What is a fairy tale for kids

fairy tale - Students | Britannica Kids

Like folklore, mythology, fables, tall tales, and other classic stories that have been handed down, fairy stories are part of the oral tradition of literature. What makes the fairy tale different from the others is its use of magic and fantasy. Contrary to popular belief, the supernatural characters in fairy stories are not always fairy godmothers or winged sprites like Tinker Bell in Peter Pan. They may be magicians, ogres, dragons, brownies, elfs, goblins, gnomes, or leprechauns.

More often fairy tales involve ordinary people who have experiences of a supernatural kind and are affected by charms, disguises, spells, or other fantastic occurrences. Although the stories were told centuries ago to entertain children, many were originally written for adults. Two Italian collections, one published from 1550 to 1553 and one in 1634, contain highly literary versions of such stories as “Snow White,” “Sleeping Beauty,” “Puss in Boots,” and “Beauty and the Beast. ” In France, during the reign of Louis XIV, the fairy tale became fashionable among the members of the court. One of the most popular writers of these tales was the Comtesse d’Aulnoy. She added a sardonic touch to modern versions of old folktales.

Charles Perrault published Contes de ma mère l’oye (Tales of Mother Goose) in 1697. He wrote his stories to amuse his children; unlike the elaborate tales of the Comtesse d’Aulnoy, they were told in a simple style. The fairy tales came to have a major influence on children’s literature as their popularity spread.

In the early 19th century the Grimm brothers of Germany traveled around the countryside collecting stories. Their Grimm’s Fairy Tales was influential because of its popularity and because it formed the basis for the scholarly study of folklore. Another writer whose tales became universally popular was Hans Christian Andersen. His stories are personal in style and contain elements of autobiography and social satire. (See also Andersen, Hans Christian; Grimm Brothers.)

In the 20th century fairy tales were used by psychologists to interpret and examine universal fears and desires. The enduring appeal and popularity of the tales, however, is a result of their continued ability to entertain. ( See also fable; folklore; literature for children; mythology; storytelling.)

Hallet, Martin, and Karasek, Barbara. Folk and Fairy Tales: An Introductory Anthology (Broadview Press, 1990). Hanberg, Irene. Fairy Tales from Europe (Learning Connection, 1992). Hunt, Margaret, and Stern, James, tr. The Complete Grimm’s Fairy Tales (Pantheon, 1972). Jones, Steven S. The Fairy Tale (Macmillan, 1995). Lang, Andrew. Blue Fairy Book (Airmont Publishing Co., 1969). Lang, Andrew. Red Fairy Book (Buccaneer Books, 1987). Opie, Iona, and Opie, Peter. The Classic Fairy Tales (Oxford Univ. Press, 1981). Rohrich, Lutz. Folktales and Reality (Indiana Univ. Press, 1991). Tatar, Maria. Off with Their Heads! Fairy Tales and the Culture of Childhood (Princeton Univ. Press, 1992). Zipes, Jack. Fairy Tale as Myth, Myth as Fairy Tale (Univ. Press of Kentucky, 1994).

Fairy Tale: Definition and Examples

I. What is a Fairy Tale?

A fairy tale is a story, often intended for children, that features fanciful and wondrous characters such as elves, goblins, wizards, and even, but not necessarily, fairies. The term “fairy” tale seems to refer more to the fantastic and magical setting or magical influences within a story, rather than the presence of the character of a fairy within that story. Fairy tales are often traditional; many were passed down from story-teller to story-teller before being recorded in books.

II. Examples of Fairy Tale

Fairy tales, in the literary sense, are easy to find. Look at your bookshelf or your DVD collection.You may see titles likes these:

• Snow White
• Cinderella
• Rip Van Winkle
• The Twelve Dancing Princesses
• Rumpelstiltskin
• Thumbelina

They are all fairy tales. They belong to no one and have been adapted and retold countless times.

Fairy tales do not need to be written down to be legitimate. Many tales that your parents or grandparents may have told you off the top of their heads are also fairy tales. For example, stories of the tooth fairy, the boogeyman, leprechauns and pots of gold or even Santa Claus.

If a story takes place in a magical land, with fantastical creatures who perform wondrous tasks, it is very likely a fairy tale.

III. Types of Fairy Tales

There are no rules that define fairy tales. Therefore, they are categorized by their elements, types, or motifs.

