Dict Brit Folk Tales 2v Set [Paperback]

Katharine Mary Briggs (Author), F. J. Norton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 20, 1991 | ISBN-10: 0415066964 | ISBN-13: 978-0415066969 | Edition: New edition

First published in 1970, the "Dictionary of British Folk-Tales" is now regarded as a classic in folklore scholarship. Arranged in two parts, the first, "Folk Narratives", contains those tales told for edification or delight, but not thought to be factually true. The second, "Folk Legends", presents tales believed by the tellers to be records of things that actually happened. The first part is divided into five groups: fables and exempla, fairy tales, jocular tales, novelle, and nursery tales. The fables are animal stories after the manner of Aesop, that point to a moral or satarize human frailties, and the exempla too are tales used for moral illustration. The fairy tales are narratives containing or hinging upon supernatural happenings, while the jocular tales form a great body of drolls, noodle stories, and bawdy tales. The novelle are narratives in which there is no explicitly supernatural element, and the nursery tales include both tales obviously invented for small children, and tales of horror. Folk legends are much commoner in Britain than folk narratives, and the second part of the dictionary gives a representative collection of them. They are arranged mainly under subjects treated: black dogs, bogies, devils, dragons, fairies, ghosts, giants, historical legends, local legends, origin myths, saints, the supernatural and witches. Many of the tales are given in full, some are slightly shortened and many others are summarized. The sources are given in each case - whether medieval, from 19th-century collectors, or from current oral traditions. Each part of the dictionary includes a bibliography, a tale-type or classified index, and an index of story titles.

Editorial Reviews

Review

It is high time these collections were compounded; . . . the result . . . is spell-binding.
–New Society, (April, 1970)

About the Author

The late Katherine M. Briggs was educated at Oxford. The Folklore Society holds a yearly lecture and award ceremony in her honor.

Product Details

• Paperback: 2640 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; New edition edition (September 20, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0415066964
• ISBN-13: 978-0415066969
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 6.7 x 4.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 67.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,052,708 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)