An explication of internal contradictions of the theory of V. Propp as a precondition of its falsification

4. An explication of internal contradictions of the theory of V. Propp as a precondition of its falsification

The chapter begins with a critical verification of the concept of structurally functional morphology of a fairy tale according to V. Propp. It is carried out by revealing problematical character of formation of semantic units of a fairy tale on the basis of functions of actants. It is shown also, that the way out of the impasse of applied structuralism within the confines of an antithesis "element-structure" is possible based on a wide philosophic and world outlook approach only.

Questions which arise here first of all, consist in that, how much successfully V. Propp was able to reconstruct its real structure in formal language of the description of a fairy tale. One of disadvantages of his formalization is ignoring of the circumstance, that the fairy tale, except of actions of its characters includes in the structure their states, non-realized desires, aspirations, etc., and also various consequences of these actions, and this just has not fallen under procedures of formalization.

Besides, there remain some non-examined processes and phenomena which can depend on functions of the characters, and can remain only as conditions of their activity.

In spite of an over-formalized language of the description, V. Propp simply ignores in "inconvenient" cases some functions of some characters.

So, in case of when such character as the father, has sexual interest to his daughter (shocking though a widespread function in fairy tales), we should have a semantic unit as „daughterfucker”. Also there were not formalized such characters who during a fabulous narration considerably change their functions. That leads to their declaration as "mysterious" and causes those additional, but unpersuasive explanations that are offered by V. Propp.

But when trying to add the opposite definitions to them, it makes them semantically different units of a fairy tale (a "grantor" acts simultaneously as a "wrecker") that "breaks" the idea of V. Propp from within. To other essential imperfections of V. Propp’s concept we should add also leaving without explanation of incomplete application of a theoretical part of his concept in his own works. Actually, from all of the more than three tens functions distinguished by V. Propp only a little of them was entered into the basic scheme (б¹е¹А¹В⁴С↑П⁴Л⁵↑) of the main fairy tale № 131 (from collected stories by A. Afanas’ev).

Thus, it is necessary to ascertain, that the idea offered by V. Propp that a fairy tale invariant consists of permanent functions which number is invariable, and the sequence is constant, gives essential failures, because, firstly, quite not all the functions of actants of a fairy tale form those steady semantic units which allegedly are constant elements of a fairy tale structure.

Secondly, he has not solved the problem not only of correlation of the opposite functions inherent in one actant during the change in time of a pole of its action, but also could not formalize these features of a fairy tale, owing to that an allegedly steady semantic unit becomes blurred (according to V. Propp, this semantic unity is an atomic basic fairy tale element). All this testifies to an internal inconsistency of the theory of V. Propp, establishment of this fact is an important step to revealing of its falsity (falsification).

The heart of the problem "a structure – an element", formulated with reference to studying of a fairy tale, looks like a question, whether the structure (a plot or motive) sets the functions of elements (characters), or, on the contrary, the functions of characters build a plot? If functions of actants are constant, then exactly these characters, being involved in a fabulous narration „at a right time and in the right place”, will determine its structure. But if these actants are really rigidly defined in their functions, then it is difficult to imagine a fairy tale where the Little Red Riding Hood catches the Wolf in the forest of and eats him up.

At the same time, there are many fabulous and folklore actants which functions are not definitely set. Thus, say, the Wood-goblin can frighten people, steal children and so on, but he also helps to pasture the cattle, kindly lulls the child forgotten by a mother. What structure then will be set to a fairy tale by this ambivalent character?

One of the ways of decision of the denoted problem "structure-element" consists in admission that, according to the principle “the structure determines the function of elements”, not the actant builds the structure, but the structure, in cases when the actant has taken the certain place in it, "compulsorily" sets corresponding functions to an actant.

At first sight, it seems so. Nevertheless, the matter is that the basic invariant fairy tale structure does not exist in pure form, just as it is. Similarly, to an archetype, it demonstrates itself only through an objective material, but is not reduced to it.

In turn, a part of a concrete material of a fairy tale, in particular, some objectively-figurative embodiments of actants, owing to their steady fixing at the certain basic elements of fairy tale structure or at its typical episodes, become similar to clichés. Owing to this circumstance, the given embodiments of typical functions in the certain characters show resistance to their artificial inclusion in such cells of structure where the not inherent functions will be imposed to them. Nevertheless if they are still forced "to enter" the "place" in the structure not inherent in them, determined by a functional role alien to them, then this character starts to look as something distorted or mockly-ridiculous.

