Children into swans : fairy tales and the pagan imagination

296 Pages·2014·5.499 MB·English

by  Beveridge, Jan

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Children into Swans
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C H I L D R EN
I N T O
S WA N S
Fairy Tales and the Pagan Imagination
Jan Beveridge
McGill-Queen’sUniversityPress
Montreal&Kingston | London | Ithaca
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© McGill-Queen’sUniversityPress2014
isbn978-0-7735-4394-2(cloth)
isbn978-0-7735-9616-0(epdf)
isbn978-0-7735-9617-7(epub)
Legaldepositfourthquarter2014
BibliothèquenationaleduQuébec
PrintedinCanadaonacid-freepaperthatis100%ancientforestfree
(100%post-consumerrecycled),processedchlorinefree
McGill-Queen’sUniversityPressacknowledgesthesupportofthe
CanadaCouncilfortheArtsforourpublishingprogram.Wealso
acknowledgethefinancialsupportoftheGovernmentofCanada
throughtheCanadaBookFundforourpublishingactivities.
LibraryandArchivesCanadaCataloguinginPublication
Beveridge,Jan,1945–,author
Childrenintoswans:fairytalesandthepaganimagination/
JanBeveridge.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
Issuedinprintandelectronicformats.
isbn978-0-7735-4394-2(bound).–
isbn978-0-7735-9616-0(epdf).–
isbn978-0-7735-9617-7(epub)
1.Fairytales–Europe–Historyandcriticism.
2.Fairytales–Europe–Themes,motives. I.Title.
gr135.b492014 398.2094 c2014-903646-9
c2014-903647-7
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ForTerry
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Contents
Acknowledgments • ix
Preface • xi
ANoteonSpelling • xiii
Pronunciation • xv
part one History
1 EarlyStorytellers • 3
2 TheOldest“Fairy”Tale • 13
3 TheManuscript • 19
4 FolkTalesandFairyTales • 28
part two Characters
5 Fairies • 37
6 Elves • 50
7 Dwarfs • 60
8 HouseholdSpirits • 71
9 WaterDwellers • 79
10 Giants • 90
11 SoulsandSpirits • 103
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Contents
part three StoriesfromthePaganYear
12 FestivalDays • 115
13 Beltaine • 118
14 Samain • 127
15 MidwinterandMidsummer • 136
part four Storytellers’Themes
16 Wishing,orDreamsComeTrue • 149
17 TheTripleForm • 158
18 Shape-Shifting • 167
19 OmensandProphecies • 177
20 BetweenTwoWorlds • 189
21 Spells • 198
22 Trees • 205
23 TheInvisibleWorld • 214
24 AFairyTaleAlmostForgotten • 224
Notes • 239
SelectedBibliography • 257
Index • 271
viii
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Acknowledgments
WithpleasureIacknowledgemygratitudetothosewhoreadthemanu-
scriptorpartsofitandofferedadvice:NancyFischer,GwenSwick,Anna
Barnett,mydaughterBreeWalpole,andDonnaMcCawwhoenthusias-
ticallyreadittwice.IoweadeepdebtofgratitudetoDanaRodgers,whose
carefulreadingofthemanuscriptandthoughtfulsuggestionsresultedin
manyimprovements.IamalsoindebtedtoMaryAnneNevilleforher
helpfulcorrectionstothetext.Thebookbenefitedgreatlyfromrecom-
mendationsof theanonymousreviewerswhoreadandcommentedon
themanuscriptforthepublisher.WhileIwasresearchingforthisproject,
librarystaffinToronto,Galway,Dublin,andCopenhagenwerehelpfulin
making resources available, and Robin Bergart at the University of
Guelph’sMcLaughlinLibrarywentoverandabovetheusualtobringin
materialforme.IcannotadequatelyexpresswhatIowetoMarkAbley,
editoratMcGill-Queen’sUniversityPress,whosawsomethinginterest-
ing in the early pages that arrived on his desk about stories from the
depths of a distant past,and from that time on was supportive of this
projectandmadethebookreal.IamgratefultoRyanVanHuijsteeand
everyoneelseat McGill-Queen’swhowasinvolvedwith thebook,with
specialthankstoKateBaltaisforeditingandtoDavidLeblancwhode-
signedthecover;itfitsthebookperfectly.MythanksgoaswelltoJoAnn
HayterandJanFeduckwhoencouragedandinspiredmetoseethisproj-
ectthrough,toBradenBeveridgeforbookarrangementanddesignsug-
gestions,andtomyhusbandTerrywhotaughtme,byexample,tonever
stoplearning.