<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>The paper introduces the results of a case study that attempts to uncover the functions and probable genesis of a group of satirical tales told by the Mongolian peoples. Based on the example of one of the stories, about Argachi, a Til Ulenspiegel-like rogue character, popular among the Oirat Mongols of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in the People’s Republic of China, an assumption is made about the possible practical function of the narratives, which is that they served to broadcast traditional litigation strategies. A comparison of the Oirat story of Argachi’s victory over the demon with a similar narrative recorded from the Halh Mongols showed that the strategy of behaviour described in the stories allows one to effectively get rid of a malicious, but not very intelligent, mythological character.</p>
</abstract>

The paper introduces the results of a case study that attempts to uncover the functions and probable genesis of a group of satirical tales told by the Mongolian peoples. Based on the example of one of the stories, about Argachi, a Til Ulenspiegel-like rogue character, popular among the Oirat Mongols of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in the People’s Republic of China, an assumption is made about the possible practical function of the narratives, which is that they served to broadcast traditional litigation strategies. A comparison of the Oirat story of Argachi’s victory over the demon with a similar narrative recorded from the Halh Mongols showed that the strategy of behaviour described in the stories allows one to effectively get rid of a malicious, but not very intelligent, mythological character.

How to Defeat a Demon: The Function of the Oirat Folk Narrative About Burning the Female Devil

Journal of Ethnology and Folkloristics

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The paper introduces the results of a case study that attempts to uncover the functions and probable genesis of a group of satirical tales told by the...

How to Defeat a Demon: The Function of the Oirat Folk Narrative About Burning the Female Devil

Publié en ligne: 14 juin 2023

Pages: 126 - 132

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/jef-2023-0009

Mots clés
mythological narratives, anecdotes, Oirats, Xinjiang, traditional law

© 2023 Dmitrii Nosov, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

How to Defeat a Demon: The Function of the Oirat Folk Narrative About Burning the Female Devil

Publié en ligne: 14 juin 2023

Pages: 126 - 132

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/jef-2023-0009

Mots clésmythological narratives, anecdotes, Oirats, Xinjiang, traditional law

© 2023 Dmitrii Nosov, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Mots clés
mythological narratives, anecdotes, Oirats, Xinjiang, traditional law