Comparing The Brothers Grimm And The Complete Fairy Tales

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These oral works contain many different supernatural aspects of talking animals, magical creatures, ghost, and witches/sorcerers. Unrestricted by reality, both formats use anything one can think of to entertain and teach. Tricky elves come from Child’s The Queen of Elfan’s Nourice where the elf queen captures a maiden and trick her into raising the elf’s young, instead of the girl’s own child (Child vol. I: 358-359). In Grimm, there are stories about elves: from helpful ones who make shoes, to evil elves that steal babies and put changelings in their place (Grimm 139-141) . Magic does not just come in the form of elves. Witches and sorcerers are frequent in these works, like Twa Magitions from Child. In this there are two battling sorcerers …show more content…

This story type is not solely in The Complete Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm, but in English and Scottish Popular Ballads as well. The most recognizable evil stepmothers are those of Cinderella and Snow White from the Grimm brother’s tales. Childs own example of an evil stepmother is The Laily worm and the Machrel of the Sea, where the narrator’s “mither she did die;/ my father married the ae warst woman/ the warld did ever see.” (Child vol. I: 316). This could be the opening line for Grimm tales like Cinderella and The True Bride because the archetype of evil stepmothers are popular in both of these works. The idea of the evil stepmother comes from the cultural background of the pieces. In stories like Grimm’s The White Bride and the Black Bride and Child’s Kemp Owyne where the stepmother did what she could to keep her stepchildren away from opportunities that her children can claim, like marrying the prince or getting inheritances. A mother instinctively tries to do what is best for her own children, so her stepchildren are neglected. This idea translates into the oral traditions as stepmothers abusing stepchildren because stories over exaggerate. Making the idea of the evil step other a cultural aspect embedded in the collected works of the Grimm brothers and

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