The Uncle—Nephew Motif
New Light into its Origins and Development
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8933038 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Thomas J Garbáty (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1977 |
| Volume | 88 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 220-235 |
| Publication date | 1977-01-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Folklore (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0015-587X • E-ISSN: 1469-8315 |
| Publisher | Routledge (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/0015587x.1977.9716075 |
| OpenAlex | W2082071489 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 5 |
AT a time when the various branches of advanced learning seem capable of bearing a common fruit, when different scientific categories are merging and developing in common, research in folklore is especially stimulating and vital, for this field represents truly an interdisciplinary study. The folklorist must have a receiving mind. He can be helped by understanding literature, history, cultural anthropology, and, in recent years, the new theories of evolution. The list is not exclusive, but one example of the areas just listed, and a most interesting one, is the well known 'uncle-nephew' motif in heroic literature (Stith Thompson, MotifIndex P293, P297, and others).' The standard and only detailed treatments of the 'uncle-nephew' motif in literature are several older works, the monograph by Farnsworth2 for the French Chansons de Geste, which influenced a similar treatment by Bell3 for the German epic, and Gummere's article discussing the ballads, which preceded both the former.4 It is redundant to go over these studies in detail, but several salient features should be mentioned. Farnsworth cites many detailed aspects of the reciprocal relationship between uncle and nephew in the French epics: fosterage of nephew by uncle, knighting by the uncle, nephew as successor or heir of uncle, their mutual dependence in war or in blood feud, and many other favours and close ties well known to us.5 The uncle's duty is to love his nephew, give him power, and avenge him. The nephew must reciprocate. The axioms in Foucon and Aye d'Avignon confirm this: 'Toz jors l'oi dire: ainz venge nies que fraire,' and 'Por ce dit on encore: ainz venge niez que fiz,' ('Always I hear it said: rather does nephew than brother take vengeance,' and 'For this they still say: rather does nephew than son take vengeance'.)6 It is, of course, specifically the relationship between mother's brother and
Aesthetics · Archaeology · Art · Feud · Genealogy · Icelandic · Linguistics · Literature · Motif (music · Nephew and niece · Classics · Folklore, Mythology, and Literature Studies · History · Medieval Literature and History · Philosophy
| Citations per year | 0.08 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2014 - 2014 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |