Elements of Folktales
What is a Folktale?
Folktales
were passed down from
generation to generation by word of
mouth, which is called oral tradition.
Folktales
were made up to explain the
wonders of the world or to teach
morals and lessons.
Different Types of Folktales
Trickster Tales
Fables
Pourquoi stories
Fairytales
Trickster Tales
One character, usually the protagonist,
is a clever trickster that causes
problems for the other characters
They usually go unpunished
Example Anansi the Spider (Africa),
Hare (North America), Wolf( Europe),
Hermes (Greek Mythology)
Fables
These are stories that teach a lesson or have
a moral
The main characters of Fables are usually
animals with human characteristics
The moral not stated, but needs to be inferred
by the reader
Examples of Fables: The Little Red Hen,
The Three Little Pigs
Pourquoi Stories
Explain WHY something is as it is
Explains HOW something came to be and it
usually explains something in Nature
Examples of Pourquoi stories:
How thunder or lightening came to be
How the Elephant Got Its Trunk or How the
Tiger Got Its Stripes
*** Most myths and tall tales are considered
Pourquois
Fairytales
Include good and evil characters
Usually has a hero or heroine
Has Magic
Often begins with “Once upon a time”
Conflicts are resolved through kindness,
courage or intelligence
Examples: Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty,
Aladdin
Common Elements of Folktales:
Rule of Three: Items happen in sets of 3 or 7s
(things happen in 3s, lots of repetition or
repeated phrases) -For Example:
- 3 characters n e t r i u m
r a s e " o m
- 3 events
L a t i n p h g t h a t
The v e r y t h i n
t u m " e
- 3 tests the character must overcome
( c t , o r ,
e r
Ex: “Jackf e c
p times. The wicked
and the Beanstalk” showed
i s p e r
Jack f e
climbing the beanstalk
three
n t h r e e s
stepmother
e
visited Snow White
l t e ) in the forest
c o m
three timese s i
before
i s c
she finally got her to o
eatm p
the apple.
o f t h r e e
Magic is commonly
s e t used, to explain the
e v er y
unexplainable.
You will see similar characteristics from stories
across the world
Common Elements of a Folktale:
Plot/Themes
Characters go through tests to prove
something (the good character must
solve a problem)
Good v. Evil (has characters that good,
others are bad)
Good is rewarded and evil is punished in
the end (tales have a happy ending)
Common Elements of a Folktale:
Characterization
Characters change only after they have gone
through the lesson learned during the course of
the story
The hero is usually young and fair, kind, brave,
unselfish, and may possess some sort of special
power.
Magic helpers, such as the Fairy Godmother in
Cinderella, allow for things to occur within a story
that would otherwise be impossible
Common Elements of a Folktale:
Setting
Place is usually described easily and
briefly, leaving the imagination to fill in the
gaps. For example, folktales take place in
a cottage in the woods or in a magical
kingdom
Time is fantasy time, such as Once upon
a time, or A long time ago
Vernacular
1.the language or dialect
spoken by the ordinary people
in a particular country or
region.
"The lady doth protest too much, methinks"
"Jim was most ruined for a servant,
because he got stuck up on account
of having seen the devil and been
rode by witches."
