The folklore refers to the wisdom, information and the human expression that is passed on anonymously from one generation to the other or circulated and transmitted as the traditional cultural behavior. The Canadian folklore includes the legends, songs, rhymes, songs, proverbs, superstitions, weather lore and the practices like the traditional craft-making and food making To become the folklore, the story, belief or custom must undergo the process of the ‘folklorization’ and meet the criteria approved by the community intended. The item may undergo the process many times to qualify.
In Canada, the anonymity with the general recognition, variation and appreciation are the features that characterize the folkloric features and hence, the jokes come in many features, and the Easter eggs come in different versions of designs. The significant aspect of the folklore to research and explore is the purpose of the folklore in the community. In general, the primary objectives of the folklore are to support, instruct, entertain and express the individual and communal artistic creativity and taste. Each folklore has the theme that is intended for a given society to learn from. It helps the people to cope and comprehend with the natural and social environment ("Canada - Culture, Entertainment & Sports" 46). The myths of Canada people exemplify how the folklore in other parts of the world depends on the nature as the seasons and the cycle of the life itself to give the meaning to their folkloric traditions.
There is the urge to see experience out of the ordinary accounts for the periodic revival of the interest in the ethnic folklore and the traditions. The new interest focuses on the no lingual and sensory phenomena, moving color and the visual excitement and moving color of the ethnic folk dance. The manifestations of the folklore thrive in the modern setting and they can produce the highly compressed showcase of talent that range from the contemporary folk singers to the demonstrations of traditional weaving ("Canada - Culture, Entertainment & Sports" 56). The aspects that favored the development and preservation of the folklore are many in the country. The prevalence in the rural population and the high percentage of the illiteracy of many groups in the earlier times use the folklore to foster the national and local self-consciousness. All the folklore carried a certain theme and lesson that could teach the community.
Detailed study of one genre of folklore
There are many genres of the folklore in Canada that existed the long time ago. The Canadian folklore includes the legends, songs, rhymes, songs, proverbs and superstitions. The most well know and famous are the story "How Selfishness was Rewarded" it is a Canadian native folklore by Tlingit Tribe that educated the community on their ways of life, and the story has been passed from generation to the generation for so many years ("Canadian Folklore at Americanfolklore.net" 35).
Exploring the story of “How Selfishness was Rewarded."
It tells the story of a young warrior who came to the cost with his mother and wife and settled in the area where the Sitka now stands. It was the time of the hardship for the family because the fish stayed far from the cost and the game had moved far away the mountains. The warrior laid the nets and set up the traps and wandered while hunting but he found nothing. The family had to survive with the roots and green sprouts each day to keep the moving. The blind mother began to lose the health and the strength because of the little food. In sharp contrast, the pretty young wife was staying strong, and health picked her meal each evening (Centre for Digital Scholarship Journals 67). This puzzled the warrior who lost the vigor has the days went by, but he could not find the reason of good health in the time of adversity.
The mother came to her son and told him a cruel and sad story; she had awakened the night before from the dream of the cooked fish to smell reality in life. She saw the fish roasting in fire and the wife was crouching while eating the fish. The old mother cried to the son's wife to give her the morsel, but the girl was selfish and told the mother she was dreaming. Lastly, the girl took the bones of the fish and thrust them into the woman's hand burning her flesh. The mother wept bitter tears and retreated to her corner.
When the warrior had his mother's story, he waited for the girl to wake up at night and keep watch on her. When she thought everyone was asleep, she woke up and summoned the school of fish using the magic spell and took two large fish for cooking. Without knowing, the warrior had followed her; he ensured that he memorized the words of wife's spell before going back to sleep. She could not recognize what had happened, and she came back to sleep (Centre for Digital Scholarship Journals 67).
