Fairy Tales

I believe that reading fairy tales to children could be one of the most influential things in the upbringing of a child, although I know there is an opposing side to this matter. Through reading these fairy tales that have been passed down to our families from one generation to the next, I believe that these stories have helped to teach children how to explore their imagination, always tell the truth, and to know right from wrong.

Over the past few decades there have been conflicts over the stereotypical concepts about the way that men and women are portrayed in these stories. Such as in the story “Cinderella” the stepmother is just as wicked as she can be and the father just does what his wife asks of him, no matter if it hurts his daughters or not. This is a reason that some people have opposing views to this matter. They think that the children could get a totally different meaning from these stories, therefore acting out the bad or wrong things in the story as opposed to the good.

Fairy tales require the mind to be attentive to detail, to be highly active in problem solving, to roll through tunnels of prediction and to tumble down hills of emotion and run back up again.

Fairy tales often appear in books without pictures. This lack of illustrations makes fairy tales particularly special because children’s imaginations have to work a little harder when they hear the stories. As children listen spellbound to the words, they have to use their brains actively to create their own pictures, thereby developing the all-important imagination. Some children who listen to stories, whose imaginations have been mashed by endless hours sitting in front of the television, have a hard time creating the scenes and characters and events in their heads.

While children listen to these fairy tales, they will become silent, fascinated, upset, appalled, aghast, and may even cry. But if they feel safe with us while the story is being read, and indeed this is