Unveiling Narrative Structures: A Proppian Analysis of Literary Fairy Tales of two diverse countries

Abstract

Fairy tales are in great demand among adults and children, and they require scientific study. Propp's morphological analysis provided a scientific framework for the study of fairy tales. This study is qualitative and employs a content analysis technique. It takes key aspects of V. Propp's narrative model and applies them to literary fairy tales, with the goal of determining the morphological interpretation of two distinct literary fairy tales. For the analysis, contemporary fairy tales were composed in recent years, reflecting the influence of metamodernism, and both authors are male. The criteria for selection encompassed the exploration of significant social themes, relevant cultural contexts, and the works’ popularity among the target demographic, specifically children aged 9 and 12 years. In exploring contemporary Kazakh and English literary fairy tales through Propp's narrative model, this study reveals shared narrative patterns despite differing cultural contexts. The results revealed seven functions present in both fairy tales. While the Kazakh fairy tale addresses themes of war and peace, Coraline by Neil Gaiman delves into modern societal issues such as family dynamics and escapism. The analysis underscores the importance of considering unique cultural contexts, as seen in the varying characters, settings, and underlying messages of the tales. The hero's path of struggle is different: the hero of the Kazakh fairy tale fights evil as part of a group, while the hero of the English fairy tale fights alone. This reflects the manifestation of collective versus individual consciousness. We argue that the problems, pains, and messages of the fairy tales’ era are presented in them.