Paul Bunyan Research Paper

There are many tales of superhuman acts or human beings. The tales of these people on acts can be sometimes positive or negative. There is a mythical hero and lumberjack named Paul Bunyan. One drag of Paul’s axe created the Grand Canyon. He had a blue ox named Babe, Babe was the size of 42 axe handles. Babe was as playful as a tornado and he created Minnesota’s 10,000 lakes. Paul Bunyan was a national legend and symbolized many positive things. This caused him to be told in many stories.
Paul Bunyan was a gigantic lumberjack at lumber camps across the Northwest. “He was a lumberman in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and the Northwest” (Merriam Webster’s Encyclopedia of Literature). This means that Paul was moving around and was a lumberjack at different places. Also it could mean that he was being told throughout those parts of the U.S by oral folktale. “Paul had an ox, Babe the Blue Ox, that was 2 times the size of the outdoors and as playful as a hurricane” (Ratigan). It means that his ox was incredibly huge and really playful. Babe might also be really dangerous,
since he is as playful as a hurricane. “When he grew older, one drag of the mighty lumberjack’s massive ax created the Grand Canyon, while the giant footprints of his trusty companion, Babe the Blue Ox, filled with water and became Minnesota’s 10,000 lakes” (Pruitt). Paul created the Grand Canyon, and his Ox created footprints in Minnesota to create lakes. It also means that Paul must have been really strong including his ox, Babe. Stories of him show he was a giant lumberjack and had a pet blue ox.
Paul was actually based off a real person, and he had become famous in 1910. “Historians believe Bunyan was based in large part on an actual lumberjack: Fabian Fournier” (Pruitt). Paul might have been based off an actual lumberjack with the name of Fabian. Also it means Paul was not made up and probably might have existed back then. “Bunyan was popularized by newspapermen during the 1910” (Schlosser). Paul was made well known by newspaper people 1910. It probably meant that society would have not known him, if not for those newspaper people. “The character was first documented in the work of U.S. journalist James McGillivray. In 1916, as part of an advertising campaign, advertisement writer William Laughead reworked the old logging tales into that of a giant lumberjack and gave birth to the modern Paul Bunyan a folklore character” (Maze). Paul was documented by James McGillivray, but made more modernized by William Laughead. Paul was actually used for a advertising campaign in 1916 and retold to become the Paul Bunyan. Paul was based on a real lumberjack, Fabian Fournier, and became popular by newspapermen.
Tales of Paul Bunyan were meant to positively impact society.
“Paul was a symbol of might and working hard” (Schlosser). Paul was a representation of might since he was created the Grand Canyon. He was also a symbol of working hard because he worked at lumber camps and probably lumbered a lot of trees. “He personifies the American Genius for why the making of jobs is important” (Ratigan). He personifies it since Paul worked a job and did what he did really good. Also Paul showed that jobs were important and why doing it was needed. He did this because he lumbered and showed it was fun. “He was a national symbol or trademark for bigness, strength, ingenuity, and exaggeration. Bunyan was a symbol of strength and bigness cause he was huge and strong. He was also a symbol of ingenuity because he was actually based off a person and had many adventures. Paul symbolized many things like why working hard is
good.
Paul Bunyan’s stories were told like campfire stories, and he was told in many literary work. “Paul stories were a mixture of oral folklore and conscious literary work” (Ratigan). Before he was told by William Laughead he was told by people for stories. Then once he was famous some book authors wrote about him in books. “He was in tall tales and oral folklore.” (Merriam Webster Encyclopedia of Literature). A tall tale means it has an unbelievable element, and Paul was unbelievably tall and strong. He was in oral folklore because he was told before he became famous in books. “Legends about Paul and his logging crew, Johnny Inkslinger….” (Ratigan). He was also told in legends including his logging crew and his ox. Also the legends tell us how he lived and how big his ox was. When Paul was first told about to now, he was told in many different types of literary stories. Paul was told in many stories because he was a national legend. Not only that he symbolized many things like strength. Paul Bunyan was based off a real person named Fabian Fournier. There are many tales of him, him creating Grand Canyon, and Paul’s ox. The tales were oral folklore or legends. He was popularized by a man, William Laughead, who was trying to create an ad campaign. From there he was told in many books which all had one main idea. Society has changed positively because of tales of Paul Bunyan.