Folk Tale Obstacle Resource
Folk Tale Obstacle Resource
Hollywood gives a happy picture of most fairy tales. In the oral tradition, folktales are often quite grim.
If you are looking for ways to confound your hero or frustrate the antagonist these stories based on human emotion are a great source.
The Wolf is Always Right
When I studied folklore in college, specializing in French and Basque tales, one of my favorite versions of Little Red Riding Hood transformed her into a girl with smarts. Instead of a helpless victim who needed to be rescued, Red used her noodle. It goes something like this:
The wolf has devoured Grandma and is bed with the big eyes, ears, and teeth and threatens to eat Red.
Red says, "OK, Wolf, you've got me. Except I'm full of poop. You wouldn't want to eat me with all that poop inside. Why don't I go outside and get ride of the poop. Then I'll come back in and you can gobble me up."
The wolf thinks about this and decides it is a good idea. Better tasting food. He agrees.
Red promptly runs out, calls for the woodsman, and...you know the rest.
Yep, hard for today's modern convenience kids to understand, but at the time it was total smarts.
What's your favorite folktale?
http://mentalfloss.com/article/86818/original-unhappy-endings-3-famous-fairy-tales
Hollywood gives a happy picture of most fairy tales. In the oral tradition, folktales are often quite grim.
If you are looking for ways to confound your hero or frustrate the antagonist these stories based on human emotion are a great source.
The Wolf is Always Right
When I studied folklore in college, specializing in French and Basque tales, one of my favorite versions of Little Red Riding Hood transformed her into a girl with smarts. Instead of a helpless victim who needed to be rescued, Red used her noodle. It goes something like this:
The wolf has devoured Grandma and is bed with the big eyes, ears, and teeth and threatens to eat Red.
Red says, "OK, Wolf, you've got me. Except I'm full of poop. You wouldn't want to eat me with all that poop inside. Why don't I go outside and get ride of the poop. Then I'll come back in and you can gobble me up."
The wolf thinks about this and decides it is a good idea. Better tasting food. He agrees.
Red promptly runs out, calls for the woodsman, and...you know the rest.
Yep, hard for today's modern convenience kids to understand, but at the time it was total smarts.
What's your favorite folktale?
http://mentalfloss.com/article/86818/original-unhappy-endings-3-famous-fairy-tales
... script writers https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Q8fG0TtVAY
ReplyDeleteyoutube.com - WONDER WOMAN - Official Trailer [HD]
Andre Amorim Yes! And superheroes appeal to some of the same core concepts.
ReplyDeleteZara Altair
ReplyDeletelasso of truth
Andre Amorim Yes! :)
ReplyDeleteI love Red now, Zara Altair. I read all of the Grimm's when I was 17. Turned my head around a bit and I loved reading them.
ReplyDeleteGina Fiedel Haha. That's about the same age when I was deep into French folklore at UCLA. :)
ReplyDeleteNice example :)
ReplyDeleteI have always enjoyed Clarissa Pinkola Estes analysis of folk tales (Women who run with the Wolves), and how they twisted and changed through the ages. Then there is Marina Warner's work (Beast to the Blonde) on Fairy Tales.
That's too funny Zara Altair! Wish we could have met back then...
ReplyDeleteGina Fiedel I was at UCLA.
ReplyDelete