I got a really great question in the comments of my last Myth or Magic post (leave your own for me to answer in future installments): Why did Disney pick gruesome fairy tales and try to make them the happily ever after versions we know? Were there no happy and well written fairy tales theyContinue reading “Myth or Magic: Are Fairy Tales for Kids?”
Tag Archives: History of Fairy Tales
The Brains Behind The Beauty (and the Beast)
Fairy tales are a beautiful genre of literature, tracing cultural mindsets and priorities through time and across the globe. Their origin as oral tales makes them profoundly unique, as no two tellings were ever exactly the same. But at the same time, that can make it hard for anyone to trace their history. There haveContinue reading “The Brains Behind The Beauty (and the Beast)”
The Many Legends of Baba Yaga
One of the pillars of fairy tales is their recurring themes and character archetypes. It’s even common to see names used over and over again (Jack, Hans, even Snow-White is used in several unrelated stories). But it’s rare to see the same character appear in multiple fairy and folk tales, like we see in theContinue reading “The Many Legends of Baba Yaga”
The Modern Fairy Tale
What ever happened to fairy tales? Sure, we still see them in popular culture today, but as a genre, fairy tales seem to have faded into obscurity. Mostly, the term is applied to Disney movies or new adaptations. And most writers, if they say they’re writing a fairy tale, really mean that they’re retelling aContinue reading “The Modern Fairy Tale”
Kate G. Jameson 