1 «Вези, вези, старик, ее куда хочешь, чтобы мои глаза ее не видали, чтобы мои уши об ней не слыхали; да не вози к родным в теплую хату, а во чисто поле на трескун-мороз!» Старик затужил, заплакал; однако посадил дочку на сани The weak father who is unable to stand up to the wicked stepmother is a familiar motif in Russian (and non-Russian) fairy tales.
2 перекрестил Christianity is not commonly mentioned in fairy tales, but Russian peasants were Orthodox Christians, and for the father to make the sign of the cross over his daughter here would be a natural, and even automatic, gesture. Atypically, this tale contains several brief religious references.
3 молитву творит Another brief, passing reference to a Christian gesture.
4 Мороз Frost is personified as a dangerous individual living in the forest (on the margins of civilization), capable of killing the young girl, but ultimately inclined to reward her for her modesty. In this respect he fulfills a role similar to that played by Baba-Yaga in many other tales. The personification of Frost is an example of animism; Frost the person represents the spirit of bitterly cold winter, which has volition, emotions, and other human qualities.
5 Мороз красный нос The rhyming epithet is similar to Баба-яга, костяная нога.
6 бог тебя принес по мою душу грешную Another religious reference.
7 Опять пришел Frost will test the girl three times, and each time will take pity on her. Things often happen in threes in fairy tales, a structural feature known as “trebling.”
8 полный всякого приданого This tale does not deal explicitly with marriage, which is the quintessential transition from childhood to maturity, but Frost’s gifts of items for the heroine’s trousseau nonetheless makes the association clear. See also the dog’s association of wealth with suitors, below.
9 А собачка под столом: «Тяв, тяв!Старикову дочь в злате, в серебре везут, а старухину женихи не берут!» Dogs often serve as oracles in fairy tales, in this case announcing the triumphant return of the heroine (and, eventually, the demise of the stepmother’s natural daughter). Although neither girl has had any suitors in the tale, wealth and suitors are nonetheless associated with each other as emblems of success.
10 «Старик, старик, запрягай других лошадей, вези мою дочь поскорей! Посади на то же поле, на то же место». The stepmother sees that the heroine has returned with wealth, and thinks that she need only send her own daughter to the same place in order for her to be rewarded similarly. In fact, the heroine was rewarded because she demonstrated humility by speaking “clever words,” and the stepmother’s natural daughter, the stereotypical “wicked” stepsister, will fare poorly because she lacks her stepsister’s sagacity and modesty.