Fractured Tales
Fairy tales are short and often
familiar narratives and stories. It is
one of the most well-known, most
loved and most influential genre of
literature.
2
Fairy tales are attributed to oral tradition.
Rather than being written they were
passed down to generations.
3
Because of this, history of fairy tales is
obscure. Exact authorship and origins of
folklore and fairy tale can never be
determined.
Fairy tales were all initially the product of
folklores.
4
Fairy tales have ancient roots, older than
the Arabian Nights collection of magical
tales which was compiled around 1500
AD.
5
Taoist philosophers Liezi and Zhuangzi
recounted fairy tales in their philosophical
works.
Fairy tales were also part of The Facetious
Nights of Straparola by Giovanni Francesco
Straparola published in Italy in 1550.
6
Fairy tales were also part of the tales told
among upper-class France in 17th century.
In 1630s, aristocratic women of France will
gather in living rooms or salons in order to
discuss topics of their choice, which can be
arts and letters, politics or other social
matters.
7
In the middle of the 17th century, a
conversational parlour game emerged and
swept through the salons. Each was called
upon to retell an old tale or rework an old
theme, spinning clever new stories that not
only showcased verbal agility and
imagination but also slyly commented on
the conditions of aristocratic life.
8
The German brothers Jacob Ludwig Karl
and Wilhelm Carl Grimm were the first
collectors of tales whose aim is not only to
preserve the plot and characters, but also
the style in which they were told. Their first
edition was published in 1812.
The work of the Brothers Grimm influenced
other collectors.
9
Among those influenced were:
• Russian Alexander Afanasyev (first
published in 1866);
• Norwegians Peter Christen Asbjørnsen
and Jørgen Moe (first published in
1845);
10
• Romanian Petre Ispirescu (first published
in 1874);
• English Joseph Jacobs (first published in
1890), and
• Jeremiah Curtin, an American who
collected Irish tales (first published in
1890)
11
Adults were the audience of a fairy tale
just as often as children. Literary fairy
tales appeared in works intended for
adults, but in the 19th and 20th centuries
the fairy tale became associated with
children's literature.
12
Folklorists often refer to fairy tales in its
German term, Märchen or "wonder tale."
13
Fractured fairy tales and folk tales are
modern adaptation of traditional tales.
They may show new points of view, role
reversals, new characters and plot twists,
sequels, alternative settings, or fairy-tale
combinations.
14
Samples of fractured fairy tales:
Cinderella
Prince Cinders by Babette Nicole
15
Samples of fractured fairy tales:
Little Red Riding Hood
Honestly, Little Red Riding Hood was
Rotten: The Story of Little Red Riding
Hood as told by the Wolf by Trisha Speed
Shaskan
16
Writing Exercise:
Choose one from any of the following fairy
tales. Write a fractured fairy tale within 500
to 1,200 words. Do not go below 500 or
exceed 1,200 words.
17
Writing Exercise:
• Rapunzel
• Hansel and Gretel
• The Frog Prince
• The Ugly Duckling
• Three Little Pigs
• The Princess and the Pea
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