This document defines and provides examples of different types of folklore stories that were traditionally told orally before being written down, including fables, parables, mythology, pourquoi tales, legends, and fairytales. It also discusses the purposes of telling stories, such as entertainment before modern technology, explaining natural phenomena, sharing experiences, and enjoying language.

1. What is Folklore?
Stories that were told out loud before being
written down.

2. What type of stories do you think
people told?
•Fable
•Parable
•Mythology
•Pourquoi
•legend
•Fairytale

3. Fable
• fable is a brief story, in prose or
verse, that features animals,
plants, inanimate objects, or
forces of nature which are
anthropomorphized (given
human qualities), and that
illustrates a moral lesson.
• http://www.aesopfables.com/ae
sop1.html

4. Parable
• A simple story illustrating a moral or religious
lesson that does not uses animals or forces of
nature (like a fable).
• What famous people used parables to teach
with?
Parable of
the Sower
of weedS

5. Mythology
• Stories that explain the physical world
from a religious point of view using gods
and goddesses.
herculeS
and
PegaSuS

6. Pourquoi
• Pourquoi [por-kwa] means "why" in French.
Pourquoi tales are old legends told to explain
why certain events happened. These tales
often start in the past, e.g. A long, long time
ago . . . and end when the explanation is
complete. Pourquoi tales are most often
concerned with animals and the natural world.

7. Legend
• An unverified story handed down from
earlier times, especially one popularly
believed to be historical.
• A body or collection of such stories.
• A romanticized or popularized myth of
modern times.
King Arthur
or robin hood

8. Fairytale
• A fanciful tale of legendary deeds and
creatures, usually intended for children.
• A fictitious, highly fanciful story or
explanation.
• Includes some sort of magic
twelve
dAncing
Princesses

9. Why did people tell stories?
• Entertainment (something to do)-What
would you do if you did not have books,
computers, tv, ipods, etc...?
• Explain the world around them? Ex. Why
does the earth shake?
• To talk about God.
• To tell their own life experiences.
• To enjoy the art of language.

10. What stories do you tell today?
• Family stories
• Jokes
• Riddles
• Poems
• Funny stories
• Scary Stories
• Shared Stories
• Bedtimes
• Romantic Stories