamper of Gwyddno Garanhir	Food for one could be put into it and food for a hundred would be found when next opened	Skatert'- Samobranka	With words "Unroll!" it gives food and drink to a poor person
The Horn of Bran	This dispensed whatever drink one wanted	Volshebnaya Dudochka	Tells only truth in all cases, forces a deceitful and mean man to come clean

We want to conclude that the British and Russian folklores have a lot of common traits. In spite of the fact that the cultures of our countries are different in many ways, they are similar in spiritual values. We can hope that in future our countries will join and develop their cultures together.
2.2Differences and similarities in English and Russian folk tales.
A rich mixture simmered in the folklore cauldron. History and pre-history went into it; the doings of druids, giants, fairies, saints, soldiers, shepherds, mines, fishermen and kings; the shape of the land, the prevailing weather, the rhythms of speech, the country humor. Added to this local brew are bits and pieces from far afield, brought by Flemish and German traders, Norwegian and Danish adventures, Dutch delvers who came to drain the Fens, and the intermixture of Irish and Welsh, Cornish and Scots, Yorkshiremen, Geordies, Hogs and the rest. As times went on, the tales multiplied, weaving themselves into daily life and thought, adapted to local conditions and the listeners. A study of the tales can shed valuable light on the development of language and the history of human ideas; few sources can bring the past so spontaneously to the present.
The tales of the British and Irish people contain no splendid palaces or pretty, elegant fairies; no handsome princes and aspiring peasant brides; no wicked stepmothers and ugly sisters, no noble knights and decorative beldames waiting to be saved; no rich merchants and no bears, camels, dragons or griffins. Everything is popular and from the familiar lore of these islands. Heroes and heroines are as wild, unkempt, simple, hardworking and superstitious as they probably were in fact.
“Tom Tit Tot” is taken from Lois A. Fison, Merry Suffolk. It is the English version of Grimm’s tale “Rumpelstiltskin”, was originally published by Anna Walter Thomas in “Suffolk Notes and Queries”, Ipswich Journal, 15 January 1878. It was said to have been told to the author as a child by an old servant. I’ve read it in West Suffolk dialect. I should point out, that it was rather difficult to understand the folk tale in Suffolk dialect.
“Lutey and the Merrymaid”, “The Tulip Pixies”, “Cap o’rushes”, “Jan Coo” and other English folk tales were analyzed.
Russian folk tales “Baba Yaga”, “Father Frost”, “Ilya the Murom”, “The Humpbacked horse” and others were under analysis.
While reading English folk tales I paid attention to their beginnings: “Down in the West, somewhere by the boarders of the Tavy, there once lived a kind old woman”; “Well, once upon a time there were a woman, and she baked five pies”; “Well, there was once a very rich gentleman and he’d three darters”; “In the days of the great King Arthur”. As we see, the beginning English folk tales is concrete; it may contain the names of national heroes or kings.
Traditional formula at the beginning of narration in Russian folk tales: “Жили-были муж с женой, и была у них дочка”, “Жил-был старик, и было у него три сына”, “В некоем городе жил-был купец, у него было три сына: первый — Федор, другой — Василий, а третий — Иван-дурак”, “ В некотором царстве, за тридевять земель - в тридесятом государстве жил-был сильный, могучий царь”, “Жили были старик да старуха”, “В некотором царстве жил-был купец.” This means that they were rather abstract, as there weren’t such places or such real times.
While describing the way of a hero in English folk tales I found: “She went away, on and on, till she came to a fen”, “and then she went on and on till she came to a house”.
In Russian folk tales I found such descriptions: “Василиса прошла всю ночь и весь день, только к следующему вечеру вышла на полянку, где стояла избушка Бабы-яги”, “Шла она, шла и пришла в лес”, “Долго она бегала по полям, по лесам. День клонится к вечеру, делать нечего - надо идти домой”. It means that in English folk tales the way is not so long and difficult, on the contrary, Russian folk tales have a long way of a hero. It should be noted that numbers seven and three are often met in folk tales.
English folk fairy tales mainly have a realistic plot. World is described rather realistically, heroes try to reach something real and usual.
Russian folk fairy tales also have a realistic plot. It means that they were taken from real everyday life, or perhaps, changed with time.
We can see mostly concrete kingdoms, towns, places in English folk tales such as “Cornwall, Farmhouse of Rowbrook, somewhere near Lizard Point”.
In Russian folk tales the places are not concretely denoted. Usually they are connected with nature, for example: “Стоит в лесу за высоким тыном избушка на курьих ножках, на бараньих рожках”, “Ехал казак путем-дорогою и заехал в дремучий лес; в том лесу на прогалинке стоит стог сена”.
English folk tales describe heroes in details, trying to give us complete image, for example: “her golden-colored hair, falling over her shoulders, and floating on the water, shone like sunbeams on the sea”, “the daughter was lazy and plain, and pampered by her mother”, “her eyes shone like the brightest of stars on a gloomy night”, “a short, elderly man, dressed in a very old Dutch style”.
Heroes in Russian folk tales are not described in a concrete way. There is little information about their appearance, more information can be found about hero’s mental abilities.
While describing heroes in both languages stylistic devices, such as metaphors, epithets, similes are used.
English folk tales usually end with happy ending. “Well, when that hard her, that shruck awfull, an’awa’ that flew into the dark, an’she niver saw it noo more”, “And she goes up to him, and puts her arms round him. And so they was happy ever after”, “That evening there was a wedding in the palace. The Prince and the Princess got married and lived happily ever after”; “I cannot tell how the truth may be. Isaythetaleas ‘twassaidtome”.
Russian folk tales end with: “Свадьба была богатая; на той свадьбе и я был, мед-вино пил, по усам текло, во рту не былó”, “Я на том пиру был, мед-пиво пил, по усам текло, а в рот не попало”, “И стал он жить вдвоем с дочкой, дружно да хорошо. Здесь и сказке конец”. Happy further life and edification for younger generation often can be traced in Russian folk tales.