Fables, Legends,

Fairy Tales,

Folktales

Genre Study

Where do these stories come from?

• Told by people all over world for hundreds or even thousands of years

• Oral storytelling of traditional stories• Unique to a culture, but also lots in

common with other cultures• Written down by

researchers/storytellers/authors– Printing Press invented in 1440

Fables: Elements

• A fictional story that often involves magical creatures and places and has a moral to the story it tells.

• Include elements of the natural environment where the fable came from, along with native animals, forests, lakes, and other features of the region

• Told as a good way of educating children in proper behavior

Fables: Class Mentor Texts

• The Wind and the Sun (Aesop) http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=WdHhDp2bOAQ

• The Boy Who Cried Wolf (Aesop) http://www.speakaboos.com/story/the-boy-who-cried-wolf

• The Ant and the Grasshopper (Aesop) http://www.speakaboos.com/story/the-ant-and-the-grasshopper

• The Tortoise and the Hare (Aesop) http://www.speakaboos.com/story/the-tortoise-and-the-hare

Fables: Examples• Aesop’s Fables

– Aesop (c. 620-564 BC) was a slave in ancient Greece who was a storyteller. Some think that he, “by his cleverness acquires freedom and becomes an adviser to kings and city-states.” (Wikipedia)

• “no writings by him survive…numerous tales credited to him were gathered across the centuries and in many languages in a storytelling tradition that continues to this day” (Wikipedia)

• The Hare and the Tortoise• The Ant and the Grasshopper• A Lion and A Mouse• The Shepherd’s Boy / The Boy Who Cried Wolf• The Dog and His Shadow• The Goose with the Golden Eggs

• Jataka Tales– India, 4th Century BC

– Tell about the lives of the Buddha; shows a virtue

An ancient coin that is believed to show Aesop. (c, 540 BC)(Wikipedia)

Fables: Quick Reads with Your Book ClubSHARE:• Title• Author/Country/Year• Summary (in own words)

• Moral/Lesson (in own words)

• Why have people kept retelling this story?

Folktales: Elements• A folktale is a type of traditional story that tries to

explain or understand the world.

• They are NOT considered to be true.

• Orally passed down through the generations and feature morals or lessons. Over many generations, the story may change, but its core remains the same.

• Usually take place long ago in a faraway place

• Talking animals, royalty, peasants, or mythical creatures

• Goodness is always rewarded. Heroes and heroines live happily ever after while villains are suitably punished.

• Usually have no identified author, but they mirror the values and culture of the society from which they came.

Folktales: Examples

• T

Folktales: Class Mentor Text

• The Woman Who Flummoxed the Fairies (Sorche Nic Leodhas)

• From Tiger to Anansi (Jamaica)• Why the Sun and the Moon Live In the

Sky (Nigeria, West Africa)

Fables: Quick Reads with Your Book Club

• Title• Author/Country• Summary• Moral/Lesson

Legends: Elements

• Stories that were once believed to be true, but its content has turned out to be fictional.

• Exaggerated, but within an area of possibility and are believable

• Contain a moral or meaning that is revealed within the story. (This is why these stories have been passed down over time.)

• Is focused on individual people and their accomplishments

• Fictional heroes or real people whose deeds have been exaggerated. They were either so lifelike or so admirable that people wished they were real!

Legends: Examples

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Legends: Class Mentor Text• The Origin of Stories, Seneca legend

(Native American)• How Glooskap Found the Summer,

Algonquin legend (Native American)• The Woman Who Outshone the Sun

(Mexico)• The Boy Who Lived With the Seals

(Native American)• Peboan and Seegwun (Native American)

Legends: Quick Reads with Your Book Club

• Title• Author/Country• Summary• Moral/Lesson

Fairy Tales: Elements

• Characters: fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants, gnomes

• Magic or enchantments• Good wins over evil, the

bad are punished, and the good prosper.

Fairy Tales: Examples

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Fairy Tales: Class Mentor Text

Fairy Tales: Quick Reads with Your Book Club

• Title• Author/Country• Summary• Moral/Lesson