Russian Folk-Tales.

By: Ralston, W. R. S.

In this volume, dedicated to the memory of Alexander Afanasief, abundant use is made of the extraordinary amount of material prepared by that learned writer. But the editor and translator has not confined himself to the Skaskas or Russian folk-tales which have been accumulated by this author, but has taken advantage of the collections of Khudyakof, Erlerwein, and others. He has, however, wisely abstained from reciting those legends which Gubernatis so recently introduced to our notice when illustrating from Scandinavian sources the wide diffusion of the early Aryan myths, and the extraordinary prevalence of the Beast Epos. Mr. Ralston is not like Sig. Gubernatis, obviously bent upon any special theory of the origin of these extraordinary stories, which undoubtedly have many variants, and are more or less connected with each other. The mythological portion of the present collection of Russian folk-tales is mainly occupied with impersonations of evil. They doubtless have some remote reference to the malign forces of nature, but are mainly silent on the deeper questions of sin and redemption. The Skaskas, which describe 'Frost as a wooer of maidens, ' are highly picturesque and easily unraveled, and involve a certain moral lesson. The geographical legends of the metamorphosis into rivers of Dnieper, Wolga, and Dvina, are highly curious. A story resembling 'Jack and the Beanstalk," or a combination of the 'Leaventree myth with the legendary cunning of the Fox, the 'Rip-van-Winkle' legend, numerous ghost stories and vampire horrors, and a vast amount of rare and curious lore on the variations of these stories occupy some chapters. The volume contains material enough to make a hundred Christmas books, at the reading of which the eyes of our young people would become wide as saucers. Mr. Ralston also has accumulated and classified much valuable information for the use of those who wish to compare Teutonic or Celtic legend with that due to Sclavonian sources.--British Quarterly Review, Vol. 5

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B087CVYGXB
• ISBN13: 9798636237631
• Release Date: January 1
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 390 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 9.0"