Denis Valentinovich Manturov Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian ...
Fairy tale in the system of moral education.
Laying the foundations of morality, educating moral values should be from a very early age, when the character, attitude to the world and the people around him are formed.
There are two main moral categories in ethics - good and evil. Compliance with moral requirements is associated with good. Violation of moral norms and rules, deviation from them, is characterized as evil. Understanding this prompts a person to behave in accordance with the moral requirements of society.
Such moral categories as good and evil, good and bad, you can and cannot, it is advisable to form your own example, as well as with the help of folk tales, including about animals. These fairy tales will help the teacher show:
· How friendship helps to defeat evil "Zimovye"
· How kind and peaceful people win "The Wolf and the Seven Kids"
· That evil is punishable "The cat, the rooster and the fox" "Zayushkin's hut."
The moral of values in fairy tales are presented more specifically than in animal tales. Positive heroes, as a rule, are endowed with courage, courage, perseverance in achieving goals, beauty, captivating directness, honesty and other physical and moral qualities that are of the highest value in the eyes of the people. For girls, this is a red girl (clever, needlewoman), and for boys, a good fellow (brave, strong, honest, kind, hardworking, loving the Motherland). The ideal for the child is a distant perspective to which he will strive, comparing his deeds and actions with the ideal. The ideal acquired in childhood will largely define him as a person.
The fairy tale does not give direct instructions to children (such as “Obey your parents”, “Respect your elders”, “Don't leave home without permission”), but its content always contains a lesson that they gradually perceive, repeatedly returning to the text of the fairy tale.
For example, the tale "Turnip" teaches younger preschoolers to be friendly, hardworking; the fairy tale "Masha and the Bear" warns: you cannot go to the forest alone - you can get into trouble, and if this happens - do not despair, try to find a way out of a difficult situation: the fairy tale "Teremok", "Winter Animals" are taught to be friends. The order to obey parents and elders sounds in the fairy tales "Geese - Swans", "Sister Alyonushka and Brother Ivanushka", "Snow Maiden". Fear and cowardice are ridiculed in the fairy tale "Fear Has Big Eyes", cunning - in the fairy tales "The Fox and the Crane", "The Fox and the Black Grouse", "The Little Fox and the Gray Wolf", etc. Diligence in folk tales is always rewarded ("Havroshechka", "Moroz Ivanovich", "Princess - a frog", wisdom is praised ("A man and a bear", "How a man divided geese", "A fox and a goat"), care for a loved one is encouraged ( "Bean seed").
In all fairy tales there is a character who helps the positive hero to preserve his moral values. Most often this is a wise old man. “The elder always appears at the moment when the hero is in a hopeless and desperate situation, from which only deep reflection or a successful thought can save him. But since, due to internal and external reasons, the hero cannot cope with this on his own, knowledge…. They come in the form of a personified thought, for example, in the form of an insightful and helpful old man ... He helps the hero go through a difficult situation in which he fell through his own fault, or at least helps him to obtain information that will be useful to the hero in his wanderings. The elder helps to communicate with animals and birds. He warns of lurking dangers and supplies the means necessary to meet them in all weapons ... Often in a fairy tale the elder asks questions like “Who? Why? Where? Where to? In order to induce self-reflection and mobilize moral strength, and even more often he gives the necessary magic talisman - an unexpected and incredible means to achieve success, which is…. One of the features of personality integrity "
The elder not only helps the positive character to preserve his moral values, but he himself personifies such moral qualities as goodwill and willingness to help. He also tests the moral qualities of others ("Moroz Ivanovich").
The image of a wise old man in some fairy tales takes on special forms, for example, animals. “In fairy tales, we again and again encounter animal helpers. They act like people, speak human language and reveal insight and knowledge that are inaccessible to humans "(" Ivan Tsarevich and the Gray Wolf ").
There is such a category of fairy tales, in the plot of which the entire chain of the formation of moral qualities in a small child is revealed: prohibition - violation - punishment. They are gradually transformed from external, formal into personal traits(self-control, self-punishment, self-regulation). These are scary tales, or horror stories. " They are included in the folklore repertoire of children 5-6 years old (not earlier!). Adults sometimes have a negative attitude to "horror stories", but they are as traditional as fairy tales or fairy tales about animals (remember the peasant stories about the drowned, the dead and brownies that children and adults of the 19th century loved to tell so much). V scary tales the forces of evil freely penetrated into the house when there were no parents (they died, left or fell asleep), i.e. when the integrity of the home world is violated. In this they are very similar to other fairy tales, in which there is almost never a complete family: a granddaughter lives with her grandfather and grandmother, a father with three sons, a girl with a father and stepmother. Therefore, all sorts of troubles happen to them. A complete family gives a feeling of security, only in the presence of the mother.
There are no good helpers in horror stories, and there is no mercy if the children do not change their minds, i.e. responsibility for violation of the prohibition or for an unfulfilled order falls on the child himself.
