Random Thoughts about Hospitality Tradition in Fairytales

[snowynight]

I have recently come across this discussion thread: Fantasy settings and hospitality toward strangers. I feel that they can get a lot of inspiration from fairytales and folklores, which the issue is very real.

Hospitality is essentially a mutual pact between the hosts and the guests, who agree to non-hostility without reservation. It's important for ensued survival of a society as it makes travel and trade possible before the modern hospitality industry.

As travellers are often at disadvantage, powerful beings often disguise themselves as desolate travellers as a test and punish people who violate the hospitality custom. One famous example is the Beast in "Beauty and the Beast"

Rich or powerful people are obliged to play host/patron to others. "Sleeping Beauty" shows us what's happened when a host doesn't think enough about who to invite or not.

Fairytale characters often travel in unfamiliar paths and need to rely on strangers' hospitality, so many of them have to outwit their murderous host, like Hänsel and Grethel.

On the other hand, guests are expected to abide to the host's rules and not overstay their welcome. The hardworking and kind daughter in Frau Holle gets rewarded because of her good service, while her lazy sister suffers because she doesn't fulfill her duty.

This leads to cases that the host is dangerous but sticks to some hospitality custom for now. Baba Yaga is a good example. She's dangerous and eats people, but you can survive her home by being smart, polite and kind like Vasilisa the Beautiful.

Have you thought about hospitality in your setting?

Comments

[nonesensed]

I love playing around with culture clashes when it comes to host/guest rules in my worlds - it makes for fun conflict, large and small 😊 What about you? How does hospitality work in your current writing project(s)?

[snowynight]

It's great to play with, as it's universal and full of potential conflicts.

In my recent wips, the story kicks off because a powerful and dangerous being provides hospitality to a mortal/much less powerful being. It's good when the guest is surprised by unexpected mercy while navigating the unknown territory and rules.

[nonesensed]

That sounds like a great start to a story! Hope you're having fun writing it 😊 Are there any particular limits to that hospitality that the mortal guest might accidentally cross and thus end the safety of the hospitality?

[snowynight]

I'm inspired by the expectation of guests in the ancient Greek hospitality custom (xenia). There are so many ways a mortal guest may break rules.

Guests must be courteous, so they can't refuse the host's food, although they may not match the mortal guests' expectation of food.

Guests should bring stories and news from the outside world. Boring guests or guests who bring "outrageous" stories (i.e. don't match the host'a expectation ) may be considered a burden, no longer a welcomed guest.

Guests are expected to help when the host call on them. Cue many dangerous and tricky tasks.

When the host gives gifts to the guests, the guests should reciprocate, even though they may be unwanted/unwelcomed.

[nonesensed]

Those all sound like some excellent sources of potential conflict, especially conflicts mortal guests might have trouble avoiding simply out of ignorance. Neat!

[snowynight]

Thanks! The hosts don't even need to be evil or hostile to make their hospitality troublesome. A snake spirit may serve living rats to its guest because it's delicious.

I really like the guests' challenge of resolving problems peacefully, because full violation of hospitality is dangerous and has consequence.

[nonesensed]

I love it when there is a clear "no one meant to be rude or hostile but It Still Happened"-risk in a story, because that's very true to real life culture shocks!

With us humans having so many different silent rules for what counts as proper behavior around strangers or toward guests, it only makes sense there'd be even more risk of misunderstandings between mortals and immortals. Like you said, humans tend to offer food that's at least edible to other humans, while a snake spirit's idea of what food is likely is something completely different to what is even safe to eat for humans (not to mention that most humans would likely balk at eating live, uncooked rats regardless of the health risk).

I hope you have a lot of fun thinking up ways for the guests to both mess up and fix their accidental rudeness!