The transformation of contemporary analyses of oral folklore: Fairy tale versus fantasy

Abstract

The study focuses on contemporary forms of folklore and their relationship to literary forms like Fantasy, Sci-fi, Horror and Fantasy Game. The first problem is the specification of the terms and the classification of the internal structure of these terms. A typical structure of contemporary oral folklore, such as urban legends, is a combination of classical forms of folklore (subject matter from fairy tales, anecdotes etc.) and the influence of films, television and books. This contamination is really typical for postmodern culture. Fantasy stories can de divided into five categories - 1. alternative history (variants of past history or future evolution); 2. classical fantasy (variants of mythology or classical fairy tales or legends); 3. parody of fantasy or humour fantasy (the fantasy world is mostly only background); 4. urban fantasy (more or less a part of urban legend); 5. comics (the importance of graphic form - Superman, Batman etc.). Sci-fi and horror stories are mostly literary products influenced by classical legends or urban legends. Party games, especially “Dungeons & Dragons”, and their enactments by fans are a special part of the fantasy world. Ethnologists are faced with the questions of which method to use to carry out field research and what is actually relevant. Based on the first experiences we can see that for the research into this “new” field we can use the standard methods without problems. But for a better understanding we need to read fantasy, sci-fi and horror books, watch fantasy, sci-fi and horror movies, and get acquainted with the websites related to fantasy or sci-fi content. For a good analysis of fantasy party games one needs to become a member of a gamers’ group. The use of modern recording equipment like digital video cameras and cameras etc. is also very important.