It follows from this: moral education is possible through all types of folk tales, because morality is originally inherent in their plots.
Type of pedagogical neglect
Pedagogical goals
Fairy tale
Moral labor
1. The value of labor
2. How labor helps fairy-tale heroes to solve difficult life situations.
3. The value of collective labor.
Teremok
Zhikharka
Masha and the Bear
The man and the bear
Winged hairy and oily
Princess Frog
Wintering animals
Cinderella
Moroz Ivanovich
Seven Simeons - seven workers
Intellectually - pedagogical
1. Wisdom
2. Trick
3. Resourcefulness
4. Intelligence
Vasilisa the Wise
Ivan Tsarevich and the Grey Wolf
Princess Frog
The Little Humpbacked Horse
Masha and the Bear
Finist - Clear Falcon
Moral - pedagogical
1. Obedience
2. Respect for elders
3. Friendship
4. A responsibility
Swan geese
Turnip
Gingerbread man
Teremok
The wolf and the kids.
The relationship between the content of the tale and the small folklore form.
Fairy tale
Small folklore form.
Ryaba chicken
It can be cooked, it can break, or it can turn into a bird
Gingerbread man
Make new friends, but don't forget old ones
Turnip
The end is a crown
Teremok
Having done badly, do not expect good
Wolf and kids
Fear the wolf in sheep's clothing
Swan geese
I managed to make a mistake, I managed to correct myself
Snow Maiden and Fox
The fox's dog is not a friend
Cat, rooster and fox
Peacock feathers and chicken brains
Masha and the Bear
Don't sit on the stove, don't wait for rolls
Zayushkina hut
Though the brains are Chicken, but the spurs are long
Goby - tar barrel
You don’t need someone else, but I won’t give mine
Wintering animals
A good deed neither burns nor drowns
Zhikharka
He who loves to work cannot sit idle
Fox and crane
There is no friend, look for, but found, take care
Fear has big eyes
It's bad behind a stupid head and legs
By magic
A good deed will return a hundred times
Hare - boast
Know more and say less
Winged, hairy and oily
It always happens when one nods at the other, but does not want to do his job.
Frost, sun, wind
Those who work are not afraid of frost
Little fox sister and gray wolf
For every sly guy, enough simplicity
Sivka - burka
Where friends are treasured, there enemies tremble
Sister Alyonushka and brother Ivanushka
There is patience for every desire
Havroshechka
It's warm in the sun, but good in the mother's
Boy - sleeping
Small spool but precious
Magic ring
All for one, one for all
Ivan Tsarevich and the Grey Wolf
Debt good turn deserves another
Morozko
Labor and reward
Princess Frog
Love and fidelity are stronger than death
Snow Maiden
To whom is the sun mother, to whom - an evil stepmother
Seven Simions - seven workers
Do not look for friends in a round dance, but look in the garden
Bubble, straw and bast shoe
A friend in need is a friend indeed
The man and the bear
What goes around comes around
The Tale of the Silver Saucer and the Pouring Apple
It's good where we are not
The main meaning of Andersen's tale is that one must endure difficulties and hardships with courage and patience. The unfortunate duckling (who was actually a swan) had to endure a series of cruel tests at the very beginning of his life. He was teased and poisoned by rude relatives. His own mother duck turned away from him, fearing public opinion... Then, when he escaped from the poultry yard and made friends with wild geese, these hunters, and the duckling himself, was saved only by a miracle. After this, the unfortunate duckling was picked up by the old woman and brought to her house. But its inhabitants - a cat and a chicken - laughed at the new tenant and unceremoniously taught "wisdom". The duckling had to leave the old woman's house, he spent the winter in the reeds by the lake, where the next spring he met beautiful swans. And the fairy tale ended with a happy outcome.
The moral of this tale is that life can present many difficult trials, but one must not lose heart and not give up. After all, it was very difficult for the swan duckling, but he endured everything and eventually became happy.
Likewise, a person who does not bow to fate can ultimately triumph over victory.
Why did the duck's troubles begin at all?
The moral of the tale is also that one should not be afraid to be different from others. The duckling looked different from other ducklings. That is, he was not like everyone else. And so they began to tease and poison the ducks. Why was he scolded and unceremoniously taught by the cat and the chicken? Because he did not behave the way he should. That is, he was again not like everyone else! The duckling had a choice: either to accept the fact that one cannot differ from others in appearance, behavior, or habits, or to behave in accordance with the principle: "Yes, I am different, but I have the right to do so!" And he made this choice, not fearing that he would incur misunderstanding, abuse and even persecution.
A person should also defend the right to be himself, even if for this he has to go against public opinion.
Some connoisseurs of Andersen's work believe that the author of the tale portrayed himself in the image of the ugly duckling. After all, Andersen also had to endure a lot of ridicule, misunderstanding and unceremonious teachings from the people around him before he became a famous writer, and his appearance was very different from that of the "average" Dane. Never give up, fight for your happiness, regardless of all obstacles.
