Okay, I have failed in keeping up with my Wednesday--back to Friday scheduling plan. Unfortunately, I have a tendency toward migraines and dizziness, and this has been limiting my light and computer time of late. But by hook or by crook, I will have this week's fairy tale and part II of this commentary up tomorrow, and at least part I of the following commentary up by Monday.
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After the somewhat lengthy commentaries of late, I thought it time for a lighter type of discussion, hence this brief review in lieu of an in-depth commentary.
There are several Suan (sometimes Juan) tales, recording how Suan came to the position in which we see him in this one: known as a "good guesser" and married to the princess of Carabao. (For more information, see Fansler's Filipino Popular Tales, or the Suan variants listed on this site.)
Stages
Many elements of Suan the Guesser will are common to the well-known European tales Crab and Doctor Know-All, as well as several tales from the East. Indeed, all known tales of this Doctor Know-All type appear to contain certain basic elements and structure, and it is these we will explore below. Comparisons will focus on the Filipino Suan tales, the German Doctor Know-All, the Italian Crab, the Chinese Goldhair, and the Indian Harisarman. Note that the character name in the German Doctor Know-All and the Italian Crab are the same. To prevent confusion, the German character will be referred to as Crab[Ger] for the rest of this post.
Stage One—Reputation
Perhaps the most important part of this tale type is the establishment of the protagonist's reputation. In Suan the Guesser we hear that Suan is "a good guesser" and, as a result, has come to marry the princess. But how did he get such a reputation, and why is it believable?
Characters tend to come to reputation in one of two ways: lying, theft and trickery masquerading as divination, or a combination of both. Regardless of the how, these actions always yield the same result in that the protagonist achieves the desired, or sometimes undesired, recognition and reputation which then leads to a series of problems.
Lying
Suan Eket—in this earlier Suan tale, we learn one of the origins of his reputation. Here, he is nicknamed 'Suan Eket' by the other school children for his inability to pronounce the letter x, and leaves school as a result of the teasing. Asking his mother for—and receiving—a pencil and paper, Suan declares himself the wisest boy in town.
Goldhair—unsurprisingly, Goldhair is named for his hair colour. An orphan in the care of an uncle, he is given money to go to school and improve his education, but is uninterested, and spends the money wandering about the country. On his return, he lies about his spendthrift nature, claiming to have studied midwifery, aware that only women act as midwives.
Harisarman—a poor Brahmin with many mouths to feed, Harisarman wanders about begging for his family, eventually coming to engage work for himself, his wife, and his sons on the estate of a rich householder. When the rich householder has a large and lively feast to celebrate the marriage of his daughter, Harisarman is forgotten and left uninvited. Deciding that his apparent poverty and stupidity are the reason, he has his wife spread about that he "possess[es] magical knowledge". Harisarman then sets out to "prove" his magical prowess through theft and trickery as further detailed below.
Crab[Ger]—a poor peasant, Crab meets a doctor in town and, seeing how well the doctor ate, asked if he too could become a doctor. "Certainly," replied the doctor, who then instructed Crab to sell his livestock, buy an ABC book, appropriate clothing and tools, and hang out a shingle painted with the words, "I am Doctor Know-All".
Crab—hearing of the King's loss of a valuable ring, Crab, a poor and illiterate peasant, decides that he will be the astrologer to find the said ring. Presenting himself at the palace, he addresses the King thusly, "Your majesty must know that I am an astrologer, although you see me so poorly dressed. I know that you have lost a ring and I will try by study to find out where it is."
Theft and Trickery Masquerading as Divination
Theft is a common element to tales of the Doctor Know-All type. Many protagonists steal to help establish their reputation; many are also called upon to discover a thief such as, in the case of our review, Crab, Doctor Know-All, and Harisarman. Suan too is asked to discover the identity of a thief, though not in Suan the Guesser but in tales set earlier in his life, such as Suan Eket and Suan's Good Luck, also noted here.
Suan's Good Luck—the only son of an old woman, Suan was a "clever, sharp-witted boy" who, instead of attending school, climbed a tree by the roadside. Here he spied upon his mother, noting what she had brought from the market, then running home ahead of her. When she reached home, Suan began to tell her what she had bought that day, one by one. For many days this continued, until Suan's mother came to believe in her son's skill as a diviner.
