The Washington times., 1922-09-17
FAvoRITE character

~ ChoA 40
IA Russian folklore Is Iva
\ u nushka the Fool. He IL rep
resented as a man who bears all
the buffeting and injustice OF life
with patience and comes out best
In the end. not because he IL wise
or bold or enterprising. but be-
cause he is humble and cub
missive.
In the stories his unassuming
meekness is always rewarded with
wealth. happiness. a wise and
beautiful wife. and even q royal
throne; while in real life-well. We
all know from our own experience
how real life treats that kind Of
people. -s.
The folklore OF the Latin and
Germanic races either represents
the fool as a man on his guard. a
man who pretends to be a fool
for the purpose Of self-defense, or
treats him with irony, sarcasm,
and contempt. -., -.
With US Russians the fool is
"a fool to the point OF holiness"
II we make fun Of him, We do 70
gently and tenderly. and often
with a sentiment Of pity that
verges on sadness; and we are
constantly brought to a halt by a
tender yearning to make the fool
happy.
A WEAK BEING.
At the service Of the fool stand
the "gray-brown, dark fox-colored,
oracle-speaking horse" the little
crooked horse" the frog queen"
and the "supernaturally white
Vassilissa. Meanwhile the fool
does nothing personally to extri-
cate himself from the difficult
situations into which his folly re-
peatediy plunges him--unless II be
to weep bitter tears and lament
his blunders. He is a tempera-
mentally weak. being, always de-
pending upon chance or some spe-
cial dispensation Of Providence to
save him, invariably awaiting help
from without and indifferent
whence 1t comes, though II be
from the very anti-Christ.
But in the end his patient, long
suffering folly is invariably. re-
warded with a carefree life. And
this Is the important point; for
right here we put our finger upon
the social lesson which our folk
lore concerning the fool teaches.
Man Is represented as surviv-
ing all the evils that beset him,
although he does not himself con-
quer his misfortunes. and although
he merely circumvents obstacles
instead of removing them. His
posterity win encounter the same
difficulties Az disasters that he
has encountered, and. like him.
they will rest their hope in the
help Of the "gray-brown horse"
THE FOOL IS LUCKY"
A popular proverb says: The
fool is lucky" Another proverb.
with a suggestion Of envy In it.
says: Stupid as a bumble-bug.
happy as a hog" Still another
peasant proverb runs: "The fool
lives not by his toll, but by his
luck"
Most townspeople live under
conditions that give them an en-
tirely different attitude toward
IvanushlSa the Fool. In the city a
man sees all about him evidence
Of the marvellous conquests Of
mind over the forces Of nature; he
sees these triumphs embodied in
palaces, churches. and monu-
ments, that incorporate the genius
and the labor of man crystallIzed
throughout the centuries in stone
and metal. The city is a poem Of
labor. poem written in visible
things. The environment Of the
city man reminds him constantly
Of his universality. of his all-com-
pretending power; It tends to in
spire him with respect for himself.
with trust In the might Of his in
tellect. with love for unremitting
labor.
Literature Ii likewise for the
most part a product of the city.
although our Russian literature
occupies itself relatively little with
town society. Most Of our writer's
have written about the country
and country life. That may be
because our written literature. as
well as our oral folklore, also
chooses for its hero. for its typical
character. Ivanushka the Fool.
Platon Karatayev. one Of the
most successful, perhaps the most
successful good. Russian hero in
fiction, Is but Ivanushka the Fool
under another mask. So is that
pious world reformer, Akin, the
glider" He rejects with the con.
tempt Of n tust man all city cul-