Let’s find out what are some reasons why folktales were created and told to younger generations. A folktale is a story originating in popular culture, typically passed on by word of mouth.
Reasons Why Folktales Were Created and Told to Younger Generations
Folktales were created and shared with younger generations for a multitude of reasons. Primarily, they served as a means of cultural preservation and transmission, allowing societies to pass on their values, customs, history, and wisdom from one generation to the next. Folktales often contained moral lessons and social codes of conduct, acting as educational tools for young ones to learn right from wrong. They also nurtured creativity and imagination, fostering a sense of wonder about the world. Additionally, folktales were a form of entertainment, ensuring that stories and oral traditions were kept alive within communities. This tradition of storytelling has been integral to human societies, offering insights into the cultural, philosophical, and moral fabric of various civilizations across time.
Through folktales, common history knowledge, that reinforces cultural values, and also highlight important traditions, were passed on from a generation to generation. Amongst many other reasons, folktales also provide many qualities to the current generation, such as:
- Develop stronger reading skills
- Study other cultures
- Model character traits
- Appreciate other traditions
- Learn about decision making
- Explore new ways of seeing the world
- Discover a love of stories
Example of Folktales
Below are some of the popular folktales example:
- “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” – a British story about a girl who breaks into the house of the three bears, tries everything out, and gets scared away
- “The White Elephant” – a folktale from Asia about how the kind white elephant is treated kindly
- “Anansi the Spider” – an Ashanti folk tale about the trickster, Anansi, who takes the form of a spider and empowers people of African descent all over the world
- “The Ant and the Grasshopper” – one of Aesop’s fables about the grasshopper who plays all summer, the ant who prepares for the hard time ahead, and the winter that greets them both.
Watch Video: What is a Folktale?