Week 13: Santal Readings Review (Essay)

I read the Santal Folktales reading unit of the Un-textbook this week, and I thought it had a lot of great stories. My favorite units are ones that have people and animal stories mixed together and this one was perfect in that regards. Almost all of the stories had animals and humans interacting, or at least both playing a large role in the story.

I love how in so many of the Indian epics, fairy tales, and folktales, the animals are nearly human, with the ability to talk, reason, and decide their own fate. They also often have similar flaws as humans as well, such as distraction or fear. One story that this was seen in from this unit was the story of the Brave Jackal. In this story a goat goes and hides in a leopards cave to keep from getting killed by humans. The goat makes such a horrible noise, that the leopard thinks a fearsome beast is in it's home and runs away terrified.

Some stories where humans and animals are nearly equal are a bit more disturbing, like the story of the Tiger's Bride. In this story, a mother gives a tiger her daughter in marriage after the tiger helps her finish some work. I did like this story though, because the girl is very clever and tricks the tiger to escape, but also won't return to her mother after the betrayal. The girl just runs away to the treetops where she has a decent life singing about her ordeal.

There was nothing in this unit that wasn't clear in the reading. That can sometimes be an issue with Indian stories because the language is so different, but this one was very clear and the stories were extremely easy and enjoyable to read. I would definitely recommend this reading unit.

Bengal Tiger. Wikimedia