Comparative Structuralist Analysis of Two Igbo folktales

Abstract

The paper attempts a comparative structuralist analysis of two Igbo folktales. The primary aim of the research is to examine the adherence of Igbo folklore to linear structure of Propp’s structure of Russian folklore. In particular, it analyses the functions found in the two Igbo folktales selected for the study to find out if all the thirty-one functions proposed by Propp could be found in each of the folktales. It also makes a comparative analysis of the two tales. The study is premised on the Proppian model. Descriptive method is used in analysing the functions identified in the two Igbo folktales. The study’s discoveries indicate that both the Igbo folktales comply with Propp model’s sequential arrangement. It was also found in the study that thirty-one functions cannot be anticipated to transpire in a story since their occurrence relies on the story’s context. The study further identifies reward/punishment model as one of the striking structural pattern of Igbo folktale.