Walt Disney later took Grimm’s tales and transformed them into tales that everyone could read. He transformed them in such a way that they no longer had the extreme violence that was present in Grimm’s tales. Though the storylines were very similar to the Grimm’s tales we are never faced with as much violence as we were faced with when reading Grimm’s tales, therefore these can be classed as fairytales.
It is believed that Wilde is a fairytale writer even though his tales do not end happily. He is believed to be a fairytale writer because most of his tales include 3 of the main ingredients. One of these ingredients is three of everything. This can be seen in The Nightingale and The Rose, where the nightingale is going to the rose bushes as we can see there are three rose bushes but go to my brother. He is also believed to be a fairytale writer as he uses personification. For instance he writes in the happy prince, that the statue and the swallow can talk said the swallow. Personification is widely used by fairytale writers today. Personification stimulates the mind of a child and brings the child into a New World where almost anything is possible.
In his tales he also uses the ingredient of there being a hero. In the selfish giant the heroes are the little children who sneak into the giant’s garden through a little hole in the wall the children had crept in the children are the heroes of this tale as the spring comes when they are in the garden. In the nightingale and the rose, Wilde says that the nightingale is the hero. This is because the nightingale has managed to produce a rose for the young student.
In The Selfish Giant and The Happy Prince, Wilde writes about good things happening to the heroes and the heroes’ friends. We can see this in the happy prince where God says to the angel to bring him two of the most precious things in the city and the angel returns with the heart of the giant and the swallow.
It also believed that he is a fairytale writer because his tales bring you into a world of make belief which sparks the children’s imagination. As this is what true fairytales do this is a reason to include Wilde’s tales in the category of fairytales.
However due to the lack of happy endings he is not considered to be a fantasy tale writer. It is believed that even though many good things may happen in his tales there is always a death of a hero. We can see this in the selfish giant where the giant and the child who he dearly loved have died. We can also see this in the happy prince where the happy prince and the swallow are dead. The endings in most of his tales are trying to say that there are no rewards for kindness.
Wilde is also not believed to be a fairytale writer as he was a homosexual. It is argued that would you like your children to read something written by a homosexual? Most people say no. Although most people say no to their children reading something written by a homosexual the stereotype leads us to believe that their personality is sweet, soft and emotional this means that homosexuals can write fairytales as they are believed to be emotional. The ending in most of his stories may relate to how he was prosecuted by Victorian society for homosexual. Wilde may have been a kind person and a very thoughtful person, but the prosecution at the hands of the Victorian people at the fact of him being a homosexual resulted in him writing tragically painful climaxes for his stories. This may also be the reason for Wilde criticising the Victorian society.
Wilde’s tales always have some sort of sacrifice. This is seen in the nightingale and the rose. This is where the nightingale sacrifices her life for a rose. Wilde’s tales also have similar selfish female roles. This can be seen in the happy prince where the Reed says that she will not leave her home she was so attached to her home. The males of these tales also have selfish roles, as seen once more in the happy prince the swallow only likes the reed because of her slender waist
Looking at Oscar Wilde’s tales I found that he used a lot of repetition and personification. These techniques are important in fairytales as they spark the child’s imagination and send them into a world of make-believe. In conclusion I believe that Oscar Wilde’s fairytales are fairytales, even though Wilde does not start his stories off with the traditional once upon a time… or in a land far away..., Wilde’s tales still contain the ingredients of a good fairytale. This can be seen in The Nightingale and the Rose where the nightingale and other creatures can talk. Wilde uses personification, repetition and other brilliant techniques to create a fantastical land where the children’s imagination can run wild. However the lack of traditional happy endings disappoints the child. This is seen in the happy prince where the happy prince sacrifices all his jewels and gold and gets nothing in return. [ I say this because the statue is always praising God and the swallow is always singing for God. ] Thus I believe that Wilde’s tales are full of fairytale ingredients but cannot belong to the fairytale genre.