It is exactly those cases when the stepmother will love the stepdaughter more, than her own daughter or when the peaceful Wolf will suffer from the Little Red Riding Hood, and Tsarevitch will fall in love with the She-Dragon.

It is interesting, that similar experimentation with functions of fabulous characters was carried out by a famous Italian children's storyteller J. Rodari who in „topsy-turvy fairy tales” suggested sating an invariant “bare scheme” of fairy tales with the characters performing functions, opposite to habitual ones. However, the „bare” scheme therefore is considered „bare”, because it does not exist just as it is, outside of its concrete personifications. Characters through their actions should "open" this "scheme" (structure). But then on this basis it is possible to draw an opposite conclusion that it is exactly "structure" that sets meanings (functions) to the "elements", rather than conversely. What is the true answer?

Here we have approached to the main point of the problem. It consists in what represents and by what is determined the „bare scheme” mentioned above, which retains in all possible though extravagant embodiments. It is necessary to accept, that only the account of that circumstance, that a deeper universal-cultural worldview context acts as an invariant basis of fairy tales, where all concretely-structural and substantial moments are strung on idea of a survival through struggle against death, allows breaking off a vicious circle which arises here.

Then in the work there is given explication to negative singular consequences of the theory of V. Propp about an origin of structure of a fairy tale from a ceremony. It is carried out through demonstration of discrepancy between a key postulate of the concept of V. Propp – „the structure of a fairy tale is determined by the structure of an (initial) ceremony” and the contents of his research. There is also used a method of „back (reversal) reconstruction” by means of transformation of the relation „a ceremony – a fairy tale” to „a fairy tale – a ceremony”, that leads to paradoxes and obviously absurd hypothetical situations.

Thus, the motive “chopped and poisoned” is explained by V. Propp by means of the contents of an initial ceremony. In the course of time a real murder, which is nonsense in itself, as an initiant should pass a ceremony of initiation, instead of fall a victim in sacrifice, was replaced, according to V. Propp by cutting off a finger. But then all masculine population of archaic communities should be entirely adactylous, and it is not so.

Similar discrepancies arise in cases of explanation of ritual defloration of women who have already given birth and in other similar absurd statements which testify that such illogical result of research cannot be considered satisfactory in any way.

Some other weaknesses are inherent in explanations by V. Propp concerning the sources of fairy tale structure, that are able to testify their incorrectness. Thus, he, in spite of a many times declared position that the structure of a fairy tale is determined by the initial, and also, partially, by other ceremonies, was never able to stay in limits of this key postulate.

Actually he pass to another level of "reality" connected not only with initial, but also funeral, wedding and calendar ceremonial and with beliefs which accompany them, including the developed forms of myth and religion, with cult of ancestors and totemistic cults. When explaining the origin of motives and episodes of a fairy tale he uses separate details of other ceremonies, in particular, sacrifices and becoming related, adding to them national believes, and even imaginations, dreams and, an absolutely extreme case, the ability of people to forget. He also bases on data about customs, a common law and life, referring to such social phenomena, as transition from polygamy to monogamy, struggle for authority, on industrial activity.

Thus, in V. Propp’s works there are revealed such non-agreements which allow to speak about "abnegation" of his own concept. The reason of this is, obviously, in incorrectness of his basic postulate, that’s why V. Propp, contrary to his insistent declaration, is compelled to admit involuntarily the fact, that the structure of a fairy tale by no means corresponds to the structure of an initial ceremony and to ceremonial realities in general. It is the evidence of an obvious internal inconsistency of his paradigmatic concept. Finally, the results got by V. Propp are regarded as arguments in favour of ascertaining of his conceptual failure.

Taking into account an obvious discrepancy of the structure of a fairy tale reconstructed by V. Propp and an unsatisfactory explanation of its “historical roots” we put forward a deductive hypothesis of a low level of universality of an universal-cultural structure of fairy tales and we find its empiric confirmation using a fairy tale material from examples of Antti Aarne, Steve Thompson, Roman Volkov, Vladimir Propp etc.

5. Falsification of the theory of V. Propp by means of increasing a level of universality of a deductive hypothesis about a universal-cultural structure of culture texts

In this chapter the purpose of research, which is defined in the name of the book, is realized by means of enlargement of empirical base of the put forward hypothesis with attraction of a wide file of texts of culture. First of all it is ascertained here, that all fairy tale material can be easily analyzed using such procedure when a universal-cultural contents is revealed in it. On this basis, it is offered to consider, that basic statements of V. Propp concerning the structure of a fairy tale text are incorrect as a matter of fact. Actually, the fairy tale has in its basis that deep invariant which is recreated from a combination of categories of ultimate bases and world outlook codes. But earlier this statement referred only to a fairy tale and consequently a hypothesis concerning the CUB-structure of the texts the culture had a low level of universality.

