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Stith Thompson Motif Index
About this index and how to read it
Stith Thompson's Motif-Index of Folk-Literature classifies recurring narrative elements in folktales, myths, legends, ballads and related traditional narratives. Each entry below gives Thompson's motif reference and the description recorded in the index.
The index is large, so this browser displays 250 entries per page. You can search by motif reference or by words in the description, restrict the results to one of Thompson's main letter categories, and click motif references mentioned inside descriptions to follow cross-references. Individual motif pages also show any ATU tale types whose concordance explicitly cites that Thompson reference.
All
A
Mythological Motifs
B
Animal Motifs
C
Motifs of Tabu
D
Magic
E
The Dead
F
Marvels
G
Ogres
H
Tests
J
The Wise and the Foolish
K
Deceptions
L
Reversals of Fortune
M
Ordaining the Future
N
Chance and Fate
P
Society
Q
Rewards and Punishments
R
Captives and Fugitives
S
Unnatural Cruelty
T
Sex
U
The Nature of Life
V
Religion
W
Traits of Character
X
Humor
Z
Miscellaneous Groups of Motifs
| Thompson reference ▲ | Description |
|---|---|
| J2129.5 | Old shoes patched with new. Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 319 No. 18. |
| J2129.6 | Keeping rain from the trunks. Numskulls take out the clothing and cover the trunks to keep rain off. Penzer V 116 n. 1. |
| J2129.7 | Horse drawn across ice till skin is rubbed off. Type 1212. |
| J2129.8 | Fool sows his mother's seed rice on other people's fields. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2130 | Foolish disregard of personal danger. |
| J2131 | Numskull injured. U.S.: Baughman. |
| J2131.0.1 | Numskulls try to kill mosquitoes with bows and arrows: only injure themselves. Clouston Noodles 95. |
| J2131.1 | Numskull beaten. |
| J2131.1.1 | Numskull tries to preach while the priest is preaching: beaten. U.S.: Baughman; Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 138 No. 1690. |
| J2131.2 | Numskull stung. |
| J2131.2.1 | Bees caught in sack which is opened at home. Indonesia: DeVries's list No. 268. |
| J2131.3 | Numskull injures his limbs. U.S.: Baughman. |
| J2131.3.1 | Girl hacks off her heel to get shoe on. Fb "hæl" I 727; Spanish: Espinosa II Nos. 111—112, Espinosa Jr. No. 119. |
| J2131.3.1.1 | Fool cuts off his arms to wear sleeveless sweater. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| J2131.3.2 | Dupe persuaded to cut off part of his own body. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2131.3.3 | Man lays piece of wood on his leg to saw it: saws leg off. U.S.: Baughman. |
| J2131.4 | Numskull puts out his eyes. Spanish Exempla: Keller. |
| J2131.4.1 | Looking through the gun barrel. The numskull (stupid ogre) is shot. Types 1158, 1228. |
| J2131.5 | Numskull gets his head caught. (Cf. J2136.6.) |
| J2131.5.1 | Trickster puts on buffalo skull: gets head caught. N. A. Indian: *Thompson Tales 297 n. 86. |
| J2131.5.2 | Numskull licks out pot: gets it caught on his head. Indonesia: DeVries's list No. 263, Coster-Wijsman 62 No. 98. |
| J2131.5.3 | Numskull sticks his head in the branches of a tree. Type 1241; Christensen DF XLVII 192ff. no. 19. |
| J2131.5.4 | Numskull sticks his head into the hole of a millstone. It rolls into the lake. *Type 1247. |
| J2131.5.5 | Wolf trying to catch tongue of camel puts head in camel's mouth: killed. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2131.5.6 | Jackal's head caught in pot of blue dye. Animals make him king, but detect him from his cry and turn him out. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2131.5.7 | Fox trying to drown jug. Sticks his head into it and gets drowned himself. Lithuanian: Balys Index No. *66; Russian: Andrejev No. *64. |
| J2132 | Numskull dragged. |
| J2132.1 | Man catches buffalo by rope and is dragged to death. Africa (Ekoi): Talbot 155 No. 1. |
| J2132.2 | Numskull ties the rope to his leg as the cow grazes on the roof. The cow falls off and the man is pulled up the chimney. *Type 1408; *BP I 321. |
| J2132.2.1 | Fool ties rope to his leg and to dog. Is dragged. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2132.2.2 | Hand bound to dog's leash: person dragged. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2132.3 | Milker ties cow's tail to himself. Bees sting the cow. Type 1849*. |
