Dawn, Midnight and Twilight
Dawn, Twilight and Midnight or Dawn, Evening, and Midnight is a Russian fairy tale collected by Russian folklorist Alexander Afanasyev and published in his compilation Russian Fairy Tales as number 140. The tale was translated by Jeremiah Curtin and published in Fairy Tales of Eastern Europe.
It is classified in the Aarne-Thompson-Uther Index as tale type ATU 301, "The Three Stolen Princesses". This type refers to a set of stories where three heroes approach a cave or hollow and send one of them down to rescue three captured princesses.
Summary
A king, Gosudar, builds an underground palace to house his daughters from any danger. Yet, they insist they leave the palace for a stroll in the garden, to see "the white world". When they do so, a strong whirlwind blows and takes them away.The king, then, sends his men all over the kingdom, to find heroes brave enough to rescue the three princesses. An old widow's three sons decide to try their luck and heed the king's proclamation. They were called Midnight, Twilight and Dawn, named so after the time of the day when they were born.
The three siblings go their way and arrive in an abandoned hut in the forest at the edge of a desert. They soon alternate their tasks: while two hunt, the other stays at home to cook something. For three days, a man, small in stature, but strong in power, defeats the older brothers, Midnight and Twilight, but Dawn defeats the creature, who escapes to a crevasse on the mountain.
Dawn fashions a strong rope from the bark of trees and descends the hole, arriving at three palaces, of copper, silver and gold. Inside each palace, one of the kidnapped princesses and a many-headed serpent that guards her.
Dawn kills each of the evil serpents, rescues the princesses and lifts them through the rope to the upper world.
Analysis
Tale type
The story belongs to a Märchen cycle of a youth that rescues three princesses from their captivity in a subterranean realm and is betrayed by his companions. He soon finds another exit to the surface, reveals his companions' deceit and marries one of the princesses - a narrative structure commented on by, although in this version, the heroic brothers work together to rescue the princesses from the pit, which is unusual for the tale type.Russian scholarship classifies the tale as type SUS 301A,B, "Три подземных царства", of the East Slavic Folktale Classification. The East Slavic type corresponds, in the international Aarne-Thompson-Uther Index, to tale type ATU 301, "The Three Stolen Princesses".
Relation to other tale types
The tale is related to tale type AT 301B, Jean de l'Ours, wherein a strong man, born of a union between a bear and a human woman, meets two equally strong companions and departs to rescue three maidens, imprisoned in an underground realm.It has also been suggested that tale types ATU 301 and Jean de l'Ours, ATU 650, ATU 302 and ATU 554 may have once comprised a single narrative, but, with time, the original story fragmented into different tale types.
Motifs
The birth of the heroes
Professor Jack V. Haney stated that the motif of triplets being born at different times of one single day occurs in East Slavic tradition. Similarly, Russian folklorist noted that his motif is "characteristic" of East Slavic folklore: the heroes are bogatyr-brothers born at different times of the day: in the evening, at night, and in the morning. In addition, Bashkir scholarship concurs that the motif of the heroes' birth at different times of the day happens in East Slavic tales, as well as among other peoples of the Soviet Union.The castles in the eggs or apples
A recurrent motif of the tale type is the transformation of the underworld castles of the princesses into a more portable form. Thus, the eggs serve as protective shells for the castles - one of many magical properties attached to eggs, as folklorist Venetia Newall observed. Russian philologist Vladimir Toporov noticed the occurrence of the "egg-kingdom" in Russian fairy tales and saw an approximation of the motif with the Estonian and Balto-Finnic cosmogonic myth about the "cosmic egg".Jeremiah Curtin saw a parallel between the Russian tale and a similar motif in the Hungarian folktale or Mirko, the King's Son, wherein Prince Mirko and a rescued princess shrink a diamond castle into a golden apple.
Translations
Journalist and children's book author Arthur Ransome published an extended and more detailed version of the story, with the name The Three Men of Power - Evening, Midnight and Sunrise. He described Evening as "dusky, with brown eyes and hair" and riding a horse of a dusky brown color; Midnight as "dark, with eyes and hair as black as charcoal" and riding a black horse; and Sunrise with "hair golden as the sun, and eyes blue as morning sky", and riding a horse "as white as the clouds".Professor Jack V. Haney translated the tale as "Dawn, Evening and Midnight". Another translation is Evening, Midnight and Dawn.
Variants
Distribution
The tale type ATU 301 is, according to Jack Haney, "one of the most popular in the East Slavic tradition", as well as being "widely reported" across Europe.East Slavic
Russia
Russian variants of the tale fall under the banner The Realms of Copper, Silver and Gold. In fact, this tale type, also known as Three Kingdoms - Copper, Silver and Golden, is one of "the most popular Russian folktales".Variants of the tale type are also attested with Selkup storytellers. These variants show the presence of character Koschei, the Deathless, the sorcerer of Slavic folklore, and are also classified as type ATU 302, "Devil's Heart in the Egg" or ATU 313, "The Magic Flight".
