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Are fairy tales too scary? (Article)

JennyJenny
edited January 2009 in - Reading
http://timesonline.typepad.com/schoolgate/2009/01/are-fairy-tales.html

Comments

  • CarolCarol
    I loved the comment about being read Edgar Alan Poe at bedtime...
  • Stan2Stan2
    Yes, I liked that comment too. Mr Poe might be a bit too scary for children.
  • goodsuspectgoodsuspect
    I was reading a really interesting article (can't remember where off the top of my head) about the origins of certain fairy stories and how they've evolved and secret meanings and stuff. The one they talked about most was Snow White - the Disney version really scared me as a child! - which when you think about it is quite a dark story, but I think children are subjected to worse on the news. I don't know, the PC brigade is leading us to raise a nation of wusses! (Only joking, before anyone jumps on me) :D
  • JennyJenny
    I remember reading Tom and the Water Babies (one of my Dad's book collection) when I was quite young. It wasn't at all the cosy children's story that I'd expected!
  • Lou TreleavenLou Treleaven
    I requested the Complete Brothers Grimm for Christmas and can't wait to get my teeth into it; I'm hoping it'll inform my writing. And scare me witless, probably!

    I remember reading the original version of Cinderella many years ago (I studied fairy tales as part of a module at college) and was deliciously thrilled when, after Cinderella's foot had fitted into the FUR slipper, the ugly sisters were made to put on specially prepared red-hot slippers and everyone watched them dance (in agony).

    For anyone interested in the meaning and origin of fairy tales, I recommend The Uses of Enchantment by Bruno Bettelheim. It's a brillliant read in its own right, and you'll never think of Beauty and the Beast in the same way again. (Think of the birds and the bees and you'll get the idea.) He was also a concentration camp survivor and his take is quite personal.
  • Stan2Stan2
    ^
  • JennyJenny
    Re Cinderella's slippers, I thought there was a mistranslation which resulted in vair (fur) becoming verre (glass). Not so, apparently, according to:

    http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/002886.html
  • PiperPiper
    edited January 2009
    Oh for heaven's sake this is PC gone mad! You can't mollycuddle your children forever. Bedtime stories and fairytales such as Cinderella I loved. So what these parents that don't read them these bedtime stories wont let them watch the films either? I loved Cinderella as a child but I was never told a bedtime story. What's next? I dread to think...

    I just finished reading the whole article, these are the stories that parents are reluctant to read:

    Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
    Hansel and Gretel
    Cinderella
    Little Red Riding Hood
    The Gingerbread Man
    Jack and the Beanstalk
    Sleeping Beauty
    Beauty and the Beast
    Goldilocks and the Three Bears
    The Emperor’s New Clothes

    I'm sorry but The Gingerbread Man? Scary? I agree with Noel's HQ Live. Britain HAS gone bonkers!!!
  • DaisyDaisy
    It's a funny thing about fairy tales. I don't remember ever being scared by them as a child and I was a very shy and sensitive child. I'm sure children know they are just stories and the underlying themes or messages are great - the baddies always get their come-uppance don't they? I think it's some adults who think too much and end up worrying about some unlikely nasty effect the stories might have. I work with under five's and read countless numbers of stories to young children every week. I do sometimes find myself watching for signs of distress but always end the stories with some kind of explaination or reassurance if I think one is needed. Stories can be very therapeutic and educational in a fun and entertaining way. Children these days can come into contact with far nastier and darker aspects of lives - it's those real things that have real bad effects that we should be worrying about, not fairytales.
  • CarolCarol
    Agree there Daisy.
    When you see what is talkred about on the early evening news sometimes, you have to wonder what children are taking in.
  • PiperPiper
    Well I take in all this and produce an answer for it. As for the news, I don't read or watch it. It's too depressing.
  • NutmegNutmeg
    a totally agree with probie and goodsuspect here...
  • PiperPiper
    ^
  • NefertariNefertari
    I have just bought The Gingerbread Man and Goldilocks for my granddaughter and I will be reading them to her! What a lot of nonsense.
    I was never scared by these stories and I was quite a sensitive child I was more scared of Father Christmas.
  • PiperPiper
    Father Christmas?
  • JennyJenny
    I think clowns are scary!
  • PiperPiper
    edited January 2009
    Could someone answer my post on Januarys One Word Challenge, queries pages. Please.
  • LizLiz
    I think children need to be scared, in a safe and loving environment. Let them now what it feels like, and know that it can be overcome. I think this is partly what they are for. For similar reasons we took both children to see my Uncle and Grandfather when they were dying, and dead.

    I have a friend whose parent refused to let her see the news. She was protected in every way... certainly had never been read fairy stories etc. When she went out into the wide world, the first thing which punctured her view of the perfect world punctured her mind. She's been mentally ill ever since. She still lives with her parents.

    I'm not suggesting this will to happen to everyone, but I do really believe that children need to 'practice' emotions and situations when they are young, and the whole ramifications are not clear to them. It equips their brains with the ability to cope when they are adults and something affects them.
  • goodsuspectgoodsuspect
    To be honest I think children appreciate the black and white nature of fairy stories. At that young age they don't always get the subtleties of the 'grey' areas. They like to know who to root for!
  • CarolCarol
    My boys ask for explanations if they see something on the news, and I try and give an explanation that is fairly unbiased, but may explain the reasoning for both sides.
  • PiperPiper
    Which I think is the best way.
  • LizLiz
    I agree Carol, let them see, but always have the time to explain, even that it is inexplicable!

    My son's philosophy and belief teacher says h'es light years ahead of his classmates in understanding and appreciation of other's needs, beliefs and actions... probably all that 'put yourself in their shoes' stuff we've had him do!! Maybe that's helped him be an actor too?
  • CarolCarol
    Quite certainly.
  • PiperPiper
    Well I had a conversation with my parents about how the world started on new years eve. I said something, and dad said. "In the 46 years I've thought about this and you've came to the same conclusion in 14 years." Or something like that. I'm atheist and I have rational thoughts on everything like that.
  • Lou TreleavenLou Treleaven
    I remember being really scared by the Ladybird version of 'Snow White and Rose Red'. Not only the scary grizzly bear but also the part where they fall asleep next to the edge of a cliff. Guess what? I loved it and read it loads. Maybe the appeal is that fairytales scare, but in a controlled environment.
  • goodsuspectgoodsuspect
    I completely agree Lou.
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