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| Figure 1: Sculpture of the Baba Yaga (Public Domain image) |
If you are a fan of L. Frank Baum’s book or the film derived from it (“The Wizard of Oz”) then you are already familiar with the quote in the title of this blog post. If not here are the contexts: in the book and film Dorothy, the main character, and her house were whisked away and literally dropped in the magical land of Oz. Upon realizing that she’s no longer in Kansas Dorothy is met by Glinda, a good witch who asks what type of witch Dorothy is. This is an apt quote for the topic of today’s blog post as the mythical creature to be discussed, the Baba Yaga (Figure 1), is one that is considered by some a heroine and others a villain. This blog post will address the changing folklore about the Baba Yaga, as well as how these changes reflected dominant cultural values of the day.
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| Figure 2: Map of Slavic Countries (Source: Simply Slavic) |
The Baba Yaga is a mythical entity derived from Slavic folklore (Figure 2). The term Baba Yaga has controversial origins and meaning with some linguistic scholars claiming the words literally reference an older, unmarried woman with magical power, while others claim the term references early Pagan ritual sites dedicated to patron goddesses. The former more so than the latter emphasize what the Baba Yaga represents, which is an elderly, ugly lady who is identified as a witch. She has iron teeth, a long nose, and is incredibly skinny and frail. Alternatively, the Baba Yaga is sometimes represented as three elderly sisters who share these same physical traits. The Baba Yaga rides a mortar and carries a pestle. She lives in seclusion, deep in the woods in a hut that moves around on dancing chicken legs. Her home is always surrounded by a fence made of human bones, and within it is a large stove used to cook those who cross her. The Baba Yaga is also presented in a dichotomous fashion. She represents opposing values as both a heroine who maintains a natural balance and provides good fortunes to those who approach her with pure intentions and as a villain who eats those who cross her.
As scary as the Baba Yaga tales may be a critical review of them provides insights into early Slavic culture. The depiction of the Baba Yaga as an elderly woman with magical powers demonstrates early matriarchal preferences in Slavic societies. In ancient societies and among foraging groups today the elderly are respected and revered for their experience and knowledge that is acquired through their lifetimes. Elderly women most often occupied roles as midwives, aiding younger women in birthing their children, as well as healers. This led to a mystique among these women being in control of life and death. These ideas and values changed with the acceptance of Christianity. Elderly women, who were identified as healers and controlling of life and death, were viewed with scorn and fear, most often being branded as witches and being consorts of the Devil. Much like various other cultural stories the tales of the Baba Yaga demonstrate the dominate social and cultural norms, particularly those pertaining to nature, obedience, purity, and respect of the elderly, that existed and changed among the Slavic people as their cultural values and beliefs changed.
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| Figure 3: Saami House (Source: Flickr.com) |
Additionally, the folklore about the Baba Yaga’s home is also based in reality, although also laden in exaggeration. Early nomadic Slavic homes were built on stilts created from uncut trees (Figure 3), which could be perceived a chicken legs. These homes were often used for protecting food and meat from scavengers, which supports the notion of flesh consumption promoted in the myths. Alternatively, the homes could also be reminiscent of pagan offering sites that were common among early Slavic people. These offerings were large stones with a nearby hut where individuals would leave gifts to a goddess in hopes that she would bless people with good fortunes. The preference toward goddesses was due to the matriarchal and matrilineal preferences among these groups, hence why the Baba Yaga is associated with femininity versus masculinity.
Today, the Baba Yaga myth has transformed to meet modern cultural norms and values. She continues to be depicted as a villain, largely supporting notions of the elderly being scary and unwanted. Her associations with witchcraft further promote ideals against the elderly and favorability toward the young. These stories also continue to promote Christian ideals as the association between the Baba Yaga and witchcraft remain.
Works Cited
Armknecht, M., J.T. Rudy and S.E.S. Forrester. "Identifying Impressions Of Baba Yaga: Navigating The Uses Of Identifying Impressions Of Baba Yaga: Navigating The Uses Of Attachment And Wonder On Soviet And American Television Attachment And Wonder On Soviet And American Television ." Marvels And Tales. (2017): 62-79. Document.
