Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm have long been gone from this earth. Their impact, however, remains significant. One of the most lasting inheritances that the modern world has received from the Brothers Grimm is that of the classical, traditional form of the fairy tale. Part of that form is setting, most often seen as the fairy tale forest. This paper reflects on the importance of forests to the Grimms and their fairy tales. While all of my findings are as yet preliminary, they show distinctly that the forest is the predominant agent for change in Grimms’ fairy tales. This paper will begin with the forest in today’s fairy tale, trace this usage of the forest back to Grimms’ tales and discuss why the forest might have been important to the Grimms’ …show more content…
There were all these things because the path went to a palace. The Tradition said that all palaces should have winding paths traveling through mysterious forests filled with enchanting wildlife. So this Palace, although underwater, had such a path (7-8).
These examples illustrate how closely entwined forests and fairy tales have become in today’s society. Indeed, in Germany one can visit any number of Fairy Tale Forests and meet fairy tale characters there, fairy tale theme parks that have become part of the national view of the Germans. What have scholars made of the forest in fairy tales? Very little research has been done on the forest as setting. There are individual tale interpretations that include the forest. There is a chapter here or there that begins this discussion. But no one has tried to pull all of this together to make a definitive statement on what the importance of the forest might be. Here is a taste of what scholars have
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What might have affected the Grimms in their view of the forest? They were Germans. The importance of forest in Germany has a strong background and is rooted in myth and lore. Forests are also predominant in the physical landscape of Germany - even more in the time of the Grimms than today. Jacob and Wilhelm were influenced by Romanticism and believed in looking back to understand Germany’s true identity. The forest and nature played a large role in Romanticism and the forest was seen as a place where the supernatural could live and reign. The importance of forest in this period can be seen in the works of German Romantic artists, poets, writers, and musicians. Robert Harbison, in his book Deliberate Regression, said, “Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm . . . saw themselves recovering bits of national or racial memory.” He went on to discuss the tale “Brother and Sister” where the two siblings leave home and “enter in the forest a life of deepening strangeness . . .. because it matches Romantic notions of life in the woods so well one suspects that much of the feeling is interpolated by the Grimms.” This is a tale, he says, about “wildness” and “civilization”
Fairytales share similar themes in the manner in which they approach storytelling for the individual. In “The Great Fairy Tale Tradition”, Jack Zipes has selected and edited stories and categorized them by their respective themes, illustrating the different thematic elements found in each story. Every chapter includes a short introduction to the literary history of the selected stories and their themes. In the “Three Brother’s Who Become Wealthy Wandering the World”, “The Three Brothers”, and “The Four Skillful Brothers” each story explores the adventures and pursuits of brothers who venture into the outside world and are later faced with a test of skills in which they must prove their worth and courage. Although the three tales are incorporated into the thematic chapter of “Competitive Brothers” and share similar characteristics, there are contrasts between their respective stories.
Fairy tales are one of the longest lasting forms of literature. Though now they bring to mind classic movies engendered by Disney, many of these stories were first passed on in an oral manner, meant to convey a message, moral, or lesson. Alison Lurie’s “What Fairy Tales Tell Us” covers a broad range of classic tales, discussing how under the guise of an entertaining story comes life lessons we would all do well to follow. To begin this paper, some of the tales Lurie examines in her article will be looked at and critically examined beyond what she discusses. This will then move the text towards its remaining sections, which will take Lurie’s ideas and have them applied to folk and fairy tales that have not yet been contemplated; for the purpose
The simplicity of fairy tales and non-specific details renders them ideal for manipulation allowing writers to add their own comments often reflecting social convention and ideology. Theref...
...n” is a great example of an old myth or tale reconstructed and adapted for a modern audience in a new medium. It is a progression on one hand in its use of modern language, setting, and style but it is also the product of the old myths in that it is essentially the same on the thematic level. In addition, the level of self-awareness on the part of the narrator and, by extension, the author marks it out as an illustration of the very notion of evolutionary changes of myths and fairy tales. Adaptation is the solution to the fairy tale, and fairy tales have been endlessly changing themselves throughout history and, by some strange transforming or enchanting power endlessly staying the same.”
