The moral qualities of the hero in the Russian folk tale "The Hare-boast" Into the green forest

Hare - in many ways unsolved character world folklore. In Russian fairy tales, he is often a defenseless character with a rather modest mythological rank. (Although, beliefs with a negative sign have also been preserved: it was believed that a hare that crossed the road like a black cat marks trouble.)

Not so in the legends of other peoples, where the hare sometimes acts as a cosmic creature. In the beliefs of the North American Iroquois, he creates a world out of water, in the legends of another Indian tribe- winnebago - he competes with the sun and catches him in snares. Among the Eurasian peoples, the hare, on the contrary, is associated with the moon.

*** The symbolism of the sun and moon has turned into the mythologemes of "gold" and "silver" in world folklore. In the popular world view, they, as a rule, were conjugated, coexisting as part of some integral unity. Thus, numerous cosmic heroes and heroines of Russian fairy tales, whose "knee-deep legs are in gold, elbow-deep in silver," just symbolize such a symbolized solar and lunar symbolism. Perhaps, in the distant Hyperborean past, the bearers of these qualities were ordinary solar-lunar deities.

Until the introduction of Christianity, pagan Lithuanians even had a hare god, which is mentioned in the Ipatiev Chronicle. It is also impossible to discount the fact that the hare is the only character in oral folk art, to which the name of the Russian people itself was transferred: we are talking about a hare.

In Russian folk image Hare also preserved vague memories of even more distant times - Hyperborean. So, in an innocent children's rhyme, which many people probably know, a vital worldview meaning was originally laid.

- The hare is gray [or white], where did you run?

- Into the green forest...

- What did you do there?

- Lyko fought ...

- Where did you put it?

- Under the deck...

- Who stole it?

- Rodion *...

- Get out!...

*** Rodion is both an understandable and incomprehensible name. Although it is included in the Christian calendar, its origin is clearly non-Christian and pre-Christian. In Slavic pagan pantheon there was also the god Rod, and the goddess of childbirth - the patroness of women in labor and newborn babies. An attempt to derive Russian from the Greek rodon - "rose" is acceptable only if a single lexical and semantic source of both concepts is recognized.

However, in more archaic versions of this children's counting rhyme, recorded by folklorists back in the 19th century, it is often not "gray hare", but "Hare-Month"! What does this mean? And here's what: the indicated mythologeme, which identifies the hare and the month (moon), is contained in the most ancient layers of culture different peoples peace. According to archaic cosmogonic ideas, the spots on the moon depict a hare, which God revived after self-immolation. According to the Vedic-Hindu tradition, this first god and the lord of the Vedic pantheon is Indra. Observing the laws of hospitality, the hare, in order to feed the divine thunderer who came to him, prepared a roast out of himself. The god Indra appreciated the act of this self-sacrifice and placed the hare on the lunar disk. Why is one of the names of the moon in Sanskrit - "shashanka", that is, "having the sign of a hare."

In Mongolia and China there were the same legends. So, the Chinese Taoists said that the moon spots are "a hare that tramples a potion in a mortar to prepare a drink of immortality, and whoever wants to taste the divine drink can go to the moon even now."

The belief about the "lunar" hare was so widespread in China that it became the most popular pictorial plot. Even on the robes of high dignitaries and Bogdykhans, a month with a hare sitting under a tree was embroidered with silk.

At the same time, the tree was nothing more than the universal "tree of life", and symbolized longevity and immortality. This ancient pictorial tradition has survived to this day: the scene of the preparation of the drink of the gods and the moon hare is depicted on special bread or gingerbread baked during the annual lunar holidays (the baked goods are called “lunniks”). By the way, the culture of Russian and Chinese gingerbread (up to the creation of carved gingerbread boards), apparently, has a common source of origin.

Buddhism adopted and developed ancient Vedic and Taoist beliefs. The legend of the hare's self-immolation has acquired additional details. A Buddhist parable tells how one day the Lord of Heaven himself came to visit a fox, a monkey and a hare, disguised as an old man, and asked him to feed him. The fox quickly caught a fish, the monkey picked sweet fruits from the tree, and only the hare could not find anything. It was then that he rushed into the oven so that the old man could eat it fried. The old man (and it turned out to be the Buddha himself in the form of one of his many incarnations!), touched by such self-sacrifice, took the hare out of the oven and placed it on the moon so that it would forever serve as a symbol of hospitality and mercy.

