Făt-Frumos
Another knight-errant, in the tradition of Dobrynya Nikitich, Făt-Frumos (‘handsome son’) is a heroic figure in Romanian folklore. He is a cognate of the ‘Prince Charming’ figure in Western European fairy tales, being courageous, just, physically strong, loyal to his king, and romantic. He is usually depicted as the youngest son of a king, who has to prove his worth through a variety of challenges, and usually outdoes his older brothers. Often on his quests he has to choose between different ordeals, said to evoke the history of Romania, which has often been forced to choose between unpleasant diplomatic alliances.
Most tales of Făt-Frumos describe him fighting dragons. Romanian folklore has two principal types: the zmeu and the balaur. The zmeu is an anthropomorphic dragon, with legs, the ability to make and use human weapons, and a love of precious things. It frequently kidnaps young maidens to marry them and must be defeated by a knight, making it a useful narrative device in folk stories. The balaur is a more straightforward monster, being large and ferocious, albeit with between 3 and 12 heads like the Greek Hydra. Wallachian folklore also holds that the balaur can make jewels with its saliva.
The stories of Făt-Frumos give us a chance to review the archetypal features of dragon-slaying legends generally. The livestock-stealing, maiden-kidnapping, dragons of Romanian folklore personify evil and greed. Their selfish behaviour negatively affects others, and cannot be tolerated. Heroes like Făt-Frumos are successful because of their bravery and fidelity, be it to their ruler or a deity. The idea is that evil can be defeated by good, a central tenet of world religions. There is also a warning to the selfish and avaricious, encapsulated by the zmeu and Fáfnir: excessive love of wealth can turn you into a reviled dragon.
Where did we find this stuff? Here are our sources:
Butler, Alban. Lives of the Saints. Gallery Books, 1990.
Byock, Jesse L., trans. The Saga of the Volsungs. London: Penguin Classics, 2005.
Cotterell, Arthur, and Rachel Storm. The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Mythology. London: Lorenz, 1999
Farmer, David Hugh. The Oxford Dictionary of Saints. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1978.
Jones, David E. An Instinct for Dragons. London: Routledge, 2000.
Kaplan, Matt. The Science of Monsters. London: Constable, 2013.
Klaeber, Friedrich, ed. Beowulf and the fight at Finnsburg. New York: D.C. Heath, 1936.
Snorri Sturluson. The Poetic Edda. Trans. by Jesse L. Byock. London: Penguin, 2006.
Stromberg, Joseph. “Where Did Dragons Come From?” Smithsonian Magazine.
A True Relation of the Dreadful Combate Between More of More-Hall, and the Dragon of Wantley. 1685
de Voragine, Jacobus. The Golden Legend, trans. by William Caxton. London: Dent, 1931.