“The fairy tale, which to this day is the first tutor of children because it was once the first tutor of mankind, secretly lives on in the story. The first true storyteller is, and will continue to be, the teller of fairy tales. Whenever good counsel was at a premium, the fairy tale had it, and where the need was greatest, its aid was nearest. This need was created by myth. The fairy tale tells us of the earliest arrangements that mankind made to shake off the nightmare which myth had placed upon its chest.”(Walter Benjamin). For generations fairy tales have brought happiness to hundreds of people. Through childhood to adults, people still enjoy the mysteries of fairytales. In society, fairytales are a great way of connecting
During the 19th century, Grimm’s fairytales were strongly disapproved of due to harsh, gruesome details and plots. One American educator from 1885 stated, “The folktales mirror all too loyally the entire medieval worldview and culture with all its stark prejudice, its crudeness and barbarities.” As childre...
Most modern fairytales are expected to have happy endings and be appropriate for children, nonetheless, in past centuries most were gruesome. Consequently, fairytales have been modified throughout time. The stories “Beauty and the Beast” by Jeanne-Marie LePrince de Beaumont and “The Summer and Winter Garden” by Jacob and Wilherm Grimm share similarities and differences. The two stories are distinct because of the peculiar year they have been written in. LePrince de Beaumont’s story is written in London of 1783 and Grimm’s in Germany of 1812. At the time, wealthy people in London, were educated and had nannies who would read to their children; whereas, in Germany, the Grimm brothers created their own interpretation into a short story. Because many high class parents in 18th century London would not be able to spend time with their children, nannies would read “Beauty and the Beast” to them since they were intended for children and considered appropriate. In “The Summer and Winter Garden,” the Grimm’s’ story was mostly based to entertain misbehaved children and teach them the valuable lesson that everyone should be treated with kindness. The Grimm brothers’ goal in rewriting this short story is to better children’s behavior which worked quite well. Since these stories have been re-written for children, it would be safe to say the reason why parents expose the two stories to their children is because they both portray the same moral: good things happen to good people. The two interpretations of “Beauty and the Beast,” although written in separate countries, share important similarities and differences even though the authors have different interpretations and came from different cultures.
In the introduction to the The Classic Fairy Tales, Maria Tartar notes that there is no “single, univocal, uncontested meaning” for any particular fairy tale (xiv). This is primarily due to the “kaleidoscopic variations” of fairy tales that have been “reconfigured” to meet the needs of different, distinct audiences (Tartar ix). As Tartar notes, “local color” shape each the telling of each tale (ix). However, the local color shapes more than just the telling, or variation, of a tale. When coupled with the personal experiences and expectations of the listener/reader of a tale, the local color also affects the meaning of a tale. As a result, a singular fairy tale or tale variation can have numerous meanings, each one dependent upon the individual. This is can be clearly seen by looking at several possible interpretations of “Wolfland” by Tanith Lee.
Wilhelm married a woman named Dortchen Wild. They had a baby in 1826, who died (Hettinga pg.68 + 108). They had a second child in 1828, and in 1832, Dortchen had a baby girl (Hettinga pg.118). Meanwhile, Jacob applied for the head librarian’s job, after the man had died in 1829 (Hettinga pg.109). Dortchen got very sick when she was helping her friend Lotte, who was very ill (Hettinga pg.118). Wilhelm died at 3 pm on December 15, 1859 (Hettinga pg.146). Jacob died on September 20, 1863 at 10 pm (Hettinga pg.149).
Tatar, M. (1987). Sex and Violence: The Hard Core of Fairy Tales. The hard facts of the Grimms' fairy tales (p. 3). Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.
Bettelheim, Bruno. “Fantasy, Recovery, Escape, and Consolation. “The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales. New York: Vintage Books, 1976.
Grimm, Jacob and Wilhelm. “Rapunzel.” Folk and Fairy Tales. Ed. Martin Hallett and Barbara Karasek. Peterborough: Broadview Press, 2002. 67-70.
Bettelheim, Bruno. The Uses of Enchantment: the Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales. London: Thames and Hudson, 1976. Print.
Zipes, Jack. Why Fairy Tales Stick: The Evolution and Relevance of a Genre. New York: Routledge, 2006. Print.
Fairy Tale Text & Motif. Prod. Distribution Access. Distribution Access, 2001.Discovery Education. Web. 1 December 2001. .