The reflection of moral and humanistic values in fairy tales (a case study of the little humpbacked horse by P.P. Ershov)

The paper considers a fairy tale as an epic genre of written and oral folk art reflecting the Russian national character, the moral values of the nation. The desire of a modern person for a better life transforms pragmatism into profit-making practicality. Therefore, the national idea and national mentality are distorted. This process leads to the loss of traditional moral values and provides the nation with alien features that change their thinking and self-consciousness. The tale helps return to the origins of its history, overcome the value vacuum in national identity, and preserve the true values such as faith, mutual aid, freedom, valor, conscientiousness, compassion, virtue, selflessness, hard work, and love for family and Fatherland. The paper provides the linguistic and literary analysis of the fairy tale “The Little Humpbacked Horse” by P.P. Еrshov. It represents the phenomenon of Russian national character in the genre of the author’s fairy tale as one of the main mechanisms for transmitting the original spiritual and moral ideals of the Russian people.