• World-fire. A conflagration destroys the earth. Sometimes (as with the flood legends) the tradition is somewhat local and does not refer to an actual destruction of the whole earth; sometimes the fire marks the end of the world. A1030
• Underground monster fettered by trick. Is persuaded to try on fetters. (Sometimes told of fettering Satan, who plays same role.) A1071.1
• Impounded water. Water is kept by monster so that mankind cannot use it. A hero defeats the monster and releases the water. (The monster is sometimes a giant frog.) A1111
• Origin of clouds: creator ornaments the sky with clouds so that the mountains are sometimes shaded. A1133.2
• Insects from body of slain monster. Usually the monster is burnt; sometimes the insects come from his head, sometimes from his body as it burns. (Cf. A1716.1.) A2001
• Flying horse. Sometimes represented as having wings, sometimes as going through the air by magic. B41.2
• Medicine shown by animal. It heals another animal with a medicine (herb, water, etc.) and thus shows the man the remedy. Sometimes the medicine resuscitates the dead. (The animal is most frequently the serpent. (Cf. B491.) B512
• The one compulsory thing. Unless one does this one thing, misfortune comes. (Sometimes one is under magic compulsion.) C650
• Magic results of reversing a spell. Formula said backward will sometimes undo the work performed by the formula. (Cf. D1273.) D1783.1
• Resuscitation by arrangement of members. Parts of a dismembered corpse are brought together and resuscitation follows. (Sometimes combined with other methods.) E30
• Resuscitation with misplaced head. (Cf. M221.) In restoration of several persons simultaneously through reassembling of members, the heads are placed on the wrong bodies. Sometimes the damage is repaired, sometimes not. E34
• Resuscitation of wife by husband giving up half his remaining life. (Sometimes vice versa). E165
• The Dead Rider (Lenore). Dead lover returns and takes sweetheart with him on horseback. She is sometimes saved at the grave by the crowing of the cock, though the experience is usually fatal. E215
• Ghosts haunt house. (It is sometimes hard to tell whether haunters are supposed to be ghosts or familiar spirits of some kind.) E281
• Revenant as hen. Sometimes with chickens. E423.3.6
• Wild hunt avoided by keeping on one's road. Sometimes in middle of road or on right side of road. E501.17.5.1
• Fairy presides at child's birth. Sometimes the Norns, the Fates, etc. F312
• Trolls. Sometimes underground spirits, sometimes also thought of as mountain-spirits. In many tales trolls are ogres. (Cf. G100, G400–G599.) F455
• Poltergeist. Invisible spirit (sometimes identified as ghost or witch) responsible for all sorts of mischief in or around a household. F473
• Poison damsel. Woman nourished on poison is fatal to her husbands. Sometimes the poisoning is from fatal look or breath, sometimes from intercourse. F582

all 46 in the index →