A source: 4mother.ru
For six months I tell the child a fairy tale about the Ryaba chicken for the night, and every time I am tormented by guesses, what is her morality.Attempts to interpret its meaning are also very wide, from simple statements such as “what we have, we do not keep, when we lose, we cry,” “we did not live richly, and there’s nothing to start” or “old age is not a joy: they have less strength left for two,” than a mouse ”to whole parables, for example, about love:“ About 5 years ago, when I was a student, a certain aunt-professor told me that the golden testicle is Love, which my grandfather and grandmother did not save. Grandfather beat and drank, walked ..., grandmother beat - walked, did not wash the floors and did not wash shirts. The mouse-de is such a little muck like gossip or some kind of household stuff. Like, if you beat Love for a long time and diligently, then in order to completely rattle it, a trifle is enough. Well, a simple testicle is a habit that grandfather and grandmother got instead of love. Ryaba Chicken, respectively, Fate or Higher Mind. And she is Ryaba because she is pockmarked, i.e. black and white, i.e. combines both black and white sides of life "or about the ecological end of the world
Perhaps all these interpretations are not devoid of meaning, but the most plausible decoding (as it seems to me) is offered by E. Nikolaeva in the book "111 tales for child psychologists" (if you do not have the strength to read in full, pay attention at least to the last 5 paragraphs):
“Once upon a time there was Grandfather and Baba. And they had Ryaba Chicken. The Hen took the testicle. Yes, not simple, but golden. Grandfather beat and beat - did not break. Baba beat and beat - did not break. The mouse ran, waved its tail - the testicle fell and broke. Grandfather is crying, Baba is crying, and Hen clucks: “Don't cry, Grandfather, don't cry, Baba. I will lay another egg for you - not a golden one, but a simple one. "
Ask a parent to tell you this story. It is difficult to find a person who does not know her. You can start by asking if the parent read this story to the child. If you have read it, then let him retell it. If there is a hitch in the story, you can help. And when the parent has told the whole story, it is worth asking a few questions.
Grandfather and Baba wanted to break an egg?
If they wanted, why did they cry?
Why didn't Grandfather and Baba put the shells in the pawnshop if they were gold?
What was in the testicle when it broke?
How often did a parent think about the situation when telling a story to a child?
Why does a parent read this particular tale to a child if it is full of contradictions?
What do we expect from reading this tale?
Moral: often, when communicating with a child, we do not think about what we are really doing, and therefore we offer him something to which we ourselves do not know the answer.
Commentary: Most parents will report that they never thought about the content of the tale. Those who say that they have always been confused by its content will add that they have not found an explanation for the strange behavior of Grandfather and Baba. Here it is worth paying attention to the fact that, remaining perplexed, we often do not change our behavior, do not trust the child, for example, after consulting with him about the content of the fairy tale. After all, one could simply ask the child about what Grandfather and Baba are doing, why are they crying?
It is quite possible that a psychologist will hear a parent's counter question about how to consult with a one and a half year old child to whom the parent read a fairy tale? Then you can simply ask how often a parent is interested in the child's opinion at all? And that in itself can be a separate topic of conversation.
However, if the parent remains confused about the previous one (that is, the psychologist has clearly grasped the context of the unconscious), then it is better to develop the “fairytale” direction further, and not rise again to the level of consciousness.
We can say that the parent has just retold this tale word for word, because he remembered it not when he read it to the child, but when his parents read it to him, still a child. We store the information received at an early age throughout our life and perceive it without criticism, because at this age we have not developed critical thinking. Therefore, reading a fairy tale as an adult, we continue to treat it without a shadow of doubt.
But a fairy tale is just an excuse for discussing what the parent does when he reads the story or otherwise interacts with the child. When communicating, the child remembers all the statements of the parents and, like a fairy tale, treats them uncritically. Therefore, already being an adult, a person sees in the mirror not himself, but the image that has developed in him under the influence of the words of people significant to him: “You are such and such or such. Nothing will come of you "or:" You will grow up, work hard and achieve everything you want. " These words and the attitude towards a child under 5 years of age form a scenario that entangles a person with invisible threads and forces adults to act not in accordance with the real situation, but in accordance with those ideas about themselves and their purpose that were formed in childhood.
When we read a fairy tale to a child, he does not react to it, but to our attitude towards it.
A tale told in childhood allows us to understand many of the features of an adult's behavior. In addition, this fairy tale is not an everyday one, it is not easy to interpret it. It differs from others in that it is told to all the children of our culture, therefore it bears the imprint of this culture.
That version of "Ryaba Chicken", which, most likely, the parent will remember, appeared in the 19th century, when the great teacher KD Ushinsky for some reason took away the ending from this very ancient tale. And the ending can be found in A. N. Afanasyev's three-volume Russian folk tales. When reading this version, it turns out that after Grandfather and Baba cried, the granddaughters came, found out about the egg, broke the buckets (they went to fetch water), spilled water. Mother, having learned about the egg (and she was kneading the dough), broke the dough, the father, who was in the smithy at that moment, smashed the smithy, and the priest who was passing by the bell tower demolished. And the peasants, having learned about this event, in different versions of the tale, hanged themselves or drowned themselves.