| J2132.3.1 | Jackal ties captive crow to his tail. Crow pecks self loose and injures jackal's tail. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2132.4 | Numskull rides on tiger's back. (Cf. J1758.1.1.) Dragged to his death (or injured). India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2132.5 | Animal allows himself to be tied to another's tail and is dragged to death. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2132.5.1 | Other animal's tail tied to tiger's (leopard's): killed when tiger flees. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2133 | Numskull falls. |
| J2133.1 | Camel with ass on his back dances. Falls and is killed. *Chauvin III 49 No. 1; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2133.2 | Monkey jumps over a ravine with his sword girded on. Falls to his death. Indonesia: DeVries's list No. 79. |
| J2133.3 | Cat crawls to steeple and tries to fly. Falls. Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 295 No. 15. |
| J2133.3.1 | Coyote attempts to fly from a treetop: falls. N. A. Indian (California): Gayton and Newman 85. |
| J2133.4 | Numskull cuts off tree-limb on which he sits. *Type 1240; Köhler-Bolte I 51, 135, 486ff.; *Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 216f. No. 49; Chauvin II 201 No. 47; Clouston Noodles 158; Fb "træ" III 967; Christensen DF XLVII 229; Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 293 No. 2; India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2133.5 | Men hang down in a chain until top man spits on his hands. They all fall. *Type 1250; Köhler-Bolte I 113; *Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 242 No. 124; *Bolte Schweiz. Arch. f. Vksk. XXIII (1920-21) 36ff.; Clouston Noodles 46; Christensen DF XLVII 179ff., 193 No. 7; Virginian: Parsons JAFL XXXV 302; Chinese: Chavannes II 324. |
| J2133.5.1 | Wife carried up tree to sky in bag in husband's teeth. She asks question and he drops her when he answers. Clouston Noodles 48, 51. |
| J2133.5.1.1 | Servant carrying master across stream answers question with gesture that throws master off. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2133.5.2 | Numskull going to heaven holding on tail of divine elephant, looses his hold to make gesture. He and all holding on to him fall. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2133.5.3 | Three men in a tree sing song and clap hands: they fall down and die. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2133.6 | Wolves climb on top of one another to tree: lowest runs away and all fall. Type 121; *BP II 530 n. 3; India: *Thompson-Balys; Japanese: Ikeda. |
| J2133.6.1 | Measuring the tower by piling up hampers. They place hampers on top of one another. The fool has them take out the two on the bottom. Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 141 No. 1703, Espinosa III 147; Africa (Ashanti): Werner African 125. |
| J2133.7 | Intruding wolf falls down chimney and kills himself. Type 123; *BP I 40. |
| J2133.8 | Stargazer falls into well. Wienert FFC LVI 85 (ET 514), 107 (ST 194); Halm Aesop No. 72; Italian Novella: *Rotunda. |
| J2133.9 | Blind leading blind falls into pit. Chauvin II 157 No. 34; Spanish Exempla: Keller. |
| J2133.10 | Monkey jumps into water after a butterfly. Indonesia: DeVries's list No. 77. |
| J2133.11 | Hedgehog and crab jump from boat after turtle. They fall on floating leather. Indonesia: DeVries's list No. 128. |
| J2133.12 | Woman tries to climb rope of excrement and urine. (Cf. H1021.1.) Marquesas: Handy 40. |
| J2133.13 | Fool dangling from tree by hands tries to clap them together: falls. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2133.14 | Fool re-enacts the accident. Falls and injures self and others. (Cf. J2062.) India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2133.14.1 | How was the pigeon killed? Fool aims stone at inquirer saying, "I struck him like this." Inquirer is killed. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2134 | Numskull makes himself sick (uncomfortable). |
| J2134.1 | Trickster eats scratch-berries. Cause great itching. N. A. Indian: *Thompson Tales 304 n. 109k. |
| J2134.2 | Trickster eats medicines that physic him. N. A. Indian: *Thompson Tales 303 n. 109h, (California): Gayton and Newman 83. |
| J2134.2.1 | Numskulls eat medicine that physics them. Biscayans pour medicine into rice for broth with which to cook rice. Spanish: Childers. |
| J2135 | Numskull starves himself. |
| J2135.1 | Fasting the first month. Numskull having enough food to last him eleven out of the twelve months fasts the entire first month so as to get the ordeal over. He starves with eleven months' supply on hand. Clouston Noodles 89; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2136 | Numskull brings about his own capture. Spanish Exempla: Keller. |
