Fairy Tales
Introduction
Fairy tales have existed for about as long as human beings. They started off as part of an oral tradition that also included legends and fables. But nowadays they are part of a literary written tradition that is even studied in universities due to its importance.
Fairy tales are normally quite short and although they are often written for children but adults enjoy them too. Fantasy characters such as elves, fairies, dwarves, ogres, princes, princesses abound in these stories. They normally have a happy ending which comes after much suffering on the part of the righteous protagonist.
The identities of many writers of fairy tales have been lost but some have become household names such as Charles Perrault, Hans Christian Andersen and the Brothers Grimm, who we focus on here.
In recent years due to the often violent and sexist nature of some fairy tales, some parents have begun to question whether these stories are appropriate for their children or not. In the following newspaper article this issue is discussed in a slightly tongue-in-cheek* fashion.
On the next page there is a wikepedia page on the brothers Grimm. You can read it or go to the Fairy Tales for the Modern Age section.
*not in a completely serious fashion