Here are some of those types and examples of stories that fit those types:

• Supernatural Adversaries: Hansel and Gretel, Red Riding Hood

• Supernatural or Enchanted Relatives: Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast

• Supernatural Helpers: Cinderella, Puss In Boots

• Magic Objects: The Magic Ring, Aladdin

• Supernatural Power or Knowledge: The White Snake, Ali Baba

• Religious Tales: The Three Green Twigs, The Flower of Lily-Lo

• Realistic Tales: The Falsely Accused Wife, Ariadne

• Tales of Fate: The Robber Bridegroom, Oedipus (Aarne-Thompson)

IV.

Fairy tales are important because they spark the imagination. They give us an outlet for experiencing things in our minds before we experience them in the real world. It is where the troubles of the real world can meet the supernatural and mix things up. In a fairy tale anything can happen and any kind of creature can exist, and when anything can happen, we can find solutions to things in our real lives. Through imagination, we learn about our world. We can explore outcomes and possibilities.

Fairy tales exist in every culture in the world and there are elements of the fairy tale going back for as long as people have been telling stories. In Western culture, there are a few authors who were particularly important in the formal recording of fairy tales.

Hans Christian Anderson

Hans Christian Anderson was a Danish author who published his fairy tales in the late 1800s. Here are a few of his titles:

The Tinder-Box, The Princess and the Pea, Thumbelina, The Little Mermaid, The Emperor’s New Clothes, The Staunch Tin Soldier, Willie Winkie, The Nightingale, The Ugly Duckling, The Snow Queen. (Larsen)

Brothers Grimm

Jacob Ludwig Carl Grimm and Wilhelm Carl Grimm were German brothers who published their stories in the early 1800s. Here are a few of their titles:

The Good Bargain, Rapunzel, Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella, Little Red Cap, The Bremen Town Musicians, The Robber Bridegroom, The Juniper Tree, Little Brier-Rose, and Little Snow-White. (Ashliman)

More recently, the fairy tale has undergone a resurgence and a reinvention. Many popluar authors have set out to write fairy tales that are more in line with our time. Neil Gaiman is one of these authors. With books like Stardust and Coraline, he takes the fairy tale to a new place.  Kate DiCamillo is another, with The Tale of Despereaux. Those are only 3 examples, but the list is long!

We can find fairy tales in every element of our culture. They are, in many ways, given life through popular culture. They appear in books, movies, music, and art. As the fairy tale is such a creative art-form, itself, it is understandable that it would appear in all creative mediums. With each new interpretation or retelling of a fairy tale, we learn a little bit about the story-teller, the audience, the culture and the time in which it is told.

Probably the most recognizable producer of fairy tales in our culture is Walt Disney. Disney has turned the fairy tale into an industry, producing movies, books, toys, clothing, and just about anything else you can think of and branding them with fairy tale characters.

The television show Once Upon A Time is based upon the idea of the fairy tale and uses classic stories in some unique and surprising ways.

Recently there have been several movies made that tell more gruesome and dark versions of well-known fairy tales. Snow White and the Huntsman, Maleficent and Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters are a few of these.

In art, we also find images of fairy tale characters everywhere. Children’s picture books are an abundant source for these works. Picture books make the fairy tales come alive with their images.

What does a fairy tale mean for children. The benefits of fairy tales

A fairy tale plays a huge role in the life of children. This is an amazing world of Magic. Plunging into this world, the child comes into contact with a part of himself unknown. Direct perception at the moment of reading a fairy tale allows him to look into his own heart, deep subconscious moments will appear on the surface.

What a fairy tale teaches

If we turn to our history, we can note that in the old days, when a child committed a misdemeanor, they did not immediately punish him, but started a conversation with him, instructing him on the right path. After that, the child could think about his behavior, draw appropriate conclusions and no longer repeat mistakes.

A fairy tale has the same significance for the upbringing and development of a child. Through the fairy tale, the kid gets the experience of the older generation. It contributes to the expansion of the perception of the world by the child, enriches spiritually, gives knowledge about life and its laws, contributes to the development of fantasy and lays the foundation for creativity . Imagination helps him to enter into the role of characters from a fairy tale, to live as if from his own experience the plots of the realities of a fairy tale, which makes his thinking more flexible and develops an intuitive perception of the world. The conclusions made after reading the fairy tale can be called the first life knowledge, experience. The fairy tale language is understandable and loved by children of any age, this is their element.

