The Cultural Significance of Fairytales.
Fairytales are a global consistency. Every culture has its own story that's been passed down from generation to generation.
They involve anthropomorphic animals, magical creatures and almost impossibly beautiful princesses. They are the quintessential ideal for childhood fantasy. Many people would agree that fairytales aren't true.
But then, one has to wonder... is that entirely correct?
I don't mean in the sense that fairies and gnomes are real (although a somewhat less cynical part of me would argue that there isn't consistent evidence to disprove their existence). I'm talking about their morals, the lessons they teach the young and impressionable.
Fairytales are frequently associated with the Grimm brothers or Perrault. But tales of this kind have been present since as early as the Ancient Greeks, with Aesop.
Aesop's fables are renowned for their strong moral message. One of the most poignant is the fable of 'The Wolf and The Lamb'. A wolf wishes to eat a lamb and, despite the lamb listing various reasons why he most definitely does not deserve to be eaten, the wolf does so anyway. The message? The wicked do not care about the innocent; their own need is more important. It's a lesson that many of us need to learn. We won't always be treated with compassion.
Wolves are somewhat omnipresent in folklore. They represent the unjust, the corrupt. Everyone knows to fear The Big Bad Wolf. This figure acts as a catalyst for the morals of many tales. The most obvious would be 'Little Red Riding Hood', which has connotations of paedophilia and sexual awakening. Through the image of the wolf, children learn not to trust strangers, to not 'stray from the path'.
I have seen some people argue that fairytales aren't good for little girls to read. There's an ongoing argument within some feminist groups that fairytales teach that a prince is necessary for a woman to fulfill her potential. They present the idea that a woman has to be beautiful, and anyone who is 'ugly' is a hag by default. I would argue the contrary and my supporting evidence is 'The Snow Queen'.
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| Arthur Rackham's "Little Red Riding Hood" |
'The Snow Queen' tells the tale of Gerda, a young girl who goes to rescue her playmate Kai from the Snow Queen. This story is dominated by female characters and notice how it is Gerda who saves Kai, one of only two males in the story (not counting The Devil). This tells young girls that they don't have to be the submissive ones; they can go out and kick ass! As for the whole "the princesses aren't positive role models" argument: the Princess in this story does seek love, but insists that she will only marry if the male in question is of the same mental capacity as her. She's asserting her independence, which is an extremely important lesson for young girls to learn in this age.
Furthermore, I fail to understand why young girls shouldn't read about princesses. Their stories seem to have the most important lessons of all: they teach you that it's okay to fall in love. It may be platonic, like with Gerda and Kai, or it may be something more.
In a world full of wolves, a prince (or princess, as emphasised in this comic) is out there somewhere. You can find him or he can find you.
As a young girl, I was enamoured with fairytales and still am. They're dark, they're often scary but they were a large part of making me who I am today. The novel I'm currently writing is hugely influenced by fairytales.
So yes, I will sit in my 'Snow White' dress and sing along to 'Into the Woods', and I will do so unashamedly because sometimes, a little childlike indulgence is all you need.
Key
