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Rh the index very inclusive of various kinds of motifs. Sometimes the interest of a student of traditional narrative may be centered on a certain type of character in a tale, sometimes on an action, sometimes on attendant circumstances of the action. Hence I have endeavored to use all the elements of tales that have in the past been objects of special study and similar elements that are likely to serve as such objects in the future. A glance at the synopsis will indicate the varied nature of the contents of the classification. At some point or other will be found all kinds of motifs or themes which make up the systems of such writers as Wesselski or Christensen, and perhaps many others which a more philosophical approach than mine would rule out. But in spite of the danger of including material that on strictly critical grounds may be unjustified, I have felt that it is in general better to list all elements of a tale that are likely to have interest to the folklorist or the student of literary history. Such an inclusive list may well form the basis for philosophical discussion, but it is in itself quite uncritical of the material involved. The end of this study will have been attained if the multiform materials it treats become thereby easier of investigation and more convenient for reference.

The purpose of the present study, then, has been to arrange in a single logical classification the elements which make up traditional narrative literature. Stories that have formed part of a tradition, whether oral or literary, find a place here. The folktale, the myth, the ballad, the fable, the mediaeval romance, the fabliau, the jest, the exemplum, and the local tradition have all been included, though some of these divisions have been inadequately recorded. In general, I have used any narrative, whether popular or literary, so long as it has formed a strong enough tradition to cause its frequent repetition.

Certain aspects of folklore have been definitely omitted. I have not treated superstitions, customs, religious beliefs, riddles, or proverbs, except as they happen to form an organic part of a narrative. To have included these would have doubled the size of the index.

Within the chosen field I have made every effort to have the list of motifs as full as possible. Accordingly, in my reading I have been especially desirous of broadening the field of investigation. Certain works introduce the reader to a new world of narrative interest and to a large number of new motifs. Such have been very valuable for my purpose. And the investigations of other folklorists who from their wide reading have brought together lists of versions of tales have also served to increase the scope of the classification.

Some indication of the works from which the largest number of motifs have been gathered may be of interest: