Revisiting Charles Perrault's fairy tales and their impact on children's perception

Abstract

This dissertation is a study of a 'relatively young and modern genre', known as the Literary Fairy Tale. The focus is set on Charles Perrault's fairy tales published in 1697 and the tales that are going to be referred to are: Little Red Riding Hood, Bluebeard and Cinderella, translated to English from French by Christopher Betts, in one collection called: Charles Perrault: The Complete Fairy Tales (2009). The aim of this study is to find out whether Charles Perrault's fairy tales are relevant in contemporary times and to verify whether they instill emotions of fear or insecurities in children. The focus is on the negative influence that some of Perrault's tales may have, like for instance, initiating certain anxieties and fears. The dissertation is divided into three sections which are linked to each other. The first chapter is a study of what fear is and how Perrault may have used it in order to achieve didactic purposes, for instance in his writing of Little Red Riding Hood. Fear may be used as a tool to teach children about what is classified to be good behaviour in society. The subsequent chapter explores the frightful fairy tale of Bluebeard and delves into the debate whether horror aspects of such a tale affect children in a negative manner. The final section deals with the idealistic visions that some fairy tales contain and how this portrayal of life may impress young minds and make them set unrealistic expectations, leaving them with a sense of dissatisfaction in real life.