Suan Eket—after the events listed above, Suan steals his father's plough and hides it in the creek. The following day, when his father cannot find the plough, Suan offers to guess its whereabouts. Taking his new pencil and paper in hand, he proceeds to draw and write various figures, then proclaims the plough has been stolen by a neighbour and hidden in the creek. Soon after, Suan's father discovers the plough and declares his son "truly the wisest boy in the town". A similar thing then happens with Suan, his uncle, and his uncle's carabao.
Stage 2—A Problem and the Accidental Discovery of its Solution
At this point in the tale, each protagonist has established his reputation; sometimes he continues in the above style of trickery to continue to earn. But fame is a tricky thing, especially that which is ill-gained, and several of our characters soon reach the second stage of these tales, where they face a situation in which they are no longer in control. The notable exceptions in our stories are Crab and Crab[Ger].
Suan the Guesser—Suan is asked to determine the number of seeds in Mayabong's melons. Unable to refuse the King, yet knowing he will bring shame upon himself and the King because he cannot possibly answer correctly, Suan sets out to drown himself. But here, chance favours him—nearing Mayabong's casco, he overhears a conversation revealing the number of seeds in each fruit.
Suan Eket—a princess loses her ring; Suan's mother volunteers her son to find it, despite the death that awaits he who fails. Not wanting to go, but knowing there is no way out, Suan climbs into the King's carriage. Therein he mutters to himself, "Death is at hand, you will lose you head now!" among other things. The coachman, also the thief, overhears Suan's words; believing Suan has guessed his identity, he confesses. As in some other Doctor Know-all tales, Suan has the thief force a bird to swallow the ring; it is here that he claims to discover it.
Goldhair—when the female midwives fail to help the Emperor's wife give birth, Goldhair's uncle urges him to try and help. Left to choose between admitting his lie and spendthrift ways or trying to assist the Empress, Goldhair chooses the latter. By accidentally causing the Empress to laugh, Goldhair brings about the birth of the child.
Goldhair here encounters another problem—distrusting him, the Emperor's Ministers refuse to reward him unless he can drive away some barbarians. Goldhair soon succeeds by accidentally frightening the barbarians with a small tree and a bucket.
Harisarman—hearing of Harisarman's declared skill, the King soon calls him to discover who has been stealing from him. Despite his attempts to escape, Harisarman is confined to a small room in the palace. While cursing himself and his lying tongue, he accidentally frightens the thief, who then confesses and tells Harisarman the location of the stolen treasure. Harisarman then "divines" the whereabouts of the stolen treasure.
Unlike the other tales, Harisarman draws on the device of homophony twice. The thief is frightened when Harisarman is cursing his lying tongue because his own name is Tongue. The other tales we are reviewing today only use this device in concert with what Fansler calls the ejaculation guess.
Crab—a cunning peasant, Crab suspects the household servants know about the ring. Given a room in which to study and divine, Crab spends his days leafing through his ABC book and casting severe looks at the servants—and thieves. When his wife comes to visit, he has her lie beneath the bed and say, "That is the first" as one servant enters the room, then "That is the second" as the second servant enters, and so on. Now believing that Crab has indeed discovered them, the servants confess.
Crab[Ger]—hearing of Doctor Know-All, a nobleman calls Crab to his home to find out who is stealing from him. Insisting he must also bring his wife, Crab goes to the nobleman's house. At dinner, he points out the courses of the meal, saying, "That is the first," "That is the second," and so on. The servants—the thieves—mistake Crab's meaning, believing he has discovered them, and confess.
Notes on Crab and Crab[Ger]--Crab and Crab[Ger] each establish their reputations through lying; prior to their encounters with the King and nobleman respectively, they are not forced to prove their ability. Each enters the situation with full knowledge of his lack of divining or guessing skill, but believes his cunning and deceptive abilities will save him.
Tomorrow: Stage 3; Fowls and Marriage; Suan the Guesser as a tale of sexual maturation and societal integration; Suan variants; and Fairy Tale Friday.
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