My further step was enlargement of the research field by means of distribution of the offered hypothesis on other texts of culture, so that on the basis of an objective (empirical) material of ceremonies, mythology, religion and literary and art consciousness to show their is universal-cultural structuredness.

Thus, the level of universality of the mentioned hypothesis has increased, owing to that it became possible to falsify the theory of V. Propp not only at a level of consequences or singular statements, but also at a level of its basic theses.

And really, the reference to a ceremonial material has shown, that both calendar ceremonies, and ceremonies of life cycle have a full CUB-structuredness in all known codes, in spite of what real was semeiotic in them. In other words, New Year's holidays, Pancake week (Carnival), Midsummer Night, ceremonies of a birth, wedding and funeral ceremonies have in their basis a triad „life – death – revival”.

In New Year's ceremonies (originally – spring ceremonies) it is shown, in particular, in their typological identity with funeral repast (twelve dishes, boiled rice with raising and honey, prohibition to sleep, a table-cloth which is prepared for funeral, candles, etc.) and also arrival of the died ancestors (carols with weird attributes) which should help the forces of life in the coming year.

In spring ceremonies it is embodied in a duel of forces of death and forces of life (fisticuffs), in trains-catafalques which bury winter, in swinging-copulations of youth on the hills.

In summer ceremonies the matter concerns dying and revival of a deity (Yarylo, Chіurylo, Mara, Marena, Madder), a sexual freedom of participants of a ceremony is allowed, and they, being joined in pairs, render a divine married couple of Adonis and Aphrodite (at us – Ivan and Mary) with a derived institute of nepotism with the allowed in its limits sexual relations between godfather and godmother, canalized later on Midsummer Day, and nepotism on graves and during christening.

The perinatal ceremonies, called to remove a threat of death from the newborn child, get paradoxical features of courting death upon the child and its symbolical burial in limits of dialectic understanding of dying as a guarantee of revival. A well-known lullaby „Do not sleep on the edge...” has such continuation „Lullaby, lullaby, at once if you die, tomorrow mother’ll have a kissel and pancakes, this is your funeral repast … ”. In such a way the death was removed from a baby allocated: it will come, and there is already nobody to take away.

The ceremony of a social birth (initiation) in general has as semantic centre the idea of dying of an adolescent in the old status and revival in a new, adult status, through imitation of staying in „the world beyond”.

In wedding ceremonialism the towel, stepping over of which symbolizes passing the Styx, the „weirdness” of newly-weds (a prohibition of touching them and their movement as the dead, against the sun), identifications of getting married with dying (crying-lamentation), a veil of the bride as a muslin which covers the face of the deceased, etc. all these factors clearly indicate a mortally-immortal basis of all this ceremony.

And again, as well as in a New Year's holiday, there appear the died ancestors as only from their sanction the birth of a new member of a clan-tribe was allowed. At first it was shown in the form of a cult, when the bride copulated with a totem animal (a goat, a horse, a bull) in a "natural" way.

Then the right of superiority directly from a totem animal, passed to its personification, to the chieftain-priest. As a result, the first man of the bride at marriage night, often in presence of relatives, her mother and bridegroom, was not the bridegroom, but friends to the bridegroom, respected people of settlement and, according to absolutely recent ethnographic data on the Odessa area (1920th), the groomsman-boyar.

Residual echoes of this element of a wedding ceremony in a fairy tale is cohabitation of Mary and the Bear, and in modern weddings – a ritual seating of the newly-weds on the bear, sheep or bull skins, or, in a degenerated variant, on a fur coat or simply on a pillow.

To the same remnants concerns steady, but already not clear euphemism of conjugal infidelity - "to cuckold" (once the chieftain-totem, having copulated in public with the bride, gave his cap decorated with horns, to the bridegroom, handing him in such a way the force of ancestors). Thereby, the died ancestors symbolically generated a new life.

The main point of funeral ceremonialism is reduced, eventually, to marking this event as a system of actions which will provide an indispensable revival of the deceased, the display of that is an embryonic, crooked position of a died man in a hole-bosom or preservation of ashes in a cremation urn, in a vessel-womb.

