I grew up on fairy tales, mostly Czech but there were others thrown in there. There's something compelling about fairy tales that lures me in like no other story form. Part of it is, I think, that fairy tales highlight and emphasize moments in a human life that we normally take for granted. Meeting an old woman on the road. The fairy tale warns us that hey, you don't really know who she is and what she's about. Ignore that at your peril! Walking a road we take often. Complacency can kill. Taking things from the land or from animals without considering that nature may fight back in unexpected ways. How simple mistakes can lead to dire, even deadly consequences. And of course how seeking one's fortune hinges so much on what we do, what we say, and how bold and/or polite we are when we go to try and make a living for the first time.
Fairy tales look at all that stuff and more. Even the watered-down or weirdly contorted ones sanitized by a society trying to keep its children insanely naive, mistaking that naivete' for innocence ...
Yes they can be sexist and racist and all that. Not looking at that doesn't make it go away. We're still sexist, racist and all that. Recognizing that on the page can reveal and teach too, and help those of us opposed to such things where we were, how far we've come, and how far we've yet to go. It might even hint at what going too far might look like.
So here's to good old-fashioned, gory, scary, horrible fairy tales. If you love them too, or want to learn more, try out a new resource: Enchanted Conversations
Enjoy!
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