Young Victims, Malicious Adults and Old Witches. Age and Magic in some Swedish Medieval Ballads

Abstract

In some Swedish naturmytiska visor, magic of transformation is presented according to a fixed narrative structure, which presents three main tale roles: victims of transformation spells, operators of transformation spells and those who break spells. The first role is always played by young girls and boys, often referred to as jungfruar and svenner (not yet married young women and men). Tale roles of the second type, i.e. spell casters, are always embodied by female figures, old witches or wicked stepmothers, with a frequent overlapping of roles. To the third type of tale roles different types of characters may correspond, very often connected to the first group through ties of kinship or love. In these ballads, the magic of transformation may be read from a symbolic perspective, as a passage from childhood to adulthood, thus providing precious information about gender and ageing.