Fairy Tales and Folk Lore Blog #4

The two stories I have chosen are “Little Red Cap” by the Brothers Grimm, and “Beauty and the Beast” by Jeanne-Marie Leprince De Beaumont. I decided on these two stories in particular, because they are the stories and versions I know the best from my childhood and I’ve always enjoyed them. The topic I’m focusing on with these two stories is the reinforcement of patriarchal order.  

In “Little Red Cap” the wolf is the male stranger that leads Little Red Riding Hood astray from her task, while in other versions the wolf is the male seducer. In the versions of LRRH where the wolf represents a male, it can be symbolic of the idea of how certain kinds men often prey upon weak and innocent females. In fact, in the Perrault version of the story it is even a warning to young women who could be preyed upon. In “Little Red Cap” it is notable that the hunter, which saves both Little Red and her grandmother is a man. The hunter or whoever saved them from the wolf could have been written or told as being a woman. This reinforces the male patriarchy because the hunter saves them which reinforces the idea that males are supposed to be the ones who are stronger and save the day, as well as being greatly respected and admired by others, while women are seen as being weaker and in need of protection.  

In “Beauty and the Beast” the girl gives up everything to save her father and live in servitude to the beast. The girl is praised for her beauty and kindness which reinforces the stereotype of how girls and women in society should be like. The story reflects the ideas of the patriarchy because the girl is serving and protecting her father and by doing so submitting herself to the beast who she has to stay with. These aspects of the story show the order of the patriarchy because within patriarchal standards women should always serve and be obedient to the men in their lives. In this story the girl is serving and submitting herself to the beast, which is the main male figure in the story, and the reason she does this is to serve and protect her father from the beast.  

The stories themselves do not have a ton in common when it comes to the order of the patriarchy, only that they reinforce certain standards about men and women. Each story tells of different values and lessons and by doing so they incorporate different patriarchal norms. Thus far I definitely like “Beauty and the Beast” more then LRRH because I didn’t really like all the hidden meanings in LRRH, however, I think the lessons within the many versions of the story are very valuable ones. I also like “Beauty and the Beast” better because it is a story that I grew up with more as a child because of watching the Disney one, therefore, the story has more meaning and nostalgia for me.  

Folk Lore and Fairy Tales Blog #3

Rather than search and search for a Little Red Riding Hood cartoon that I liked, I thought of something slightly different but still applicable. The cartoon I chose is actually a fan art from a book series I read last semester. The series called The Lunar Chronicles, ties in iconic fairy tales in which the author uses to tell her own versions of the stories in a futuristic, sci-fi, action pack rendition. The author, Marissa Meyer, bases her main characters in the series off of iconic fairy tale characters, for example, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, and Rapunzel to name a few.  

In the second book of the series, the focus is on the character named Scarlet, who is based on Little Red Riding Hood. Like in the fairy tale, Scarlet is also associated with red, such as her name, her red hair, and the red hoodie she wears most of the time. Scarlet encounters the character called Wolf, who is a genetically modified human to have wolf-like instincts and abilities, hence his nick name Wolf. Later throughout the book and the rest of the series the two characters become friends and allies as well as falling in love.  

The cartoon/drawing I found is a fan art of the two characters, Scarlet, and Wolf. Since the two characters are based on Little Red Riding Hood the theme of the drawing is still Little Red Riding Hood. The artwork shows the character Scarlet with the head of a wolf behind her which represents the character Wolf. There is also the Eiffel Tower in the background as well because the two characters travel to Paris together on a mission in the book. I like the artwork because I like the style of art it is, and I like how it incorporated both of the characters and the setting as well. 

 

The artist is called jeanlee19 and she originally posted her work on Devianart, however I had first found it on Google images while searching for a cartoon or artwork to use.  

URL: https://www.deviantart.com/jeanlee19/art/Scarlet-Litographs-Design-Contest-643935283  

Fairy Tales and Folk Lore Blog #2

Folk lore and fairy tales are age old stories and traditions found in every corner of the world. Folk lore is mainly traditional stories found in cultures that are told orally and passed down through centuries. Fairy tales are stories told in a similar manner as folk lore, and are also present in countless cultures around the world. The main difference between folk lore and fairy tales is that fairy tales have to involve magic in some way because they are considered tales of wonder and magic. The German word for fairy tale is Zaubermarchen; zauber meaning magic, and marchen meaning fairy tale. Magic is literally in the name, which shows just how closely associated fairy tales are with magic in particular. Fairy tales and folk lore are extremely important in cultures and hold great importance in countless different ways, however, there are many more factors to them that are not always realized by most.
In her book The Interpretations of Fairy Tales, Marie-Louise von Franz claims that “fairy tales are the purest and simplest expression of collective unconscious psychic processes,” (1), which means that within every story there are certain archetypes featured and often teach people lessons as well. There are always much deeper meanings within the stories and most aspects of the stories are symbolic. There are always reoccurring themes with fairy tales and they’re important for knowing and understanding them on a deeper level. For example the forest or the witch in a story is often reoccurring in many and are also deeply symbolic.
In Bruno Bettelheim’s book, The Uses of Enchantment, he believes that fairy tales hold deeper psychological meanings that people, particularly children identify with unconsciously. This means that whatever is going on in a child or person’s life can be identified with certain stories on an unconscious level. For example one’s favorites fairy tale could potentially reveal certain aspects of one’s unconsciousness. This is also why fairy tales are important while being a child because during childhood the mind is still developing. Therefore, fairy tales are essential and important to a child’s life and it shows the importance of reading to a child.

Fairy Tales and Folk Lore Blog #1

The main reason I chose this class is because I have always had a strong love for fairy tales and folk lore. I’ve also always loved mythology and legends as well. These specific examples are stemmed from the fact that I have always been a reader from a very young age, and I’ve always loved a good story. In a way I was raised by fairy tales because they can be held as partially responsible for creating my love of reading. I also grew up watching and loving Disney princess movies, which are all based on fairy tales. This is another way fairy tales were present in my life from an early age. As a reader one of my favorite genres has always been the fantasy genre, and I’ve always loved action and adventure stories. I also grew up loving books and movies such as, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Narnia, and many more. As a lover of fantasy and adventure stories; I was immediately interested in a class involving fairy tales and folk lore.  

I am hoping to accomplish many things by taking this class. One of my passions apart from reading is that I have always loved learning about other cultures and history. By taking this class I hope I can learn more about the cultural origins of fairy tales and folk lore as well as the history behind them. I also hope to learn about fairy tales and folk lore that I may not know of from other cultures, which I think would be really interesting. I hope to have a deeper understanding of fairy tales and folk lore and their origins through taking this class.  

My favorite fairy tales have always been Sleeping Beauty and Aladdin. Ever since I was little kid they were always my favorite. As I mentioned before I grew up watching Disney, so the Disney versions of those stories are what I am mainly familiar with. I’ve always loved Sleeping Beauty and I’m not entirely sure as to why exactly. I guess I always loved the story and the romanticism of it. In the Disney version I also loved the good vs evil theme with Prince Phillip and Maleficent. I also really loved the live action remake of Sleeping Beauty Disney did a few years ago, Maleficent, and I enjoyed the twist they took on the story. I’ve always loved Aladdin because I love the magic, adventure, and Middle Eastern setting of it. I always thought that Aladdin was a bit more unique and exciting than other Disney princess movies. I also love the magic involved in like the genie and the magic lamp as well as the magic carpet. I am also really excited for the new live action remake of Aladdin that Disney is coming out with this year, I can’t wait!