Q:"I've noticed you remarked there are not a lot of folk stories regarding
ferrets. Does this have anything to do with people just not liking them?"
A: I wish folk who didn't like me would stop making up stories...
I have an extensive collection of animal folktales from all over the world
and there is an almost universal disregard of certain groups of animals.
An overemphasis is placed on large carnivores and domestic food animals.
For example, stories about the weasel guild are infrequently found
*ANYWHERE*, yet stories about the canine guild or cattle abound everywhere.
Why? That is a really good question. I have read many good arguments
from some really intelligent people, but the simple truth is, there is no
correct answer. Rather, the answer is as complicated as the human psyche
and as complex as the relationships and perceptions of humans towards
various animals. As a general rule (*VERY* general), humans who lack a
domesticated animal culture tend to see large powerful carnivores as "good
guys," which changes as humans place more reliance on livestock. In the
later case, powerful predators become "bad guys." The wolf and fox in
Europe and the mountain lion and bear in North America are good examples
of animals that were seen positively prior to extensive livestock farming,
but perceptions turned negative as they moved into direct competition with
humans. Still, that does not explain why small mustelids are generally
overlooked (on a world-wide basis) in terms of folklore. Ferrets in
particular have been ignored in folkstories, even though those of rabbits
(ahem) abound.
One idea suggests ferrets weaseled their way out of folklore as they were
replaced by cats. Well, to me that is a bit simplistic because it assumes
several things which probably haven't happened.
1) It assumes pre-cat ferret stories were not recorded or have been lost.
Not likely; they may have changed after the introduction of cats, but there
still would have been the older use.
2) It assumes universal acceptance of the cat with universal rejection of
the ferret. Again, not likely.
3) It assumes cats actually replaced ferrets in a period of time just prior
to the recording of folktales. No evidence of that either. While an
interesting hypothesis, without data it lacks merit, but it is interesting.
Another idea is that the stories are (were) there, but we just don't
recognize them. Perhaps poor translations are hindering identification,
or perhaps one word was used for several different animals. For example,
there were 4 weasel-like animals living in the Great Plains, yet in most
of the Native American languages, one (maybe two) word was used for all.
Often, the folk method of animal classification placed animals in groups we
wouldn't consider them to be part of. Take the black-footed ferret as an
example. It was called a "black-faced prairie dog" by one Native American
tribe, a "black weasel" by another, and still another tribe called the BBF
a "little raccoon-badger." Most just called it "weasel." I have found this
to be true in many East European languages, where the word for "ferret"
and "polecat" is exactly the same. So, there could be more stories about
ferrets, but we have translated ferret as something else. I also find this
idea wanting because lack of ferret stories are paralleled by a lack of
stories about weasels and polecats in general. Even if mistranslated,
there are still very few stories to consider, and they are *STILL*
underrepresented.
I personally think both ideas are wrong. Not that either one couldn't have
some truth to them (obviously they do to some degree), but because they
ignore the human (or cultural) perception of animals. Almost always these
viewpoints (or hypotheses) consider the past as extensions of today, with
attitudes and viewpoints just like ours, only maybe a bit more primitive.
In truth, the past is like a tremendous symphony, but all we can hear is
the occasional note. The previously discussed hypotheses regarding the
lack of ferret folklore are simplistic; they are akin to someone trying to
reconstruct a Mozart piece after hearing a few seconds of several
instruments, spaced over the entire performance.
Someone once said, "The past is a foreign country." The culture, the
language, the attitudes are all different and they are not yours. Even
attitudes in our own country have drastically changed in the last 50 years.
The key to understanding MODERN attitudes towards ferrets (why the CaCaLand
Fishing Gestapo and Dingleberry Eaters of America hates ferrets) is locked
into an understanding of what the attitudes towards small mustelids were
in the past. In other words, some of the reasons why ferrets and small
mustelids were ignored in the folklore are behind some of the PR problems
we face today. That is why, even though it might sound silly to do so, I
read old children's books, folktales, and even look up old jokes and songs.
I want to have an understanding of HOW these animals were percieved, so
that I might have a better understanding for WHY they are treated the way
they are today.
In part 2, I will trace some of these attitudes towards ferrets and small
mustelids, and show why even though some of them are silly, they are at
least understandable. In part 3, I will show why there is a CONTINUING
problem with public awareness towards ferrets, and the key to controlling
bad PR, ferret legalization and public resentment is directly related to
the failure of modern ferret clubs to pull together to form a truely
national organization. In part 4, I give you a true ferret folktale, never
before seen by modern man. Or woman. Or womyn. Or berdaches....
One final comment. These posts are a combination of scientific fact and
personal opinion. They are what *I* question, ponder, think and believe.
You are welcome to dispute ANY fact or opinion. If you disagree with what
I say, I welcome the opportunity to debate the issues and find a common
truth. But don't waste my time with attacks on my belief system or person;
you can be childish somewhere else. Name calling and vile slander are the
tools of self-absorbed neurotics who only wish to harm those they cannot
control or possess. The real illumination brought out by flames is of the
character of the person lighting the match. It is sad, really.
Bob C and 18 MO' Ferrets in Missouri Folklair
[Posted in FML issue 2832]
|
