This master’s thesis studies Russian fairytales of folk origin through the theoretical framework of Vladimir Propp, with an emphasis on story structure, characters, and their functions. The introductory part of the paper explains the etymology and meaning of the term fairytale, as well as the basic characteristics that make it a specific literary form. The main part of the paper focuses on Propp's theory of morphology of the fairytales, which observes them through the recurring functions of characters and universal plot patterns. The thesis analyses how these theoretical concepts are applied to Russian folk tales “The Feather of Finist the Falcon,“ “Vasilisa the Beautiful” and “The Frog Princess” while studying the roles of characters such as heroes, adversaries, givers and assistants, and their contribution to the narrative dynamics. It is concluded that fairytales, although simple in structure, convey important cultural values and symbolic motifs, and that they have universal patterns that connect them with other fairytales around the world.