1. Folk Tales

2. Folk Tales
a story, with no known author, that originally was passed on from one generation to another by word of mouth
TYPES OF FOLK TALES: fairy tales, myths, legends, fables and tall tales

3. FABLE
a brief story in prose or verse that teaches a moral or gives a practical lesson/moral about how to get along in life
AESOP: famous Greek fable writer who lived more than 2,500 years ago
Characters are usually animals who are personified (act like humans)
3 purposes of fables
To entertain (by having animals talk)
To inform (by teaching lessons)
To influence/persuade people to change their behavior

4. the lesson about what to do, or not to do, to succeed in life
MORAL
the lesson about what to do, or not to do, to succeed in life

5. repeated element in storytelling, especially folk tales
MOTIF
repeated element in storytelling, especially folk tales
Numbers 3 and/or 7
Magic/Fairy characters
Hero/Brave characters

6. a fantasy story about an amazing, larger-than-life person
TALL TALE
a fantasy story about an amazing, larger-than-life person

7. FAIRY TALE: a type of folktale that:
1.Includes a story where good wins over evil
2.Includes elements of the supernatural (like spirits, fairies, or magic)
3.Takes place in a make-believe world
4.Often teaches a message about how we should lead our lives
5.Includes “character types
The Grimm Brothers (German brothers)
were some of the first people to write down fairy tales
they published their last collection in 1857
their tales were filled with cruelty and murder
U.S. versions of fairy tales are toned down and not as cruel
“Cinderella” stories are among the most common fairy tales from around the world

8. CHARACTER TYPES
recognizable, unchanging figures who do not grow, change, or learn from experiences (like evil stepmothers/fathers, handsome princes, etc.)

9. MYTH
A story about gods and goddesses and how they were involved in making things the way they are
6 purposes of myths:
To explain the creation of the world
To explain natural phenomena
To give a story form to ancient religious practices
To teach moral lessons
To explain history
To express the deepest fears and hopes of human dreams