The Fairy Tales By The Grimm Brothers

Tales from the past still teach lessons and morals that everyone can implement in society today. The Grimm’s others Tales were first told aurally but only did they get documented when the brothers decided to write them down. and perseverance. These stories are still read today because, they help us transform ourselves and our conditions to live in a better world. These tales all have morals and warnings about the importance of family, seven deadly sins, and perseverance.

Through the many years the Grimm brothers were alive, an array of children's literature was produced. Actually, the correct term would be reproduced. Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm were masters at reproducing and even changing early children's stories so that they had more meaning for the children of the time. More times than not, they censored out sexual meanings and added violence to children's stories that had already been told for centuries. By doing so, the brothers got an effect out of the story that would change it from a story with a subtle theme or moral, to a vivid story of lessons to be learned and consequences to be dealt with. There was one thing about their' writing that was always

Fairy tales have been passed down from generation to generation, each person in one way or another altering the tale to reflect a piece of their life in the work . The Brothers Grimm wrote hundreds of fairy tales in their life time and in these works they used their childhood experiences as reference. Because of the hardships they faced growing up their tales take on a more gruesome approach to fairy tales. Because their mother was their only caregiver growing up, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm reflect their fondness towards her through the strong willed, independent female characters in their fairy tales. Female heroines are rarely seen in modern day fairy tales, but as a result of their childhood the Brothers Grimm utilized them frequently

Have you ever had a dark and gloomy day? Imagine having that feeling every single day. The Grimm’s Cinderella was written in 1812. 1812 was one of the harshest years for America. An event that formed it was the war against Great Britain and the United States. Not only was there a war, but there was also a series of disastrous harvests. Taxes got higher, and more than twenty people who were involved with a Luddite Act were hung. In 1812, there was also the only assassination of a prime minister, who was shot dead in the House of Commons. The Grimm Brothers have put the dark times of 1812 into their stories. Some of their stories contain violence, child abuse, and wicked mothers. They came up with these types of stories after their father died, and when they struggled out of school. That gave them enough time to research and put together a collection of folk tales. Now you can see why the Grimm’s Cinderella was dark and gloomy. Although the plot stayed the same, over the years, the story did get lighter. Disney’s Cinderella came out in 1950. In 1950, learning information was not by fear, but by engaging happiness. Disney’s Cinderella transforms the Grimm’s Cinderella into a happier atmosphere. While some similarities between Disney’s Cinderella and Grimm’s Cinderella are noticeable, the differences are pronounced, especially when referring to the slippers, her father, and the ball.

In the article, Dreams of a Better Bourgeois Life: The Psycho-Social Origins of the Tales, Jack Zipes explains the psychosocial origins of the tales of the Brothers Grimm. Since there are very few publications of attempts to explain the psychosocial origins, there is an assumption “that the tales were genuine folk tales” (28). As Zipes describes, these fairy tales do not reflect the “ancient times and customs” (29). When the Grimm Brother’s collected these fairy tales they already had undergone changes. Also, the Grimm’s collection of fairy tales were rewrote to represent them because these tales closely related to their lives. The Grimm Brothers experienced loss and separation of family members, decline in social status, lack of basic needs

Fairy Tales are not just stories that parents tell to their children, but stories with hidden valuable messages which are mostly left on a side. In the article “An Introduction to Fairy Tales,” Maria Tatar clearly explains how people need fairy tales in their lives. Tatar also states how fairy tales have the ability to take the listener, especially children’s, into a journey in which they can play with their imagination so that they can discover their deepest fears and wishes. Personally I agree with the author, because of the fact that in an individual’s lives as they get older, they will try to define themselves, sometimes comparing their own life with a character from their favorite story or Fairy Tale.

The story of Cinderella is well-known by most people, however, there are several versions of this beloved tale. There is the one told by the Grimm Brothers, depicting a world where moral choices can affect your life in extreme ways, but it is Walt Disney’s 1950 cartoon version of Cinderella that most children think of when the story is mentioned. This version leaves behind both the question of morality and the bloody punishments, allowing children to enjoy an eye-catching, G-rated film. Both of these versions use their respective mediums to emphasize what the creator deems to be most important: a lesson about piety and goodness in the Grimm tale and the entertainment factor in the Disney cartoon. These are each shown in different ways, according to the medium used.