So this is where she comes from - a Russian counting rhyme with the Hare-Moon ...

The cosmic functions of the hare and its former power are also seen in the oldest Indo-Aryan collection of fables and parables, known under the Sanskrit name "Panchatantra" (literally - "Pentateuch"; almost like in Old Testament, just something completely different).

For example, throughout the world and among different peoples, a fairy tale-parable about a Lion is widespread, which a wiser Hare forced to jump into a well in order to deal with own reflection in water. Although the earliest surviving written version of the famous literary monument refers to no earlier than the 3rd century AD *, it is based, no doubt, on oral stories, which existed in the Aryan environment for many millennia, starting from that Hyperborean era, when the Aryans still lived in the North.

*** "Panchatantra" was translated first into Persian, and then into Arabic under the name "Kalila and Dimna" (after the jackals acting in the book). The literal translation of the names of these jackals - Straightforward and Sly - served as the basis for subsequent transfers into other languages ​​and, in particular, into Greek. Byzantine lists ancient monument under the title "Stephanit and Ikhnilat" received circulation throughout the Orthodox world, including Old Russian translations, thanks to which the book became one of the favorite readings of our ancestors. On European languages the fables of the ancient Aryans were translated indirectly - through a Hebrew translation from Arabic. Many plots of the "Panchatantra" have inspired poets-fabulists for centuries, and one of them has turned almost into a folk Russian fairy tale: this is the parable about the frog-traveler processed by Vsevolod Garshin (with the difference, however, that in the ancient Indian source frog and turtle).

From this, some assumptions and analogies suggest themselves. They just concern the "moon hare" - a mythology included in the form of a fairy tale in the "Panchatantra".

The ancient Indian parable of the "moon hare" is long enough. Its essence lies in the fact that the cunning hare Vijaya (which means Winner in Sanskrit) decided to teach the elephants a lesson, which went to the Moon Lake to drink water and constantly trampled many hares and destroyed their homes. Vijaya went to the King of the Elephants and announced that he was sent by the Moon herself and was her authorized representative. The night luminary is offended by the behavior of the elephants and tells them to leave Moon Lake alone. To prove his omnipotence, the hare asked the King of Elephants to move his trunk along the lake surface.

As a result, the water in the lake stirred, the reflected disk of the moon moved back and forth in the disturbed water, and instead of one reflection of the moon, at least a thousand appeared in the waves. The king of elephants was seriously scared. As it is further narrated in the Panchatantra:

“And turning to him [the hare], the King of the Elephants, with drooping ears and head bowed to the ground, propitiated the blessed Moon with bows and then again said to Vijaya: “Dear! Fulfill my request and always bow the blessed Moon to mercy on me, and I won't come here again."

The question is whether such a fairy tale could have appeared long ago. earlier than the Indo-Aryans, in their long and difficult advance from North to South, finally did not reach the Hindustan peninsula (this happened no earlier than the 3rd millennium BC), did not finally settle here? After all, elephants never spawned in the North! How to say - there were no elephants, but there were mammoths! Were they not discussed in the most ancient and original version of the tale?

By the way, in world folklore, a lot of plots of a sexual nature are associated with a hare (which in itself testifies to the antiquity of such texts or ritual traditions, because with the adoption of Christianity, all pagan free-thinking was ruthlessly eradicated and severely punished). Russian oral folk art is no exception. This is evidenced by at least such a girl's song in which the totem hare is called for intercourse:

Hare, gray,

Don't walk in the canopy

Don't stamp your foot.

I will lie with you...

And here is the result:

- Zayushka, with whom did you sleep and spend the night?

- I slept, I slept, my sir,

I slept, I slept, my heart [so!]

Katyukha has it on her arm,

Maryukha - on her chest,

And Dunka has a widow - all over his stomach ...

