Child Psychology and Fairy Tales

I bought that book once thinking it was going to be some sort of study or analysis of various folklores in a comparitive/cultural way. I was a bit dissappointed that it turned out to be about child psychology. I gave it to my sister - she loves psychology.

Perhaps the medical forum is a better place for this.

Hi, NNY. I haven't read the book of which you speak, but Bettelheim was one of my favorite psychologists. As psychology was once a branch of philosophy, this thread is appropriately placed. If I'm not mistaken, Bettelheim created the idea of "Identity with the Aggressor", a notion that when a person is a subordinate, or placed in a situation of servitude, they tend to become as those who are in charge.

I do wish that you had posted a synopsis of the book. That would have made responses much easier.

NNY, You might find this info quite revealing:

http://www.firstthings.com/ftissues/ft9706/finn.html

I tend to view fairy tales as child abuse.

You may enjoy this I hope you have broadband for the powerpoint

http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/04-1/overheads.html

http://search.csmonitor.com/durable/2000/05/25/p17s2.htm

Digital Term paper

This post is on Google already

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I read the book when it came out and it confirmed my opinion that Freudians are rather grim and humorless.

"Life is real, life is earnest, life is not an empty dream...."

Re: Child Psychology and Fairy Tales


I loved that movie



Why is it necessary to indulge children in fantasy without telling them that it's just fantasy. Do they get some benefit from this? I enjoy fiction even though I know it's fiction.

Rosborne--

In fairness, the man was writing for adults, not children. His preface makes it clear that as a child he enjoyed fairy tales because they are griping stories.

Who was writing for adults, not children? Preface to what book? I'm lost.

I was making a general comment, not related to any particular book.

And otherwise unrelated: The phrase in NNY's sig ("Cellar Door") is from a movie called _Donnie Darko_, a very good sci-fi/Philosophy flic, which I highly recommend

The movie is quite good...

The symbolism to Alice in Wonderland was pretty good... The into the looking glass allusion when Donnie and Frank stare at each other in the bathroom was pretty nice too. The whole movie is great, on any level you watch it, be it paradox, philosophical, or symbolic. It all ties in really well, and this post is completely off topic isn't it?