A fairy tale is useful and interesting for a child. It gives the child the opportunity to imagine himself in the place of all the heroes of the fairy tale. From the main character to the most insignificant secondary and even in place of the negative hero. It is important that the child can identify and identify himself with the hero and, having lived all his actions on the pages of a fairy tale, evaluate their results and consequences.

The protagonist of the fairy tale teaches the kid by example to act actively in any life situation , don't give up, don't step aside. The best qualities of a person are attributed to him: courage, courage, resourcefulness. And the quality that is being lost lately is kindness.

In fairy tales, there is a clear division of heroes into positive and negative, which enables the child to understand what is bad, what is good and form the correct system of values ​​ .

Fairy tales are permeated with magic, shrouded in mystery. Written in poetic, figurative and metaphorical language. They give the child new sensations and impressions.

A good kind fairy tale always ends well, no matter what happens throughout the story. Good conquers evil. Negative heroes change, realize something, get what they deserve or disappear from the world of this fairy tale. Positive characters also change, acquiring new qualities, and continue to live in the world of a fairy tale in some other guise. All this forms an optimistic attitude towards life and a sense of justice .

All the events in the fairy tale flow harmoniously and logically from one another and the child easily captures the cause and effect of every event that occurs .

Any fairy tale basically has several layers at once and therefore, read at different ages, will be perceived differently and solve different problems.

Recommendations for reading fairy tales

The ability to read fairy tales is also an art. In order to have the effect of reading a fairy tale by parents, it is useful to take into account several points.

• A fairy tale can be read or told. But it is important to do this with expression, highlighting the climaxes with intonation or making a meaningful pause. This will give you the opportunity to go on an exciting, adventurous journey together, strengthen your bond, and also give you the opportunity to observe the reactions of the child throughout the story.
• You need to read quietly, slowly and clearly pronounce the words. It depends on how your child's speech, vocabulary and the correct construction of sentences will be formed.
• Try not to make any changes in the narration of folk tales, taking into account our reality, if you are retelling a tale. Such additions and transformations can confuse the child and make it difficult to perceive the fairy-tale world. But this in no way cancels your inventing fairy tales for your baby.
• Read better original works. Shortened and simplified versions very often distort not only the meaning of the tale, but also violate the integrity of the characters' images.
• Don't get irritated when the child starts asking questions. Patiently explain what worries him or what the child cannot understand.
• Do not read more than one fairy tale at a time. After all, the child needs to pass it through himself in order to understand the meaning of the work.
• Leave the choice of fairy tale to the child. If he often wants to listen to the same fairy tale, then it is necessary for his consciousness at the moment, and some important work is going on in the subconscious.
• Refrain from explaining to your child the meaning of a story you have read or told. It's better that he realizes everything himself. But you can ask leading questions, give comparisons or examples.

Adults often forget that they were small children and how they were looking forward to the next fairy tale. Therefore, do not spare your time and go with your child on this exciting journey more often. There you will find a world of joy, love, tranquility, courage and much that is sometimes lacking in our lives. And maybe together you can invite it into your reality.

Children's fairy tales: why are they needed and how to choose

What is a fairy tale

— Ekaterina Andreevna, what is a fairy tale ?

— In the 21st century, adults usually mean a literary, author's fairy tale by the word fairy tale. A person over twenty years old now considers Hoffmann's The Nutcracker, for example, a classic fairy tale, where there is a fabulous space, a happy ending and understandable motivations.

In a folk tale, the main thing is the plot, where there are understandable threefold repetitions of typical situations, for example, three times an old man throws a net into the sea, where there are bad heroes and good heroes, but it is not clear why they act in this way.

In the 21st century, people no longer understand many plot motivations of the folk tale: “The girl was married because she needs to get married.” For us, it is absolutely unthinkable that one has to get married simply in order to survive, because there are male and female jobs, and only together can a man and a woman provide for their livelihood. We do not live in such a coordinate system, it is difficult for us to understand.

