Fairy Tale or Folk Tale?
Seeking to understand the relationship between the genres of fairy tales and folk tales, I discovered that the two are indeed interconnected. I was interested in the fairy tale for its aspects of fantasy and magic, but interested in the folk tale for the cultural transmission and history. In his book, The Irresistible Fairy Tale, Jack Zipes discusses how both genres can trace their origins to the oral tradition, but points to the dissemination of fairy tales in the written form as one distinguishing factor. Another distinction is that fairy tales were told by those who could read and write serving those in power who had no interest in stories of “common folk”. He goes on to point out how all tales have been aided by memes to transmit stories from one generation to the next. In this way, “The intricate relationship and evolution of folk and fairy tales are difficult to comprehend and define. In fact, together, oral and literary tales form one immense and complex genre because they are inextricably dependent on one another.”16 Fairy tales over time evolved and have been shaped by both its oral traditions, and the extensive transmission via print and other forms of technology.17 They also carry the element of magic. Zipes states, “the world of the fairy tale has always been created as a counter-world to the reality of the storyteller, by the storyteller and listeners.”18 He states, “These primary tales enabled humans to invent their lives—and create and re-create gods, divine powers, fairies, demons, fates, monsters, witches, and other supernatural characters and forces. An other world is very much alive in fairy tales, thanks to our capacity as storytellers.”19 In discussing fiction in general, Karen Lord writes, “Fiction is both process and mystery, knowledge and imagination. It lies somewhere on a spectrum that begins with poetry and ends with statistics. It is art. It takes the forms and shapes of the real world and re-views them with new perceptions: the shade, texture, and weight of the subconscious and unreal.”20 One distinction regarding fairytales and folk tales made clear in our seminar speaks to the implications of a printed story—that can be placed on a shelf and forgotten, while folk tales might be shared and retold countless times in new ways, not to entertain but to teach or share sacred cultural stories. In this way, the storyteller is obligated to share precisely because they don’t want them to be forgotten. Thus, we keep these stories alive through rituals. In this way I’ve learned to grow comfortable with my original idea of sharing folk tales because of the worlds they represent for my students, but I invite them to the unimagined through fairytales.
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