In Slavic ritual folklore many wedding and after-wedding songs about a hare are associated with the loss of a bride's virginity. Folklorists scrupulously collected, systematized and summarized quite a variety of "hare" erotic themes and symbols. Particularly popular in Rus' was the obscene tale written in many versions about the participation of a hare (albeit mostly as a passive observer) in a mating between a bear and a woman. In some areas, it was generally believed that a stork brings newborn babies in summer, and a hare in winter.

In this regard, one cannot fail to note the indisputable fact that in a number of Russian fairy tales the hare acts as a symbol and personification of the victory of patriarchy over matriarchy. For example, the well-known folklore text from the collection cherished fairy tales"A.N. Afanasyev. In the original, the text is so replete with obscenities and obscene language that it simply cannot be reproduced. However, most Russian readers (in this particular case, viewers) know him from an episode from Sergei Eisenstein's film "Alexander Nevsky". In the film, this tale about a fox and a hare is told to Prince Alexander and other warriors by the chain mail master Ignat just before the Battle of the Ice.The plot of the parable is that the hare, escaping from the fox, showed Russian ingenuity and jumped so that the fox was tightly stuck between two birch trees. Having mocked the fox in words, the hare carried out a ritual act of retribution - "violated her maiden honor" (as the film modestly says and for which in the original tale the people spared neither rich colors nor strong expressions). from a symbolic point of view), the triumph of patriarchy over matriarchy was demonstrated.

Another well-known Russian tale about a fox that drove a hare out of a bast hut also contains an unambiguous allusion to the struggle between matriarchy and patriarchy.

Here, the bearer of the matriarchal ideology, the fox, initially wins. However, her impudent triumph and confidence in permissiveness are temporary. The hare - the bearer of the patriarchal ideology - is trying to defend his rights and achieve justice with the help of other (male!) totems - a bull, a wolf and a bear, but to no avail. Only the bearer of the new sun-worshipping ideology - the rooster - managed to turn the tide in favor of patriarchal values ​​and finally establish the triumph of patriarchy over matriarchy.

Here the traditional female deceit, personified by a fox, is opposed by the patriarchal male brotherhood in the person of totems, which in the end wins.

In Indo-European mythology, the rooster represents the sun. The scythe on his shoulder in the archaic worldview was an attribute of time and death. Suffice it to recall the allegorical images of the god Saturn with a scythe on his shoulder, symbolizing time.

Samotaeva Yana

This project is used in the classroom. literary reading, the surrounding world, IZO. The purpose of the project: to show the hare in nature and where the image of the hare is found. Research objectives: 1) who is a relative of the hare; 2) where hares live; 3) is the hare really cowardly; 4) why a hare is called oblique; 5) what is the peculiarity of the ears; 6) how the image of a hare is shown in fairy tales; 7) what proverbs and riddles are there about hares; 8) Who is the symbol Olympic Games in Sochi 2014.

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Project. Hare. The image of a hare Completed Head: 2nd grade student Mysik Olga Samotaeva Yana Nikolaevna MBOU "Blagarodnovskaya secondary school" Tulgansky district, Orenburg region

n render a hare in nature and where the image of a hare is found Purpose of the study:

Which of the domestic animals is a relative of the hare? How was the hare depicted before? Where do hares live? Is the hare really a coward? Why is a hare called oblique? What role do the ears play? Do rabbit teeth grow? How is the image of a hare shown in fairy tales? What proverbs and riddles are there about a hare? Who is the symbol of the 2014 Sochi Olympics? Research objectives:

I have a rabbit, he is a relative of a hare.

Perhaps the most distant image of a hare can be considered a white marble statue dating from the 6th century BC. e.

Hares live all over the globe. Hares are hunted all over the world. Sometimes people are surprised that these animals are still not extinct. There are a lot of hares only because they multiply very quickly.

The image of a hare is cute, good-natured and cowardly. Hares are not at all cowardly and good-natured. In fact, this animal is able to fly into a rage and bravely defend its life.

Although the hare is often called cross-eyed, it does not have any strabismus. Strabismus was attributed to hares by hunters who noticed that the hare was constantly winding and returning to its track. In fact, the reason for this behavior is the asymmetry in the development of the right and left paws of hares.

In the summer heat, ears help hares to escape from overheating. They actively remove heat from the body. During the rain, hares bend their ears so that water does not get into them and they do not catch a cold.

