μῦθοι Mythoi
Motif

Messengers announce successive misfortunes.

Chance and fate. · The ways of luck and fate. · Persistent bad luck. · view the constellation · filed as N252

Filed across the traditions
  • Spanish Exempla Keller
  • Greek Aeschylus Agamemnon line 860
  • Jewish Neuman. Cf. story of Job.
Within the index

Filed under Persistent bad luck.

1 finer motif beneath it
Messengers announce successive misfortunes to warrior as he sets out for war. Tells of death of father, mother, brother, and sister, but he refuses to turn back
Filed beside it
Bad luck follows man who shoots stork Persecution by bad luck. Wishing to escape it, the luckless couple build themselves a new home. Scarcely do they establish themselves in the new home, when bad luck addresses them from the hearth: "I have already waited for you here three days." Persecution by a god so that will of deity can be followed Bad luck banished and freed. The poor man in some way banishes his bad luck and becomes prosperous. Out of envy his rich brother sets it free; it then follows him Person pursued by misfortune. (Placidas, Eustacius.) His goods are destroyed, his wife carried off by a ship captain and his children by animals Safety in shadow of wall. After many misfortunes the man is apparently safe. The wall falls on him Escape from one misfortune into worse Unlucky classes Train of troubles from lost horseshoe nail. Master tries to go on in spite of the loss Train of troubles from sparrow's vengeance. A man runs over the dog, friend of the sparrow. Through the sparrow's vengeance the man loses his horse, his property, and finally his life Whether man begs all day or for an hour he gets only a small basket of grain Person brings bad luck to others

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