Vladimir Propp

The Method and Material

Propp has targeted his material specifically and exactly. The subject of his study are the fairy tales
classified by Afanasev, from the numbers 50 to 151 (although there was a more recent reordering,
which makes the new numbers 93-270). Propp is forming a morphology of only these 100 tales, so his
approach may be seen as maybe not a morphology of all tales, but an example of the means by which a
morphology may be defined around a collection of works. The morphology is a description of the tale
according to its component parts and the relationship of these components to each other and to the
whole. (p. 19)
More exactly, the tale is broken down into the functions of the dramatis personae. The function is the
unit of analysis from which the tales are composed. The set of characters is large, and the set of
functions are small. The two dimensions (function and character) lead to a large combinatorial diversity,
producing a large potential number of tales. It is important to clarify that the function is not the act
performed by a character, but the meaning behind that action. Function is understood as an act of a
character, defined from the point of view of its significance for the course of the action. (p. 21) Propp
defines four theses relating the functional composition of the folktales: (p. 21-23)
Functions of characters serve as stable, constant elements in a tale, independent of how and by whom
they are fulfilled. The constituted the fundamental components of a tale.
The number of functions known to the fairy tale is limited.
The sequence of functions is always identical.
All fairy tales are of one type in regard to their structure.
The Functions of Dramatis Personae
This section forms the bulk of Propps work. He catalogues with great detail the functions present in a
tale, which are identified by Greek and Roman letters, as well as a few symbols. He classifies the
functions in order of their appearance within tales, gives several varieties of each type of function, and
examples of those variants. The botanical metaphor continues at this level: Propp explains that the task
of identifying functions is the extraction of genera. Genera would give way to species, and then
varieties. What is interesting is that Propp uses a genetic metaphor to examine the component
structures of the folktales, not the tales on the whole.
A good example of a function which has an important role within the morphology is VIII. The villain
causes harm or injury to a member of a family. (Definition: villainy. Designation: A.) (p. 30-34) Villainy
takes on many forms. I will mention a few of them:

The villain abducts a person (A1). A dragon kidnaps the tsars daughter (131), a peasants daughter
(133); a witch kidnaps a boy (108)
The villain seizes or takes away a magical agent (A2). The uncomely chap seizes a magic coffer (189); a
princess seizes a magic shirt (208); the finger-sized peasant makes off with a magic steed (138).
The villain pillages or spoils the crops (A3). A mare eats up a haystack (105). A bear steals the oats (143).
A crane steals the peas (186).
There is a brief interlude where Propp explains that certain chains of functions have types of their own.
Several types of functions work well with each other, or do not work well, and there is a great diversity
of possible connections that occur within the catalog of folktales. Generally, illogical connections may
exist, but require extra motivation or context in the tale. In computational adaptations of Propps work,
these connections are extremely problematic, though. In the context of a pure morphology, that is not a
problem. This is one point where it is important to realize that Propps study is a descriptive or analytic
grammar, not a generative one. A human could perform the task of reconciling an illogical chain of
functions, but that is generally beyond the power of a computational generative grammar.
For accommodating stories with multiple parts, villainous moves are extracted to form subsequences
in the grammar. Some of these groups may be cycled and repeated. Additionally, some elements are
grouped: prohibition is always paired with violation, for example. The sequence ABC can be
understood as a unit, the complication. The sequence DEF is the heros testing and reward, which also
serves as a unit. There are combinatorial variations within these units, but they serve as logical
groupings within the grammar itself.
Some Other Elements of the Tale
Tangentially, Propp mentions the issue of motivation. Motivation is extremely important in my own
work, and it has an insubstantial role in the formalist analysis. Here motivation is addressed as following
from the action (plot) itself. Some motivations are hatred, fear, jealousy, love, lack, and justice.
Motivation adds to the quality of the action, but does not address the form of the action itself.
The Distribution of Functions Among the Dramatis Personae
Functions are grouped by spheres of influence, namely, spheres have have authority over certain
functions. Characters may correspond to the spheres, or a single character may cover multiple spheres,
or many figures may make up a single sphere. These spheres serve as roles within the format, which
would conceivably be where agents would intervene if they were able to act within the story as a world.
The spheres are enumerated as follows: (p. 79-80)
The villain. The villain performs the villainy, struggles with the hero, and pursues him/her.
The donor (provider). The donor gives the hero a magical agent.

The helper. The helper may undo the misfortune or lack, rescue the hero from pursuit, and transfigure
the hero.
The princess (a sought-for person) and her father. This sphere assigns the difficult tasks, brands the
hero, exposes and recognizes the hero, and also participates in marriage.
The dispatcher. Dispatches the hero.
The hero. The hero performs the departure and engages with the villain. Oddly, the conflicts are
represented in the villains domain in this analysis.
The false hero. The false hero appears in some stories, engages in some of the activities of the hero, and
has a special function of presenting false claims