| J2136.1 | Coyote wears fox's rattle; caught in brush and injured. N. A. Indian: *Thompson Tales 306 n 109bb. |
| J2136.2 | Trickster gets caught on a fishhook. N. A. Indian: *Thompson Tales 306 n. 109bb. |
| J2136.3 | Goat eats in garden and is caught. Fox says, "If your sense were as long as your beard, you would look for exits as well as entrances." Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 33 No. 128. |
| J2136.4 | Trickster pinched by shellfish (crab). B[ö]dker Exempler 281 No. 26; Spanish Exempla: Keller; India: Thompson-Balys; Japanese: Ikeda; Indonesia: DeVries's list Nos. 60, 62, 63; West Indies: Flowers 488. |
| J2136.5 | Careless thief caught. |
| J2136.5.1 | Thief stops to admire beautiful things before stealing them. Caught. Scala Celi 58a No. 324; **Zachariae Studien zur vgl. Litg. IX 284ff.; Spanish Exempla: Keller; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2136.5.1.1 | Thief debates whether to take one thing or another. Caught. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2136.5.2 | Talkative thief caught. Zachariae Kleine Schriften 179; Krappe Bulletin Hispanique XXXIX 22 No. 101; Jewish: bin Gorion Born Judas IV 66; India: Thompson-Balys; Indonesia: Coster-Wijsman 66 No. 112. |
| J2136.5.3 | Thief of deer cuts it up and keeps counting pieces. Rescued by wife. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2136.5.4 | Numskull as thief's assistant wakens owner. Pleads successfully that he was trying to awaken the household and prevent theft. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2136.5.5 | Foolish thief cooks food and awakens household. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2136.5.6 | Foolish thief asks help of owner. Caught. (Cf. J2223.) India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2136.5.6.1 | Master asked to help in the theft. The fool sent in by thieves is told to bring out the heaviest thing. As this is a grain-grinder and he cannot carry it, he wakes the master of the house to help him. Clouston Noodles 142; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2136.5.7 | Thieving numskull beats drum (blows trumpet, etc.) he finds in outhouse. Caught. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2136.5.8 | Thieves disposed of one at a time. They will not help each other since the fewer thieves there are the more there is to share. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2136.5.9 | Thieving wolf persuaded to sing. Caught. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2136.6 | Animal caught in animal carcass. (Cf. J2131.5.) |
| J2136.6.1 | Greedy jackal caught in carcass of dead bullock. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2137 | Death through lack of foresight. |
| J2137.1 | The louse invites the flea. The flea bites the man and jumps away. The bed is searched and the louse killed. Chauvin II 89 No. 27; Spanish Exempla: Keller; B[ö]dker Exempler 283 No. 29; India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2137.2 | Dogs of wolf color join the wolves. As soon as they have killed the other dogs the wolves then turn on the wolf-colored dogs which they have persuaded to join them. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 431. |
| J2137.3 | Bee rests on water lily which closes over it at night and kills it. *Chauvin II 89 n. 1. |
| J2137.4 | Crocodile swallows water-snake, which kills him. Herbert III 44; Hervieux IV 192 No. 18. |
| J2137.5 | Sheep killed by the butcher, who they are persuaded will spare them. Wienert FFC LVI 64 (ET 282), 118 (ST 286). |
| J2137.6 | Camel and ass together captured because of ass's singing. *Chauvin III 49 No. 1; Spanish: Espinosa III Nos. 199-201, 204-5; India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2137.7 | King attempts to visit the spirit world underground and dies in a tunnel. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2143 | Foolish interference in quarrel of the strong fatal to the weak. |
| J2143.1 | Sparrow intervenes in quarrel between elephants: crushed to death. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2146 | Disastrous jump to retrieve lost object. |
| J2146.1 | Miser jumps into a ravine to retrieve single grain. Breaks both legs. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2146.2 | Man leaps into river and drowns in effort to save his treasure. Spanish Exempla: Keller. |
| J2160 | Other short-sighted acts. |
| J2161 | Short-sightedness in dressing. |
| J2161.1 | Jumping into the breeches. Trying to draw both legs on at once. Type 1286; Köhler-Bolte I 82; Clouston Noodles 201. |
