THE GREEK FOLK TALE: TYPOLOGY AND ANALYSIS

Abstract

The article outlines typology of the Greek folk tale, its structure and plot peculiarities. The folk tale is a reproduction of thoughts and beliefs and every reader experiences the folk tale in a different way according to his or her experiences. Therefore, the folk tale is not just a remnant of the past, but a collection of cultural elements which are gradually put together by the narrators and which reach the readers or listeners as a cultural blend that they need to decode. The Greek folk tales have been known since ancient times. Herodotus includes folk tales in his Histories, while Aristophanes mentions a story-teller named Philepsios. Moreover, Aristotle states the fact that children’s education includes listening to fables and folk tales. Later professional storytellers appear in the Greek society. During the Byzantine period there are very few references to folk tales and the only thing we can mention is that there were mime artists who used to entertain the rulers and lords with their narrations. During the period of Ottoman empire in Greece, the folk tale and other forms of folk culture became the main expression of social reality. The storytellers of that time contributed to the preservation and development of folk oral tradition and, as a result, folk tales were told by sailors, shepherds, they were heard during the long trips of caravans, and they were also very common in agricultural life.