Folktale Characteristics: A Guide to Archetypes and Types of Folklore
What are the universal characteristics of folktales and folklore? And what do these common terms actually mean? Let's find out!
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For teachers, homeschoolers, and lifelong learners: The Moonlit Road Schoolhouse gives you classroom-ready background on Southern folklore, history, and culture — from Gullah-Geechee traditions and Cherokee history to the Civil War history and forgotten tragedies that still shape the region’s story. Use these articles to build lessons on storytelling, regional history, and the oral traditions of the American South, or pair them with our Southern audio stories, told by storytellers who bring these tales to life.
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- Lesson Plans for Teachers – created by teachers, for teachers, based on our stories.
- Folktale Characteristics: A Guide to Archetypes and Types of Folklore
Southern Folklore & Storytelling Traditions
- Joel Chandler Harris and his Uncle Remus Tales
- Cajun Folklore, Superstitions & Spells — Strange Beliefs of Louisiana
- Gullah-Geechee Culture and Coastal Georgia Slavery
- Cherokee History & Culture in Appalachia — Traditions and Beliefs
- John Bennett and The Doctor to the Dead
- Appalachian Mountain Culture — Ghost Stories, Folklore & Traditions
Southern History & Historic Sites
- The Federal Writers’ Project: Preserving Southern Oral Traditions
- Battle of Pickett’s Mill: Georgia’s Forgotten Civil War Site
- Coal Mining in Appalachia
- New Orleans Above Ground Cemeteries
- Ambrose Bierce: The Haunted Life and Ghost Stories of a Civil War Veteran
Explore the stories behind these lessons: Many Schoolhouse articles are paired with a story from our Southern Ghost Stories or Southern Folktales archives — a good next stop if a lesson’s source story sparks curiosity.
Lesson Plans for Teachers
Lesson plans and other learning materials based on The Moonlit Road.com stories, created by actual teachers!
Okefenokee Swamp Camping
Humorous account of a camping trip in the Okefenokee Swamp National Wildlife Refuge park in Georgia.
The Federal Writers’ Project: Preserving Southern Oral Traditions
The Federal Writers' Project of FDR's New Deal documented the lives and stories of the American South during the Great Depression.
Gullah-Geechee Culture and Coastal Georgia Slavery
Discover the community of Hog Hammock on Georgia's Sapelo Island, the heart of Gullah culture founded by coastal Georgia slavery descendants.
Battle of Pickett’s Mill: Georgia’s Forgotten Civil War Site
The Battle of Pickett's Mill was a savage Union loss. Pickett's Mill Battlefield Historic Site is a time capsule from this forgotten battle.
Joel Chandler Harris and his Uncle Remus Tales
Learn why Joel Chandler Harris, through his Uncle Remus stories, was one of America's most beloved yet controversial authors and folklorists.
The Winecoff Hotel Fire in Atlanta, Georgia
Relive the 1946 Winecoff Hotel fire in Atlanta, Georgia - the deadliest hotel fire in U.S. history.
Coal Mining in Appalachia
Learn about the history of coal mining in Appalachia, the growth of mining towns and the resulting poverty in a changing world.
New Orleans Above Ground Cemeteries
New Orleans above ground cemeteries are iconic landmarks. But why would anyone want to be buried in tombs above ground?