Landscape of the folkloric
COLLECTION / LANDSCAPE OF THE FOLKLORIC
“At the heart of many a tale is a test, a puzzle, a riddle, a problem to solve: and that, surely., is the condition of our lives, both in detail; as we decide how to act in the present moment; and in general, we seek to understand what it means. Like so many characters, we are lost in a dark wood, a labyrinth, a swamp, and we need a trail of stories to show us the way back to our true home.” Ursula Le Guin
"Liam had seen a Selkie, a creature that's half human and half beast. Old stories told of such creatures luring ships onto the rocks and pulling sailors down into the drink but all Liam knew was that he'd never seen a woman so lovely in all his life.”
The Selkie folktale (The Secret of Roan Innish)
“In that country the snow falls deep and lies long, lies and freezes until bears can walk on its thick crust of ice. The ice glitters on the snow like white stars in a white sky! In the north of that country all the winter is one long night, and all that long night long the sky - stars glisten in their darkness, and the snow- stars glitter in their whiteness, and between the two there hangs a shivering curtain of cold twilight.”
The Ghost Drum
“The sisters had run away, but the bear called to them: ‘Snow-White and Rose-Red, do not be afraid; wait, I will come with you.’ Then they recognised his voice and waited, and when he came up to them suddenly his bearskin fell off, and he stood there a handsome man, clothed all in gold.”
Snow White and Rose Red
“‘Well,' said the fisherman, 'there's no need to say more. I can certainly let a fish swim away who knows how to talk.'”
The Fisherman and the Fish
“One day, he came across a crane which got caught in a hunter’s trap. Out of pity, he help it to get out from the trap. When the crane was released, it looked at him before flying away.”
The Crane Wife