Therefore, many modern fairy tales combine an archaic plot, for example, about a princess and her savior, and its new interpretation, which is understandable to contemporaries. For example, in William Smeig's Shrek, there are two outwardly terrible characters who become happy after finding each other, but at the same time remain as ugly as they were at the beginning of the story. The moral of this story is simple - if you love, then what is ugly to others seems beautiful to you.

Is a fairy tale a child's reading?

- From the very beginning, a folk tale is not a story for children. It was a genre similar to modern series. The task of a fairy tale is to fill leisure time, to tell an amusing story that is listened to while doing some simple homework in order to be distracted and relax. A modern person watches the series the way a person listened to a fairy tale when it was born and actively told.

Why do we need a fairy tale

— And now, in the age of serials and computers, is a fairy tale even needed?

- Absolutely. Today there are storytellers who continue the tradition of Hans Christian Andersen. It is Andersen for many parents who is an example of a fairy tale: stories with magic, with allegories, with a world where a needle can become a hero. This language of allegory, allegory acquires a completely new sound, a new meaning when it is addressed to children. This is the image through which an adult tries to convey something to a child.

— That is, a fairy tale is a way to make your child “good”?

— No. All parents remember the phrase: "A fairy tale is a lie, but there is a hint in it." Adults think that the fairy tale gives the right ideas about good and evil, but this is a very superficial level of perception.

Actually, for example, the tale “About the Fisherman and the Fish” does not tell about good and evil at all. It can rather confuse the reader. The first thing that comes to mind is that the old woman is punished for being greedy. Greed is bad, therefore, severely punishing greed by taking everything away from a person is good. In fact, such a reading of a fairy tale is the result of the simplest manipulation on the part of parents.

We sometimes try to make a child comfortable at the expense of a fairy tale. We try to explain to him that to obey is good, and not to obey is bad. But this approach doesn't work at all.

It is much more interesting to read together with a child and discuss the actions of the heroes: why the old woman drove her old man to the fish, why the fairy tale ends like this. But again, this is not about how to become “good”. Rather, that the world is rather complicated, there are no “good” and “evil” heroes in it. This only happens in the fictional world of a fairy tale. If we return to the phrase about a lie and a hint, then the main thing is to learn to think about what the hint pointed to.

- Then it turns out that a fairy tale for parents is a useless thing. It doesn't teach good, it doesn't help to live, why then read it...

— It is unlikely that such parents exist in nature — absolute pragmatists. Most often, the parent selects fairy tales in order to read them aloud and communicate with the child.

One of the most important functions of this genre is reading aloud. A fairy tale is an entertaining story that is great to read and perceive together. And she performs this function brilliantly. Because a fairy tale is needed and will not go anywhere from the family.

An adult can stop, pick up a book and read with the children. These are the minutes or hours that are spent with the child, which are given to him.

A boy or a girl knows for sure that a fairy tale guarantees him the time of his mother, father or grandmother, which will belong to them.

The fairy tale has the most important function - it is the emotional field that it creates around itself.

Reading with a child is great, amusing, interesting, bright, unexpected. Behind each new line there may be a twist that you do not expect, it is always a reader's drive. The story allows you to experience together. These are strong, but not overwhelming emotions. It's great - to rejoice together, to be surprised together, to grieve together. In addition, the child, when he switches to independent reading, retains this thread of pleasure and the thread of safety. That is, he reads a fairy tale - and at this moment he feels safe, because reading a fairy tale was associated with the presence of a beloved adult nearby.

Can a fairy tale do harm? Suppose I read about Carlson and began to eat only jam with cookies ...

- Actually, it’s not a fairy tale that can teach bad things. Can the child imitate the actions of the characters? Yes and no. It must be understood that only the person who already wanted to do this will be able to read a fairy tale like permission to eat jam in jars. The tale will give an answer to those who have already asked this question.

If a child does not have a need to do something that is told in a fairy tale, then he will not do it.

Another thing is that a literary work has the ability to include the reader's memories of some unpleasant event or experience. Purely theoretically, any book can frighten if it activates the memory of the child, if the fairy tale story coincides with some personal unpleasant or terrible experiences.

- Did I understand correctly that, for example, an adopted child should not read "The Little Thumb", where parents take their children to the forest and leave them there?

- No, wrong. There are no general recommendations “for all children”. Both literature and art are beautiful in their diversity and the ability to offer any reader what he needs.

