Bylina and fairy tale: The origins of Russian heroic poetry (Slavistic Printings and Reprintings, 281)

A comparison of the Russian folk epos - the 'byliny' (sing. 'bylina') - with the fairy tales reveals similarities in structure and content. Such similarities can be explained by an independent development from a common source, by cross-penetration of motifs between the two genres, or by evolution of one genre from the other. A detailed comparison of examples from both genres, based entirely on intrinsic evidence, indicates that the bylina evolved from the fairy tale. I. The Russian Folk Epos and the Fairy Tale 7 Introduction 7 Selection of Texts and Sources 9 Relevance of Conclusions 11 II. The Epos and the Fairy Tale in Russian Literary Criticism 13 Early Studies 13 Mythological School 18 Comparative School 19 Historical School 20 Soviet Studies 21 III. The Hero's Miraculous Birth and Endowment 25 The Fairy Tale 25 The 'Bylina' 31 IV. The New Aesthetics of the Epos 43 Portrayal of the Adversary 43 The Portrayal of the Hero 52 V. History and the 'Byliny' 61 Historical Basis for the 'Byliny' 61 Fairy-Tale Basis for the 'Byliny' 67 VI. The 'Bylina': A Fairy-Tale History of Kievan Rus' 86 The Epic Space 86 The Epic Time 90 Fairy-Tale Action in Kievan Rus' 96 Ideology in the Epos 97 VII. The Demise of the Epic Hero 105 Popularity of the Variants of the 'Byliny' 105 Demise of the Epic Hero 106 VIII. Summary and Conclusions 121 Bibliography 129 Appendix: Russian Texts of Translated 'Bylina' Fragments 134 General Index 158

Die "Historische Kommission zu Berlin" betreibt die Erforschung der Landesgeschichte und der Historischen Landeskunde Berlin-Brandenburgs bzw. Brandenburg-Preußens in Form von wissenschaftlichen Untersuchungen, Vorträgen, Tagungen und Veröffentlichungen sowie durch Serviceleistungen. Dabei kooperiert die Kommission auch mit anderen Institutionen und begleitet wissenschaftliche und praktische Vorhaben von allgemeinem öffentlichen Interesse. In der Schriftenreihe werden die Ergebnisse der einzelnen wissenschaftlichen Projekte der Kommission veröffentlicht.