The motif of a girl turning into a man in the Ossetian folklore: a typological analysis

Abstract

The article examines the motif of a girls’ transformation into a man, which is widespread in world folklore. The main plot of the motif under consideration, having distinctive features in national variants, has similar features: a girl is forced to impersonate a man, performs various feats, gains fame, imposes a condition on her/him to marry, which, in the end, she/he fulfills, turning into a man. In the details, of course, the national versions of the plot line up in accordance with local folklore traditions. The motif a girl turning into a man is found both in fairy tales and in epic works. The study is based on the fairy tale How a girl turned into a youth and the epic work Daughter of Albeg Alyty from the Ossetian folklore. The plots under consideration, although they retain the general scheme of the world typological motif, differ in details. Thus, in the fairy tale How a Girl Turned into a Young Man, the heroine’s adventures begin with the fact that she goes in search of her missing father and brother. In the epic legend about the sleds Daughter of Albeg Alyty, the heroine’s adventures, according to one version, begin with the fact that the sleds decided to choose their own leader, for which one man from each Nart clan had to come to the meeting. Since Albeg Alyty has no heir left, his only daughter comes to the meeting, dressed in a man's dress. According to other versions, the Nart Sozyryko, hoping to eradicate the entire clan of Albeg Alyty, demanded that each clan send one representative to the Nart lists. Albeg's daughter accepts the challenge by dressing up in men's clothing. In general, both fabulous and epic stories with the dressing up and transformation of the hero into a man retain the traditional structure of the considered world motif. On the basis of a semiotic analysis of the motif for the transformation of the heroine of the Nart epic of Ossetians into a man, the author of the article comes to the conclusion about the initiatory nature of the subject under consideration. All national plots contain all the features characteristic of initiation narrative texts. The author concludes that the transformation of a girl into a man at the end of initiation is an allegory. In fact, the motif under consideration refers to age-related initiations: a boy (at the beginning of the initiation path, being under the care of his mother, is not considered a man) – a young man (he breaks away from his mother, undergoes a rite of passage into men) – a man (after passing all trials and getting married, he becomes a full-fledged man).

