After reading the folk story of Frol Skobeev’s schemes, I expected these Russian folk tales to be far more unfamiliar and twisted than I found them to be. Actually, each story felt remarkably familiar and held clear strains of folk tales I have read growing up. Vasilisa the Beautiful began with stepsisters who were “two of the most spiteful, mean and hard to please young women that ever lived”. The evil stepsisters gave her unreasonable tasks, that could only be completely with the help of an old doll or a fairy godmother. Vasilisa’s outer beauty matches her inner beauty, so she is far more beautiful than her sisters and mistreated because of it. The first part of Vasilisa the Beautiful echoes Cinderella poignantly. Then it continues with a Little Red Riding Hood-esque storyline, where Vasilisa must navigate through a forest and then collect something from a haunted house. The moral of the story is clear; the stepsisters are evil because they treat Vasilisa poorly, but the good and beautiful Vasilisa, with the help of her doll, manages to preserve her kindness and beauty earning not an American “happily ever after”, but a comparable “And thus are they living to this very day, waiting for us to come and stay”.

Tsarevich Ivan and Grey Wolf reflects the Wizard of Oz in its scavenger-like tasks and personification of animals. Ivan must collect the items he has been instructed to collect. His obedience serves him well, while he suffers the consequences of his bouts of disobedience. Once more, the runt of the litter succeeds with the help of outside magical forces, encouraging children to live obediently and ethically. The Tsar loves the youngest child more because of his earnings and his honesty. Ivan is rewarded with a life of “health and cheer for many a long and prosperous year”. The moral of the story lies in honesty and obedience, encouraging Russian children to listen to their elders and to treat their siblings ethically.
Finally, the Frog Tsarevna overlaps with the Princess and the Frog, and then forces Tsarevich Ivan to prove his worth by demonstrating that he treats both animals and people well. Morality corresponds to proper treatment of animals and to ethical treatment of those lower on the social hierarchy. The good and the bad are easily distinguishable. The good always triumph, frequently with some magical aid. The stories rhyme occasionally, in a simple, nursery rhyme fashion. These folk stories felt remarkably familiar and preached similar morals, using very comparable techniques.