To be ahead / come
wonder 1. a cause of astonishment or admiration ( Britannica Deluxe
2.2. Conceptual Analysis
To get the full idea of the concept under investigation (MIRACLE or WONDER), the following parameters should be taken into account:
1. Time and place of the action; 2. Doer of the action;
3. Manner of the action; 4. Result of the action.
By action I’ll mean wonder, or miracle, of course.
2.2.1. Time and place of the action
Time and place of action are considered to form an integral unity, which M. Bakhtin called the chronotope [Bakhtin 2000:9]. The chronotope plays an important role in the folktale discourse and reveals its stylistic features. For example, each of us remembers special beginnings of folktales like: Once upon a time … or Жили-были … .
The peculiar characteristics of the chronotope in the Irish folktales are as follows:
1) concrete indications of time: at dinner, next morning (Adventures of Gilla na Chreck an Gour), 11 o’clock at night (The apparition in Old Ross), year 1809 (The Tobinstown Sheeodge);
2) vague indications of time: one day (The Three Crowns); long ago (Adventures of Gilla na Chreck an Gour), in a good time (The Three Crowns), at times (The Recovered Bride), from time to time (The Three Advices Which the King With the Red Soles Gave to His Son), once (Jack and his comrades), there was once (The Corpse Watchers);
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3) vagueness of the period of action: for a long time (The Fairy Nurse), she walked and he walked…(The Corpse Watchers), he travelled and travelled (Adventures of Gilla na Chreck an Gour);
4) real Irish toponyms: Enniscorthy, Dublin, Townland (a small geographic division used in Ireland), Leinster, Bunclody, Bantry, Wexford, Kildare, Connemara, Murroe;
5) real objects denoting space: crossroads, pools, poles, rocks, mountains, hedges, gardens, castles, fields, hills, lawns, lakes, ground.
The peculiar characteristics of the chronotope in the Russian folktales are as follows:
1) magic numbers: three years, three sons (The Flying Ship, Maria Morevna, The Wonderful Pipe);
2) vague indications of time – one day …, as the years passed …, a long time ago …, some time later …;
3) vague indications of space – closer than you might think …
The analysis shows that both Irish and Russian folktales vaguely express the time of the action: the semantic category of the vagueness of time is represented by verb-repetition, usage of the indefinite pronoun one and adverbs of indefinite time.
Unlike Russian folktales, the category of the place of the action in Irish folktale is presented mostly truly: real geographical names and objects denoting space are used.
Russian folktales activate magic numbers. The number which is used most often in Russian folktales is three. This is the symbol of a person, which consists of body, spirit and soul.
2.2.2. Doer of the action
The wonders are performed by the heroes of the folktales. They can be either ordinary people (Tom, Jack, poor widow, …) or extraordinary creatures (giants, hags, evil spirits, light bodies, apparitions, fairies, unseen visitors, distance fugitives, mermaids, devil, ghosts, silkies, witches, fetches, villain, imps, sorcerers and other magicians).
It is possible to reveal the following extraordinary creatures in Irish folktales:
1) joiant – When he had it gathered and tied, what should come up but a big joiant … (“Adventures of Gilla na Chreck an Gour”);
2) hags – Open it flew, and in rushed frightful old hags, wicked, shameless young ones (“Black Stairs on Fire”);
3) evil spirit – A townland north of Mount Leinster is infested by the above-named evil spirit (“Droochan’s Ghost”);
4) apparition – They were going up a steep hill, with a stiff breeze at their backs, and as they advanced they saw on the top of the ascent a headless man (“The Apparition in Old Ross”); 5) fairy man – Fairy-doctors, male and female, tried their herbs and charms on him in vain
(“The Changeling and his Bagpipes”);
6) ghost – Her mind was wandering to her late loved mistress, when she was startled by a sensation in her instep (“The Ghost in Graigue”);
7) devil – The devil and the hearth-money collector for Bantry set out one summer morning … (“The Long Spoon”);
8) mermaids – Moruadh, or Moruach, is the name given to the mermaids that haunt the shallow waters near our coasts (“The Sea Fairies”);
9) witches – Stealing to the door, he saw half-a-dozen old women, sitting round the fire, jesting, and laughing (“The Witches Excursion”);
10) sorceress – A sorceress, that had a beautiful daughter, wished me for her son-in-law (“The Brown Bear of Norway”).
Most of these creatures have a malicious character and act as opponents to the main heroes’ happiness. Evil forces are opposed to symbols of Christianity, such as God, Christmas, baptism, church, priest, holy water, sacrament.
In Russian folktales the miracles are performed by:
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1) sorcerers: Думал, думал и решил ехать к колдуну Асону, который один на все царство сны судит – «Dreams»;
2) evils (evil spirits): Вот и пошли; сделали шагов с двадцать – попадается им навстречу нечистый дух в человеческом образе… – «The Truth and the Lie»;
3) Baba Yaga: …я у ней три дня пастухом был, ни одной кобылицы не упустил, и за то баба-яга дала мне одного жеребеночка – «Maria Morevna»;
4) helping animals: Солнышко уже на закате, прилетела заморская птица и будит его: «Вставай, Иван-царевич! Кобылицы теперь дома» – «Maria Morevna».
Both in Irish and Russian folktales miracles are performed by ordinary and extraordinary creatures who help or oppose to the main hero. But Irish folktales have an elaborated system of extraordinary creatures which can be presented in the following groups:
1) natural spirits – fairies, mermaids, silkies, evil spirits, devil, villain, imps; 2) home spirits – hags, witches;
3) elusory creatures – light bodies, apparitions, unseen visitors, distance fugitives, fetches; 4) people with magic abilities or extreme physical strength – giants, sorcerers, magicians.
2.2.3. Manner of the action
A miracle has an unconscious nature, at least for the people who just witness or experience it. Most scientists agree that miracle stops being a miracle when the audience understands its nature.
As far as the doer of the miracle is concerned, most often he (she) can explain the nature of the wonderful act. But in some cases heroes work miracles by intuition, or they somehow get the magic knowledge.
A wonder or miracle is performed in Irish folktales with the help of magic helpers or gifts:
- … and so he gave Tom a bottle of green ointment, that wouldn't let you be burned, nor
scalded, nor wounded (“Adventures of Gilla na Chreck an Gour”);
- So because you let my brother be buried, I came to help you (“Jack the Master and Jack the
Servant”);
- … and rubbed them with an ointment that took all the soreness out of their bones, and made
them as fresh as a daisy (“The Brown Bear of Norway”).
In some folktales rituals and entreaties are used to achieve the desirable result:
- O, Gilla na Chreck an Gour, take away that terrible wolf and you must have all my daughter
(“Adventures of Gilla na Chreck an Gour”);
- Come at our call, O Sighe mother Come and remove your offspring (“The Tobinstown
Sheeoge”);
- If you have courage to pull me off the horse, and draw me into the ring, all they can do will
be useless. You must have some food for me every night on the dresser (“The Recovered Bride”).
In Russian folktales the hero is able to achieve his (her) goals only using the magic helpers: - Только прилетает к нему ангел божий … и принес ему дудочку («The Paradise Pipe»); - Старик дал ему дудочку и говорит …(«The Wonderful Pipe»);
- Стрелок схватил свое ружье, выстрелил в мельницу и тем выстрелом разбудил скорохода; скороход побежал и в одну минуту принес воду («The Flying Ship»).
Rituals, entreaties and pleas are also present in Russian folktales:
- - Ясни, ясни на небе звёзды
Мёрзни, мёрзни волчий хвост («The Wolf's Tail»);
- - По щучьему велению, по Божьему благословению, пусть царевна плод понесёт и
родит сына («The Old Man in Heaven»);
- - Не руби меня, мужичок,
Всё, что тебе надо, всё сделаю («The Greedy Old Woman»);
- - Отпусти меня, добрый человек, на волю; я тебя счастливым сделаю: чего душа твоя
пожелает, все у тебя будет! Только скажи: по щучьему веленью, по божьему
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благословенью явись то-то и то-то — сейчас явится! («Emelya and the Pike»);
- - Три раза по росе покататься – рука вырастет
Кто пожалеет барина – вылечит дочку («The Truth and the Lie»);
- - Ступай в лес, подойди к первому дереву, перекрестись три раза и ударь в дерево
топором, а сам упади и наземь ничком и жди, пока тебя не разбудят («The Flying Ship»);
- - Доехал до той реки, махнул три раза платком в правую сторону – и вдруг, откуда ни
взялся, повис через реку высокий, славный мост («Maria Morevna»).
