“read to me like a self-satisfied expression of condescension towards an audience so naive as to expect some justice in this world”
Tyrell, actually it appears a standard part of the traditional African folktale formula. Remember, most folktales were not told in private settings. African folktales were traditionally told by people with social performance/storyteller roles at public events. African folktales often end with a similar “proverb” and a statement by the story teller that the tale is done, and discussion of the moral can begin or be considered. See the African folktales book above for a detailed description of the traditional experience.
But formalism is a key part of all folk-telling. In the West, folk tales begin with “Once upon a time” and formally end with “They all lived happily ever after.” In Russia, since that’s come up, a common beginning is “In a certain kingdom, in a certain land” or “In a certain village, not far, not near, not high, not low,” while my favorite may be “Once upon a time in a wide white world, in a wide white kingdom, across the nine white lands.” (Russian Fairy Tales, Aleksandr Afanasev)
Russian tales tend to end “And they all began to live happily together for the glory of the people.” (Since many Russian folktale books are in fact, as stated by Vladimir, Soviet anthropology, that last bit might be Soviet style.)
You can compare this to the elaborate and beautiful stylization of the Arab folktale, which traditionally were often told by women storytellers to other women as amusements at events like births and weddings. “Once upon a time there was or there was not—for we know nothing except by the grace of God, only Allah knows all. . .” Also extended families in the secluded women’s quarters told stories while women were embroidering, thus openings like “There was or there was not, shall we tell stories or sleep in our cots?”—meaning shall we sew or be lazy? (from Arab Folktales, Iner Bushnaq)
These Arab folktales tend to end with a rhyme “We left them happy and back we came/May God see your life’s the same” or, since many of these are wedding stories, they end with a formal vouch for eyewitness truth, “And I know this to be so, for I attended the wedding myself, and never have eaten cakes so sweet....” or some other testament to the celebration of the day.
@Tyrell:
“read to me like a self-satisfied expression of condescension towards an audience so naive as to expect some justice in this world”
Tyrell, actually it appears a standard part of the traditional African folktale formula. Remember, most folktales were not told in private settings. African folktales were traditionally told by people with social performance/storyteller roles at public events. African folktales often end with a similar “proverb” and a statement by the story teller that the tale is done, and discussion of the moral can begin or be considered. See the African folktales book above for a detailed description of the traditional experience.
But formalism is a key part of all folk-telling. In the West, folk tales begin with “Once upon a time” and formally end with “They all lived happily ever after.” In Russia, since that’s come up, a common beginning is “In a certain kingdom, in a certain land” or “In a certain village, not far, not near, not high, not low,” while my favorite may be “Once upon a time in a wide white world, in a wide white kingdom, across the nine white lands.” (Russian Fairy Tales, Aleksandr Afanasev)
Russian tales tend to end “And they all began to live happily together for the glory of the people.” (Since many Russian folktale books are in fact, as stated by Vladimir, Soviet anthropology, that last bit might be Soviet style.)
You can compare this to the elaborate and beautiful stylization of the Arab folktale, which traditionally were often told by women storytellers to other women as amusements at events like births and weddings. “Once upon a time there was or there was not—for we know nothing except by the grace of God, only Allah knows all. . .” Also extended families in the secluded women’s quarters told stories while women were embroidering, thus openings like “There was or there was not, shall we tell stories or sleep in our cots?”—meaning shall we sew or be lazy? (from Arab Folktales, Iner Bushnaq)
These Arab folktales tend to end with a rhyme “We left them happy and back we came/May God see your life’s the same” or, since many of these are wedding stories, they end with a formal vouch for eyewitness truth, “And I know this to be so, for I attended the wedding myself, and never have eaten cakes so sweet....” or some other testament to the celebration of the day.