http://califia.us/Folklore/folkfr.htm
After this week’s preparation to our soon reading of fairy tales, I gained a great deal of knowledge and background on the structure, format, and motifs of these tales. A lot of the information seems so apparent now as I look back on fairy tales that I know but a lot of the characteristics I have never noticed or payed much attention to in the past. So today, I am going to try to write a rough definition of what a fairy tale is...
A fairy tale originally was an orally told story, most of which are now written, but the origins of them are unknown. Fairy Tales have their own distinct formula, different from any other literary work. These tales are “timeless”, and not just in the way that they have been around for ages. These tales have no distinct time, and can be adapted to any century as many have. For example, there are countless adaptations of Cinderella, where the stepdaughter ends up with the high school quarterback or celebrity. The stories themselves have no timeline as seen in Sleeping Beauty, where she sleeps for 100 years, yet is awakened as if it had been only a day.
These tales also have a “depthlessness”, “one-dimensionality”, and “isolationism” qualities. The characters and settings are as simple as possible. Details are only added if necessary to the plot. There is no depth or dimension to the story lines. A castle in a folk tale can be any castle you imagine it to be, it leaves room for the imagination. The characters are isolated as they do not have any relationships to people or time. Folk Tale characters fail to learn from mistakes that they, or others make. This allows for the purest and morally right character to do the right thing, rather than a villainous character become victorious.
Folk tales have such precision in them unlike any other literature, yet they go unquestioned. It is not coincidence that things happen at a specific moment, but precision. For example, maybe a magical gift will make itself known at the precise moment it is needed. Normally someone reading this would say, “really, what are the chances of that!” This is the style in which fairy tales are written.
Fairy Tales are old tales and folklore passed down for ages, the originators unknown. They are their own specific art form, that allows the imagination to grow by reading and hearing them. The stories can be changed and tweaked in order to suit one’s preferences unlike other literature that is published and copyrighted. I look forward to reading some of these tales, ones I know and ones I do not to put this definition to the test!
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