All Questions
Tagged with folk-tales history-of-literature
3 questions
15
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Did Tolkien invent Bilbo saving the Dwarves but forgetting about himself?
Bear with me a moment. I was watching the James Bond parody "Our Man Flint" (1966) starring James Coburn. At the end, he puts all of his female companions into steel barrels and sends them ...
- 259
2
votes
0
answers
151
views
Origin of the phrase “back when the animals could still speak” in Dutch fables or fairy tales
In Dutch, some fables or fairy tales (or both) begin with the words "[lang geleden] toen de dieren nog spraken / konden spreken", i.e. "[a long time ago] back when the animals still ...
- 51.1k
4
votes
1
answer
338
views
What is the evidence that Flemish fables or fairy tales began with the words “back when the animals could still speak”?
In an answer to the question Why do many Korean folk tales start with “back when tigers smoked”?, user @Flater, who comes from the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium (i.e. Flanders), claims that the Dutch ...
- 51.1k