| J2161.2 | Pulling on the shirt. The shirt is sewed together at the neck. The man's head is cut off so that the shirt can be put on him. *Type 1285; *Fb "skjorte" III 269a; Clouston Noodles 209; Christensen DF L 49. |
| J2161.3 | Lacing the shoes. Fool laces bedcovering to shoe. Irish myth: Cross. |
| J2162 | Short-sighted use of fire. |
| J2162.1 | Burning the temple to attain notoriety. *Crane Vitry 143 No. 27. |
| J2162.2 | Fool whose house is burning puts wood on the fire. Herbert III 63; Hervieux IV 280 No. 40. |
| J2162.3 | Quenching the burning boat. People row to land and fetch water from a spring to put out the fire. Type 1330; Japanese: Ikeda. |
| J2163 | Carrying the plow horse so as not to tramp up the field. (Cf. J2103.2.) Type 1201; *Wesselski Bebel I 138 No. 43. |
| J2163.1 | Numskulls carry one another through mud and the others back in order that not all get dirty. Christensen DF XLVII No. 32. |
| J2163.2 | Sedan-bearers must carry master about searching for dog since they have refused to search. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2164 | Short-sightedness in rowing. |
| J2164.1 | Rowers pull in opposite directions. Type 1276. |
| J2164.2 | Rowing in a boat which is tied up. Type 1276. |
| J2165 | Carrying load up hill to roll it down. Fools carry log (millstone) down hill. They realize that they might have rolled it down. They therefore carry it back up hill to roll it down. Type 1213; Clouston Noodles 59. |
| J2166 | Short-sighted lover is slow to follow up advantage. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| J2167 | Porridge eaten in different rooms. The porridge in one, the milk in another. Type 1263. |
| J2168 | The slaughter of the ox. In preparation, the feet are cut off the evening before. Type 1261. |
| J2171 | Short-sightedness in carpentry. |
| J2171.1 | Short-sightedness in boat-building. |
| J2171.1.1 | Ship built with a wooden saw. The ship has no bottom and is so narrow that nothing can get into it. Type 1274*. |
| J2171.1.2 | The ogre tars the hero's boat, thinking to injure him. Type 1156. |
| J2171.1.3 | Dupe makes boat of mud. It melts. (Cf. J2186.) Japanese: Ikeda; American Negro: Harris Friends 69ff. No. 9. |
| J2171.1.3.1 | Attempts to make canoe of sand. (Cf. H1021.3.) Marquesas: Handy 45, 91. |
| J2171.1.3.2 | Building boat of clay. Tuamotu: Beckwith Myth 267. |
| J2171.2 | Short-sightedness in roofing. |
| J2171.2.1 | Does not need roof when it is fair; cannot put it on when it rains. *Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 599; Wienert FFC LVI 64 (ET 269), 134 (ST 402); Halm Aesop No. 222; Japanese: Ikeda. Cf. Russian: Andrejev No. 72. |
| J2171.2.2 | Fool roofs his house on the inside. New Britain: Dixon 123. |
| J2171.3 | Builders throw away beams from the scaffolding until it all falls down. Type 1245***. |
| J2171.4 | The axes thrown away. The first lets his axe fall. The others throw theirs in the same place. Type 1246; Fb "hammer" IV 199a; Christensen DF XLVII 194. |
| J2171.5 | Bird nest of salt melts away. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2171.6 | Man on camel has doorway broken down so he can ride in. It does not occur to him to dismount. (Cf. J2199.3.) India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2172 | Short-sightedness in caring for live-stock. |
| J2172.1 | The shepherd who cried "Wolf!" too often. When the wolf really comes no one believes him. Wienert FFC LVI 84 (ET 508), 104 (ST 172); Halm Aesop No. 353; Jacobs Aesop 210 No. 43; India: *Thompson-Balys; West Indies: Flowers 489. |
| J2172.2 | Shepherd shuts up the lion in the yard with the live-stock. He hopes to capture the lion, but loses all his beasts. Wienert FFC LVI 67 (ET 317), 136 (ST 414); Halm Aesop No. 250. |
| J2172.2.1 | Wolf almost locked up in the stable by the shepherd. The dog: "What good to lock us up from the wolf when he is with us?" Wienert FFC LVI 68 (ET 327), 135 (ST 411); Halm Aesop No. 371. |
| J2172.2.2 | Wolf locked up with the sheep. Cheremis: Sebeok-Nyerges. |
| J2173 | Short-sighted fool loses his food. |
| J2173.1 | Sleeping trickster's feast stolen. Before eating his booty the numskull sleeps. N. A. Indian: *Thompson Tales 296 n. 84. |
| J2173.2 | Getting a sword to lift the cheese. A numskull sees a cheese by the side of the road and tries to lift it up with his sword, but the sword is too short. He leaves the cheese and goes away to borrow a longer sword. Meantime someone else takes the cheese. Field Pent Cuckoo 8; England: Baughman. |
| J2173.3 | The bird boasts about capturing the rabbit. Meantime other birds eat the rabbit. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 172. |
| J2173.4 | Deer lost through premature celebration. A fool in celebration of the capture of a deer puts his clothes on the bound deer. He throws a knife to cut the deer's throat but the knife cuts the snare and the deer runs away with the clothes. Indonesia: DeVries's list No. 261. |
| J2173.5 | Fool kills chickens by throwing them off a balcony against a stone. Kites carry them off. Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 66 No. 1692. |
| J2173.6 | Crocodile goes after the second child. He finds two children bathing in the river and carries one to his hole. He tells the child to wait while he goes for the other child. Both children escape. Africa (Benga): Nassau 82 No. 2. |
| J2173.7 | Trickster travels while fish cook: they burn up. N. A. Indian (California): Gayton and Newman 83. |
| J2173.8 | Man saves trouble by milking cow directly into his mouth. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2173.9 | How to remove hairs from salt. Washed with water, salt melts away. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2174 | Foolish demands before death. |
| J2174.1 | His last request: a red cap. A man about to be hanged keeps asking for his red cap which he has left in prison. He has no thought of his real peril. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 27. |
| J2174.2 | Wholesome food for the day of hanging. A man about to be hanged is very particular about his bread lest it impair his health. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 28. |
| J2174.3 | Having the head dressed before hanging. A man who has hurt his head in trying to hang himself has the head dressed by a doctor and then goes and hangs himself. Clouston Noodles 6. |
| J2174.4 | Hang me right away so I can get back to work. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2175 | Short-sightedness in dealing with children. |
| J2175.1 | Anticipatory whipping. A schoolmaster whips his pupils to keep them from wrong-doing. He does not wait until after the deed is done. *Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin II 231 No. 499. |
| J2175.1.1 | Priest beats wife before purchasing food since he wishes her to cook it in particular way. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2175.2 | Scolding the drowning child instead of helping him. Wienert FFC LVI 82 (ET 486), 102 (ST 155); Halm Aesop No. 352. |
| J2175.3 | Absent-minded nurse lets child down into well instead of bucket. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2175.4 | Man lets his infant son play in river. Son drowns. Spanish Exempla: Keller. |
| J2175.5 | Numskull is sent to fetch children. He either smothers them during conveyance or scalds them during bathing. (Cf. J2465.4.) Lithuanian: Balys Index No. *1677; Russian: Andrejev No. *1681 II. |
| J2175.6 | Numskull kills his children trying to cure their illness. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2176 | Fool lets wine run in the cellar. He (she) falls into a study (or chases a dog) while the spigot is open. *Type 1387; BP I 316, 521ff.; *Fb "tosse" III 832a, "t[ö]nde" III 935a, "[ö]l" III 1175; Christensen DF L 49; Italian Basile Pentamerone I No. 4. |
| J2176.1 | Fool tries to dry up spilt wine with meal. Type 1387; *BP I 522. |
| J2176.2 | Drinking gruel by making hole in pot. Gruel runs out. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2178 | No room left for the feast. A peasant on the way to a feast drinks so much ditch-water that he has no room left for the feast. Herbert III 54, 82; Scala Celi 76a No. 433; Alphabet No. 245. |
| J2178.1 | Master sets servant example by eating rind first: fills up and never reaches the fruit. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2181 | Burning up the seal. Numskulls buy a charter from their lord. In celebration they get drunk and use the seal as a candle and forfeit their charter. Clouston Noodles 17; England: Baughman. |
| J2182 | A fleeing fox loses an eye in the briars. Returns the next day and eats it, thinking that it tastes like chicken. Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 33 No. *135B. |
| J2183 | Disastrous hesitation. |
