|
Author
|
Comment
|
dorisi
Registered User
(9/25/02 2:31:08 pm)
ezSupporter
|
Rusalka
I have some questions about the Rusalka. Does their character differ from region to region? And what are their motivations for luring men into the water. Loneliness? Revenge? Any light-shedding would be appreciated.
|
Helen
Registered User
(9/25/02 7:55:08 pm)
|
I'm getting really curious about your paper ...
Dear Dorisi:
I am growing more and more fascinated with your lecture topic - it sounds as though you'll be touching upon so many things near and dear to my heart! I think that I mentioned rusalki briefly in the "Melting Pot Fairies" thread, but I'm very glad to have the opportunity to talk about them in greater depth.
They are fascinating figures, occupying a position that is part warning, and part wish fulfillment; supposedly, rusalki are girls who died through suicide or violence, granted a choice after death as to whether they wish to move forward into a traditional afterlife, or to remain on earth. They are thought to be related to the vilny, who are gentler figures, closer to river nymphs than nixies or sirens. They seemed to hibernate in winter, and to rise during the week after the Orthodox festival of the Holy Trinity. They are typically depicted being exceedingly beautiful, clothed in greenery, possessing pale skin, and long hair of a greenish hue that is always damp; supposedly, if their hair ever dries out, they die, and thus, they always carry combs with them, combs which can cause floods when pulled through their tresses. They are said to be able to turn into birds associated with water, and possibly to have webbed feet (hmm .... Baba Yaga connection?). They must be appeased with gifts and offerings such as pancakes, alcohol, and red eggs, and will haunt those who fail to provide for them. There is a tricksterish aspect to their character; they will frequently riddle with those who they encounter. However, if those who encounter them fail to answer their questions, they are tickled to death (as are those who travel the woods at night without wormwood in their pockets, while those who bath in their streams after dark without crosses are drowned).
They are also fertility deities; girls make offerings of garlands to them for good husbands, and they are thought to help crops to grow by dancing in the fields. Their motivation in drowning men is, in all likelihood, not lustful; their mates, the vodaniye (pl.), are notoriously jealous, although an interpretation of their projecting resentment at their treatment by their spouses is certainly possible. It is likely that they, like the vodoniye, actually feasted on the souls of the drowned. In a way, they are the Slavic equivalent of vampires, as, typically, a girl is transformed into a rusalka by a vodanoi (s). Scholars believe that their name originally stemmed from an "ancient Slavonic festival in honor of the dead known as rusalii." (Warner, Elizabeth. _Russian Myths_. British Museum Press, 2002, pp. 42).
Their character definitely differs from region to region; in southern Russia, the Ukraine, and Belarus, the rusalki have alluring qualities; in the Northeast, they are figures of repulsion, very similar to the furies. They are described as "haglike," in contrast to the lithe rusalki of the south. They possess fiery eyes, hunchbacks, sharp claws, pendulous bosoms, and are prone to more aggressive behavior; where the rusalka would mainly tempt or toy with her victims, these figures would drag their prey to a marshy death. These types of water spirits were known as lobasta.
Well, that's all that occurs to me at the moment; I would recommend that you look into the books that I mentioned on the "Melting Pot Fairies" thread, and will write more if anything else comes to mind. Again, this sounds *wonderful* ...
Best,
Helen
P.S. - I'm sorry to be such a wretched corrospondent off-board ... this past week has been somewhat out of control. I hope that you'll forgive me ...
|
dorisi
Registered User
(9/26/02 12:56:48 am)
ezSupporter
|
Re: I'm getting really curious about your paper ...
Thank you Helen - you're a wonder! The Rusalka lore is just delicious. I'm fascinated by why they're beautiful in one region and hags in another. (And I've managed to lose your snail mail address - can you resend it?)
Best,
Doris
|
Helen
Registered User
(9/26/02 4:17:13 am)
|
Nature of region?
Dear Dorisi:
I'm not entirely sure, but I think that it may be due to the type of land and weather pattern in each area - the south is more temperate and predictable, while the north is very marshy, very treacherous, and prone to severe and sudden weather changes. It *might* also be related to regional attitudes about women, but I have absolutely no research to back me up on this ... it's just a thought. Will e-mail more tonight!
Best,
Helen
|
|
