I have been reading these childhood fairy tales to my little one and I find myself at a loss. Do I tell her the deeper meaning behind many of these stories and the history of why they were written ? Many to frighten the children to become controlled and goto sleep. What was in the mind of the authors?
Yet another part of me looks at the ridiculousness of the stereotypes of the fantasy stories and I create another one in my mind. For example what if the princess did not want to rescued by the dramatically handsome prince? What if she really wanted some alone time and not be ball and chained by Prince Charming from far far away at the wishes of her parents. And why did her parents not respect her own choices as a grown woman.
What if the wolf did not want to eat red riding hood and really was a vegetarian? And why did the little girl run by herself in the forest? Why was she not accompanied by an adult, after all this would not be accepted by today’s standards.
Why are the villains always pursued? Perhaps they just need some love and someone to hear their cries for help. What if the witch was more kind and the Queen was more cruel. What if the dragon does not need to be slayed and needs to be saved. Sometimes the prince needs to be more sensitive and stop pretending to be a block of cheese. What if the Ogre is to be respected and not feared?
What if we could understand what all the forest animals were saying and be more considerate in their territory.
It is wise to look at things from a different point of view and not just the dogma that we have been taught generation after generation at story time as we cuddle up for the night and brainwashed by fantasies taken as lore that serve as the blueprint for our wakened lives.
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I love you
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