Folkloristics

The lectures bring basic knowledge on characteristics of folklore and historical development of Folkloristics. Historical development of Folkloristics as a discipline is approached through four basic conceptualisations of folklore: folklore as an artefact, folklore as describable and transmissible entity, folklore as culture and folklore as behaviour. Students become acquainted with main research methods in folkloristics. They become familiar with the characteristics, functions, structure and style of folk narrative genres (folktale, legend), with hypothesis about the origin and transmission of folklore, functions of folklore, studies of narrators, folklore as performance. Contemporary forms and channels of folklore transmission are also being discussed.