THE JAPANESE LEGEND AS AN INTERDISCIPLINARY NARRATIVE
THE JAPANESE LEGEND AS AN INTERDISCIPLINARY NARRATIVE

Summary/Abstract: Legend could be an umbrella term as the legend is the most complete form of a sequence that could be regional, national or international legend collection (Linda Degh). The legend can be characterized as the conveyor of information that concerns subjective human experience. Each legend informs, explains, instructs, warns, or exemplifies through the telling of an extraordinary experience, which becomes the core of the legend itself. Multiple channels open to disseminate the important messages carried in the plot: one can find references about geography (emphasizing the local color); history (creating an accurate view of the most popular historical characters in the eyes of common people); art (providing information about how certain sculptures or paintings have been created); religion (showing the folk’s perspective on religion or on the characters who have shaped the religious life in certain cultural areas); agriculture (supplying useful advice how and when to plant different plants) etc. The examples in this paper refer solely to the Japanese legends, as narrative units, as well as cultural constructs.

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