36
Russian folk tale «Лиса и журавль»
Textbook: pp. 167–168
GoalMeet the Russian folk tale «Лиса и журавль»: characters, events, moral.
New words
сказка · ertakлиса · tulkiжуравль · turnaгость · mehmon
Explanation
A folk tale (народная сказка) was passed on by word of mouth and has no known author. «Лиса и журавль» is an animal tale: the fox is sly, and the crane is patient and wise. The fox invites the crane and serves the food on a flat plate, so the crane cannot eat it. Then the crane invites the fox and serves the food in a narrow jug. The tale teaches that what you do to others comes back to you, and that a guest must be respected.
Worked examples
«Лиса и журавль» (a short retelling). «Лиса позвала журавля в гости. Она подала кашу на тарелке, и журавль не смог поесть своим длинным носом. Тогда журавль пригласил лису. Он угостил её окрошкой в узком кувшине. Лиса не смогла достать еду и ушла голодной. Не обижай гостя — и тебя не обидят.» (The fox invited the crane. She served porridge on a plate and the crane could not eat with his long beak. Then the crane invited the fox. He served okroshka in a narrow jug. The fox could not reach the food and left hungry. Do not offend a guest, and you will not be offended.)
Words from the tale: «лиса — хитрая», «журавль — терпеливый», «тарелка — плоская», «кувшин — узкий». Proverb: «Как аукнется, так и откликнется» (what you shout comes back as an echo).
Class activity
“Read in roles”. Three pupils: narrator, fox, crane. Retell the tale in your own words in roles, then write the moral together.
Practice
1
Name the characters of the tale.
лиса и журавль
2
Which character is «хитрая» and which «терпеливый»?
лиса — хитрая; журавль — терпеливый
3
Make one sentence with «тарелка» and «кувшин».
For example: «Суп в тарелке, а вода в кувшине.»
4
Why did the crane do the same to the fox?
The fox had offended him first; the crane showed her the result of her own act.