Thread: Folklore

Some of you may know that I home educate one of my sons because he has some disabilities which made school very difficult for him. (Although I have got him a place at an excellent school, with brilliant special needs provision starting in September.)

I want to do a project on folklore with him after the half term, to tie in with an exhibition we currently have in our local art gallery (The Dark Monarch, Magic and Modernity in British art) on Folklore and myths, which includes Damien Hursts Unicorn (I always try to tie projects in with a trip to a museum, gallery, or lecture at the RI).

I have done some research myself obviously in preperation, but I was wondering if any of you lovely folks could either share a favorite folklore tale with me, or point me in the direction of a good resource.

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Have no favorite tale, though I do like Grimms tales which were often bassed on folklore.

However for a resource this looks like it has an huge quantity of info Folktexts: A library of folktales, folklore, fairy tales, and mythology, page 1

Hi,

I don't have any favourites in particular, but one site I use when planning holidays or doing research on some of the places we are involved in for work is
Mysterious Britain & Ireland | Mysteries, Legends & The Paranormal

It looks like a fantastic show though, I hope your son enjoys it

I like Bluebeard...it's right gory and disturbing

I also love a lot of Eastern European, Northern European and Russian folklore.

Are you after folklore or fairy tale, because the two can be quite different.

I'm currently reading From the Beast to the Blonde by Maria Warner, it's very good.

Thanks for your input my lovelies, I shall take a look at those links.

Ally I think I am looking more for folklore, although that's where most fairy tales seem to originate anyway.

I am particularly interested in looking at folklores that have shaped traditions and ceremonies because they are more tangible and relevant. I can also compare these to other civilisations and religions that we have studied. However the beauty of HE is that it is very organic, and we can take it anywhere that captures his imagination.

Ohh, then I'd definitely look at Nordic and Old English folklore. Possibly even Norse and Germanic Mythology.

Originally Posted by Ally Katte

Ohh, then I'd definitely look at Nordic and Old English folklore. Possibly even Norse and Germanic Mythology.

Oh the OH's into Nordic folklore massively he stranded me for a week last year to trawl around Reykjavik museums, just to see the old texts ( he even spent 3 months trying to learn to read Icelandic before he went ).

I second From the beast to the blonde, I am currently reading Marina Warners No go the bogeyman which looks at folklore and men, the way "blonde" looked at women. It also touches on Norse mythology.

Bruno Bettleheims The uses of enchantment is interesting, considering the psychology of myth and folklore. Sur la lune is a good web resource, and also look into the writings of Angela Carter.

Bun xxx

I second From the Beast to the Blonde, I am currently reading Marina Warners No go the Bogeyman which looks at folklore and men, the way "bBonde" looked at women. It also touches on Norse mythology.

Bruno Bettleheims The Uses of Enchantment is interesting, considering the psychology of myth and folklore. Sur la Lune is a good web resource, and also look into the writings of Angela Carter.

Bun xxx

As a treat let him watch 'Into The Woods ' - Sondheim used Bettelheim as his primary source, and it's a fantastically entertaining and informative way of looking at some classic fairy tales, particularly when everything gets turned upside down in the second half. A really good inspiration for some creative writing of his own - 'What do you think happened next....?' ( If you don't know it already, Rapunzels' prince ends up chasing after Cinderella and vice versa; we end up rather empathising with the giants' mother, etc...) You can even do cookery, using the witchs' song 'Greens' ( How many different vegetables can we think of.....Lets' make some soup....)

Check out Perrault as the C18th French alternative to C19th German Grimm.

I grew up in the 70's reading norse, roman and greek myths as retold for children by Kevin Crossley Holland - I don't know how old your son is, but these might be more engaging than Ms Warner and Carter for a young boy. Told in simple enough language, but really engaging and exciting. I remember them particularly fondly. Also Joan Aitken, who rewrote some classic tales for kids.

Some of the poems in Carol Anne Duffy's 'The Worlds' Wife' would be of interest, and there are teaching materials available on-line ( I know coz I just googled to make sure I had the title correct). Another very good prompt for self-expression.

'The Uses of Enchantment' is probably more for you than for him - after all, some of the stories are pretty scary. Bettelheim seeks to explain why these particular stories have endured for so long on quite a deep psychological level; it's a fascinating and wonderful book, but quite complex and sexually frank - it might help you to be more prepared for any questions he might have. It is really designed to explain to the adult why children take such delight and comfort in these stories, and how they help them to deal with their own issues.

I very much enjoyed Italo Calvinos' retelling of Italian Fairy Tales ( published in English by Penguin). As the founding father of Magic Realism his own fiction is deeply influenced by traditional myths/fairy stories ( The Baron in the trees, The Cloven Viscount); here he just retells traditional stories from the length and breadth of Italy, and they are particularly interesting as they are stories we didn't grow up with but inhabit exactly the same other world as those of the anglo-saxon writers such as Grimm, Andersen etc. You could work in some geography here - thinking about climate and landscape, and how they help define characters. Compare one of these Italian myths with a Scandinavian one, for example. How does Andersen's Little Mermaid compare to a Silkie ( sp?) from the Scottish Isles, or to Homers'

Warner and Carter - love them. And Jeanette Winterson, too ( especially one which has alternate chapters based on the Princess and the Pea, and Passion, which features a Venetian fishermans' daughter who has webbed feet and can walk on water. A great example of an 'invented' myth, and you could bring in some comparative religion - think Christ walking on water: why is this such a potent image, etc. You could even incorporate some science - take photos so your son appears to be walking on water too. What floats, what doesn't, how, why, what happens if we add salt to the water......) . Great feminist slant. But maybe not for a child - for no other reason than I think he might get bored. Read them yourself, so you can help him peel back layers of the onion for himself.

As so many of the characters in these stories have 'super-powers' you can even use contemporary 'superheroes' as points of reference. I heard a review today of a new film 'Percy Jackson and the Olympians' - based on an American series of books, where nerdy Percy turns out to be the son of Zeus or some-such, and has amazing adventures in the company of Mercury, battles the evil Minerva etc.

Art-wise you can design your own hero, look at pre-Raphaelite work. In terms of personal development you can look at issues of fairness, when you should use your special 'talent' and when not, what a 'talent' is, why bad things happen to good people - I'm thinking Red Shoes : read the Andersen story, watch the film, talk about issues of disability, fairness....; then there's the obvious Ugly Duckling......Green Man, if you want to bring in something very English ( you could do such a good collage). What's the difference between a story which is written down and an oral tradition. Who was Caxton......Look at how people perceive others who are 'different' - giants were bad for Jack ( as in Beanstalk), good for Oscar Wilde ( Selfish Giant, a book written for children).

Goodness me, I could go on all night! Better stop now, but good luck, and enjoy. Fantastic way of teaching. Good for you. Lucky boy.

Vx