To this range of reproduction of the basic formula „life – death – revival” refer also the erotic games of Europeans near the deceased, traditional strewing him with grain-seed (by the ancient Egyptians and modern Ukrainians) which should symbolically germinate, an Indo-Iranian ceremony of „dikshi”, reproduced already in a tomb for those who could not lead it during lifetime because of expensiveness, in the form of sexual poses a posteriori (dogstile) of man and woman, (imitation of self-conception of the dead with the purpose of reincarnation), copulation of the Kyїv combatants near a funeral fire with the widow of Duke „instead of the husband”, a ceremonial reconstruction in 19 century by Mordvinians of wedding during a funeral (including the ritual defloration of a died virgin by the Jews of Volhynia so that the devil could not copulate with her and she would not given birth to a dangerous monster) etc.

Consideration of a myth from this point of view of the universal-cultural approach has shown that categories of ultimate bases and world outlook codes literally penetrate through their contents. Thus, in mythological figures of fauna – a bull and a cow, a horse, a goat, a bear, a lion, a tiger, birds, fishes and insects, etc. the genitive, vitality and mortality, and also certain codes make their semantic background. For example, the pigeon was understood as allegory of a soul of the dead (immortality).

References to vegetative symbols of mythological consciousness shows, that their dependence on seasonal cycles makes them successful analogue of embodiment of a basic triad „life – death – revival”. The last CUB is shown here because a drink of immortality was made exactly of plants.

If to speak about abstract mythological symbols, then the mythological thinking was developed enough to form in its structure the abstract symbols, having risen above an individual-sensual character of objective images. One of the most widespread world abstract symbols was a circle which was often concretized in illustrative images of the snake turned into a ring and others circular things.

The circle symbolized the coincidence of the beginning and the end, of birth and death (genitive and mortality) and, eventually, eternity (immortality). The erotic code in a circle appeared in its understanding as female beginning and when in its center there was a throne settled down, a trunk, columnar or world mountain – in its unification with male beginning.

The analysis of typological myths, mythological symbols and figures has shown, that in astral, solar and lunar myths there is precisely presented a genitive universalia, connected, in particular, with the description of occurrence of the Sun and others celestial bodies.

Rather a widespread motive within the limits of erotically coded genitive in the given type of myths was the motive of a heavenly marriage of the Sun and the Moon and generation of children-stars from this pair. But here we also see aggressively-mortal motives shown in constant struggle between spouses.

The basic world outlook formula „life – death – immortality” was realized in the given myths in stories about lunar phase cycles as its birth, dying and revival. Alimentary coding of the formula is visible in fairy tales about the diminution of the Moon as a result of its eating up by a witch or a dog.

Studying of concrete national mythological systems, in particular, Ukrainian one, has shown, that all CUB and codes were present in it. In the "lowest" mythology the Mermaids (drowned women) are young, beautiful girls who attract young men, and then lead them up to death by means of a wearisome sexual act though sometimes marry them and even have children from them.

In a pantheon of "high" mythology gods, for example, Svarog, personified the current of time and its triadic structuredness that was embodied in the motive of a star which lives, dies and revives (movement of the Sun).

Consideration of the epic writings (Hillyads, Odysseys and Тhe Story about Igor’s Regiment) has shown also their monosemantic CUB-structure with that only difference when the basic universal formula „life – death – immortality” in myths of an agrarian cycle was represented in a narration about a deity which dies and revives, and in myths of adventurous type - in a story about never-ending dangerous trials of the main character with his indispensable rescue from death.

In religious consciousness, in particular, Christianity, the display of CUB and codes was showed in a wide set of concepts, in the basis of which there is the same world outlook base. These codes are most essentially represented in laconic Christian definitions of God, such, as „ I am bread” (an alimentary code), „ I am love” (an erotic code), „ I am word” (an informative code). An aggressive code in the concentrated form is represented in understanding of God as the victorious Force that is not dependent on the death, though usual concepts also have here the most universal-world outlook significance (wine, pupils, vine, fornication, virginity, etc.).

In the architectonics of the Bible the universal basic formula is displayed at least three times:

A. 1) Birth (creation of the world and people); 2) life of people in Paradise; 3) the Fall, exile from Paradise and transformation of people into mortal beings; 4) sinful life of people; 5) punishment by flood; 4) rescue (survival) of a part of mankind.

B. 1) Birth (Christmas) of Jesus Christ; 2) Jesus Christ's terrestrial life; 3) the death of the Saviour on the Cross; 4) Jesus Christ's Resurrection as the victory over forces of death.

C. 1) Sinful life of people; 2) threat of eternal death to sinful mankind; 3) rescue of people in the Christ, revival in the Holy Spirit and getting of a prospect of an eternal life and a victory over the enemy – death.

Even in this extremely simplified scheme we can fix the main motive of development of the big drama of eternal struggle of Life with Death as it has been presented in one of the forms of practically- religious ideology. Besides, the basic formula is represented in separate episodes of the Book (revival of Lazarus, revival of the daughter of a synagogue servant).

Revealing of a universal-cultural basis in literary consciousness and entertainment art was realized in this work through the CUB-analysis of such writings, as Ivan Bunin's story A Light Breath, short stories of Marguerite de Navarre from the collection of stories The Heptameron, Anna Ahmatova's poems.

I have also analyzed short stories which Michael Bakhtin and Olga Frejdenberg used as examples. Besides at a level of „concepts” the given type of a discourse was examined by us on the material of a methodological reflection on the structure of works of art by Michael Bakhtin, Lеv Vуgotsky, Yuri Lotman and other researchers.

In the first named piece of literature the formula „life - death – immortality” was reconstructed by Me at a level of a disposition, the key moments of that are oppositional pairs „childhood – a tomb”, „sex with Malyutin – murder”, „conversation on a light breath – funeral”.

In wide meaning these pairs express a global opposition of life and death. A Light Breath – it is a figuratively designed culmination category of universal-cultural structure of the text of this piece of literature at the basis of which there is the CUB – immortality. Olga Meshcherskaya after her death, as well as Snow Maiden and Mauka (The Wood Song) "was dissolved" in the nature, but she did not totally disappear – her „light breath” is now everywhere.

Except for a full representation in The Heptameron of the CUB and the codes, considered by Me, in these collected stories the basic world outlook formula also is precisely traced. The short story from examples of M. Bakhtin is regarded by him as a narration about a victory of forces of life over forces of death when the legionary who watched over a crucified robber, under food and drink consoles the widow directly on the tomb of her husband, and she for this pleasure releases from the pressure of grief and comes back to plenitude of life. This plot tells, he writes, about a continuous chain of victories of life over death.

The same universal-cultural structure underlies the short story of Giovanni Boccaccio, which was investigated by Olga Frejdenberg (enamoured of the wife of his comrade, the man rescues her, wrongly buried, and she gives birth to the child).

In the science-fiction the motive of increasing threat of a life with the following victory over danger of death is expressed in an unusual way. Frequently it is the description of invasion of enemy civilizations to the Earth, their encroachment on beautiful women, hunting of the aliens who have come back from the future, for children who aftertime become their enemies, consuming of people from within through penetration into their body of ugly extraterrestrial forms of a life, destruction of a genotype of people or manipulations with it, etc.

It is easy to see, that stereotyped schemes of science-fiction rotate around the basic formula of world view, opening it in forms of unusual sources of mortal danger to the person with a following victory of vital positive characters.

If we turn to novel, its universal-cultural substructure entirely entering a triad „life – death – revival” was extremely successfully and laconically outlined by J. Lotman. This author directly turns to consideration of this triad in that kind of it, in which it was realized in the Russian novel. Raskolnikov, Mitja Karamazov, and other characters of Feodor Dostoevsky recreate Муcola Gogol's scheme from The Dead Souls where Tchitchikov goes to Siberia (a hell, death). Having passed a hell of Siberia, these characters "revive".

Already given short definition of specificity of the novel as a kind of a cultural discourse shows, that in its basis there is the same "eternal" universal-cultural scheme, which is filled with the concrete historical contents, caused by features of cultural-world outlook ideas of an epoch.

In my work the same scheme has been reconstructed on examples of works of Taras Shevchenko The Princess, Lesya Ukrainka The Wood Song, in Alexander Pushkin and Anna Ahmatova's verses, and also in plots of the tragedy Hamlet by William Shakespeare and doll performances, in operas of Giuseppe Verdi Aida and Mykola Lysenko Natalka-Poltavka, Alexander Dovzhenko's film The Earth, etc.

So, the received results have allowed to raise a level of universality of my hypothesis as it was found out, that not only the fairy tale structure, but also the structure of wide range of other texts has in the basis the system of the is universal-cultural meanings, organized in the basic formula „life – death – immortality”.

At the same time the analysis has allowed to affirm, that the given hypothesis has found its confirmation because there was explicated the reproduced effect when, basically, any cultural text has fallen under procedure of revealing in it of the CUB-structure.