New Tales for Old: Folktales As Literary Fictions for Young Adults

860 Pages·1999·1.9 MB·English

by  Gail de Vos

New Tales for Old : Folktales As Literary
title:
Fictions for Young Adults
author: De Vos, Gail.; Altmann, Anna E.
publisher: Libraries Unlimited
isbn10 | asin: 1563084473
print isbn13: 9781563084478
ebook isbn13: 9780585080338
language: English
Literature and folklore, Young adult fiction-
-History and criticism, Tales--Adaptations--
subject History and criticism, Young adult fiction--
Themes, motives, Young adults--Books and
reading, Folklore in literature.
publication date: 1999
lcc: PN56.F58D48 1999eb
ddc: 398.2/083
Literature and folklore, Young adult fiction-
-History and criticism, Tales--Adaptations--
subject: History and criticism, Young adult fiction--
Themes, motives, Young adults--Books and
reading, Folklore in literature.
Page iii
New Tales for Old
Folktales as Literary Fictions for Young Adults
Gail de Vos
Anna E. Altmann
1999
Libraries Unlimited, Inc.
and Its Division
Teacher Ideas Press
Englewood, Colorado
To Peter, for his support and love.
GdV
To my mother, who told us the stories,
and to the memory of my father, who lived them.
AEA
Copyright © 1999 Gail de Vos and Anna E. Altmann
All Rights Reserved
Printed in the United States of America
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any
form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without
the prior written permission of the publisher.
LIBRARIES UNLIMITED, INC.
and Its Division
Teacher Ideas Press
P.O. Box 6633
Englewood, CO 80155-6633
1-800-237-6124
www.lu.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
De Vos, Gail, 1949-
New tales for old : folktales as literary fictions for young adults / Gail de Vos, Anna E. Altmann.
xxi, 408 p. 19×26 cm.
Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
ISBN 1-56308-447-3
1. Literature and folklore. 2. Young adult fictionHistory and
criticism. 3. TalesAdaptationsHistory and criticism. 4. Young
criticism. 3. TalesAdaptationsHistory and criticism. 4. Young
adult fictionThemes, motives. 5. Young adultsBooks and reading.
6. Folklore in literature. I. Altmann, Anna E. II. Title.
PN56.F58D48 1999
398.2'083dc21 99-33150
CIP
Page v
Epigraph
It is the particular beauty of fairy tales that no one interpretation is the true
one, no one version is correct. The ingredients of the tale can be simmered and
stirred, flavored and served up in a thousand different ways. Each author
begins with common fairy-tale characters, dilemmas, dangers, riddles, and
enchantments. Yet with this common straw they make gold, and language is
the wheel on which they spin. It is through the language of the tales, and not
the plot, that each retelling becomes unique, adding the voices of a new
generation of storytellers to the voices of centuries past
(Datlow and Windling, Ruby Slippers, Golden Tears, 6).
But a close look at the stories reveals much more than a simple formula of
abuse and retribution. The trials our heroes encounter in their quests illustrate
the process of transformation: from youth to adulthood, from victim to hero,
from a maimed state into wholeness, from passivity to action. As centuries of
artists have known, this gives fairy tales a particular power: not as a quaint
escape from the harsh realities of modern life, but in their symbolic portrayal
of all the dark and bright life has to offer
(Datlow and Windling, Black Swan, White Raven, 4).
Page vii
Contents
Acknowledgments xv
Introduction xvii
1Folktales and Literary Fictions 1
Folktales as Oral Narrative 1
Is a Folktale a Fairy Tale? 7
The Art of the Folktale 8
The Interpretation of Folktales 14
The Folktale Audience 21
Filling the Oral Folktale's Sponge 25
Folktales in Postmodern Times 27
Endnotes 30
Bibliography 32
2Cinderella 33
Tale Type: AT 510A 34
A History of Cinderella 36
Cinderella in Oral Tradition 37
Rooth's Cinderella Cycle 37
A 38
AB 38
B 38
B1 39
C 39
Influences from Other Sources 39
Cinderella in Print 40
Basile 40
Perrault 41
The Brothers Grimm 42
Page viii
Overview of Critical Interpretations of Cinderella 45
Reworkings of Cinderella in Novel Form 55
Silver Woven in My Hair 55
At Midnight: A Novel Based on Cinderella 56
The Glass Slipper 57
Ella Enchanted 57
Short Stories 58
Feature Films 62
Poetry 65
Opera 70
Picture Books 70
Internet Resources 72
Classroom Extensions 72
Feminist Readings 72
Films 73
Perrault and the Brothers Grimm 73
Picture Books 73
Pictures and Words 74
Repetition 74
Bibliography 74
3The Frog King or Iron Henry 77
Tale Type: AT 440 78
A History of the Frog King or Iron Henry 79
The Frog King in Oral Tradition 79
The Frog King in Print: The Brothers Grimm 79
Overview of Critical Interpretations of the Frog King or 83
Iron Henry
Reworkings of the Frog King or Iron Henry in Novel 91
Form
The Prince of the Pond Otherwise Known as DE 91
Fawg Pin
Fair Peril 92
Short Stories 93
Short Films 97
Poetry 99
Picture Books 102
Graphic Novels 103
Internet Resources 103
Classroom Extensions 104
Antecedents 104
Cartoons 104