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"Thompson believed the folktale to be an important and living art, underlying all literary narrative forms. Most of all he wanted to acquaint readers with most of the great folktales of the world, not only for their own interest as stories, but as elements of culture. He writes about the nature and form of the folktale, gives an account of tales from Ireland to India, devotes a special section to the North American Indian tales and myths, and another to the methods of collecting, classifying, studying folktales as a living art. He found them rich and varied sources of entertainment and wisdom. So much is to be found in them, he said, that the talents of literary critics, historians, anthropologists, psychologists, linguists are all necessary. Study of the folktale involved 'more talents than one man can easily possess.' Stith Thompson came close to possessing them." --Los Angeles Times "Thompson's work in their field has shaped the study of this form of literature for the past three decades. In this classic work Thompson discusses a wide range of story motifs and retells their basic patterns. His classifications and descriptions of the huge mass of folk literature are extremely enjoyable reading. He also discusses the background to his own study of the folktale. He includes an index to tale types classified according to the main story motifs which can be used for reference. This outstanding book is very highly recommended as fascinating reading." --Kliatt Paperback Book Guide "The Folktale will appeal to a wide public: the student of sociology of literature, the professor of comparative literature, the general reader interested in folklore. Thompson's book is a scholarly masterpiece." --Studies in Short Fiction … (more)
User reviews
Thompson first discusses the contested terminology for various types of tales. This is one part that I suspect may be dated. He then discusses the folktale in its many forms (simple, complex, legends, animal tales, etc.) from "Ireland to India", roughly tales within the Indo-European languages, although he does not use this as a strict boundary. Perhaps one should say that they are his starting point, but if the story or motif is also found anywhere else in the world, as it often is. he follows it, and discussed distribution and differences. He does not include any actual stories, but he does briefly recount the basic tale or motif. He points out that the same motif may be cycled through many different stories, and some distinct motifs don't exist as a tale, but only reusable piece. Thompson was not a purist: he rather enjoyed seeing folktales made into movies.
Thompson then contrasts this with the tales of "primitive" (that's one word that would probably be considered dated) cultures, i.e. the North American Indians, which I believe was a specialty of his. I don't know that the contrast demonstrates any particular truths, but this is quite interesting in its own right. I was amused when he told the tale of a collector among the Zuni who reciprocated by telling them tales. One tale was repeated back to him a year later, so thoroughly refashioned to Zuni sensibilities as to be barely recognizable.
He ends with a discussion of the study of the folktale: theories on origins and meanings, international organizations, major collections, etc. Again, I am intrigued by the sheer amount of intellectual work that all this requires.
Personally, I love reading folktales, especially when they are accompanied by gorgeous drawings as they so often are. This has given me a real appreciation for the diligent, even heroic efforts of folklorists. The book has an index of tale types and a regular index.