Following your essays is itself a fascinating journey. Tolkien, a highly respected, even ground-breaking, scholar of old tales, finally makes his appearance, like a magical figure you met in the woods.
Now so many thoughts. To begin with: if the redemptive ending is, as Tolkien tells us, the heart of fairy tale, then what do we make of the grim endings of Red Riding Hood and, to some extent, Rapunzel? And what is the relationship of the Black Bull of Norroway to the more familiar Beauty and the Beast?
C.A, What great questions. I have always felt that some stories that have traditionally been included in fairy tale collections are not fairy tales at all. I'd say Little Red Riding Hood is one of those stories that is better seen as a folktale. The same with Jack and the Beanstalk, the Bremen Town Musicians and many others.
Rapunzel's story is ultimately a happy one. Life wins out, the witch can no longer control Rapunzel and she and her prince are reunited. People often talk about The Juniper Tree and it's very harsh story, as an argument against Tolkien's view. It is one of the darkest fairy tales in the canon, but it too ends with justice finally being served.
I think many people think that Tolkien was speaking too emotionally and for some people his view is too sentimental. There is a strong belief that because the Grimm brothers edited their tales and Disney made them even softer that those who agree with Tolkien are missing some of the ferociousness of "real" fairy tales.
I believe that whatever a person thinks about fairy tales is valid because that is their own experience. I am no more right or wrong than they. It's just how I see fairy tales and how I write about them.
The Black Bull and Beauty and the Beast are similar in that they depict men under the grip of a spell turned into animals. However, the Beast will die if Beauty doesn't return to him. Only the love of a good woman can release him. The Bull escapes his curse by his own efforts. His loss is that the young girl isn't mature enough to hold still, to hold the space for him as he requested. Beauty just heads back to the Beast's house. There's no special effort on her part; but the young girl must struggle and persevere through years of effort. Even when she finds him, it is Grace that saves them both.
Following your essays is itself a fascinating journey. Tolkien, a highly respected, even ground-breaking, scholar of old tales, finally makes his appearance, like a magical figure you met in the woods.
Now so many thoughts. To begin with: if the redemptive ending is, as Tolkien tells us, the heart of fairy tale, then what do we make of the grim endings of Red Riding Hood and, to some extent, Rapunzel? And what is the relationship of the Black Bull of Norroway to the more familiar Beauty and the Beast?
C.A, What great questions. I have always felt that some stories that have traditionally been included in fairy tale collections are not fairy tales at all. I'd say Little Red Riding Hood is one of those stories that is better seen as a folktale. The same with Jack and the Beanstalk, the Bremen Town Musicians and many others.
Rapunzel's story is ultimately a happy one. Life wins out, the witch can no longer control Rapunzel and she and her prince are reunited. People often talk about The Juniper Tree and it's very harsh story, as an argument against Tolkien's view. It is one of the darkest fairy tales in the canon, but it too ends with justice finally being served.
I think many people think that Tolkien was speaking too emotionally and for some people his view is too sentimental. There is a strong belief that because the Grimm brothers edited their tales and Disney made them even softer that those who agree with Tolkien are missing some of the ferociousness of "real" fairy tales.
I believe that whatever a person thinks about fairy tales is valid because that is their own experience. I am no more right or wrong than they. It's just how I see fairy tales and how I write about them.
The Black Bull and Beauty and the Beast are similar in that they depict men under the grip of a spell turned into animals. However, the Beast will die if Beauty doesn't return to him. Only the love of a good woman can release him. The Bull escapes his curse by his own efforts. His loss is that the young girl isn't mature enough to hold still, to hold the space for him as he requested. Beauty just heads back to the Beast's house. There's no special effort on her part; but the young girl must struggle and persevere through years of effort. Even when she finds him, it is Grace that saves them both.