A story about Hansel and Gretel address some of the primal human fear about abandonment, cannibalism and supernatural powers. Due to its gore, it is by
no means the best fairy tale to introduce your kid into the magic of fairy lore. On the other hand, time and hundreds of adaptations proved it's among the most popular ones. In recent years, filmmakers used it's basic plot to create a whole series of highly successful movies for grown-ups.
Yes, horror is a genre with root in folklore. What is so appealing in Hansel and Gretel? Why Bruno Bettelheim, controversial, yet extremely important figure in fairy tale theory pronounced it as an ultimate tale for kids ever? What role had brother Grimm in developing of its popularity? Let's explore...
... top 10 points about Hansel and Gretel to think about!
Which version of Hansel and Gretel is most appealing to you?
You are right, sandyspider. That's why it's called classi, isn't it? ;)
I really don't know which one I like best. The classic is always good.
Very interesting, frankbeswick. It would be nice to compare the perception about elves, dwarfs and other fairy creatures in different parts of the world. I am sure we can find them everywhere, yet they are not the same. In your country, for instance, you have numerous heroic beings, what is in tune with the history of the UK. In our country, they are much more benevolent. We have to dig very deep to find so effective arrowheads - in time of Perun, Svarun and other Slavic mythological figures.
In England people looked at the fossil belemnites, pointed seashells, found in chalk rock and thought that they were elf arrowheads that had been buried in the rock, such was the force with which they were shot. The early English had an ambiguous relationship with the elves. On one hand they believed that elves were capable of firing arrows at you and could be bad tempered enough to do so, but the English thought the elves to be wise. For instance, the only English king ever called great was Alfred,a word that means elf -wise, one who has elf wisdom.
I am so deeply involved in fairy tales, I often forget that many people believe they are just stories for children. I think Hansel and Gretel clearly suggest the opposite and the history (as much as it is available due lack of documentation) shows the same.
It really dosen't matter if we start with Perrault's Tales of Mother Goose (written for nobility on the court of Louis XIV), Straparola's Pleasant Nights (formed after Boccaccio's Decameron) or oral tradition in any country in the world - they were always made for adults in the first place.
It was only after second edition by brothers Grimm, when people started to think they are made for children too. Not exclusively, just for kids, too. Only after commercialisation at the end of 19th century children became primarly target and only after Freud's work psychologists seriously started looking for usefulness of fairy tales in development of kid's mind.
One of greatest charms of fairy tales is in their universal appeal, which is in my opinion at least partly intertwined by ther elusiveness - Tolkien's work 'On fairy tales', where even he as the master of language fails to find a decent definition, is a lovely example.
You also mentioned fairies which are not always good hearted. I agree. If we compare them with characters from fiction, we can conclude, they need to be at least a bit complex to be interesting. Black and white doesn't work in Greek drama. All memorable characters posses several shades of gray (althogh not always 50). Only after beginning of mass production and (for maximum profit necessary) simplification majority of fairy tales started presenting good fairies and bad witches.
It's a natural development. Every adult, who ever tried to explain something a bit more complex to a kids, knows how fast we start simplifying, even for the price of 'truth'.
Uff, I should make a full wizz on that subject ... Thanks, frankbeswick, for commenting!
Tolkien believed that faery [as he spelt it, old English spelling] was an important genre. He called Faerie "The Perilous Realm" for he believed that we wrongly classify fairy tales as exclusively for children. Serious themes and frightening tales belong in fairy literature. It is also worth noting that fairies were not always regarded as benign beings, for they could kidnap children and be quite malicious.
I have spoken to people who still believe in the Sidhe, as they call them in Ireland and Scotland; in Ireland they still have a healthy respect for fairy forts and do not like to disturb them. This belief is probably fading out, but the people to whom I spoke were not foolish or irrational.
Good point, frankbeswick. Where would we be, without fairies and dreamers?
What you believe is important, as you are important in yourself. If you believe in fairy, go for it.
Collective unconscious is hard to prove. As somebody coming from the hard science field (chemistry) I believe in repeatable experiments. And it's hard to repeat the history, so we'll have to rely on documents, which clearly show brothers Grimm rewrote all the stories to suit their beliefs. They did that several times and archived all the evidence.
It's really not important what I believe, I just want to present the facts (which are pretty unreliable due to their age anyway) to open horizons to the people. A fairy tale (or any other story) is never just a fairy tale - it can be a document, a tool, a statement, ... This is the main reason why I like to explore them so much, I guess.
Thanks, Mira, for your comment, it's always a pleasure to see your avatar in my box:)
So you don't believe in the collective unconscious, Tolovaj? What about the works of Joseph Campbell that show how so many archetypes and narrative threads are found all over the world?
That said, I found it fascinating to see how the Grimms changed their story from edition to edition.