What is this event, after which there is no stone left on stone?
Most likely, such details will confuse the parent, so we can continue that K. Jung called the events, actions and heroes, which are repeated in different parts of the world, archetypes - ancient ideas. They are transmitted through fairy tales to people of the same culture. At the moment of extreme stress, a person begins to behave not as characteristic of his personality, but exhibits behavior common to a given nation. If we take into account that this fairy tale is not everyday, but bearing the peculiarities of our culture, then we can read it differently.
Someone gave Grandfather and Baba something that they had never met. The egg as an archetype, which is regularly found in myths and in fairy tales of all peoples, is a symbol of the birth of something. It is golden, because it does not look like what the Chicken carried earlier. That is why Grandfather and Baba do not run to the pawnshop to lay a golden shell in order to buy a mountain of simple eggs later. Gold, like the testicle itself, is only a symbol here. But the old people are trying to destroy what they have never met in their lives before. But you could have waited, put it off and see who hatched out of it. But they do not do that, but are in a hurry to destroy this new thing. And here another archetypal hero appears in the narrative - the Mouse. We write her name with a capital letter, because this is also not a small rodent, but a symbol. It is not for nothing that in many Russian fairy tales she is the key subject, which resolves the problems that have arisen. The mouse as an archetype is a substitute for God. And then the one who gave is the one who takes away what people do not know how to use. And then another archetype appears in the tale.
But it will be better if the psychologist does not simply say what kind of archetype it is, but helps the parent to feel its existence. The psychologist may tell him that he would like to prove the existence of this archetype, and not just report it. After all, it was for its introduction into the unconscious of every child of a given culture that this fairy tale was created, for the sake of him it is passed down from generation to generation.
The psychologist asks the parent to completely trust him for two minutes, close his eyes, listen to his voice and compare what he hears with what is happening in his soul at that moment. If the parent agrees to such an experiment, then the psychologist, in a slow, clear voice befitting suggestion, says: “Imagine that there is Someone about whom you know that any of his words will come true for sure. And now this Someone comes in and says to you: “From this moment in your life nothing new will ever, NEVER happen. Only an eternal repetition of what you have already experienced. Never anything new. The eternal cycle of already accomplished events. "
What do you feel? - you ask the parent in a normal voice. Obviously, he will say that he either did not believe you (worst option), or he felt scared, unpleasant, bad (you have achieved success). Then you say that right now a person has felt the reality in himself of the most important archetype that all people of the same culture pass on to each other from generation to generation - this is the archetype of the Miracle. We live because we know for sure that if not today, then tomorrow, if not tomorrow, then the day after tomorrow, but a miracle will surely happen to us. Each has its own. But for everyone it is extremely attractive.
There is one difference between the Russian archetype of a miracle and a similar archetype of other peoples (and everyone has it, since it is he who allows us to survive when there is simply no hope, when life drives us to a dead end). For many Russian-speaking people this miracle happens for free, "for free", since many of our tales tell how a miracle happens without any effort on our part. And here the psychologist has the opportunity to talk about the fact that a miracle will surely happen with the child and with any other person, but not for free, but thanks to joint work. It's a long way to create a miracle, but very effective. If we manage to conduct such a mini-training with the parent, then further cooperation with him is guaranteed. "
What interpretation of this tale is closest to you?
From early childhood, we all read a variety of legends, there were fictions, epics. Folk art is an important integral part of our culture. What is the meaning of Russian fairy tales, not everyone ponders, but it is embedded in every work. Often the meaning is deep enough, it is impossible for a child to understand it - but for adults it can be very interesting. Let's try to plunge into the world of magical stories and understand what they really tell.
Relevance of the issue
In childhood, almost any person lives in a magical world where miracles and incredible events are possible, fantastic creatures and wizards live. The meaning of Russian fairy tales was to teach a person from an early age to distinguish between good and bad, what can be called evil and what should not have a place in our life. However, as many believe, fairy tales that have come down to our days from ancient times are now being interpreted incorrectly. Some are sure that a detailed study of the texts will certainly allow you to find something new, to reveal hitherto unknown and secret information.
In order to find the meaning of folk tales for themselves, many begin to re-read them already in adulthood, when they can analyze the text, having a lot of everyday experience behind them. Some admit that in this context, legends and epics are often terrifying, other stories give goosebumps, and the actions of the characters are such that they can cause nightmares. As many say, cruelty reigns in fairy tales, which is completely inappropriate in raising children. Indeed, someone is being eaten, others are killed, and still others are threatened to be baked alive. And Ivan in fairy tales is always a fool, and evil is practically invincible and omnipotent. But not everything is so obvious.
