Little Red Riding Hood

Little Red Riding Hood is just one example of thousands of tales throughout the world that fill the minds and imaginations of adults and children alike with wonders of the fantastical. Fairy tales may not reflect reality with their use of goblins, witches and animals that can talk but as I will argue in this essay I believe they have provided us with a window onto the past lives of children throughout the ages. We believe that Fairy tales are written for children and adults to dip in and out of to gain a sense of escapism or nostalgia. As fairy tales began life directed at adults and not children we can see that this subject is one of great controversy. 'The fairy tales was never told or written explicitly for children' (Zipes, p. 26).

Fairy tales or 'wonder tales' began life as spoken words so we have no real evidence of when they actually came about and I'm sure that people must have been telling them as long as they've had voices to do so. It is believed that the first types of tales gave people not only a sense of morals but also a belonging in the community, 'through the tales that one gained a sense of values and one's place within the community.' (Jack Zipes p. 28)

The introduction of the printing press in the 15th century was a seminal moment in the history of fairy tales elevating them from the spoken word of the peasantry to the written word of the reading classes, 'as more and more wonder tales were written down in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, they began to constitute the genre of the literary fairy tales.' (Jack Zipes, p. 27)

The tales were sometimes delivered as a warning to children about dangerous animals but there is however little evidence to suggest the tales were constructed specifically for a child audience. On the contrary it appears that adult themes were the order of the day. 'Children were not excluded from the audience when tales were told no matter how Frank, bawdy, erotic or scatological they might be.' (Jack Zipes p. 28) Prior to the 16th century it is obvious that children weren't seen as the innocent and cherished beings they are today and were exposed to what we would consider to be the harsh realities of life.

The oral tale still dominated the peasant communities and as their worlds advanced and evolved throughout the Middle Ages tales changed with them, 'growth of towns, the peasant uprisings had an effect on both the subject matter of the tales and the way they were used.' (Jack Zipes, p. 28) During the transitional period of the oral tale to the literary tale, fairy tales such as 'The Facetious night' by Italian Poet Giovan Francesco Straparola and The Pentamerone 1634-6 by Giambattista Basil moved up a class and now addressed the likes of the court society, 'wonder tales were fully adapted and transcribed to amuse courtly and educated middle class readers.' (Jack Zipes, page 28)

In mid 17th century France the fairy tales as we know them today were born and from the ladies of the aristocracy in their salons, came the term 'Fairy Tale.' French authors such as Charles Perrault and Madame d'Aulnoy took the idea of the fairy tale and lay down the foundations for a new literary genre, 'in France, which for all intents and purposes, gave 'birth' to the literary fairy tale.' (Jack Zipes p 28) However even though these foundations had been set there is still no actual evidence that these writers wrote for children as Zipes argues, 'all the fairy tales have one thing in common that

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