Predators+in+literature+(+Slovak)

Storytelling which was handed down from generation to generation is said to be a tradition. Storytelling and folktales are the natural reflection of people‘s everyday lives, traditions they once mantained. They express the identity of the people, their culture and life as well. Slovak folk tales focus on the Slovak people. The most famous Slovak folktales were collected by Pavol Dobšinský in the book //Slovenské ľudové rozprávky (//translated into English as Traditional Slovak Folktales)
 * Slovak traditional folktales **

Slovak folktales may be categorized into major divisions. The most widely disseminated type of folktales was **the fantastic fairy tale.** In this genre, the differences between the real and magic worlds disappear. Both worlds influence each other or fight against each other.

 Another class of tales is **animal tales**. Animals act like people, speaking the language of humans. Humans understand and communicate with such animals as wolves, foxes, bears, and rabbits. These animals represent certain groups of people, based on the qualities of their character. There is an ethical perspective to these tales, emanating from the stereotyped qualities of different animals and perceived conflicts among various groups of animals. Thus, the hostility between wolf and fox exemplify positive and negative features affixed to different groups of people. There is a short list of the animal tales with the predator´s protagonists (some of them with possibility of reading) The Shorn Nanny Goat and the Hedgedog The Wolf Who Ordered a Pair of Boots The Bear and the Mosquito Old Bodrík and the Wolf Goats (the main character is wolf)

Old Bodrík and the Wolf - A traditional Slovak tale So a new young dog was brought and fed, and put outside in the sheepfold. Old Bodrík was lying at the rubbish heap, hungry and sad about what had happened to him. Darkness fell on the country. The young dog crawled into its doghouse and stretched out on his bed. Old Bodrík had always slept vigilantly, and did so now. He sensed a wolf. Bodrík wanted to jump over the fence, but his legs could not move because he was very hungry. He lay down sadly again and thought to himself, //"While I have nothing to eat, a wolf can have something for its teeth!"// And he did not even bark. In the morning, the bača went to milk the sheep and he noticed that a sheep was missing. At the very moment, an idea arose in his head, //"Oh, if old Bodrík had guarded the flock, the wolf would not have taken the sheep away!"// ||  ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">A shepherd (bača) had a white dog called Bodrík that had been guarding the shepherd's sheep for many years, both day and night, so that no wolf could approach the sheepfold. But what was to be done when old Bodrik's leg became lame and the dog had no teeth? //"An old dog is good only for the rubbish heap!"// said the bača. //"Why keep an old dog if it is good for nothing?"//

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Bodrík stood up against the wolf and said, "What do you want here?" //"What do I want? I want a sheep!"// the wolf answered. //"Go away, you, scoundrel! I won't let you steal any sheep!"// Bodrík snarled at the wolf. //"Just give me a sheep. We will share it. Your farmer has not fed you well."// //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">"Making a deal with a wolf - sheep and bulls will be taken away!" //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> answered old Bodrík. //"I wasn't fed by my bača yesterday and I was hungry and weak. It was easy for you to steal a sheep, but today, I was fed well. I am strong again and I won't let you steal a sheep."// //"If you won't let me steal a sheep, prepare for a fight."// the wolf said angrily. //"Oh, if you want, prepare for a fight! After I finish my guard around the sheepfold, I will come in the morning and fight with you in the forest. Do you understand me?"// <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Hearing that, the wolf snarled and ran to the forest to find some help. He really wanted to vent his wrath on old Bodrík. He asked a bear and a fox to help him. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The dog knew the wolf's habits very well and he did not go to the forest alone. He invited a pregnant sow and an old tomcat to accompany him. Bodrík limped on one leg. His companions were not young, however, they were faithful and experienced friends. When the bear and the fox saw the approaching trio, they became very frightened. //"Look, brethren,"// the bear exclaimed, //"look at the first one. He is stooping all the time. He may be collecting stones to kill us!"// <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Bodrík limped, and the bear thought that when he stooped, he was also collecting stones. //"Look at the second one,"// screamed the fox, //"he is brandishing a sword around his hips!"// Since the tomcat moved with his tail up, indeed, the fox thought that he was brandishing a sword! And when they heard the sow grumble, they recognized by her voice that it was a pregnant pig. They knew very well that such a swine knew no jokes. That is why they took her threat very seriously and did not want to joke either. The bear climbed up a tree, and the fox jumped into some thornbush. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">When our friends came to the forest, the tomcat snarled joyfully, "//Vrni-vrni-vrni"(buzz-buzz-buzz)."// The fox understood, //"V trni, v trni, v trni"// //(in the thornbush)//. The fox thought that the tomcat wanted to attack so he did not wait, jumped out of the thornbush, and ran away! <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The swine began to grumble under the tree where the bear was hiding. //"Hr-hr-hr."// The bear understood, //"Hor-hor" (up-up).// The bear thought that the swine knew that he was up in the tree and that she wanted to uproot the tree where he was hiding. And the swine dug with her snout. The bear did not wait, jumped down, and ran away - beyond the mountains and valleys. The wolf stood alone, but was glad, at last, to be able to escape without being hurt. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Old Bodrík barked so strongly that it echoed throughout the whole forest. He was glad that his friends had helped him and that they had driven those wild beasts away. After that, Old Bodrík lived well in the sheepfold for the rest of his life. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The bača called old Bodrík back and fed him well. Old Bodrík clung to the bača's legs and sprang for joy. In the evening, Bodrík did not lie at the rubbish heap anymore. He circled around the sheepfold because he knew that where the wolf had once found a delicacy for his teeth, there he would return. The wolf returned, as if everything had been prepared for him.