How it all begins
For the first time, a child meets fairy tales with meaning at the most tender age - in the first years of life. Traditionally, the first stories told to the child are "Turnip" and "Kolobok". The first one is quite easy, there are almost no cruel moments in it, but the legend about Kolobok gives rise to ambiguous feelings in many adults. The tale tells, if you exaggerate the plot, about a traveling bun, which everyone strives to eat, and Lisa achieves success in this. But the original version of the tale is somewhat different. In ancient times, our ancestors in the evenings told their children a legend, in which everyone they met pinched off a small piece from Kolobok, only a crust reached the Fox, which was eaten by it.
Not everyone knows what this story means, but almost every modern person will agree that the plot is very cruel. As the researchers say, the meaning is not very clear to us, because the analogies with which the characters were associated have sunk into oblivion. Both the turnip and the bun in the legends are symbols of the moon. The gingerbread man, from which they plucked off a piece over and over again, showed how the moon was decreasing - after all, it also disappeared completely, like the main character after meeting with Lisa.
On the other side
The legend about the turnip is no less interesting and symbolic. In the old days, this plant was associated with the moon, and the tale itself told about the movement of a heavenly body and its transformations during lunar month... All the heroes help to pull the turnip out of the ground, and it moves slowly and quite a bit - just like a heavenly body. We can safely say that the story about the turnip, like the legend about Kolobok's journey, are astrological tales with meaning. They were invented in ancient times to make it easier to explain to a child why and how the Moon moves across the firmament. The explanation for a modern person is not the most obvious and understandable, but in many ways this can be associated with a change in the logical chains that people form, arguing - apparently, in antiquity they were somewhat different.
No less interesting is a fairy tale telling about a hare's hut - it is also considered astrological. The roots of the story about the Golden Crest are similar. The rooster was the symbol of the sun. In the story, the fox comes to the window to call the sun. Researchers of folk art say that the various creations of that period are generally characterized by an abundance of calls to the sun - in many ways, people's lives depended on it. The fox grabs the rooster and carries it to distant lands. If we analyze the text from the point of view of a modern educated person, it seems that the path taken by the heroes is too far, completely unjustified. It reflects the journey of the luminary across the sky. The fox symbolizes the night, stealing the source of light, and the cat reflects the morning, along with which warmth returns.
But the legend about the hare's hut, according to scientists who studied folk art, was created to convey to children how the seasons change. The fox symbolizes winter, while the hare is the summer image. The sun rooster helps the hare to triumph over the winter fox, because the sun is stronger than the cold.
Yesterday Today Tomorrow
As experts say, in order to understand and perceive the meaning of Russian folk tales, you need to be able to abstract yourself from the world we are used to. It is easier to understand what the legends are about if you can look at the structure of the planet from the point of view of a person who lived in former times - after all, it was then that fairy tales appeared that captured the peculiarities of everyday life. They were created to make it easier to explain to children how to interpret what is happening around them. Some believe that in recent centuries, folk art has been deliberately distorted, so it is very difficult to correctly perceive well-known works.
Even one fairy tale was sometimes enough to convey to the child how the world around him works. The tales were meant to simplify explanation and learning. If we draw parallels with the modern concept, we can say that fairy tales are such archived data packets, the passwords of which are known only to a select few. The importance of legends should not be underestimated, since these epics are passed down images from generation to generation. According to many linguists, the Russian language is very, very figurative, not just a set of letters and their combinations. Originally, language was formed as a system of images, the interpretation of which depended on the context. This is very clearly seen in fairy tales: there are a lot of options for assessing the meaning of one legend.
And if an example?
Let's turn to the already mentioned tale about the turnip. In addition to the described option, there is another meaning of this legend, and it is completely different from the one given earlier. As you can find out from some sources, there were more characters in this plot before: the father and mother were also present. Presumably, they disappeared, because the world began to be perceived according to the sevenfold system, although previously the base number for the Slavs was nine. The hidden meaning of a fairy tale, as some modern researchers say, is to demonstrate to a child the relationship between generations. The legend about the turnip allows you to understand how life forms, time and variants of existence interact with each other. Each of the participants is an image loaded with meaning. The grandfather symbolizes the wisdom of the centuries, and his wife symbolizes the economy and household rituals. The father is a symbol of protection, and his wife is a symbol of love. The girl shows the importance and inalienability of children in human life, and the dog is a symbol of prosperity, since they only give birth to it if there is something to protect. A cat reflects a good inner environment and harmony, and a mouse reflects family well-being. As you know, since ancient times they say that mice do not live where there is nothing to eat.
And not only!
Another version of the interpretation of the legend about the turnip is astral. What is the meaning of the tale is meant, can be told by many researchers of the concept of the supernatural. Presumably, the legend reflected how the soul enters a new level of development. A turnip leaving the ground is a person breaking out of the previous environment. The combination of characters is a set of conditions, the fulfillment of which guarantees the success of evolution. It is believed that the legends tells how you can complete the planetary evolutionary stage, go to the galactic one. For this, according to the interpreters, it is necessary to develop six essences indicated in the legend.