Early in the morning, the warrior went out hunting and found large fish and the whole family feasted and the wife lay fast asleep. The soldier went to the shore at night, summoned the school of fish using the wife's spell when the girl woke up; she found the old mother and the husband eating the fish; she knew her selfish behavior has been discovered. After greeting the husband, she walked to the woods and ran fast to the mountains, she had her husband calling and running after her but run even faster. She flung at the mountain side and clambered the huge boulder that stood her way, as she climbed, she felt her body growing smaller and smaller. She realized that the magic that she was selfishly using had turned against her on the crimes she had done against the starving family ("Canadian Folklore at Americanfolklore.net" 43). She felt the features growing on her face and features sprouting on her from the harms and when she cried she found herself making the soft hooting noise.
When the young warrior reached the boulder, his wife's transformation was complete, and he found himself face to face with the owl that gazed at him with large and pleading eyes. When he reached out for her, the owl backed away from his hand and saw the humanity fading away. The owl shook itself and fled away into the forest while hooting plaintively. The warrior had planned to treat her faithfully and gently and woo her away from selfishness with kindness and love. The evil forces she had used had taken her away, and he had nothing she could do to save her ("Canadian Folklore at Americanfolklore.net" 78). Up to this day, the hoot of the owl heard in the wilds of Canada reminds those who hear it off the price the young wife received for her selfishness.
The primary goal of the folklore is to teach the young kids never to be selfish because they could turn into the owl. The girl in the story could not help the family get the food, and she had the best way of helping them, she could use the spell and catch enough fish for the household. But for her, things were opposite; she used the magic for her benefit (Centre for Digital Scholarship Journals 67). When the old mother woke up from her sleep and begged for the fish, she responded to her negatively and gave her dry bonds which burnt her hand.
The theme of bravery has been explored in the book. The young warrior was brave, and he could go alone hunting in the forest in the bid of searching the food for the whole family. He never retaliated even when he never found anything to eat. It teaches the young boys to be brave and protect their families during all the times.
The folklore shows the people how they are influenced by the spirits. In the story, the spirits changed positively when the wife uttered the words from the magic spell, and the fish could come near the shore. On the other hand, the spirits could act negatively on the human beings. When the young girl learned that she has been discovered, she ran far into the mountains and certainly, she felt the feathers sprouting in her body, and she changed into the owl (Schlosser 45). Her humanity faded away, and she flew into the wood while hooting plaintively. The hunter could do nothing because she was an animal; the spirits were taking away her humanity.
The love theme has been explored by the story; the brave hunter loved his family. The hunter took the family to the seashore and by all means, he searched for the foods for the whole family. He could hunt in the woods around the mountains and at the same time, he could lay the nets around the sea to trap the fish. In the evening, the hunter could bring all he had and share with the family (Schlosser 45). The hunter loved her mother so tenderly; he listened to her story of how the young girl denied her the fish and instead burnt her. He went to the seashore and uttered the words of the magic spell, brought the full basket of fish and hate with her mother. The hunter loved her wife so much when she turned to an owl creature after being discovered to be selfish; the hunter reached her hand and wanted to save her, but she had lost her humanity.
The theme of revenge can also be seen from the folklore, the mother and the hunter revenge to the girl. When the girl was fast asleep, the hunter went to the sea shore, uttered the words of the magic spell and collected the basketful of the fish, came back and ate with her mother. When the girl woke up, she realized that her selfishness has been discovered, and she run into the woods and far into the mountains (Schlosser 45). The story has remained that the eerie screams of the owls heard in the woods around the Canada area remind those who have heard the story of the selfish girl.
Works Cited
"Canada - Culture, Entertainment & Sports." Foreign Law Guide (n.d.): n. pag. Print.
"Canadian Folklore at Americanfolklore.net." American Folklore: Famous American Folktales, Tall Tales, Myths and Legends, Ghost Stories, and More. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Apr. 2016.
Centre for Digital Scholarship Journals. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Apr. 2016.
Schlosser, S.E. "How Selfishness Was Rewarded: From Alaska Folklore at Americanfolklore.net." American Folklore: Famous American Folktales, Tall Tales, Myths and Legends, Ghost Stories, and More. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Apr. 2016.