<span style="color: #996600; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">There was a nanny goat with horns, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Her coat of fur half scratched and torn, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">She ran off, up into the hills, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">And hid among the rocks and rills // <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">This particular nanny goat had squeezed herself into a fox’s den. When the fox came home and wanted to enter her hole, she discovered that she couldn’t. Some kind of strange creature was in her den. She tried to chase it out, but the creature stamped its hooves and called out: //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’m a nanny goat with horns, //
 * <span style="color: #996600; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Nanny Goat and the Hedgehog **

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> My coat of fur half scratched and torn, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">With my hooves, I’ll stamp and stew, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">With my horns, I’ll pierce you through. //

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The fox was frightened and ran away, wailing throughout the whole forest. Then she met a wolf. “Why are you crying, little cousin fox?” “Oh, brother wolf, how can I help but cry? There’s some kind of horrible animal lying in my den.” “Don’t worry. I’ll chase it out!” <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Together they returned to the scene of the trouble, and the wolf called out:

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Tell me who you are then, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Hiding in the fox’s den? //

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The nanny goat stamped her hooves and called out

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’m a nanny goat with horns, //

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> My coat of fur half scratched and torn, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">With my hooves, I’ll stamp and stew, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">With my horns, I’ll pierce you through. //

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The wolf was also frightened. Both he and the fox ran off, bawling and lamenting, until they met a bear. “Why are you crying, little fox?” <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">“How can I help but cry, dear bear? A savage creature has hidden itself in my den, which is now the scene of unspeakable horror.” <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">“I’ll chase it out!” offered the bear. “But surely you won’t succeed. I tried to flush the monster out, and the wolf tried to do likewise, but or efforts came to nothing.” “Don’t worry your furry head. I’m stronger,” boasted the bear. When he arrived at the den, the bear shouted:

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Tell me who you are then, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Hiding in the fox’s den? //

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">But the nanny goat merely stamped her hooves and before and shouted back:

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’m a nanny goat with horns, //

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> My coat of fur half scratched and torn, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">With my hooves, I’ll stamp and stew, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">With my horns, I’ll pierce you through. //

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Even the bear was frightened. All three of them ran off into the forest, sniveling and complaining. Then they met a hedgehog. “Who has hurt you, little fox that you are crying so hard?” “How can I help but cry, when there’s some kind of strange creature hidden in my den! And there’s no chasing it out!” “I’ll try,” said the hedgehog. The fox merely waved her paw sadly. “How can you possible chase the monster out, little hedgie-wedgie, if the three of us couldn’t do it?” “We are the rulers of the forest, and we couldn’t do anything,” added the wolf. “Well, even though you’re the rulers and I’m just a little hedgie-wedgie, I’ll do better than you!” and the hedgehog curled himself up into a ball and rolled off so fast that the fox, the wolf, and the bear could scarcely keep up with him.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The hedgehog went up to the opening and called out:

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Tell me who you are then, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Hiding in the fox’s den? //

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The nanny goat again stamped fiercely with her hooves and shouted:

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’m a nanny goat with horns, //

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> My coat of fur half scratched and torn, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">With my hooves, I’ll stamp and stew, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">With my horns, I’ll pierce you through. //

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">But the hedgehog was not frightened.

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’m a hedgehog, small it’s true, // //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">But with my quills, I’ll pierce you too! //

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Then he wound himself into a ball and rolled into the hole. He started pricking the goat right where her coat was most scratched and torn. The goat bleated in pain, thrashed back and forth, tried to get the hedgehog with her horns, and kicked wildly with her hooves. But she couldn’t do anything against the hedgehog’s sharp quills. So she jumped out of the den.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The fox, the wolf, and the bear were all waiting to give her a proper beating. She ran helter-skelter out of the forest, and never stopped at all. From then on she lost her taste for hiding in fox’s dens.

//<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">This story was taken from Slovak Tales for Young and Old by Pavol Dobsinsky in English and Slovak, translated by Lucy Bednar. Published by Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers, Inc. Wauconda, Illinois, in 2001. //

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The book written by Eleonóra Chmelová – **Amimal fairy tales** is full of the stories with the predators as the main character) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The story of the Cat Who Scares Wolfs <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Old Cat and his Wise Wife <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Sister Frog and Mr. Bear <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The story of theThrush Who Laughed and Scared the Fox <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The story of the Woodpecker Who Helped to the Wolverine <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The story of the Fox and The Stork who Feasted Each Other <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Bear and the Rabbit <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Wild Boar and the Fox <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Story of the Stupid Wolf <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Bear and the Fox <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Story of the Wise Bear <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Story of the Deer, Wolf and the Bear
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 14pt;">Slovak fairy tales with author **