Author: Rosina Kokudeva
Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
Published in: Slavyanski dialozi, XI, 2014, 15
Abstract: This text aims at examining the identical plots of Cinderella in the fairy tale literary works of Božena Němcová and Angel Karaliychev. By drawing a parallel between the texts an attempt has been made to reveal the structure and functioning of the folklore fairy tale model with regard to the problem of ordeal in female fairy tales. The problem that stands out is being interpreted in the view of the issue of woman’s initiation, the semantics of which lies in the process of preparing the one who is being initiated for transition into society. This process includes heightened rituality and specific symbol apparatus, which is present in the Bulgarian as well as the Czech and Slovac version of the plot discussed. The approach used when interpretating the separate texts of the two authors includes analysys of different elements of a fairy tale – character system, chro- notope, attributes, symbols, etc.
Keywords: fairy tale; Cinderella; ordeal