As the Romans and the Norse rolled in and then rolled out, and the missionaries of Christianity spread across the Western World, mythology changed its face. It didn't disappear - stories are too much a part of being human to be snuffed out by any dominant belief system. For the common people of Europe, Christianity was never really explained. Missionaries did whatever it took to convert people to the new faith, and in their attempt to make people Christians and to get them involved in the new civilization that was rising from the ashes of the Roman empire, most of those working for the Catholic church failed to be too concerned about the details. The result was an odd mixture of superstition and folk tradition, ancient mythology, and Catholic ritual. Those mixtures were turned into stories told to listeners of all ages at firesides and pubs. The stories were a form of myth, explaining why things worked a certain way, teaching important life lessons, and entertaining. We call those stories Fairy Tales and Wonder Tales. In the intervening years, most of the original stories were cleaned up or combined, and many people now consider fairy tales to be something for children. They really aren't. Take a few hours to delve into the world of the fairy tale, and to see the strange, frightening, and wondrous world that became the inheritor of myth.
REQUIRED READINGS |
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The first 3 articles on your list are challenges. All 3 of them are scholarly papers by fairy tale experts. I've given you a brief summary of the author's credentials, and the viewpoint of the writer. I want you to read these pieces, because fairy tales are more than just stories - they're also records of history and culture as well as being the children of myth. Please, soldier through the theory pieces. They're important for understanding the next section. |
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Jack Zipes is a professional historian of fairy tales. He is interested in examining fairy tales as a type of myth,and seeing if the elements of mythic stories and heroes still exist in the fairy tale.
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Robert Darnton is a social historian who is interested in examining fairy tales as witnesses to culture. His piece will look at whether or not fairy tales are viable historical documents, and look at cultural identity within fairy tales from different places. |
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Jane Yolen is a teacher and author who is deeply concerned with the cultural importance of fairy tales. She believes that fairy tales speak to the simpler, purer, more childlike parts of who we are and explain things that are too hard to talk about in ways we instinctively understand. |
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And here are your fairy tales -- they may not be the stories you remember, but they'll be interesting! Enjoy, and pay attention to what the stories tell you about life in the time they were told and about life as human beings in general. |
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LECTURE (audio download)