Vladimir Propp and the Universal Folktale

Recommissioning an Old Paradigm--story as Initiation

• Author(s): Peter Gilet,
• Publisher: P. Lang
• Pages: 170
• ISBN_10: 0820438472
  ISBN_13: 9780820438474
  
• Language: en
• Categories: Foreign Language Study / Miscellaneous , Literary Collections / Ancient & Classical , Literary Criticism / General , Literary Criticism / Russian & Soviet , Social Science / Anthropology / Cultural & Social , Social Science / Folklore & Mythology , Social Science / Sociology / General ,

Description:... Dr. Peter Gilet takes Vladimir Propp's 31-part structure of the European folktale and suggests a reduction to five moves. This allows Propp's structure to be applied successfully to stories from Africa, Eurasia, and the Americas, thus providing a widespread tale type, perhaps the main tale type in oral literature. Dr. Gilet also suggests that this type has strong meaningful similarities with shamanic and puberty initiation rituals in pre-industrial societies. Just how meaningful will be the object of future research.