Regional tales
A similar tale was collected in the White Sea region from Russian storyteller with the title "Зорька-молодец", which professor Jack V. Haney translated as Dawn Lad. In this tale, three brothers are born at different times of the day: Evening Lad at night, Midnight Lad at midnight and Dawn Lad at dawn. Equal in strength, they walk toward a mountain range to find out who lives there: they find three maidens captive under three many-headed serpents. Each brother kills one of the serpents. Later, Dawn Lad and his brothers liberate another princess from evil wizard Chernomor. When they descend the mountain range through an anchor, Dawn Lad's brothers take back the anchor and leave their sibling stranded. With the help of the fourth princess. Dawn Lad returns to the tsarevna and marries her, but the narrative does not mention a reckoning on his brothers' abandonment.Russian folklorist collected a variant titled "Иван Вечерней Зори", wherein a merchant has three sons that grow up in hours: Иван Вечерней Зори, Иван Полуночной Зори and Иван Утренней Зори. They live in a kingdom. In this realm, the king's three daughters have been captured by a six-headed serpent and their father requests any soul brave enough to rescue them. Ivan Star-of-Evening and his brothers offer themselves to the mission. They find a bogatyr named Bely on the journey and the four join forces to rescue the princesses. They soon reach a mountain and Ivan Star-of-Evening shoots an arrow with a rope to create a bridge to reach the mountains dangerous slopes. Ivan Star-of-Evening climbs the rope with his horse, arrives at three palaces, kills three serpents and takes the princesses to his companions. Bely betrays them and abandons Ivan-Star-of-the-Evening in the mountain. Fortunately, the hero finds a winged steed and returns to the realm to expose Bely's betrayal on his wedding day.
In the tale "О трех богатырях - Вечернике, Полуношнике и Световике", first collected in Siberia from storyteller Anton Ignatievich Koshkarov in 1925, Tsar Eruslan wishes to have a son. A hermit advises the king to find a golden fish and give to his wife. She becomes pregnant and gives birth to three boys: one in the evening, one at midnight and the last at sunrise. As soon as they are born, they leave home, but return three days later after a stay in the woods. After a series of adventures, the youngest brother, Svetovike rescues three princesses and marries the youngest.
In another Siberian tale, "Иван Вечерник, Иван Полуношник и Иван Зорькин", first collected in 1926 from raconteur I. Ivanov, the tsar's three daughters convince their father to go on a boat trip under the moonlight, but they are kidnapped. An old woman's three sons, the titular heroes, decide to rescue them. On their way, they meet a fourth companion, a devil-like being. They arrive at a mountain where the princesses are being kept and Ivan Zorikin casts a rope to climb the mountain.
In a third Siberian tale, "Вечерник, Заутренник и Светлан", first collected in 1926 from twelve-year-old Vasya Solovyov, an old woman loses her husband in the war. Some time later, she eats three fruits and gives birth to three boys: one at night, the second at sunrise and the third during the day. Svetlan, the youngest, finds a horse. The trio arrive at the edge of a hole and Svetlan climbs down a rope. He rescues the tsar's three daughters, but his brothers cut the rope and he gets left behind in the underground. Svetlan finds an old lady, who summons all her birds and the Firebird to help him reach the surface. When Svetlan arrives in the surface, he rides a horse to the wedding of his brothers and wants to kill them, but his mother begs for Svetlan to forgive his brothers. He does, but insists they should be thrown in prison.
Italian author Angelo de Gubernatis reported a Russian tale collected by Erlenwein. In this tale, titled "Светозор", a woman gives birth to three sons, each at a different time of the day: Većernik, born at night; Polunoćnik, born at midnight, and Svetazór, born in the morning. After Svetazór is born, he commissions a heavy iron club from a blacksmith, and joins his brothers in rescuing the Tzar's three daughters, each held captive in a castle made of metal. Down in the abyss, Svetazór gains from each of the princesses a metallic egg, then takes the princesses to his brothers to be roped out of the hole. Svetazór's elder brothers betray him, steal the princesses for themselves and abandon him down in the hole. Down there, Svetazór rescues another princess from the underground realm by killing a dragon and rescues a crow. At the end of the tale, Svetazór forgives his elder brothers, and marries the princess of the golden castle.