With this version of the meaning assessment, the acting heroes are the bodies of one being, which in fact is an aggregate object of something real and spiritual. The number of souls depends on at what level of evolution a person stopped. There are similar theories about nesting dolls, where the inner one. The smallest is the same turnip that symbolizes the physical essence of a person. The essences seem to be folded into one another and do not intersect, as they are formed by different mothers. If you manage to work them out, you can step forward in evolutionary terms.
Fairy tales: for what and about what?
Surely many who read the legends of the Slavs and other peoples noticed one significant difference. If in foreign fairy tales the hero usually goes on a journey with the specific purpose of finding a profession or discovering a great treasure, Slavic characters more often go in search of something unknown, someone strange; in fact, the main impulse that drives the character is the desire for self-knowledge. On his way, he often deviates from the main straight line, helps others. Good nature, compassion to the detriment of striving for a specific goal is a cultural national attitude that determines the context of legends.
As the researchers say, the main meaning of fairy tales is to explain to a person that the survival of a person cannot be called a priority, the most important thing is the life of a society, a clan. It is for this reason that the hero on his way seeks to help everyone and everyone. Incidentally, not just like that: later these characters come to his rescue. Legends tell us that success can only be achieved if people are willing to unite.
About whom and for whom?
To understand the meaning of a fairy tale, you need to be able to correctly interpret the hero. Often in the legends, the main character is called a fool, but this word was not chosen at all to denote the mental qualities of a person. The word has long become a household word, popular. In general, it can be considered equal to the often used other name of the protagonist - a man. Distinctive features of those who are called fools in fairy tales are the tendency to take risks, due to an insufficiently attentive attitude towards oneself. Legends often talk about how brothers go to the rescue of others, at a crossroads they are forced to choose something, and the smart ones prefer to go where they can find something for themselves, but their fate often ends badly in the end. The fool, however, does not consider himself smarter than others, does not pretend to have a better lot, so at a crossroads he can choose the worst option - and be the winner in the plot.
If we turn to the meaning of the fairy tales "The Frog Princess" and others that tell about the adventures of the common noun collective Ivan, you can see that almost always the hero on the way has to meet someone wise and old, whose advice the character hears. This is also an important meaning of the legend as a whole - it is designed to teach the younger generation to listen to their elders. But the heroes, confident that they themselves know everything, may perish without heeding the advice of the wise. Knowledge, strength are different qualities, and in legends attention is focused on this. The wisdom accumulated in the princess, the old man, and other characters is often distinguished by inaction, but readily surrenders to the fool. But what initially seemed to be the mind, in the course of the plot turns into true stupidity.
Strong, brave, cunning
To understand correctly the meaning of fairy tales, you need to be able to interpret the characteristics of the characters. For example, the heroes, about whom legends so often tell, in fact all are typical fools, because they are simple-minded, because there is not and cannot be cunning in power. The classic plot tells how the hero defeats the enemy, and the cunning opponent takes all the credit for himself. In the legends of the Slavs, strength with cunning cannot go one way, and feats are available only to those who do not cheat. Therefore, the fool is lucky that he does not differ in such a character and a tendency to deceive.
Quite curious are the calculations of people studying the meaning of fairy tales regarding the typical image of the king. In most legends, one is either sick, or old, or has some other flaws. It is assumed that the image is aimed at increasing the understanding of the importance of independent behavior. One who can make his own decisions is considered good, but a king who is dependent on others is an object of constant deception. Being stupid, he is like a capricious child who constantly makes mistakes. The fool who is tested by such a king successfully withstands all tests, because he is tempered by difficulties, but the examiner himself is not ready for this - and suffers through his own fault. Admittedly, they do not like infantile characters in Slavic legends - they are not good.
The Legend of the Hen
One of the most beloved children's fairy tales tells about a chicken that laid a golden egg. As researchers of folklore say, we can safely say that this is a fairy tale for all fairy tales, which was invented in ancient times. The story is very short and simple, nevertheless it lives on in the people's memory and is passed down between generations. This is due to the images encrypted in it. As you can find out, referring to research works devoted to finding the meaning of the fairy tale "Ryaba Hen", an egg laid by a bird is a gift of higher powers to man, our life. The chicken symbolizes these very forces that give a person the opportunity to live, and they give it to everyone only once. Anyone who succumbs to evil will not be able to preserve his life and correct it - you need to be able to take care of what is inherited. Parents, telling the tale to their children, thereby allow them to understand through images that there is nothing more valuable than life, and it must be protected with all their might.
In many ways, an understanding of the meaning of the fairy tale about the chicken comes when you remember that the characters are trying to break the testicle, but only they cannot do it - until the mouse runs past. Just a wave of the tail - and everything crumbled to dust. This is our life - there are external forces striving to harm, and people initially do not take care of what they have. Time after time, grandmother and grandfather cannot break the testicle, and finally a third source of strength is found, completing what they started.
For children and not only
The deep meaning of the tale of the chicken, as some believe, is not even for children, and they cannot understand it. The main characters of the legend are a prototype of a person who is trying to destroy himself by his own forces. Some underestimate themselves, scold themselves for no reason. The spoons with which they are trying to break the egg are anxiety and problems, insecurity and irritability that bother a person. Such negative feelings sooner or later arise in the life of any person. At the same time, the egg as a gift of life symbolizes the need to be able to rejoice in what is and to strive to do good. All negative emotions are the food of the very mouse, whose tail turns out to be fatal to the egg.
To understand the meaning of the tale, it is worth taking a closer look at the image of the mouse. This animal lives underground, in the dark, where the negative force nests. It is she who destroys human life if the person ceases to appreciate it. One has only to think about breaking a testicle, and this very mouse immediately comes. She easily does what people did not succeed in, and now the characters are crying. In the context of this tale, an event means that a person retains his life, but there is no more light and happiness in it, it becomes ordinary.
From different sides
The meaning of the name of the tale is also curious, which immediately makes it clear who exactly is the central object of the tale. As interpreters say, the chicken symbolizes the higher powers, the creator and creator, the supreme deity. She gives everyone as much as he needs. A person may not cope with the given to him, and he has to live as usual, like everyone else, and some even feel devastated. To prevent this from happening, you need to value and cherish the golden egg.
Both geese and swans
The meaning of the tale "Geese-Swans" is no less curious. The legend tells of a girl who did not look after her brother, stolen by birds. The plot of events is the need to return under the wing of parents. The tale was invented to explain to children the importance of obedience, observing the prohibitions established by elders. Researchers of earlier times know that the Slavs believed in the existence of the physical and spiritual world. In ancient times, they revered their ancestors, believed in a sacred world order and the need to overcome trials before entering an independent adult life. It is they who are shown by the plot of this legend, therefore, in it the child is carried away by geese-swans - white birds, symbolizing a new start in life and insight. These birds seem to be on the border between life and death - this is how it was seen in antiquity. The swan, as can be learned from the sources that have survived to this day, was perceived by the Slavs as a symbol of flowing water.
For six months I tell the child a fairy tale about the Ryaba chicken for the night, and every time I am tormented by guesses, what is her morality.
Finally, I decided to do a little research on this topic. And here's the result!
Perhaps all these interpretations are not devoid of meaning, but the most plausible decoding (as it seems to me) is offered by E. Nikolaeva in the book "111 tales for child psychologists"(if you don't have the strength to read in full, pay attention to at least the last 5 paragraphs):
“Once upon a time there was Grandfather and Baba. And they had Ryaba Chicken. The Hen took the testicle. Yes, not simple, but golden. Grandfather beat and beat - did not break. Baba beat and beat - did not break. The mouse ran, waved its tail - the testicle fell and broke. Grandfather is crying, Baba is crying, and Hen clucks: “Don't cry, Grandfather, don't cry, Baba. I will lay another egg for you - not a golden one, but a simple one. "
Ask a parent to tell you this story. It is difficult to find a person who does not know her. You can start by asking if the parent read this story to the child. If you have read it, then let him retell it. If there is a hitch in the story, you can help. And when the parent has told the whole story, it is worth asking a few questions.
Grandfather and Baba wanted to break an egg?
If they wanted, why did they cry?
Why didn't Grandfather and Baba put the shells in the pawnshop if they were gold?
What was in the testicle when it broke?
How often did a parent think about the situation when telling a story to a child?
Why does a parent read this particular tale to a child if it is full of contradictions?
What do we expect from reading this tale?
Moral: often, when communicating with a child, we do not think about what we are really doing, and therefore we offer him something to which we ourselves do not know the answer.
Commentary: Most parents will report that they never thought about the content of the tale. Those who say that they have always been confused by its content will add that they have not found an explanation for the strange behavior of Grandfather and Baba. Here it is worth paying attention to the fact that, remaining perplexed, we often do not change our behavior, do not trust the child, for example, after consulting with him about the content of the fairy tale. After all, one could simply ask the child about what Grandfather and Baba are doing, why are they crying?
It is quite possible that a psychologist will hear a parent's counter question about how to consult with a one and a half year old child to whom the parent read a fairy tale? Then you can simply ask how often a parent is interested in the child's opinion at all? And that in itself can be a separate topic of conversation.
However, if the parent remains confused about the previous one (that is, the psychologist has clearly grasped the context of the unconscious), then it is better to develop the “fairytale” direction further, and not rise again to the level of consciousness.
We can say that the parent has just retold this tale word for word, because he remembered it not when he read it to the child, but when his parents read it to him, still a child. We store the information received at an early age throughout our life and perceive it without criticism, because at this age we have not developed critical thinking. Therefore, reading a fairy tale as an adult, we continue to treat it without a shadow of doubt.
