1. Fairy Tales in the Modern World
Week 1
Introduction

2. Definition: What is a fairy tale?
How can we define it?
How can we recognise it?
What are its essential texual characteristics?
Do all fairy takes share these characteristics?

3. Textual characteristics
Formulaic Beginning
Formulaic Ending
Patterns of repetition (3 pigs/brothers..)
binaries transformed: good/evil; beautiful/ugly
All related oral origins, oral form of transmission

4. Different kinds of Folklore
Folk tales
Legends
Animal tales
Myths
Jokes
Fairy tales

5. Magic Why is it called faerie tale? What about in other languages?
also termed (by scholars) ‘wondertale’ ‘tales of magic’ ‘tales of enchantment’ ‘tales of transformation’
Zaubermärchen
contes merveilleux
volshebnaia skazka

6. Todorov’s classes of fantasy
Tzvetan Todorov, The Fantastic: A Structural Approach to a Literary Genre

7. Transmission What kinds of people tell tales?
Who consumed these tales?
What means did they use?
What were the institutions for their transmission?

8. the people, peasant
Women
collectors (Perrault, the Grimms, Afanasiev)
writers Tieck, Hoffman, Andersen, Wilde…
Disney and other filmmakers

9. Where did these groups tell, read, watch these stories?
oral: court, the home
literary: salon society, the home
film: cinemas, the home