Archetypes in Fairy Tales: A Mirror of the American Ethos

Fairy tales have existed for hundreds of years in multiple cultures. They serve as an insightful view into the customs and beliefs of the time and culture in which they were written. For instance, Charles Perrault's version of the tale "Hansel and Gretel" offers readers insight into what it meant to be lower class during the seventeenth century in France. Though it is a fictional story about child abandonment, this situation was a possible reality for anyone who was reading it. In this way, the writers and tellers of fairy tales were able to touch on elements of interest that would hold their audience's attention.

However, this is not the case in the twenty-first century. Although child abandonment still happens today, it is not nearly as widespread as it had been in the seventeenth century. The fairy tales seem to no longer offer this element of realism that may have initially captured its audience. Yet, they remain popular hundreds of years after they were written and in a culture they were not written for. In 1937, Walt Disney commenced his hugely successful movie collection by remaking the story of Snow White. This collection has continued being successful to this day with titles such as "Beauty and the Beast", "Sleeping Beauty", "Peter Pan", and "Cinderella". All of these are re-tellings of classic fairy tales that were welcomed by American culture with open arms.