Hansel and Gretel and Little Red Riding Hood are two examples of ancient stories which were collected by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. The first edition of their collection of stories Children’s and Household Tales appeared in 1812 in Germany but many of the stories come from other parts of Europe, the Middle East or Asia. Children’s and Household Tales has been translated into more than 160 languages. The Grimm tales usually have a social or a moral message. The message of Hansel and Gretel and Little Red Riding Hood, for example, is ‘Don’t trust strangers’.
The original Grimm tales were extremely violent and frightening. The Grimms themselves, as well as other storytellers and publishers, changed many of the stories over the years, so that the tales have become less scary. But are fairy tales really too frightening for children? The psychologist Bruno Bettelheim argued that fairy tales are important for child development; reading fairy tales can help children learn about life, deal with their fears and achieve their dreams. In many fairy tales a young person esperiences terrible problems with an adult – but the young person wins. There is often a happy ending.
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Ellie Levenson: Fairy tales prepare children for reality
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