In an untitled Russian tale collected from a source in Northern Dvina, in a kingdom, a maiden who serves the king becomes pregnant, and the king orders her to be expelled. The soldiers banish her to the forest, and she finds a hut to pass the night. She soon gives birth to three boys: one born at dawn, a second one she calls Nochnik, and the third Vechernik. The boys soon grow up in mere days, and decide to find food. They hunt some game and cook it. Vechernik also notices a three-headed fiery serpent flying overhead with a princess in its clutches. Vechernik watches as the zmei descends into a hole in the ground and whips. The next time, Zornik and Nochnik stay home, but do not see anything strange, save for Vechernik, who sights a six-headed fiery serpent on the second night with another princess, and a nine-headed fiery serpent with a third princess. The princesses are the local king's daughters, and the monarch sends his soldiers to rescue them. The soldiers pass by the maiden's hut in the woods with her three sons and report to the king. The king sends an emissary to recruit the three brothers for a rescue mission. The king asks the brothers if they know anything about the girls' disappearance, and Vechernik says he witnessed the fiery serpents carrying them off to a hole. Zornik and Nochnik are surprised by his brother's information, and the trio soon travel to the hole. The brothers find a shepherd on the road and take them along. Vechernik goes down the hole and finds an underground kingdom, with a doorless hut where the first princess is being kept. The tale then explains the queen also had her daughters on the same night: Zornitsa, Nochnitsa, and Vechernitsa. Zornitsa warns Vechernik about the fiery serpent who comes from the bridge. Vechernik kills the serpent, steals the zmei's horse, and moves to rescue the other princesses: Nochnitsa from a silver hut, and Vechernitsa from a golden house. In trying to defeat the last zmei over the final bridge, until he mutters a kalach can renew his strength. Suddenly, Vechernik remembers Vechernitsa gave him a kalach and kills his enemy, taking its horse with him. Vechernik takes the horses and the princesses back to the entrance of the hole and ropes the princesses up a large chain he used to descend. Back on the surface, Zornik, Nochnik and the shepherd help the princesses out of the hole, and the shepherd cuts off the chain to abandon Vechernik down there. Vechernik takes the horses and returns to the surface, where he discovers the elder princesses have married his brothers. Vechernik reunites with princess Vechernitsa, and they marry, while the shepherd is banished. Vechernik builds a copper house for Zornitsa, a silver one for Nochnitsa, and a golden one for Vechernitsa. Vechernik then takes his horses and travels the world.
Belarus
In a Belarusian variant, "Иван-утренник" or "Иван Утреник", three sons are born to an elderly couple: Иван Вечерник, born at night; Иван Полуночник, born at midnight, and Иван Утреник, born in the morning. Ivan-of-Evening is angry, Ivan-of-Midnight angry and Ivan-of-Morning the most heroic. They decide to rescue the tsar's three daughters. They go to the woods and find a place to spend the night. When they take turns to cook the food the other hunted, a little old man with a long grey beard appears and beats the hero to steal their food. When it is Ivan Utrennik's turn, he defeats the old man and sticks his grey beard to a trunk. Ivan Utrennik returns to his brothers to show them the captured thief, but he has escaped to a deep hole. The trio decides to follow after him and send Ivan Utrennik down the hole. He discovers the three captured princesses, each in a castle. The princesses reveal their captor is "evil Kaschei". Ivan Utrennik decides to find "Kashei"'s death. On his way, he spares the lives of a kite, a wolf and a crayfish, who promise to help him. The three animals find the box with the villain's "death". Ivan returns to the golden palace and sees the little grey-bearded man; he then smashes the egg on his forehead and kills him. Ivan Utrennik takes the princesses to his brothers to pull them up to the surface, but as soon as the maidens are saved, they cut the rope and abandon their youngest brother in the hole. He then wanders through the underworld until he finds an oak tree. He hears bird screeches coming from a nest on the treetop and protect the little birds from a hailstorm. Their father, a "Nagai bird", tells him he needs huge amounts of meat for the trip back to the surface. Ivan Utrennik reaches the surface, employs himself as a weaver and a shoemaker to provide marriage gifts for the youngest princess. When he is brought to the king's presence, the princess recognizes him and they marry.In another variant from Belarus, "Вячорка, Паўношнік і Заравы", an elderly couple has three sons at three times of the day, all named Ivan: Ivan Vyachorka, Ivan Pawnoshnik and Ivan Zaravy. They decide to rescue the tsar's three daughters. They find in the woods a hut on chicken legs and decide to spend the night. One night, a little bearded man comes to steal their food, but Ivan Zaravy beats him up. The little bearded man begs for mercy and offers to be their "little brother". Soon, the four arrive at a hole and Ivan Zaravy descends it by a rope. He finds the first princess in a palace of copper, with her three-headed serpentine captor. Ivan Zaravy defeats it, transforms the palace into an egg by the use of a handkerchief and takes the princess to his brothers. He rescues the princess in the silver palace, takes her to his brothers, and finally the princess in the golden palace. As soon as the last maiden arrives at the surface, Ivan Zaravy's allies cut the chain and strand him in the underworld. The youth walks until he finds a great oak with a bird nest. He protects the bird nest with his cloak and the birds' grateful father, the Firebird, promises to take him to the surface. He arrives at the surface when the youngest princess is set to be married to her false savior.