Magic knowledge is of great importance in Russian folktales:
- «Нет, земляк, коли все будешь завтраками потчевать, так с тебя никогда не получишь.
Я шутить-то не люблю, живо с тобой разделаюсь!» Как хватит ее топором — так щепки и посыпались во все стороны. В той березе было дупло, а в том дупле разбойники спрятали полный котел золота. Распалось дерево надвое, и увидал дурак чистое золото; нагреб целую полу и потащил домой … («The Fool and the Birch Tree»).
Both in Irish and Russian folktales the miracles are performed with the help of magic heroes or assistants. But in Russian folktales more often than in Irish folktales the heroes act just using their intuition. The fool can’t explain, for example, why he started fighting with the birch tree, but it worked!
2.2.4. Result of the action
In Irish folktales, miracle (or wonder) is represented in the following forms: 1. Transportation
- It went off through the wood, groaning and cracking, till it came to the widow's door (“Adventures of Gilla na Chreck an Gour”);
- Well, one laughed, and another laughed, and they joked on the princess all the rest of the evening. But that very night she woke up out of her sleep in a great hail that was lighted up with a thousand lamps; the richest carpets were on the floor, and the walls were covered with cloth of gold and silver, and the place was full of grand company, and the very beautiful prince she saw in her dreams was there…(The Brown Bear of Norway).
2. Healing and resurrection - The spirit of my mother watched over me; my hands were restored; my father's wound was healed (“The Bad Stepmother”);
- his eye fell on the man next him, and he was an old neighbour that was dead twenty years (Jemmy Doyle in the Fairy Palace);
- All at once the dead man got up in his shroud, and stood before her … (“The Corpse Watchers”);
- She soon received health and strength … (“The Fairy Cure”);
- He felt as if he had wings; and one time when his back touched the roof, he found a sudden delightful change in himself (“The Palace in the Rath”);
- The next day when she came in, in the evening, she found him quite clean and fresh- looking, and his hair nicely combed (“The Fairy Child”).
3. Transformation
- Being safe from the eyes of the household, she muttered some words, and drawing a druidic wand from under her mantle, she struck her with it, and changed her into the most beautiful wolf-hound that eyes ever beheld (“Illan Eachtach and the Lianan”);
- … their apparition changed into a poor ass (“The Apparition in Old Ross”);
- I had nothing better than a beggar's cloak on me, I got nothing for my suit but the porringer that you see dangling by the poor remains of my mare (“The Three Advices which the King with the Red Soles Gave to his Son”).
4. Speaking animals
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- … what should he see but a neighbour's cat galloping along the side of the road, and crying out every moment (“The Cat of the Carman’s Stage”);
- … what should he see but a big grey ass, sure enough, sitting on his currabingo, and yawning before the fire (“The Kildare Pooka”).
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5. Disappearance
- The outraged animal turned round to the other two, who were grazing at some distance, and lowed to them in a sorrowful tone, and immediately the three moved rapidly off to the sea (“The Black Cattle of Durzy Island”);
- He went in all haste, found the spade and shovel, the heap of clay, and the pit, but no sign of the crock or its cover (“The Crock Found in the Rath”);
- … and when her eyes fell where he was a moment before, there was no more sign of him than if everything that passed was a dream (“The Kildare Lurikeen”).
6. Illnesses, caused by enchantment
- So when she went to feed him she got such a fright, for his poor face was like an old man's, and his body, and legs, and arms, all thin and hairy. But still he resembled the child she left in the morning, and "mammy, mammy," was never out of his mouth. She heard of people being fairy-struck, so she supposed it was that that happened to him (The Fairy Child).
7. Sudden or mysterious death
- Ellen, dear, I am suffocating; send for Dr. C-- She sprang up, huddled on some clothes, and, without waiting for the slow movements of the servant, she ran to his house. He came with all speed, but his efforts for his friend were useless. He had burst a large blood-vessel in the lungs, and was soon beyond human aid (The Doctor’s Fetch).
8. People allotted with magic abilities for a short period
- But to her great terror, when she looked down and round the hearth, she could see no living thing. "Who's that?" she cried out, with the teeth chattering in her head. "It is I," was the answer, and the dead lady became visible to her. "Oh, mistress darling!" said she, "What is disturbing you, and can I do anything for you?".
In Russian folktales miracles are observed in the following forms: