Although today they seem old-fashioned and there are undoubtedly many other equally good and valid options for reading to children, the value of fairy tales in childhood should not be underestimated. In this BodyCarre.com article we explain why.
Those popularly known as fairy tales are better than other stories as they offer children more than just a pleasant time: a way to end their own fears using their imagination and giving hope for the future.
The detractors of this type of stories often say that they do not provide a “real” image of life, therefore being harmful to the child’s mind. But those who argue this do not realize that the “reality” of adult life is different from that of a child, and that their fears often being unrealistic, the best defense is to have imagined powers or defenses.
How Fairy Tales Help Children
Fairy tales warn the child of various dangers, but instead of remaining in a moral like many more realistic current tales, they give hope. They let it be known that there are temporary evils that can be overcome through goodwill, intelligence or courage , and that after all the monsters that lurk there will always be a happy ending.
Tolkien himself, lover and defender of these stories, affirms that ” the essential aspects of a fairy tale are fantasy, self-improvement, flight and relief: overcoming a deep despair, fleeing from enormous danger, and, above all, all, relief ” .
The way in which problems are posed is always veiled: for example, if the hero faces an internal problem it can be represented as a forest in which the protagonist does not know which direction to take.
Obviously, a child is not aware of the way in which a story helps him to solve a problem or to give him hope, since the hidden meanings of stories tend to germinate in the unconscious, causing the child to reach the solution by himself in a way that the one that couldn’t have come without that support.
Consequences of not knowing fairy tales
The repression of certain feelings that the child feels towards his world and towards himself can create later problems that he would not have been able to face his fears through the fantasy of stories, overcoming them even in his imagination.
Critics of fairy tales forget that there is also a monster that the child fears above all else: the one that lives within himself. If these monsters and inner fears are not talked about, the child will not be able to shape them and will not be able to defeat them.
For example, if the child is afraid of being eaten, that fear will incarnate in the form of a witch, from which it can be freed by putting it in the oven as in Hansel and Gretel .
Read fairy tales to children
Another characteristic of fairy tales is that it is better for parents to read them to their children than for them to read them on their own . Obviously, enhancing a child’s interest in reading is important, but the fact that parents read this type of story makes them more effective since in doing so the father takes the child’s side , supporting him in his irrational fears and always giving him the solution and hope for a happy ending.
It is important to note that this reading must be done with interest on the part of the parent who performs it , since an active participation on the part of the parent enriches the story that is told.
In addition, the father must be attentive to know which story his son prefers to read to him. All children usually have a story that they prefer over all others, and although the variety is good, repeating that favorite story will help the child deal with his particular problem .
Do you read fairy tales to your children? What is your favorite?
Kathie Sand always saw the world of beauty as the terrain on which to build her professional career, a goal that was clear to her when she was only 15 years old. Her great concern to expand knowledge led her to settle in Paris where she studied hand in hand with the best beauty professionals and with the most advanced techniques for skin care.