| J2183.1 | The dog between the two castles. In castles on opposite hills guards play different tunes during meals. The dog goes toward the music in one castle but when he is about half way up the hill the music begins on the other. He keeps alternating and running up and down until the meals are over and he gets nothing. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 24; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2183.2 | Who shall go first? Train leaves overpolite travelers. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2183.3 | Bird overcareful about food suitable to its color is killed by eagle. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2183.4 | Two prisoners use up their hour of grace disputing over road to take home. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2183.5 | Princess who is too choosy finally marries an idiot. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2183.6 | Short-sightedness in case of fire. Christensen DF XLVII 200 nos. 34-35. |
| J2183.6.1 | Whose duty to put out fire? Officers investigate; meanwhile fire burns town. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2184 | The polluted clothes. A Brahmin washes clothes to purify them. As they hang to dry, a dog walks under them and the Brahmin fears that they are polluted. By putting himself on all-fours like a dog and fastening a leaf like a dog's tail he experiments and decides that the dog must have touched the clothes. He therefore destroys them instead of rewashing them. Clouston Noodles 176. |
| J2185 | Dearly bought disgrace. A foolish priest is pushed into the water. "I wish I had drowned; then you would all have been disgraced." *Wesselski Bebel I 181 No. 27; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2185.1 | "If you had hanged me you would have really been in trouble." (Similar to J2185.) Nouvelles Récréations No. 44. |
| J2186 | Trickster's false creations fail him. A trickster creates men from his excrements (or the like). They melt in the sun. N. A. Indian: *Thompson Tales 356 n. 286. |
| J2187 | The bear riding the horse lets his paws fall on the horse's flanks. He is caught on a tree and leaves his claws in the horse's flesh. Type 117*. |
| J2188 | The man who wanted to be dead one day. A husband tells his wife that he has provisions for every day in the year but one. He proposes to play dead for that one day, thinking that the servants will be overcome with grief and cannot eat. After brief mourning, however, they eat more than usual. The man then thinks to frighten them by rising from the dead. One servant thinking the dead man suffering from devils kills him. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 176. |
| J2191 | A fool releases a bear while the master is away. The bear plays havoc. The master threatens to cut off the ears of the meddler. The fool asks his dog not to tell on him. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 696. |
| J2192 | The messenger without the message. A fool is told that he is to go to a neighboring castle the next morning. He is to take letters, but the next morning without reporting for instructions the fool goes on the journey. He is given a bag of stones to carry back. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 731; Christensen DF XLVII 201 no. 38, 204, 221; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2192.1 | Message after a week. A fool is sent to tell his master's wife that he will not return that day for dinner. He delays the message for a week. Italian: Crane Italian Popular Tales 378. |
| J2193 | Fool has himself buried because he stinks. Indonesian: DeVries's list No. 271, Coster-Wijsman 53 No. 78. |
| J2194 | Raven steals the robes of Red Willow Men and finds them useless. N. A. Indian (Tahltan): Teit JAFL XXXII 223 No. 1 (32); Boas RBAE XXXI 722. |
| J2195 | People pelt each other with food. Koryak: *Jochelson JE VI 375; Penzer V 72f. |
| J2196 | Grain shot down with guns. People unacquainted with the sickle. *Type 1202; *BP II 72 n. 1. |
| J2197 | Carpe diem. An abbot is planning to build a palace. The fool: "Why go to all that trouble? Just enjoy yourself with wine, women, and song." Wesselski Bebel I 179 No. 22. |
| J2198 | Bewailing a calamity that has not occurred. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2199 | Absurd shortsightedness—miscellaneous. |
| J2199.1 | Alarm sounded foolishly. |
| J2199.1.1 | Fool rings bell to announce that he has won at chess. No one comes when he rings to save his home from fire. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| J2199.1.2 | Woman to sound bell for help in childbirth persuaded to sound false alarms: not heeded when help is needed. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2199.2 | Persons build a wheelbarrow too large to come out of shed. England: *Baughman. |
| J2199.3 | Nine men try to lift bull over the fence. One gets the idea of taking it through the gate. (Cf. J2171.6.) England: *Baughman. |
