Story Cue Card

Story: Man complaining of too much noise procures additional animals as remedy
Motif = Z49.16
Related motif = Z49.16.1

Bibliographic Information (best version for telling):

MacDonald, Margaret Read. (2000). Shake-It-Up Tales!: Stories to Sing, Dance, Drum and Act Out. Little Rock, AK, USA,: August House Publishers.

The author writes a very spare version here with only enough detail to complete the narrative but the cumulative nature of the tale is thus emphasized. This allows for maximum customization by the teller.

Ethnic Origin:

Jewish, Polish and Russian (Ukrainian)

Originated in the shtetls (small Jewish towns or villages) of Eastern Europe

Running Time:

12 minutes

Power Center(s):

Frustration
Hope
Contentment

Characters:

Wise woman
Man
Wife
Mother
Mother-in-law
Children
Animals

Scenes:

Market
Noisy house
Consultation with wise old woman
Escalation of noise
Final meeting with old woman

Synopsis:

A man is frustrated with the level of noise and the crowded conditions at his home. He asks the wisest person he knows for advice. She suggests moving farm animals into the house. The house becomes increasingly noisy and crowded but the wise old woman continues to suggest moving more animals into the house. Once all the animals are in the house, the she suggests removing them from the house. In comparison, the man and his wife see the house as roomy and quiet. The original situation was not the worst possible situation and, in fact, seemed very pleasant in comparison to a house full of animals.

Rhymes/Special Phrases/"Flavor":

"Help you I can, but you must agree to follow MY plan."

"This didn't make any sense to him, but he went home and did what she told him to do. She was the wisest person he knew."

There is significant potential in this story for audience participation.

The wife saying "waan, waan, waan!" and the husband saying "waa, waa, waa!"

Audience (why is this story appropriate for the audience? developmental characteristics?):

All ages-especially young adults and adults. We all experience frustration at times. Any time we think it couldn't be worse, this story helps us realize that, perhaps, it could. As a result it is humbling and helps us see the positive in life. In the process, we transform ourselves rather than the world outside.

Surely, sleep would occur near the bottom of Abraham Maslow's pyramidal hierarchy of human needs. However, what about things which merely cause us to sleep poorly? For such things, the way we look at our situation could help us deal with it more effectively.

Bibliographic information on other versions/variants (at least two)?

Forest, Heather & Greenstein, Susan. (1996). A Big Quiet House: A Yiddish Folktale from Eastern Europe. Little Rock, AK, USA,: August House Publishers.

Geras, Adele & Jordan, Jael. (1990). My Grandmother's Stories: A Collection of Jewish Folk Tales. New York,: Alfred A. Knopf.

Gordon, Erica. (1991). The Rabbi's Wisdom. New York,: Peter Bedrick Books.

Lieberman, Syd. (1988). Joseph the Tailor and Other Jewish Tales. Little Rock, AK, USA,: August House Publishers.

MacDonald, Margaret Read. (2000). Shake-It-Up Tales!: Stories to Sing, Dance, Drum and Act Out. Little Rock, AK, USA,: August House Publishers.

McGovern, Ann. (1967). Too Much Noise. Boston,: Houghton Mifflin.

Zemach, Margot. (1976). It Could Always Be Worse. Toronto,: McGraw-Hill Ryerson.

Brief comparison of all versions/variants in terms of language, rhythm, "tellability," "flavor," content, etc. Stress the differences in style rather than those of content.

I was lucky to be able to obtain a hard copy of each of the following:

Forest, Heather & Greenstein, Susan. (1996). A Big Quiet House: A Yiddish Folktale from Eastern Europe. Little Rock, AK, USA,: August House Publishers.
The author of this book has made an effort to rhyme as many phrases in the story as possible and to create unusual and memorable turns of phrase. One would think this would make for a consistent rhythm but, the rhyming breaks down at times which makes for a stop and start flow of the story.

Geras, Adele & Jordan, Jael. (1990). My Grandmother's Stories: A Collection of Jewish Folk Tales. New York,: Alfred A. Knopf.
This author gives much more narrative detail including the layout of the house and the names of the characters. There are only two illustrations and the author creates a mental picture which is fairly detailed. I would describe the feel as busy.

Gordon, Erica. (1991). The Rabbi's Wisdom. New York,: Peter Bedrick Books.
This author uses direct narrative but gives plenty of detail to help the reader form pictures in one's mind beyond the illustrations in the book. Ms. Gordon stretches out the relief, however, by having the Rabbi instruct the man to remove only one animal from his house at a time rather then all the animals at once but the story does drag at the end as a result.

Lieberman, Syd. (1988). Joseph the Tailor and Other Jewish Tales. Little Rock, AK, USA,: August House Publishers.
Mr. Lieberman has a very fast storytelling style with a rhythm I would describe as driven.

MacDonald, Margaret Read. (2000). Shake-It-Up Tales!: Stories to Sing, Dance, Drum and Act Out. Little Rock, AK, USA,: August House Publishers.
The author writes a very spare version here with only enough detail to complete the story but the cumulative nature of the tale is thus emphasized. This allows for maximum customization by the teller.

McGovern, Ann. (1967). Too Much Noise. Boston,: Houghton Mifflin.
There is some rhyming in this author's rendition. An example is "But Peter got a cow anyhow." There are no other people in the house. The problem is clearly the man's internal psychological state.

Zemach, Margot. (1976). It Could Always Be Worse. Toronto,: McGraw-Hill Ryerson.
This author writes the story in a way that feels like a tale being told. The style is narrative and there are no rhymes but it feels very comfortable to read.

Risks

I am planning to risk getting the audience involved in this story. There is a certain lack of control the storyteller must accept to do this but there is also the potential for the audience to enjoy the story more and to integrate the message better into their lives.

In the past my stories have struck me, when I am looking at them on tape, as more or less monologues. When telling to the chidren at Sewell, I really enjoyed the communication coming back from the live audience.