Hares' teeth grow throughout their lives. They wear off when hares gnaw on food, but they never stop growing.

The hare in Russian fairy tales is usually small, miserable, stupid, cowardly; just run fast. For example, in the fairy tale "The Hare and the Fox", where many heroes came to his aid, and the rooster eventually drove the fox out of the hare's house, and the hare himself only cried and did not try to either fight the fox or outwit it.

In some fairy tales, the hare plays an unusual role for us: it can be a harmful cleaner "The Arctic Fox and the Hare" is a Nenets fairy tale. In the Burmese tale “The wise rabbit was saved by a runny nose,” the rabbit turned out to be smarter than the bear and the monkey managed to fool the king of the beasts, the lion. Indian fairy tale « Sly Fox” talks about how the hare did not succumb to the trick of the fox and saved his life thanks to his ingenuity.

“A hare is afraid of himself”, “Greedy like a wolf, but cowardly like a hare” “A shot hare runs not far” “And the hare is smart, but in hindsight” “You can’t catch a hare without a dog”, “A fox lives by cunning, and a hare by quickness” Proverbs and sayings

Run uphill, somersault down the mountain. Gray in summer, white in winter. (The answer in this riddle is not just a hare, but a hare. Since a hare changes into a snow-white fur coat for the winter) He does not offend anyone, but he himself is afraid of everyone. Puzzles

Statue of a hare in St. Petersburg

The hare is also a symbol Winter Olympics in Sochi - 2014

Thank you for your attention!

Russian folk art is very rich and varied. There are hundreds of different Russian folk tales, parables, signs, songs, etc. The main wealth is our children. This has been known for a long time. That is why so many instructive works have been collected in Russian folklore, from which a child can learn Eternal values, correct life principles and priorities. One of the most beloved and popular is the fairy tale "Zaikin's hut", which tells about honesty, mutual assistance and true friendship.

Author and original text

The fairy tale "Zaikin's hut" is considered a Russian folk tale, and its true author is unknown. However, like original text this work. Now it is almost impossible to find it. There are already dozens of different interpretations of this tale on the Internet. One option differs from the other not cardinally, but still they differ. And besides the Internet, passing the text of a Russian folk tale by word of mouth, it is quite difficult to keep the exact literal text. Therefore, the work has undergone minor changes both in the composition of the characters and in the plot itself.

Characters

The heroes of the fairy tale "Zaikin's hut" are a variety of animals. The main characters are the Fox, the Hare and the Rooster. Even the name of this Russian folk tale has several variants. This tale can still be found under the name "The Fox and the Hare" or "The Hare, the Fox and the Rooster". In addition to these central characters, in the work there are Wolf, Bear, Bull, Goat and Dog. It should be noted that the main characters do not change. It is on their image that the story is built. The secondary animal characters are interchangeable and don't play much important role. In any of existing versions This Russian folk tale tells about 5-6 characters. Of these, 3 are central and 2-3 more minor heroes.

Fairy tale interpretations

The fairy tale "Zaikin's hut" is so popular today and is considered instructive that plays are written on its basis for children visiting kindergarten And primary school. In 1973, the first cartoon based on the text of the fairy tale was released. The work is called "The Fox and the Hare". Now there are more than a dozen different video variations on the text of this tale. You can also find one of the options for the text of the work, laid on the verses. Which is very good for small children. After all, a verse is much easier and more interesting to remember and learn than a regular text.

The fairy tale "Zaikin's hut" tells instructive story about good and evil. Once upon a time there lived a Hare and a Fox in the neighborhood. Each of the characters had their own own house, the Fox has a hut made of ice, and the Hare has a bast hut. During the winter, the swindler made fun of the scythe, praising her home. But spring came, the sun began to warm, the snow melted, like the Fox's house. With the help of cunning, she lured the Hare out of his hut, and occupied it, driving the Hare out forever.

Oblique was very upset and, walking through the forest, on his way he meets in turn the Wolf, the Bear and the Bull. Each of the animals sympathizes with the Hare and volunteers to help return his home. But no one succeeds. The fox is smarter than them. After three unsuccessful attempts to return his home, the Hare meets the Rooster on his way, who also decides to help him. What came of it? No matter how the Hare tried to dissuade the Rooster from helping him, he was more stubborn, and turned out to be absolutely right. He managed to lure the Fox out of the hut and scare her with a scythe. She ran away and never came back. And the Hare and the Rooster became friends and began to live together in a bast hut.