References

1. Pen Yuj. Gallery of “dressed women” in ancient Chinese literature. In: World Literature through the Eyes of Modern Youth: collection of materials of the International Scientific Conference (Magnitogorsk, November 25, 2016). Magnitogorsk, Magnitogorsk State Technical University Publ., 2016, pp. 279–283. (In Russ.)
2. Gurevich A. Ya. The Edda and the Saga. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 1979, 192 p. (In Russ.)
3. Buchilina Yu. N. Female archetypes in the “Song of the Nibelungs” in the context of previous and subsequent cultural tradition. Vestnik of Lobachevsky University of Nizhni Novgorod. Philology. Art history. 2008, no. 5, pp. 299–303. (In Russ.)
4. Basilov V. N. Travestism (“gender transformation”) in shamanism. In: Shamanism as a religion: genesis, reconstruction, traditions. Abstracts of the International conference (Yakutsk, August 15–21, 1992). Yakutsk, Yakut State University Publ. House, 1992, p. 4. (In Russ.)
5. Borko T. I. Ritual travestism: the mythology of the androgyne or the apology of the feminine? In: “Masculine” in traditional and Modern Society: Proceedings of the Annual Scientific conference (Moscow, April 16–18, 2003). Ed. V. A. Tishkov. Moscow, Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology RAS Publ., 2003, p. 79. (In Russ.)
6. Purtova N. V. Travesty in Russian hagiographic literature and epics. Abstract of the dissertation of Candidate of Philological Sciences. Ekaterinburg, 2002, 23 p. (In Russ.)
7. Nikolaeva N. N. Change of appearance and travesty motifs in the epic of the Buryats. In: Republic of Buryatia – 95 years old. Collection of scientific articles. Ed. B. V. Bazarov. Ulan-Ude, Buryat Scientific Center of the SB RAS Publ., 2018, pp. 274–276. (In Russ.)
8. Nassau R. H. Where Animals Talk; West African Folk Lore Tales Part First. Mpongwe Tribe. Boston, Richard G. Badger Publ., 1912, 250 p.
9. Camarena Julio, Maxime Chevalier. Typological catalogue of the Spanish folk tale. Vol. 1. Wonderful tales. Madrid, Gredos Publ., 1995, 795 p. (In Spanish)
10. Hertel J. H. Indian Fairy Tales. Jena, Diederichs Publ., 1921, 390 p. (In German)
11. Stamboliev F. Fairy Tales collected by Pupils of the Transcaucasian Teachers' Seminary. Collection of materials for the description of localities and tribes of the Caucasus. Release 21, part 2. Tiflis, Office of the Commander-in-Chief of the Civil Unit in the Caucasus, 1896, pp. 1–106. (In Russ.)
12. Daskalova-Perkovska L., Dobreva D., Koceva J., Miceva E. Bulgarian folk tales. Catalog. Sofiya, Sv. Kliment Ohridski Publ., 1994, 827 p. (In Bulgarian)
13. Megas G. A. Catalogue of Greek Magic Folktales. Helsinki, Suomalainen Tiedeakatemia Publ., 2012, 350 p.
14. Krzyżanowski J. Polska baika Narodowa. Vol. 1. Wrocław, Warszawa, Kraków, Polish Academy of Sciences Publ. House, 1962, 316 p. (In Polish)
15. Arijs K., Medne A. A. Index of types of Latvian folk tales. Riga, Zinatne Publ., 1977, 527 p. (In Russ.)
16. Hodne Ørnulf. The Types of the Norwegian Folktale. Oslo et al., Universitetsforlaget Publ., 1984, 399 p.
17. Dirr A. Caucasian fairy tales. Jena, Eugen Diederichs Publ., 1920, 294 p. (In German)
18. Ossetian folk tales. Comp.: S. Britaev, G. Kaloev. Moscow, State Publ. House of fiction, 1959, 423 p. (In Russ.)
19. Halilov H. M. Tales of the peoples of Dagestan. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 1965, 319 p. (In Russ.)
20. Elwin V. Folk-Tales of Mahakoshal. London, Oxford University Press, 1944, 523 p.
21. Bagrij A. V. Folklore of Azerbaijan and adjacent countries. Vol. 2. Baku, AzGNII Publ., 1930, 319 p. (In Russ.)
22. Kurdovanidze T. D. Georgian folk tales. Vol. 1. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 1988, 363 p. (In Russ.)
23. Sal'e M. A. Arab fairy tales. The book of a thousand and one nights. In 2 vol. Vol. 1. Moscow, Al'fa-kniga Publ., 2010, 1263 p. (In Russ.)
24. Tauscher Rudolf. Folk tales from jaypur country. Annotated by Warren IZ. Roberts and Walter Anderson. Berlin, de Gruyter & Ciò Publ., 1959, 196 p. (In German)
25. Elwin, Verrier. Folk-Tales of Mahakoshal. London, Oxford University Press, 1944, 523 p.
26. Botezatu G. G. Moldovan folk tales. Kishinev, Literatura artistike Publ., 1981, 397 p. (In Russ.)
27. Eberhard Wolfram, Pertev Naili Boratav. Pertev Naili Boratav. Types of Turkish folk tales. Wiesbaden, Franz Steiner Verlag, 1953, 505 p. (In German)
28. Ivanov V. V. Kharkov collection. Vol. 8. Har'kov, Printing House of the provincial government, 1894, 492 p. (In Russ.)
29. Narts legends. Epic of the Ossetian people. Comp. T. A. Hamicaeva. Vol. 5. Vladikavkaz, North Ossetian Institute for Humanitarian and Social Research Publ., 2010, 766 p. (In Ossetian)
30. Monuments of Ossetian folk art. Magic tales. Comp. D. V. Sokaeva. Vladikavkaz, North Ossetian Institute for Humanitarian and Social Research Publ., 2010, 391 p. (In Russ.)
31. Ossetian folk tales. Comp.: S. A. Britaev, G. Z. Kaloev. Moscow, Goslitizdat Publ., 1959, 424 p. (In Russ.)