Berezkin Analytical Catalogue · Motif
M168A — The master is taken seriously, ATU 93.
Source data for narratives and traditions is drawn from Berezkin’s Analytical Catalogue. If you use this data, please acknowledge and link to it: Ю.Е. Березкин, Е.Н. Дувакин. Тематическая классификация и распределение фольклорно-мифологических мотивов по ареалам. Аналитический каталог.
Summary of motif
OverviewAn animal or bird that regularly feeds on the fruits of a farmer's harvest or lives in his field continues to do so until the very last moment, when the threat to its life becomes obvious. Usually, a bird with chicks (a fox with fox cubs) does not leave the field (vineyard) where the harvest has ripened until the owner's children (workers) and he himself take up the sickle or begin to cut the vines.
Berezkin category: Adventures: Tricks and episodes
This is of motif type Adventures and tricks and is part of group 11, Tricks and competitions won thanks to deception, absurd and obscene behavior.
M16 has 1 other sub-motifs
RelatedM16. The wife or relatives (often the mother) of the sick person do not care for him. He recovers, and those who treated him badly are punished. Cf. motifs F62 and F96.
M16a. A character (usually a loon) restores a person's sight and/or health by diving into the water with them. See motif M16.
Top 10 motifs with similar dispersal patterns
Phylogeny| Motif | Similarity | Motif summary |
|---|---|---|
| K25A4 | 99.99% | A man (rarely a woman) finds himself in the power of an aquatic-chthonic creature (usually a siren, fish, sea monster, sometimes a sorcerer). The captive is lifted above the water (above the ground; usually after the antagonist lifts him) several times. After that, the captive escapes (most often by flying away as a bird). |
| K56A5B | 99.96% | A person who responds kindly to the questions of characters representing the weather during certain periods of the calendar cycle is rewarded. Another person who scolds these characters is punished. |
| K73B4 | 99.88% | A person is asked to fill a bag (cauldron) with truth (lies, fairy tales). He fulfils the request by telling a revealing story. |
| M207 | 99.87% | The poor blame Adam and Eve for their misfortunes. An authoritative character gives them the opportunity to live comfortably on the condition that they do not violate a certain prohibition (usually not to open a certain vessel). They are unable to resist the temptation and are then returned to their previous state. |
| K32J | 99.86% | Upon learning from a young man that he has a beautiful sister, the ruler wants to marry her. The bride is replaced by an ugly woman. Usually, the ruler accuses her brother of deception and throws him into prison. The deception is revealed. |
| A32M | 99.85% | The moon is called the "Gypsy sun". |
| A35B | 99.85% | The character tries to cover the moon with resin (so that it shines less brightly). |
| B123 | 99.85% | A fly lands on the chest of the crucified Jesus. His persecutors, who intended to drive a nail into his heart, do not do so, believing that the nail has already been driven in. |
| B124 | 99.85% | Ever since a piece of flesh was torn from a person's foot, a hollow has formed between the toe and the heel. |
| B49B | 99.85% | In the past, cows had more teats on their udders than they do now. |
See the 100 most similar distributions →
Map of motif dispersal
DistributionDrag the map to pan, use the scroll wheel to zoom — choose a texture or projection below
Traditions
21 recordedThis motif has been recorded in 21 traditions: Ireland, Spain, Spaniards, Portuguese, Portugal, France, Dutch, Flemish, Germans: North (Low- and Central German dialects): Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg, Pommern, Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony, incl East Frisia and Oldenburg), Nordrhein-Westfalen, Hessen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Thüringen, Saxony-Anhalt, Sachsen, Brandenburg, Rügen, Hungarians, Bulgarians, Balkarians, Slovenians, Slovenes, Romanians, Moldavians, Aromanians, Moldovans, Lithuanians, Latvians, Estonians, Setu, Western Ukrainians, Armenians, Kurds, Eastern Ukrainians, Northern Ukrainians, Italians: Central (Toscana, Umbria, Marche, Lazio), Greece
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