Here in the following my interview with the editor of ProMosaik Children, Mariya Traore from Ukraine, who deals with the publication of fairy tales from all over the world. In this interview with me, Mariya talks about the Ukrainian fairy tales and their potential for peace education.
By Milena Rampoldi.
Why are you committed to ProMosaik Children?
Mariya Traore: For me, ProMosaik Children is a small glimmer of hope in a world marked by war and militarism. I experienced this war culture myself when I had to leave my homeland, Ukraine, after the Russian invasion. During these years of dealing with fairy tales, I came to the conclusion that a culture of peace begins with the education of children.
Because as the great Russian writer Leo Tolstoy said so beautifully in his novel “War and Peace”:
“Everything depends on education.”
I firmly believe that there can be no peace without a true intercultural peace pedagogy. Therefore, as part of our modest possibilities, I strive to edit fairy tale books from all over the world. Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, I have tried to draw attention to the need for an authentic culture of peace in my country by publishing Ukrainian fairy tales.
You have also published two Russian volumes. How important is the dialogue between the two peoples?
Mariya Traore: I believe that ethnic and cultural differences are not an obstacle to peace. For the similarities are more than the differences. The differences can be highlighted constructively. But at the same time, they are positively overshadowed by the similarities due to the fact that we are all humans. If we look at the fairy tales that are told worldwide in all cultural traditions, in addition to the culture-specific differences, we notice huge intersections that help us find our way to a constructive and culturally diverse peace pedagogy. Topics related to interreligious dialogue can also be incorporated into peace education.
In this context, I would like to mention two quotations, the first by Leo Tolstoy, who said:
“If everyone fought for their own beliefs, there would be no war.”
The second comes from the Ukrainian children’s book author Oksana Lushchevska:
“War is not about nations, classes or racial identities. War makes all people equal.”
Why are fairy tales so important in peace education?
There is no world without conflicts and without arguments. And the children already understand this in kindergarten, when it comes to the first problems in the sandbox or when playing with the others. Thus, there is a natural potential for conflict in humans. And when we look at the fairy tales, we clearly see this aspect. The fairy tales speak of conflicts and arguments between good and evil. Finally, the good wins, but the conflict is dealt with in the fairy tale. I am convinced that the fairy tale therapy is an important area of bibliotherapy that is often underestimated. The children experience the conflict occurring in the fairy tale. They identify with the good protagonist and not with the antagonist. In the end, peace triumphs, and dialogue leads to the silence of conflict and violence.
What are the main themes in the fairy tales you have published?
My position on this is as follows: I would divide all fairy tales that I have published so far into three categories. On the one hand, there are the magic fairy tales, which are completely focused on magic protagonists and spells and, so to speak, play in a magic world outside of reality. Then come the social fairy tales, which, on the other hand, reflect existing social conditions. And between these two categories, I would like to place the social magic fairy tales. In the fairy tales, animals can talk and people can turn into animals. This happens, for example, in the fairy tale entitled “Рак-неборак і його вірна жінка” (“Poor Cancer and His Faithful Wife”), in which a man has turned into a cancer. Another example is the fairy tale “Про жар-птицю та вовка” (“About the Firebird and the Wolf”). In social fairy tales, on the other hand, normal people appear as “heroes”. We are in the world of so-called everyday heroes. These fairy tales tell of the exploitation of the poor compatriots by the lords and large landowners. In these fairy tales, the rich are laughed at and punished, and the poor then become the true rich. A typical example of a social fairy tale of this kind is “Як Тимофій відвіз панів до пекла” (“How Timofij brought the gentlemen to hell”) or “Про бідного парубка і Марка багатого” (“About a poor guy and the rich pith”).
There are also social magic fairy tales in which a miracle happens. People turn into animals and act in their social environment. In the fairy tale “Свинка-Парасинка” (“Piggy Parasynka”), a girl turns into a pig. In the end, a man who laughed at the poor boy at his wedding to Parasynka is punished for his stupidity and arrogance.
How important is translation in the field of fairy tale culture?
The translation of fairy tales is essential to promote intercultural and interreligious dialogue, which is crucial for peace education from childhood onwards. For children who love peace do not go to war as adults. This idea should not be dismissed as banal or simplistic but thought through to the end: If we increase the number of conscientious objectors to such an extent that no future adults aspire to a military career, we will guarantee this wonderful peace through childhood education. The more children get to know fairy tales from other countries through translations into their mother tongue, the more they recognize differences and similarities beyond cultural, ethnic, religious and social/economic differences that characterize the fact that we are all humans.
