We've all pretty much come to accept what a fairy tale is based on what we were read as children. Stories such as Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, Rumpelstiltskin, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel and others all contain one of the most important fairy tale elements: magic. Unlike a saint's or local legend, fairy tales are embellished and magical rather than miracles, sometimes with religious association. When searching online for the definition of a fairy tale, the most popular result is something along the lines of "a story about fairies or other mythical or magical beings, especially of traditional origin told to children." However, we have learned in class that these stories were not initially told to children and most of them had to be dramatically changed to make them even slightly acceptable for children and families.
I find it hard to define a fairy tale because most of them seem so different to me. Granted, there is repetition of specific numbers, magical beings, curses and so on. However, a fairy tale to me is a simple, inadequately detailed, fictional stories that allow the mind to fill in its own details when necessary. I think this quality is what makes fairy tales so appealing. The fact that they are able to use their own creativity to make the story their own is desirable. In fairy tales, there always seems to be a hero and a villian, a moral and almost always a happy ending. Simple, clear objects such as precious metals and glass are also a recurring theme in fairy tales because they are so unchanging and symbolic. Fairy tales are popular stories from childhood to adulthood and shall continue to be as time goes on.
No comments:
Post a Comment