If there should be found any merit in the content of the book in general, I should like to have that ascribed to the influence of the department of English and Comparative Literature of Columbia University, where I had the privilege of graduate study with such scholars as Ashley Horace Thorndike, William Peterfield Trent and Jefferson Butler Fletcher.
My chief material debt is to the publishing firms who have very courteously permitted the reprinting of narratives selected from their copyrighted editions.
H. E. F.
University of the Philippines, Manila, 1911.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
| List of Stories | [xv-xx] |
| Introduction | [xxi-xxvi] |
| Part 1. Narratives of Imaginary Events | |
| Chapter I. The Primitive-Religious Group | [1-82] |
| I. Myth—Classes of myths: primitive-tribal and artificial-literary—Mythage not a past epoch—How traditionalmyths are collected—How original myths are composed—Differencebetween myth and allegory, and mythand legend—Working definition—List of mythologicaldeities: Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Hindu, Russian, Finnish,Norse, Filipino—Examples | [1] |
| II. Legend—Myth and legend compared—Saga—Saintlegends—Geoffrey of Monmouth—Legendary romance—Modernliterary legends—How to select and record alegend of growth—How to write a legend of art—Workingdefinition—Examples | [22] |
| III. Fairy Tale—Attitude toward fairy stories—Fundamentalcharacteristics of fairies—Northern fairies andtheir attributes—Some literary fairy tales—How to proceedto write a fairy tale—Summary definition—Partiallists of fairies of different countries: Northern, Irishand Scotch, Filipino, Russian, Arabian, and Miscellaneous—Examples | [43] |
| IV. Nursery Saga—Origin—The brothers Grimm—Englishnursery sagas—Distinguishing elements: kind ofhero, rhymes, repetition of situation, supernatural element—Afew specific suggestions—Working definition—Examples | [65] |
| Chapter II. Symbolic-Didactic Group | [83-127] |
| I. Fable—Æsop—Other early fabulists—"Hitopadesa"and "Panchatantra"—"Reynard the Fox" and bestiaries—Somemore writers of fables—Working definition—Classesof fables: rational, non-rational, mixed—Howto write an original fable—Maxims upon which fablesmay be built—Examples | [83] |
| II. Parable—Distinguishing characteristics—Tolstoy—Suggestionson writing a parable—Working definition—Alist of proverbs that might be expanded into parables—Examples | [101] |
| III. Allegory—Characteristics—Plato's "Vision ofEr"—Modern allegories—Some famous English allegories—Allegoryfable, and parable differentiated—Workingdefinition—How to write an allegory—Present-day interestin primitive types—Examples | [112] |
| Chapter III. Ingenious-Astonishing Group | [128-254] |
| I. Tale of Mere Wonder—Definition—Collections ofwonder stories, ancient and modern—Suggestions forwriting—Characteristic elements—Mediæval tales of chivalry—Heroicromances—Examples | [128] |
| II. Imaginary Voyage with a Satiric or InstructivePurpose—Distinguishing elements—Source of the type—Famousimaginary voyages—Suggestions on how to writea satiric imaginary voyage—Examples | [150] |
| III. Tale of Scientific Discovery and of MechanicalInvention—Relation to imaginary voyages—Essentialelements—Kind of stories included in this type—Suggestionson how to write the type—Examples | [194] |
| IV. The Detective Story and Other Tales of PurePlot—The detective story: connection with stories ofingenuity—Poe and Doyle—Other stories of plot—Romance—Afew suggestions—Examples | [225] |
| Chapter IV. The Entertaining Group | [255-344] |
| I. Tale of Probable Adventure—Characteristics anddefinition—How to write a probable adventure—A warning—Examples | [255] |
| II. The Society Story—Definition—Pastoral Romance—Suggestionson writing a society story—Examples | [277] |
| III. The Humorous Story—Definition—Fableaux—Picaresqueromance—Difference between a humorous storyand a comic anecdote—Examples | [299] |
| IV. The Occasional Story—The spirit of the occasionalstory—Its masters—Suggestions for subjects—Examples | [313] |
| Chapter V. The Instructive Group | [345-394] |
| I. The Moral Story—Differentiated from the symbolic-didacticgroup—Great authors who have written this type:Hawthorne, Johnson, Voltaire, Tolstoy, Cervantes—Whatto put in and what to leave out—Examples | [345] |
| II. The Pedagogical Narrative—Definition—Somefamous pedagogical books—Froebel—Examples | [361] |
| III. The Story of Present Day Realism—Whatrealism is—The realistic school—Suggestions on charactersto treat—Examples | [370] |
| Chapter VI. The Artistic Group: the Real Short-Story | [395-478] |
| I. The Psychological Weird Tale—Origin—TheSchool of Terror—Poe, Stevenson, Maupassant, and others—Suggestionson writing a weird tale—Material andmethod—Form—Examples | [398] |
| II. Story That Emphasizes Character and Environment—Kipling—MaryE. Wilkins Freeman—HamlinGarland—Bret Harte—Suggestions and precautions—The"Character": Overbury and Hall—Novel of Manners—Trollope'sCathedral Town Studies—Examples | [426] |
| III. Story That Emphasizes Character and Events—Differencebetween character-place story and character-eventsstory—Component elements of this type—A scrapbooksuggestion—Other suggestions—Examples | [455] |
| Part II. Narratives of Actual Events | |
| Chapter VII. Particular Accounts | [479 -556] |
| I. Incident—Definition—How to tell an incident—Examples | [480] |
| II. Anecdote—Meaning of the term—Ana—Collection ofanecdotes—How to write an original anecdote—Examples | [490] |
| III. Eye-Witness Account—What it is and how towrite it—An ancient eye-witness account—Literary eyewitnessaccounts—Examples | [499] |
| IV. Tale of Actual Adventure—The one necessaryelement—Suggestions for writing—Examples | [512] |
| V. The Traveler's Sketch—What a traveler's sketchincludes—Great travel books—Fielding's gentle warning—Amotto for the narrator—Examples | [530] |
| Chapter VIII. Personal Accounts | [557-611] |
| I. Journal and Diary—The two distinguished—Therange of journals—"Vida del Gran Tamurlan"—Greatdiaries—How to write journal and diary—Examples | [557] |
| II. Autobiography and Memoirs—Distinction—Cellini,Franklin, and others—Selection and coherence—Examples | [572] |
| III. Biography—Beginning in England of literarybiography—Great biographies in English—Writer andsubject—Beginning, emphasis, and attitude—Outline fora life—Examples | [590] |
| Chapter IX. Impersonal Accounts | [612-645] |
| I. Annals—What annals are—Famous old annals—Stow—Suggestionson material—Examples | [613] |
| II. Chronicles—Definition—Froissart, Ayala, "GeneralChronicle of Spain"—Saxo Grammaticus—Holinshed—Truerelations—Examples | [626] |
| Bibliography | [647-660] |
| Index | [661-672] |