The Grimm Brothers And The Brothers

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

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

The Grimm Brothers version of Cinderella is a written down oral story that people passed down from generation to generation, meant to teach a lesson about piety and good behavior. Before the Grimm Brothers ever wrote it down, the story had been told several times by memory. It is thus not surprising that the descriptions of certain events in the story, such as the way Cinderella went to the Ball, are lacking in details. It is obvious that these parts of the story are unimportant to the overall message of the story. Instead, it focuses on the piety of Cinderella and the wickedness of the step-sisters. Through the events of the story, it becomes obvious that the goodness of Cinderella is justly rewarded, and that

Grimm’s tale conveys a story of a girl whose morals, soul, and faith in God and her mother’s words are what defines her beauty. They reinstate this point by describing even the step-sisters as works of beauty. By

Appearing as a fiction genre, fairy tales, or children's literature ,detach readers and listeners minds from the reality to another dimension where all magical and spiritual things can occur. Most of the fairy tales that one might encounter originate from Brothers Grimm, two German writers who travelled to many places to collect folk tales during the 19th century and rewrote them into fairy tales. Usually, the stories that Brothers Grimm write implicitly contain a moral message, values within the society which aimed to teach children. Snow White, a famous fairy tale that a lot of children have heard of, teach them not to interact with other strangers, good karma will happen to those of who be good and mean well. However, looking at a bigger pictures, fairy tales in general, and Snow White particularly,

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.

Most of you have probably heard of the Grimm brothers, and if you haven’t heard of them, you have most likely seen their work. Disney movies like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Cinderella are child friendly versions of the Grimm brothers’ original fairy-tales. Ironically, the brothers had no intention on becoming story-tellers, when first starting their journey. The book The Annotated Brothers Grimm stated, that when trying to study other languages they found it easiest and best to share stories that had been passed down generation to generation. The brothers kept all the stories they had heard and published a book in 1812 called Kinder und Hausmarchen, which translates to “Tales of Children and thee Home”. Believe it or not, fairy tales were not always about finding true love, and “having a

There is nothing more precious and heartwarming than the innocence of a child. The majority of parents in society want to shield children from the bad in life which is appreciated. Within human nature exists desires of inappropriate behavior; envy, deceit, selfishness, revenge, violence, assault and murder. The most well-known fairy tales depict virtue and the evil in life. Even more important, the form and structure of fairy tales suggest images to the child by which he can structure his daydreams and with them give a better direction to his life. (Bettelheim).

I chose to research fairytales, specifically fairytales by the Grimm brothers. Fairytales are short stories that tend to consist of fantasy people, places, and objects. Many of these consist of fairies or magical creatures. Most fairy tales start off with “Once upon a time”, or “In a faraway land”. Many times in fairytales objects are enchanted and can talk or move. The most common characters in a fairy tale are prince and princess. A lot of fairy tales are retold throughout generations. As a child I was told fairy tales as bedtime stories. I grew to love Disney movies which are popular for remaking fairytales such as Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. To this day I still enjoy remade fairy tales such as “Rapunzel” which was

In Grimm's’ Fairy Tales version of Cinderella, published in 1812, Cinderella’s mother's death is described in

These are just two examples out of many. The versions of fairy tales by Grimm and Disney are always similar in nature and moral. The differences in the details of the story range from minute to highly significant. The punishments placed upon the villains are always

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.

"The Brothers Grimm were academics best known for publishing collections of folk tales and fairy tales, which became massively popular." (Zipes p. 7) "Born in Hanau, Germany, a year apart, with Jacob Ludwig Karl Grimm born the oldest, on January 4, 1985, and Wilhelm Karl Grimm on February 24, 1786. Their family consisted of nine other siblings, six of which survived infancy, and their parents." (Zipes p. 9) Their early childhood was described as "idyllic" with them living in a beautiful countryside home while their father, Philip Wilhelm, was employed by the Prince of Hessen. However, when Jacob was eleven years and Wilhelm only ten, their father died, and their fortune dramatically declined to nothing. Their family was forced to move