But a fairy tale is just an excuse for discussing what the parent does when he reads the story or otherwise interacts with the child. When communicating, the child remembers all the statements of the parents and, like a fairy tale, treats them uncritically. Therefore, already being an adult, a person sees in the mirror not himself, but the image that has developed in him under the influence of the words of people significant to him: “You are such and such or such. Nothing will come of you "or:" You will grow up, work hard and achieve everything you want. " These words and the attitude towards a child under 5 years of age form a scenario that entangles a person with invisible threads and forces adults to act not in accordance with the real situation, but in accordance with those ideas about themselves and their purpose that were formed in childhood.
When we read a fairy tale to a child, he does not react to it, but to our attitude towards it.
A tale told in childhood allows us to understand many of the features of an adult's behavior. In addition, this fairy tale is not an everyday one, it is not easy to interpret it. It differs from others in that it is told to all the children of our culture, therefore it bears the imprint of this culture.
That version of "Ryaba Chicken", which, most likely, the parent will remember, appeared in the 19th century, when the great teacher KD Ushinsky for some reason took away the ending from this very ancient tale. And the ending can be found in A. N. Afanasyev's three-volume Russian folk tales. When reading this version, it turns out that after Grandfather and Baba cried, the granddaughters came, found out about the egg, broke the buckets (they went to fetch water), spilled water. Mother, having learned about the egg (and she was kneading the dough), broke the dough, the father, who was in the smithy at that moment, smashed the smithy, and the priest who was passing by the bell tower demolished. And the peasants, having learned about this event, in different versions of the tale, hanged themselves or drowned themselves.
What is this event, after which there is no stone left on stone?
Most likely, such details will confuse the parent, so we can continue that K. Jung called the events, actions and heroes, which are repeated in different parts of the world, archetypes - ancient ideas. They are transmitted through fairy tales to people of the same culture. At the moment of extreme stress, a person begins to behave not as characteristic of his personality, but exhibits behavior common to a given nation. If we take into account that this fairy tale is not everyday, but bearing the peculiarities of our culture, then we can read it differently.
Someone gave Grandfather and Baba something that they had never met. The egg as an archetype, which is regularly found in myths and in fairy tales of all peoples, is a symbol of the birth of something. It is golden, because it does not look like what the Chicken carried earlier. That is why Grandfather and Baba do not run to the pawnshop to lay a golden shell in order to buy a mountain of simple eggs later. Gold, like the testicle itself, is only a symbol here. But the old people are trying to destroy what they have never met in their lives before. But you could have waited, put it off and see who hatched out of it. But they do not do that, but are in a hurry to destroy this new thing. And here another archetypal hero appears in the narrative - the Mouse. We write her name with a capital letter, because this is also not a small rodent, but a symbol. It is not for nothing that in many Russian fairy tales she is the key subject, which resolves the problems that have arisen. The mouse as an archetype is a substitute for God. And then the one who gave is the one who takes away what people do not know how to use. And then another archetype appears in the tale.
But it will be better if the psychologist does not simply say what kind of archetype it is, but helps the parent to feel its existence. The psychologist may tell him that he would like to prove the existence of this archetype, and not just report it. After all, it was for its introduction into the unconscious of every child of a given culture that this fairy tale was created, for the sake of him it is passed down from generation to generation.
The psychologist asks the parent to completely trust him for two minutes, close his eyes, listen to his voice and compare what he hears with what is happening in his soul at that moment. If the parent agrees to such an experiment, then the psychologist, in a slow, clear voice befitting suggestion, says: “Imagine that there is Someone about whom you know that any of his words will come true for sure. And now this Someone comes in and says to you: “From this moment in your life nothing new will ever, NEVER happen. Only an eternal repetition of what you have already experienced. Never anything new. The eternal cycle of already accomplished events. "
What do you feel? - you ask the parent in a normal voice. Obviously, he will say that he either did not believe you (worst option), or he felt scared, unpleasant, bad (you have achieved success). Then you say that right now a person has felt the reality in himself of the most important archetype that all people of the same culture pass on to each other from generation to generation - this is the archetype of the Miracle. We live because we know for sure that if not today, then tomorrow, if not tomorrow, then the day after tomorrow, but a miracle will surely happen to us. Each has its own. But for everyone it is extremely attractive.
There is one difference between the Russian archetype of a miracle and a similar archetype of other peoples (and everyone has it, since it is he who allows us to survive when there is simply no hope, when life drives us to a dead end). For many Russian-speaking people this miracle happens for free, "for free", since many of our tales tell how a miracle happens without any effort on our part. And here the psychologist has the opportunity to talk about the fact that a miracle will surely happen with the child and with any other person, but not for free, but thanks to joint work. It's a long way to create a miracle, but very effective. If we manage to conduct such a mini-training with the parent, then further cooperation with him is guaranteed. "