It is not difficult to figure out which of the characters is good and which is evil. Kids love this story very much. She teaches them not to envy, to help a friend in need and to appreciate others. And as always happens in good children's fairy tales, good triumphed over evil.

The role of animals in Russian folk art extremely large and varied. Almost all fairy tales feature some kind of animal. Among them, one can single out a fox, a bear, a wolf, a hare, a hedgehog, a magpie and others. With these well known bright characters adults tell their children about what is good and what is bad. The first fairy tales in history appeared long before the invention of books and writing and were passed from mouth to mouth, from generation to generation. That is why they are called folk. Let's consider the most popular animals appearing in fairy tales and compare how much their "fabulous" characteristics coincide with their description in real life.

“Fox-sister”, “Fox-beautiful in conversation”, “Fox Patrikeevna”, Lisafya, Fox gossip - this is how the Fox is affectionately called in Russian folk tales. This red-haired cheat is definitely a favorite character of all time. And invariably she is cunning, smart, quick-witted, prudent, vindictive and insidious. So, only she was able to outwit and eat the poor Kolobok, lead the stupid wolf, whose tail was frozen to the hole, and even deceive the peasant by pretending to be dead. The main idea of ​​these fairy tales is to tell children that what matters in life is not strength, but cunning. Despite this, the fox is still negative character. In some fairy tales, the peaceful little animals affected by this red cheat have to work hard to outwit and teach the Fox herself a lesson.

But is the fox really so cunning and smart? The German zoologist Alfred Brehm, in his book Animal Life, argues that the cunning of the fox in Russian fairy tales is greatly exaggerated, but the mind of the wolf, on the contrary, is underestimated. Otherwise, the real common fox is in many ways similar to the "fabulous" one: red hair, a beautiful fluffy tail, the fox often hunts a hare or visits nearby chicken coops.

"Bear clumsy", "Mikhail Potapych" or simply Mishka in its popularity, does not lag behind the Fox. This character is often presented in the tale as lazy, fat and clumsy. Big and clumsy, he is slow, stupid and dangerous. Often he threatens the weak with his strength, but in the end he always loses, because it is not strength that matters, but speed, dexterity and intelligence - this is the meaning of fairy tales involving Mishka. Most popular fairy tales- "Three Bears", "Masha and the Bear", "Tops and Roots". However, in real life, Brown bear not as slow as one might think. He can run very fast and, besides, he is not particularly stupid. Otherwise, his "fabulous" image has a lot to do with him. common features: he is really big, dangerous and a little clubfoot: when walking, his socks look a little inward, and his heels look outward.

photo 1

“Running Bunny”, “Cowardly Bunny” or “Slanting” is also a very common hero of Russian fairy tales. His main feature- cowardice. In some fairy tales, the Hare is presented as a cowardly, but at the same time boastful, cocky and stupid hero, and in some - on the contrary, as a moderately cautious and intelligent forest animal.

For example, in the fairy tale “Hare-Bouncer” or “Fear has big eyes”, the cowardice of the Hare is ridiculed, main idea these tales - you must always be brave. At the same time, in the fairy tale "Zayushkina's hut", the Bunny appears before us positive character who needs support and protection.

In real life, the hare, like his "fairytale" character, is long-eared, fast, agile, cautious and attentive. Due to the special position of the eyes, the hare can look not only forward, but also backward. While chasing, the hare may "squint" its eye to calculate the distance to its pursuer. For this ability, the hare was nicknamed Oblique. Main enemy a hare, as in fairy tales, is a fox.

"The gray wolf - with his teeth", "The wolf-wolf - from under the bush", "The wolf-fool" is presented in most cases as a negative character, stupid, angry, hungry and dangerous. But, in most cases, he is so stupid that, in the end, he is left with nothing. For example, "The Tale of the Fox and the Wolf" or "The Wolf and the Seven Kids". In these fairy tales, the wolf is the embodiment of evil, and the main message for children is that good always triumphs over evil. However, in some fairy tales, the wolf appears to us as a wise and true friend a person who is always ready to help, an example of this is the fairy tale "Ivan Tsarevich, the Firebird and the Gray Wolf."

