Time of Once Upon

Folk and fairy tales began as entertainment for those who's life was not very entertaining, the serfs. The fairy tale brightened the evening and helped even the most decided pessimist find hope. These tales of common men and those not so common, each getting what they deserve, were a shining star of justice lacking in their lives.

During the late 17^th century (at least a century before the brothers Grimm), French aristocrats began publishing collections of the tales for entertainment. Although in the begining, authenticity was a major factor, as the populatrity of these collections grew, writers began to write their own tales, using fairy tale motifs and imagery.

But by the end of the 19^th century, social realism becomes the fashionable style and fairy tales loose their teneuos grasp on the public's attention. The rising population of the middle class, consider the tales uncouth and vular, associating them with their pre-literate beingings as folk tales told by hearthsides.

It was a common practice for the even semi-rich to hire nursemaids and nannies to care for their children, and it is through these lower class workers that the fairy tales survived. Told to children as bedtime stories, they became cemented in the role of children's literature.

With Walt Disney's Snow White, the first full length animated feature, the stories became further entrapted in the role of children's entertainment. However, Snow White and the other movies to follow, retold the stories to a wider public, bringing the rest of their history eventually to light.

Although fairy tales may never regain the eminance they enjoyed in the 17^th century and before, they have certainly made a comeback.<--! It sounds like I am talking about the spotted owls or American condor in California, sorry about that! --> Collections of stories appear for adults as well as children, and their themes and archeotypes are more widely used