Psychoanalysis of Fairytales

A detailed Summary of Psychoanalysis of Fairytales

Examine one or more fairytales from a psychoanalytic perspective. How valid, in your view, is such an approach when applied to fairytales in general?

The psychoanalysts' view of the fairy tale varies greatly between individuals. Tales are, to the general public audience, a mode of entertainment. To the person interested in the hidden meanings and interpretation of the human condition, they are vehicles for the distribution of latent content. This content can generally be seen to embody both phallic and moralistic features. The tales of Sleeping Beauty (Briar Rose) and Little Red Riding Hood (Little Red Cap) both illustrate sexual maturity and moral instruction. As with all areas of psychology, there is room for variance in the interpretation of images and actions. There does seem, however, to have a general consistency in the interpretation of symbols and signs, allowing for the stating of perhaps taboo topics in an illustrative manner.

Tales are said to contain more than meets the eye. Initially, there is the surface, or manifest content; presented and taken, generally, at face value. As with Freudian theories regarding dream interpretation, this is what is 'seen' as opposed to the 'hidden' latent content. It is this constitu

Again with the tale of Sleeping Beauty, the focus is on sexual maturation and its' implications. The character of Briar Rose is placed under a curse which foretells that she will prick her finger on her fifteenth birthday and fall dead. On her birthday, she does prick her finger but only falls into a deep slumber, along with the rest of the kingdom. The importance of her age illustrates that this is the point of sexual maturation, as with Little Red Riding Hood. When she pricks her finger, she draws blood, obviously a sign of the commencement of menstruation and developed womanhood. The issue of the difference between physical and psychological maturation is addressed by the growth of the thicket around the tower where she sleeps. The girl may be physically able to have sex and bare children, however she is not ready mentally and therefore there is no need for her to be active. The thicket grows around the tower to prevent her from the advances of men, this is her protection. Many suitors do come and try to wake her but they are entangled in the thorns and do not make it to her. The symbol of the tower represents a phallic image, thus enticing men to attempt to court her, in vane as it turns out. However, when the Prince comes along, "Mr Right" if you will, the thorns are replaced by flowers which move out of the way to create a clear path to the sleeping damsel. Thus, she has accepted him as a suitor, and had come to terms with her sexual maturity. The phallic symbolism contained within the tale is also seen in the spindle upon which she pricks her finger. The King declares at the start that all spindles shall be removed from the castle for fear of losing his daughter. The protective father is thus making sure that there is to be no introduction of the ways of sex to his daughter. Again, the protective parent is doing what he believes to be the best thing, however it may cause curiosity and end in possible harm. The story perhaps does not appear to be as intricate and full of latent content as Little Red Riding Hood, but nevertheless it does have a clear purpose. The evident theme is more on the fact that maturation in a physical sense is not always a sign of psychological readiness. Society often puts pressure on the individual to have sex once they reach the age of maturity. However, people are not always ready at the same time. Some women may wish to have sex as soon as they are physically mature enough, while others are more content to wait and keep men at bay until they feel they are ready, as the character of Briar Rose.

The wolf character enters while she is walking the path. He tempts her by telling her to come and see the flowers that grow just off the road, in the wood. She resists at first, remembering that she has been told not to listen to strangers and not to stray. However, after a bit of coaxing she does agree, convincing herself that she could collect some flowers for her grandmother. The wolf is seen as the dark, sleazy and deceptive male symbol. To him, the girl is young, sexually naive and yet mature, because of this he wishes to take advantage of her. The wolf is one of the devil's animals, seen as being dangerously destructive, representing evil in the highest form. He is also cunningly keen and aware of his power of persuasion and seduction. He speaks of the flowers and the birds singing in the forest. Flowers again are a symbol of her innocence and of sex. Having been convinced to go have a look, she is lured "deeper and deeper into the woods". The wolf then runs on ahead to the house of the sickly grandmother, where he promptly devours her. This is seen as a sign again of the animal nature of the male. Mas

Some common words found in the essay are:
Riding Hood, Steven Sondheim, Freud Jung, Red Cap, Forgotten Language, Briar Rose, , Gretel Rumpelstilskin, Sleeping Beauty, little red, Little Red, riding hood, red riding hood, little red riding, red riding, latent content, sexual maturity, briar rose, character briar rose, prick finger, sexual maturation, dangers sex, character briar,

Approximate Word count = 2470
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)

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