EB2N. Baba-Yaga and Vasilisa the Fair (Myths & Legends). 2006. Electronic. 5 August 2020.
New World Encyclopedia writers and editors. Baba Yaga. No Date. Electronic. 5 August 2020.
Winters, Riley. "Baba Yaga: The Wicked Witch of Slavic Folklore." 10 March 2019. Ancient Origins. Electronic. 5 August 2020.
11 comments:
After careful reading, I am only with one question. nowhere in your entire description did you refer to baba Yaga as a male. You only refer to this mythical creature as her or she so I was wondering if they can only be female. My reasoning for asking is because the only time I’ve ever heard the saying was in reference to a Male John wick. And was simply trying to figure out if it was because the creators did not do the proper research or if it was for a actual reason in my knowledge he was heterosexual and referred to himself as a male. So at all I suppose I just wanted to know if the title can be placed upon anyone or just certain people
Damia day
Damia, great catch. The Baba Yaga is traditionally a title reserved solely for women. Linguistically the name refers to the feminine/female, meaning it excludes men from holding the title. Therefore the retelling of Baba Yaga as a man in John Wick is either a creative embellishment by the film's writers or an intentional story arch that was meant to defame Wick's masculinity. I say this as the worst things you can call a man in American culture is anything to do with being a woman, so the writers may have used the term Baba Yaga as a way to question the character and his masculinity.
While reading this I realized I recognized the house with chicken legs from the movie "Hell boy." its amazing how you see things in shows and films that actually symbolize something that people believe in. im thinking it was just a made up character. Also the idea of putting a house with live stock in it can be a good until an animal that can climb comes around.
-Simone Jordan
I have a couple questions for you. Does this folklore have any relevancy to Hansel and Gretal? Or even the Disney adaption of the film Hocus Pocus. I noticed several points where it said that Baba Yaga could be perceived as 3 elderly women and now even repeating that notion, it reminds me of the Greek mythological creatures who are witches with no eyes but said to be the gatekeepers of Hell. In Hansel and Gretal the witch is known to eat children by luring them into her cabin. Why do you believe witches have been depicted to be so bad? They have been outcasted from American culture simply for not being understood but we can accept popular witchcraft movies and family friendly TV shows.
Good question, Jesse. Hansel and Gretel is part of the Grimm's fairy tales, which are based on European fables, so it is possible that the Grimm brother based their tale off of this myth. A literary scholar who studies the Grimm's fairy tales would know better than I.
I loved how you started off the post with using the hook about the Wizard of Oz. That quote from the movie always stuck with me and instantly knew where it was from. I loved learning about the Baba Yaga, and thought that it was interesting to learn that some people used to view it as good, however now most people consider it as villain. You mentioned this may be because the elderly were considered giver and taker of life. When you think of the Baba Yaga do you feel it’s a “good witch or bad witch”.
-Alexa Holzschuh
Interesting question, Alexa. As I do not necessarily think humans are inherently good or evil it would depend on the contexts and the situation. From these I would draw my conclusions as to whether the individual is a "good" or a "bad" witch.
This article strikes me when stated that "based in reality, although laden in exaggeration" so is there actual thought to have lived among then stories been told and passed wrongly and oftentimes been much of exaggeration no matter who tells a story or when.
Qwynn Marquez
As a fan of the wizard of Oz and the wiz as well I found this article very interesting. When reading about the Baba Yaga I enjoyed learning about it but I was confused about whether or not it is a good or bad witch.
-Jasmine Hill
The intent of a healing women and the idea that it can be passed down and the controlling of life and death and the upholdinding of values and beliefs by Slavic peopl have new values and respect could change, even with these values she had been depicted as a villian.
Qwynn Marquez
The post highlights Baba Yaga's relevance as a legendary person with deep roots in folklore and offers insightful background regarding her beginnings in Slavic culture. It increases our comprehension of the cultural traditions that have influenced her representation across time by examining the numerous ways in which her name and symbols have been interpreted. The contradictory portrayal of Baba Yaga shows the complexity and ambiguity of folklore. It represents contradictory ideals and moral difficulties, lending richness to her character and the stories in which she appears, as both a powerful witch and a protector of natural order.
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