Christmas Tales and Children: Didacticism, Cosmology, and Initiation in Traditional Culture Within traditional culture, the upbringing of a child was inextricably linked to the cycle of annual festivals, among which the Christmas Holidays (the period from Christmas to Epiphany) held a special place. In addition to games, disguises, and caroling, the most important tool for transmitting moral norms, the picture of the world, and social rules were oral narratives, including a special category of Christmas didactic stories. These stories, balancing on the border of anecdote, legend, and moral fable, were addressed to the children's audience as well, performing a complex of educational and socializing functions. 1. The Tale as a Tool for Mastering the World and Its Taboos. According to folk beliefs, the Christmas time was filled with increased sacredness and, at the same time, danger: the boundary between the world of people and the world of spirits ("unclean forces," souls of ancestors) became thin. From an early age, children needed to learn the rules of behavior during this "borderline" period. Short didactic stories served as an ideal tool for this purpose. For example, common were plots warning children (especially teenagers) against imprudent participation in divinations or night outings. A tale could tell about a girl who, wishing to гадать alone in a bath or at a hole in the ice, encountered a "devil" or a "disguised" person, was scared half to death or even went mad. The moral was clear: violating the ban on certain types of divination (too risky) or on leaving the house after dark leads to retribution. In this way, through fear and empathy with the hero, the child internalized key rules for safe behavior. 2. Structure and Content: Typical Plots. Christmas children's tales often followed a contrasting scheme of "correct/incorrect behavior → reward/punishment". The theme of hospitality and generosity: A story about how a poor family, having shared the last piece ... Read more