One orphan child recognizes himself in a boy with a finger, and another orphan child does not recognize himself. He will read this story differently. One may be afraid that he will be abandoned again, the other will learn from the hero of this story to overcome difficulties, and the third will generally remain indifferent to the boy with a finger, because this experience is not close to him.

— Then it turns out that for some reason adults are afraid and consider completely harmless fairy tales “harmful”?

— Every father and mother has their own fears, which they acquired not from books, but from personal experience. We, adults, too often frighten each other, make different demands on ourselves and others.

Reading is one of the key markers. What you read, what your child reads, shows others whether you are a good parent or a bad one.

Many parental fears are associated with this marker. “I am a good mother if I control my child everywhere and absolutely,” psychologists often talk about this delusion.

Therefore, for example, "Little Red Riding Hood" is a fairy tale about "bad" parents. If an adult woman is now reading Little Red Riding Hood and discovers a behavior pattern there that does not fit into the idea of ​​​​complete control, then it seems to her that this is a terrible fairy tale. She really scares, not only children, but adults.

Taboo topics

— But after all, any parent understands that it is too early for a child to read some books at 6-9 years old. Every family has its own taboo topics that are sometimes touched upon in fairy tales.

- Usually all fairy tales are tabooed, which contain unnecessary physiological details. Forbidden in children's texts is everything that concerns the insides of a person, his intimate relationships or death.

— What to do if a child still reads a fairy tale with forbidden topics and comes to his parents with questions?

— It all depends on the particular family. You can say, "I don't know" or "It's hard for me to talk about it." You can also come up with your own fairy tale that would somehow solve the problem, but I don’t have universal advice.

How to read better with a child

— For a child to come to his father and mother with questions, parents should read fairy tales together with him. And what is the best way to do it?

— From about three years old, first aloud to the child, and then with the child, you need to read books. If you do this every day for 5-10 minutes, then your son or daughter will get used to the fact that reading is important and good.

The book should be associated with the pleasure of communicating with parents: first we look at the pictures, then we read and discuss the fairy tale. Therefore, the rule here is not so much in systematicity or time, but in an emotional mood - reading for joy, for peace and quiet.

— Do we read or retell in our own words?

— You can do it this way, and that way — depending on what kind of fairy tale it is, what is the age of the child… In principle, sometimes it is worth retelling a fairy tale without looking at the book. We change foreign names to native ones and boldly invent our own story. And it's not just fairy tales that can be told this way. If parents are interested, they can tell the child at least about Gogol's Dead Souls.

It must be remembered that the fairy tale originally existed in oral form, it was told, not read.

When you talk and look at the child at the same time, there is no mediator between you in the form of a book, and such communication produces a completely different effect - a different emotional, trusting contact arises. Do not be afraid if you forget or miss something, you have already created your own fairy tale together with the children.

How to be a good parent

- Sometimes adults need a book to "protect from a child." I've read a certain number of pages and I'm free, but this won't work with retelling. The situation is unpredictable...

— A parent is often afraid to show a child something that he himself is afraid of. We are afraid to open up to children, to make mistakes. We are afraid to show that we ourselves do not know the material very accurately. We are afraid to say, "I don't know." We are afraid that we will lose authority by confessing our weaknesses, but in fact it will only grow stronger from this. From honesty, from the ability to communicate with a son or daughter on an equal footing. If you are not ready to discuss some issues with your child at the age of three to six, then, having become a teenager, he will no longer come to you with his problems. Even at the age of eight, a child will think about whether it is worth asking a question to parents who are afraid of frankness and communication with him.

In this sense, reading and discussing books together with children is also a great way to learn how to be a mom or dad. We are not born parents. Parents become as your children grow.

In the 21st century, any problems must be solved together with the children, and not for the children, it is necessary to learn something new and learn together.

Interviewed by Andrey Zaitsev

15 recommendations for reading with a child from 6 to 9 years old from Ekaterina Asonova

1. Charles Perrault. "Cinderella", "Puss in Boots"
2. Selma Lagerlöf. "The Wonderful Journey of Nils with the Wild Geese"
3. Hans Christian Andersen. Flint, Thumbelina, Ugly Duckling, etc.
4. Carlo Collodi. The Adventures of Pinocchio
5. Lewis Carroll. Alice in Wonderland
6. Vladimir Odoevsky.

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