Includes bibliographical references (pages 461-541) and index.
Contents
Foreword / Dan Ben-Amos -- [ch.] 1. Introduction : Jewish culture and the Hebrew folktale -- [ch.] 2. The biblical period : the folktale as sacred history -- [ch.] 3. The second temple period: the casting of narrative patterns -- [ch.] 4. The folktale in the Rabbinic period : between folk culture and Rabbinic literature -- [ch.] 5. The Middle Ages : external perils and internal tensions -- [ch.] 6. The later generations: the folktale in confrontation with a changing world -- [pt.] A. The Hasidic story as folk literature -- [pt.] B. Legends of the saints and Israeli society -- [pt.] C. "Return to the faith" stories : rhetoric in a secular world.