| J2199.4 | Short-sighted economy. |
| J2199.4.1 | Numskull is glad to hurt his feet instead of his shoes. Christensen DF XLVII no. 58. |
| J2200 | Absurd lack of logic—general. Missouri French: Carrière. |
| J2210 | Logical absurdity based upon certain false assumptions. |
| J2211 | Differences in animal nature overlooked. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2211.1 | Frogs reprove ass for lamenting when he falls into morass. "What would you do if you had to live here always?" Wienert FFC LVI 56 (ET 163), 90 (ST 30); Halm Aesop No. 327. |
| J2211.2 | Why the sow was muddy. A magpie is punished by his master, who throws him into a mud puddle. The magpie sees a muddy sow. He says, "You also must have had a quarrel with your master." Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 669; U.S.: Baughman. |
| J2211.3 | The murderous master. Dogs flee from their master because in time of famine he has killed his cattle. If he kills the cattle, he will surely kill the dogs. Wienert FFC LVI 73 (ET 377), 106 (ST 189); Halm Aesop No. 95. |
| J2211.4 | Ass brays on hearing a conch shell. Owner thinks he must have been a saint in a former life. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2212 | Effects of age and size absurdly applied. |
| J2212.1 | Two fifteen-year old slaves ordered: fool brings one thirty years old. Clouston Noodles 4. |
| J2212.1.1 | Priest to have maid at least fifty years old: gets one aged twenty and one aged thirty. Nouvelles Récréations No. 34; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2212.2 | Burial in old grave to deceive angel. Fool thinks that the angel who comes to question him will pass him by since he has apparently been dead a long time. Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 210 No. 22. |
| J2212.3 | Wooden anchor would hold if it were only large, thinks the fool. Type 1277**. |
| J2212.4 | The reef is old, the ship new. They think the vessel will endure the shocks better than the reef. Type 1277*. |
| J2212.5 | Swift when only a calf. A numskull who rides an ox to a tournament is ridiculed. He says, "He is swifter than a horse. You should have seen him run when he was only a calf." Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 228 No. 73. |
| J2212.6 | The Zodiac grows up: the Kid becomes the Goat. A fool who was born under the sign of the Kid declares that he was born under the Goat. "Hasn't it had time in these fifty years to become a goat?" Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 235 No. 105. |
| J2212.7 | Boat expected to grow into ship. Christensen DF XLVII 189 No. 15. |
| J2212.8 | Peasant no longer wants a horse since the new born foal is so heavy to carry. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2212.9 | Our children know local road; odd that grown stranger does not. French: Irwin Verville No. 210. |
| J2213 | Illogical use of numbers. |
| J2213.1 | Each of two persons wants to sleep in the middle. (Sometimes solved by placing an object on one side of the bed.) Type 1289; Africa (Ila, Rhodesia): Smith and Dale II 416 No. 15. |
| J2213.2 | A profitable fight: three for one! A priest boasts of his profitable fight with the peasants, where he has received three blows for every one given. *Wesselski Bebel I 173 No. 11. |
| J2213.3 | The seventh cake satisfies. Fool regrets that he had not eaten number seven first since that was the one that brought satisfaction. *Von der Leyen Das Märchen 78 and Herrigs Archiv CXIV 20 n. 2; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2213.4 | If the horse can pull one load he can pull two. *Type 1242; Christensen DF XLVII 224 No. 86. |
| J2213.5 | Twenty better than ten. A numskull is asked how many daily prayers (Moslem) there are. "Twenty."—"There are only four."—"I said that there are twenty; that is even better." *Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 261 No. 222. |
| J2213.5.1 | More than twenty commandments. Numskull asked the number of commandments replies that there are twenty. He explains to another that he knows there must be more than twenty because the minister would not accept his answer. Scotland: Baughman. |
| J2213.6 | Selling his half of the house. A man owns half a house. He wants to sell his half so as to get money to buy the other half and thus have a whole house. Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 282 No. 336. |
| J2213.7 | Dentist duped to pull out two teeth for one because of the expensiveness. Christensen DF XLVII 205. |