Most people cannot imagine coveted childhood fairytale with pure sadistic characters, blood, death and neglect. Disney motion pictures have depicted their classic fairytales by painting picture of princess with a loving parent, a dead parent, and a wonderful outlook on life with just the hope of dreams coming true. Many people cannot fathom the idea of a beloved fairytale containing the dark acts of rape, torture, and cannibalism. After all, Snow White’s apple was just meant to put her to sleep; and Sleeping Beauty did find her prince right? Wrong. In the original Grimm Fairytales Snow Whites apple was meant to kill her for good and Sleeping Beauty’s prince was

Every girl has at one time wanted to be a princess. We held this belief because of the stories we were told as young girls. The stories we heard in which poor peasant girls could become princesses through perseverance, patience, beauty or wit. These stories were introduced to us under the guise of fairytales, which, for many of us are synonymous with the name Grimm, although several of our favorite fairytales are by other authors. Even if you don’t know the name Grimm, you know at least one story by the brothers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Rapunzel, and the list continues. The Grimm Brothers collected and wrote stories scattered throughout the rural countryside, recording them based on a general

Before the Brothers Grimm transcribed what is known today as one of the most recognized fairytales ever recorded, it was being passed down orally from generation to generation at every corner of the globe. Various versions of Cinderella’s myth can be found in almost every culture in the world, all very distinct with their own specific qualities, reflecting each society’s predominant interpretations of religious themes. For instance, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm’s works were known to promote their Prussian culture and language, such as “Aschenputtel”, their German version of Cinderella. Most of their adjustments were heavily influenced by the criticism of their fellow countrymen, their audience, and their Christian beliefs.

Authors’ viewpoints are often shown in their writing from their past experiences which, effects the audience of the story. The Grimm brothers, Jacob and Wilhelm, were born into the country life being very familiar with farming, nature and peasant customs. They grew up without a father making them aware of class injustice and exploitation having some teachers focus only of family social order than a good student. Multiple times in their life, their social standings effected what they

The fairy tales that we grew up with are not the originals. Disney and the brothers Grimm had two very different versions. While many of us grew up watching cute birds and mice following the woe begotten princess, the original stories were forgotten by most. These stories were far darker, ending in cruel justice for a stepsister or worse. The difference between aspects of the two tales discussed, in some instances, is the difference between night and day. Grimm fairy tales contain more violence, harsher villains, and swifter justice.

The New Yorker featured an article depicting a different, yet similar story from the brothers that also touched upon a unique aspect of human nature. The author of the article described the tone of the story as such, “It feels like a glimpse of the dreadful side of the nature of things.” That is true of very many of the Grimm’s’ tales, even those with happy endings.” (Acocella). This outlook towards the brother’s work gives a darker point of view towards the fairy tales that are enjoyed as children, however this leads to a different interpretation to many stories as an adult.

Their established principles strongly affected the advancement of folklore studies. They incorporated fidelity into their literature, without the use of add-ons, and though it was obvious that they didn't " practice what they preached", the style of their literature, an idealized 'morality', was much closer to reality then older thought literary repetitions that were thought to be necessary. "They urged fidelity to the spoken text, without embellishments, and though it has been shown that they did not always practice what they preached, the idealized 'morality' of their style was much closer to reality than the literary retellings previously thought necessary." (Simpson & Roud p. 197) Their belief of folklore was that it expressed moral and spiritual values of a nation, preserved by the faithful uneducated population, and that it was made up of bits and pieces of myths and religious values. Reflecting back on their collection, though it became immensely popular, they were essentially a result of the linguistic research, which was the Brothers' goal. (Grimm New World Encyclopedia p.1)

As we grow up, we hear fairy tales and we read them into our lives. Every word and every image is imprinted into our minds. The fairy tales we read are never abandoned. They grow with us and our dreams become molds of the many morals and happily ever afters fairy tales display. We tell children fairy tales when they go to sleep and they read them in school and we even have them watch Disney adaptions that reinforce them further. Generally, they were everywhere while we grew up and they continue to be present while children are growing up now. But what influence do these stories have? We casually expose our children to these tales, but in some cases they can have particularly, harmful personal effects on them, although there is nothing completely or visibly “bad” about them or about the characters in them. Before we divulge our youth to these stories, we should assess their substance and see what sort of effect they may be having on them. They have received so much scrutiny and have been studied by many. Recognizing fairy tales effects on the minds of children is vital in their development. This paper will focus on the underlying messages that the average person wouldn’t recognize in these everyday stories. There’s a modern distort with fairy tales because while they still are widely popular with the youth, they influence children’s self images, outlooks on reality and expectations for their futures, especially for young women.