Sahitya Akademi

Folk Tales Impart the Lessons of Life

Author(s): Deepa Agarwal
Source: Indian Literature, Vol. 43, No. 3 (191) (May-June, 1999), pp. 187-189
Published by: Sahitya Akademi
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/23342613
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 LITERARY CRITICISM

Folk Tales Impart the

Lessons of Life

Deepa Agarwal

A story, a tale,
removed is areal
from fictitious
life, yetdepiction of stories
rooted in it, reality. Being
possess
the ability to impart useful knowledge while giving
pleasure to the reader or the listener. In the oral tradition,
which can be called the mother lode of Indian culture,
they played an important role in conveying wisdom to
the unlettered—particularly children. And even today—
rewritten, retold—they help to introduce children to the
metaphysical concepts of life, death and God. By using
metaphorical and symbolic representations of real life they
are able to communicate ideas which may not be easily
explained, absorbed or accepted if taught directly. Violent
death, bestial cruelty, unpleasant family situations, all of
which are life's realities, are often unpalatable to the reader
when portrayed in a contemporary children's story.
However, they are usually accepted quite easily in a folk
tale because it seems so far removed from everyday life.
Children learn that these things happen but are not unduly
traumatised by the knowledge. The strong element of
fantasy and magic, the unreal characters who people a
folk tale—kings and queens, princes and princesses,
demons and gods not to mention animals who speak and
interact with humans—not only act as buffers but weave
a spell which draws the listener or reader deeper into the
story and achieves its purpose more effectively.
For example, in the oft retold story from the
Panchatantra. "The Monkey and the Crocodile", a monkey
befriends a crocodile, only to escape being eaten by him
later with the help of his own wits. Here a child acquires
acquaintance with some of the bitter facts of life—that

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friendship can be betrayed, that one should be discriminatory while
giving gifts and of course that an evil person like the crocodile does
not change his essential nature even if he becomes your friend. At the
same time it also passes on the reassuring message that the physically
weak can prevail over the strong if they are mentally alert.
Many of the women-centred stories also convey such ideas. In
"The Clever Daughter-in-Law" an oppressed woman manages to be
come the boss of the house by being able to fool the husband and the
mother-in-law who ill-treated her. It clearly shows that there is a way
out of the worst of situations if one tries. Similarly, the "Brother's Day"
story which is one of the ritual tales connected with a festival in which
brothers and sisters celebrate family ties, a sister saves her brother from
harm. There are several other such stories in which spirited women
rescue their spouses from difficult or dangerous situations by answering
riddles or just using their presence of mind to battle danger and gain
benefits for their families. Humorous stories like the tales of Akbar
and Birbal and Tenali Rama show that authority can be successfully
challenged if one adopts the right methods. Both Birbal and Tenali Rama
were legendary court jesters in the courts of powerful kings who
successfully wielded influence by the sheer power of their wits.
Similarly, husbands, mothers-in-law, gods, goddesses, demons,
Brahmans and even fate are dealt with irreverently to show that no
one is all powerful and no one need suffer wrong. Even friendless
orphans like 'Bopoluchi' in the story of the name, manage to escape
robbers and obtain wealth and thus become self-reliant or find powerful
well-wishers like the orphaned daughter-in-law in "The Serpent
Mother".
The extreme life and death situations depicted bring children face
to face with the prospect of death without making it too painfully real.
Other harsh truths of life are also brought out into the open. Subjects
like incest in stories like "Sona And Rupa" where a brother wants to
marry his sisters, sibling rivalry and family violence all find their place
in folk tales. Symbolic representations, fantasy and magic remove and
cope with forbidden thoughts and negative emotions.
Stories like "Adventures of a Disobedient Son" show that the
generation gap is nothing new. Such depictions can help to alleviate
the guilt brought on by hostile feelings towards dominating parents by
showing that such feelings exist and that nothing and no one is perfect.
The metaphor of a journey used in this and many other tales of initiation
like "Sukhu and Dukhu" is a fictional device used to introduce children

188/Indian Literature : 191

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to the actual journey of life which lies ahead. The protagonist invariably
performs good deeds on the way and is in turn helped to overcome
obstacles and saved from death or danger to achieve the goal she/he is
seeking. The beautiful princess or the sought-after husband is used as
a symbol to represent success in life. The fact that good deeds are
rewarded shows the importance of a value based existence and also
the presence of a benevolent and all-powerful providence (represented
by figures like the Mother of the Moon in "Sukhu and Dukhu") who
recognises merit and punishes the wicked.
Oblique narrative, riddles, stories within stories and other such
methods again demonstrate the complexity of life and indirectly prevent
a child from acquiring a simplistic black and white point of view. God
exists but so does evil but it can be fought and vanquished. Life is
harsh and death lies in wait for all of us but rewards exist for those
who strive for success. These are the universal and timeless truths folk
tales reiterate to prepare the young for what lies ahead.

Bibliography:
Ramanujan, A.K., Folk Tales from India, New Delhi: Penguin Books India, 1994.
Ryder, Arthur W., Panchatantra, trans. 1925, rpt. Bombay: Jaico Publishing House, 1949.

Deepa Agarwal/189

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