| J2213.8 | Man prefers small oysters, since he will get more to the hundred. England: Baughman. |
| J2213.9 | Numskull finds that one feather makes a hard pillow, thinks a sackful would be unbearable. Canada: Baughman. |
| J2214 | Absurd generalization from a particular incident. U.S., England: *Baughman. |
| J2214.1 | Peas will burn. Fool warns those who ride through a field of peas. "You will burn your horses' feet. I burned my mouth with hot peas the other day." Clouston Noodles 77; French: Irwin Verville No. 83. |
| J2214.2 | Conclusion: youth and age are alike. Reason: he tried in vain as a youth to lift a certain stone; he has also tried in vain as an old man. Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 265 No. 240. |
| J2214.3 | Waiting at the well for the thief. A thief has stolen a salted cheese. Since one always goes to the well after eating salted cheese, the thief will also come. *Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 243 No. 128. |
| J2214.3.1 | Waiting in the graveyard for the thief. He must eventually come here. Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 243 No. 128. |
| J2214.3.2 | Waiting for the thief to return for the bolster. After the cover is stolen, the numskulls conclude that the thief will certainly return for the bolster. Clouston Noodles 14. |
| J2214.3.3 | Waiting for the thieves to return for invoice of goods stolen. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2214.4 | Human milk as best diet (for baby). Fool therefore will take nothing but milk from his wife and starves the baby. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2214.5 | Man is servant of the animals (for he supplies feed for them). Fish so reason. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2214.6 | Men must have been calves once (for they are fond of milk). Fish so reason. (Cf. B233.1.) India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2214.7 | Oil is cheap (or spilling oil is good luck). Man hearing this breaks oil vessels. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2214.8 | Fool carries his wife to the remedy instead of the opposite. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2214.9 | Dipping into cold water to cure fever, since hot iron is so cooled. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| J2214.10 | Starving colt fierce from hunger, but fool refuses to feed it lest it become fiercer. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2214.11 | England must be full of widows. So concludes widow's daughter, who makes her living by spinning, when she sees so much warm goods from England. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2214.12 | False judgment of distance in clear atmosphere of mountain area. Canada: Baughman. |
| J2214.12.1 | Newcomer undresses to swim a five-foot stream. He has walked all morning toward a mountain that seems only five miles away, but which is actually sixty miles from his starting point. Canada, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| J2215 | Absurd reasoning about God. |
| J2215.1 | God's wastefulness. A man is robbed and later the same day is given much money. He complains to God, "What was the use of taking from me what you were going to give back to me after stealing from another?" Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 212 No. 34. |
| J2215.2 | The servant of God beaten. A man who says that he is the servant of so and so is treated with great consideration. His companion, who says that he is a servant of God is put to work. He cannot understand why God's servant should not be more important than the other. *Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 249 No. 162. |
| J2215.3 | Man honored above God: the dead hen. A fool finds a dead hen and cooks it and serves it for dinner. When reproached he says "How should it be unclean when God has killed it instead of men?" Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 270 No. 273. |
| J2215.4 | Fool waits for God to provide. Nearly starves. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2215.4.1 | God blamed for scarcity of food. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2215.5 | God blamed for heavy rain. Since he is an old man he should have known that more rain was unwelcome. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2215.6 | God blamed for letting pumpkin vines produce larger fruit than nut trees. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| J2216 | Poor man thinks idol in temple is poorer than he since it is naked. India: Thompson-Balys. |
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