Week 5 Reading Notes: The Serpent and the Peasant, Part A

Dinnik's Viper, native to Georgia

Title: The Serpent and the Peasant 

Publication: 1894

Author: Unknown

Translator: Marjory Wardrop (November 11, 1869—December 7, 1909)

Marjory Wardrop
Notes: 
“The Serpent and the Peasant” was originally taken from a Georgian folklore collection titled “Khalkhuri Zghaprebi” (Georgian for “folk tales”), though the author remains unknown. Marjory Scott Wardrop was an English scholar and translator of Georgian literature who compiled many stories into “Georgian Folk Tales,” which was published in London in 1894.

Characters: 
King
Peasant
Serpent

Places:
Kingdom

Events:
The king dreams of a fox suspended by the tail
The king looks for a dream interpreter
A peasant heads to the kingdom and encounters a serpent
The serpent agrees to interpret the dream if the peasant shares the reward
The fox means cunning, hypocrisy and treasury
The king rewards the peasant (who doesn’t share with the serpent)
The king dreams about a sword dangling from the roof
The peasant asks for the serpent’s interpretation
The sword means war
The king rewards the peasant 
The peasant cuts off the serpent’s tail
The king dreams of a slain sheep
The peasant asks for the serpent's interpretation
The sheep means that there is peace in the land
The king rewards the peasant 
The peasant attempts to apologize and reward the serpent
The serpent objects, saying that the actions were expected
The serpent goes back into its hole

References:
https://www.academia.edu/11460986/About_Georgian_Fairytales

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