The classification Aarne-Thompson is a classification of the popular Conte S concerned with sciences of the Folklore.
General presentation
The systematic collection, as from the 19th century, made it possible to even join together many popular tales which, in spite of their diversity, present great resemblances of one country to the other, from one continent to another.
From where concept of tale-type, defined, at the beginning of the XXe century, by the Finnish Antti Aarne which started to classify them in an empirical way. An American, Stith Thompson, supplemented his work. The work appeared under the title The Types off the Folktale and knew several successive editions (1927, 1961,1973, etc).
Aarne-Thompson classification (AT), become international, distinguishes four main categories in the 2340 indexed standard tales:
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tales of animals, i.e. those which put exclusively in scene animals (1 to 299),
- tales themselves, subdivided
- facetious tales (1200 to 1999)
- tales with formulas, where a sentence is repeated from one end to another by the main character and which often do not have end (1 200 to 2.340).
Some of these figures are accompanied by no title, the free place remaining to insert other tales not collected yet.
One finally finds in this classification the heading of the not indexed tales.
As the titles of the tales vary from one country to another, each type of tale receives a number (for example, the Little Red Riding Hood is identified by all the folklorists like the “AT 333”).
Paul Delarue and, to its continuation, Marie-Louise Tenèze refers to this classification to constitute the catalog of the versions of the French popular Tale.
Polemics around this classification
The classification of Aarne and Thompson was sometimes regarded as an incomplete and ineffective tool. One in particular reproaches him for not considering the structure, but only the contents of the tales (their reasons), and for making tale-types a text first, from which the various oral versions would rise. Actually the complex concept of tale-type supposes a narrative structure, which certainly is not as formalized as in the theories of Vladimir m., but who allows to pose an order of the account, and not only to identify it. In addition, this certainly imperfect tool from its empirical character appears absolutely essential in research of the folklorists. Without the unifying concept of tale-type, one cannot legitimately speak about different versions from the same tale, but only about various tales: it consequently appears if not arbitrary, at least very difficult to operate bringings together between two texts (for example the Little Red Riding Hood of Perrault and Rotkäppchen of Grimm) which are however in an obvious way resulting from the same stock. The concept of Tale-type , without prejudging any primacy of a version compared to the other, allows contrary to unifying these two texts in the same unit sémantico-narration. The problem being of not réifier the tale-type, and to think, as certain folklorists did it, the tale-types like prototypes. Classification being only one manner of arranging the various tale-types, intended a such dictionary to be used as tool of reference. August 1st
International catalog of Aarne and Thompson (2nd revision)
Tales of animals
1-99 Wild animals
The 1-69 fox considered as skilful animal
70-99 Wild animals other than the fox
100-149 Wild animals and pets
150-175 the man and wild animals
176-199 the man and pets
200-219 Pets
220-249 Birds
250-274 Poisson
275-299 Other animals and objects
Marvellous tales
300-399 supernatural Adversaries
400-459 Husband (wife) or other supernatural or magic parents)
400-424 Women
425-449 Husbands
450-459 Brothers, sisters, children
460-499 supernatural Tasks
500-559 supernatural Assistances
505-508 Death recognizing
530-559 Help of the animals
560-649 magic Objects
610-619 magic Remedies
650-699 supernatural Capacities and knowledge
700-749 Other supernatural tales
Religious tales
750-779 God rewards and punishes
780-789 the truth comes at the day
800-809 the man in the sky
810-814 the man promised with the devil
Tales news
850-869 the hero obtains the hand of the princess
870-879 heroin marries the prince
880-899 Fidelity and innocence
900-904 the shrew is tamed
910-915 good precepts
920-929 Actions and words crafty ones
930-949 Tales of the destiny
950-969 Robbers and assassins
970-999 Other tale-news
Tales of the ogre or the deceived Devil
1000-1029: Work contract (not to put itself in anger)
1030-1059 Contract enters the man and the devil
1060-1114 Bet enters the man and the devil
1115-1129 Attempts to kill the hero
The 1145-1154 ogre is frightened or intimidated
A 1170-1199 man sells his heart with the Devil
Facetious tales and anecdotes
1200-1349 Stories of idiots
1350-1439 Stories of couples
The 1405-1429 idiot and his wife
The 1430 insane couple
1440-1524 Stories of a woman (girl)
1450-1475 the search for a woman
1475-1499 Mocking remarks on the old maids
1500-1524 Another anecdotes on the women
The 1517-1518 marriage like punishment
1525-1874. Stories about a man (boy)
The 1525-1639 skilful boy
1640-1674 happy Accidents
The 1675-1724 stupid man
1725-1874 Clergy and religious orders
The 1725-1774 priest is misled
The 1775-1799 priest and the sexton
1800-1849 Other jokes on the clergy
1800-1809 Confessions
1824 - Sermons cocasses or facetious
1825-1874 Other jokes on the priests
1840-1844 Incomprehension of ritual sentences of the church
1850-1874 Anecdotes about other groups
1875-1999 Fibs (boastfulnesses)
1890-1909 Tales of hunting
1925 Contests of wishes
Tales forms
2000-2013: Cumulative accounts: Excursions
2019-2020: Chains including a marriage
2021-2024: Chains including a death - animal protagonists
2025-2028: Chains including the absorption of an object; the elements of the chain are not connected between them
2020: Tale-catches
2300: Other tales forms
Not classified or unclassable tales (2400)
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