In real life, the wolf can indeed be extremely dangerous. Often he is hungry and wanders through the forest in search of food. But his intelligence is grossly underestimated. The wolf is an intelligent and organized animal, a clear structure and discipline can be traced in the wolf pack. Wolves create incredible strong couples, their unions are strong, and the wolves themselves are a real personification of loyalty and love for each other. A tamed wolf can indeed become faithful and devoted friend for a person.

Prickly Hedgehog - has long appeared before us in the form of a kind, quick-witted old man, wise in life. Despite his small stature and small legs, he always comes out the winner thanks to his extraordinary mind and cunning. So, for example, in the fairy tale “The Hare and the Hedgehog”, the hedgehog outwitted and killed the poor Hare, with whom they allegedly ran a race, and in the fairy tale “The Magic Wand”, the Hedgehog taught the Hare different wisdom of life, explaining that in order to survive, you must first think with your head.

In real life, the Hedgehog is not distinguished by an outstanding mind, but he is not stupid either. When in danger, the hedgehog curls up into a prickly ball, which makes it inaccessible to predators, as stated in fairy tales.

The hare in Russian folk tales represents goodie, but it is shown in two ways. In some stories, this is a victim, a weak and helpless hero who is afraid of everything. In others, he appears as a clever trickster who, despite fear, is capable of brave deeds.

Hare in Russian folk tales

Why is cowardice and agility attributed to the hare in fairy tales?

The hare in nature eats cabbage, tree bark and root crops. He is completely harmless as long as nothing threatens him. But for predatory animals, it is a real delicacy, so the hare once again resorts to disguise and running. From the fact that its main defensive reactions- to hide and run away, he was considered a coward. But the opinion of people eventually dissipated when they saw how the beast can stand up for itself in an inevitable battle with a predator. In a collision, it can hit the attacker hard with its hind legs and even rip open the belly of the attacker with its strong nails. Most likely, for this reason, the image of a hare in fairy tales changed over time, when the stereotypes came to naught.

He was endowed with cunning and dexterity by hunters who, from their own experience in catching the beast, know how skillfully he can confuse tracks and hide.

The nickname of the hare in fairy tales

A hare in fairy tales is always called with tenderness, in a diminutive form - Bunny, Bunny, Hare, with an emphasis on the cuteness and harmlessness of the character. The only coarser nickname that can be found in folk tales is oblique. There are several explanations for its occurrence:

• Firstly, because of the peculiarity of the location of the eyes and its range of vision. Because of what, he always turns his head to examine the oncoming one with his peripheral vision.
• Secondly, the hare constantly confuses tracks, moving in different directions lest he be hunted down by predators. This is a deliberate maneuver, not just an inability to move straight.

False nickname cowardly bunny is also quite easy to explain. His trembling is connected with constant muscle tension. This, as well as constant sniffing, is necessary in order to quickly respond to danger. That is, in fact, he is not afraid, he is simply in constant readiness. And yet, if he senses danger, he will immediately run away. Which in human behavior would be regarded as cowardice.

But running is, indeed, one of the strengths animal, especially at short distances. Therefore, it was not in vain that in fairy tales he was given another nickname - runaway bunny.

The image of a hare in folk tales

In some tales about hares, the story is about the animal. They explain why his lip is split and his fur coat changes (For example, "Snow and the Hare"). And others show on this image human relations, where an animal means a kind, but cowardly and defenseless person.

• "Hare coward"- demonstrates cowardice, fight against fear and ingenuity of this animal;
• "Hare and Bear"- shows the kindness of the character, his altruism, the ability to keep his word, responsibility. Here are these positive traits which prevail over timidity.
• "Hare-boast"- in this tale, the courage of the hero is manifested when necessary to help others.
• "Fox and Hare"- the traditional role of the victim, the defenseless poor fellow, whose kindness is used by negative characters.

Fairy tales in which the hare is cunning and brave are mostly authored. But the work was in the spirit common people and became part of the folklore.