From Victim to Heroine: Children's Stories Revisited

Abstract

The need to escape reality and the taste for adventure with the unknown fills a universal need for both adults and children. Fairy tales have a powerful grip on the imagination because they are homespun versions of myths and have passionate intensity without epic grandeur. The happy ending of fairy tales reflects gender stereotyping because the heroine usually does very little except sit, wish, and wait for marriage. She has no control over her destiny and no active involvement in selecting or planning her future. These heroines are really passive victims. Sexism was once rampant in children's books. The Oz books, with their independent, courageous, and active heroine were way ahead of their time. The advent of women's liberation has led to a reappraisal of the female in folk literature. Anthropologists have now discovered stories of admirable women who were strong characters in their own epic dramas.

Fairy tales: a compass for children's healthy development – a qualitative study in a Greek island

“…In addition, a rather unexpected result of this research was that no differences were found concerning the preferences of children in relation to gender, something that probably reflects a new trend, which is also obvious in modern children's literature. Modern stories do not use as much stereotyped presentations as classic fairy tales do (Turkel 2002).…”

Contos de fadas: de sua origem à clínica contemporânea DOI 10.5752/P.1678-9563.2009v15n2p132

“…Os contos de fadas distinguem-se das demais histórias infantis por características como o uso de magia e encantamentos, um núcleo problemático existencial no qual o herói ou a heroína busca sua realização pessoal e, finalmente, a existência de obstáculos a serem enfrentados pelos heróis (Caldin, 2002;Oliveira, 2001;Radino, 2003;Turkel, 2002). Para Bettelheim (1980), é característica desses contos a presença de um dilema existencial de forma sucinta e categórica.…”

“…Na clínica psicanalítica contemporânea, faz-se corriqueiro o uso de histórias infantis com crianças e adultos para diagnóstico e tratamento (Bernstein, 1999;Bettelheim, 1980;Brandt, 1983;Bruder, 2004;Caillé & Rey, 1990;Castello, 1999;Catheline-Antipoff & Soulayrol, 1994;Chauí, 1984;Davies, 1988;Dieckmann, 1997;Ellis, 1990;Erle, 1999;Fagulha, 1999;Ferreira, 1991;Ferro, 1995;Garcia & Garcia, 2005;Goldmann, 2001;Gutfreind, 2000Gutfreind, , 2002Gutfreind, , 2003Hisada, 1998;Ishikawa et al, 1990;Luz & Zanetti, 2003;Machado, 1988;Roberge, 2002;Robinson, 1986;Safra, 2005;Schmid et al, 2002;Silva & Fachin, 2002;Souyouldzoglou, Anasiassia, Coulacoglou, & Gardiner, 1999;Sussenbacher, 1982;Stube, 2001;Turkel, 2002;Tychey, 1993;Zago, 1998).…”

Histórias da Bíblia Hebraica e as crianças: uma Análise ao Livro de Ester a partir da metodologia De Bruno Bettelheim

“…um núcleo problemático existencial no qual o herói ou a heroína busca sua realização pessoal e, finalmente, (3.) a existência de obstáculos a serem enfrentados pelos heróis (TURKEL 2002;cf. CALDIN, 2002).…”

“…Constata-se, portanto, que a literatura oferece subsídios ao resgate da veiculação secular dos Contos de Fadas pelas mais diversificadas culturas e gerações, encantando adultos e, sobretudo crianças, inclusive na atualidade -muito embora tenha havido mudanças nas últimas 3 Outros autores que corroboram uma visão mais abrangente das histórias infantis: (CHAUÍ, 1984;ROBINSON, 1986;CAILLÉ;REY, 1988;DAVIES, 1988;MACHADO, 1988;ELLIS, 1990;ISHIKAWA, et al, 1990;FERREIRA, 1991;TYCHEY, 1993;FERRO, 1995;HISADA, 1998;ZAGO, 1998;FAGULHA, 1999;ERLE, 1999;BERNSTEIN, 1999;GOLDMANN, 2001;SCHMID, et al, 2002;SILVA;FACHIN, 2002;TURKEL, 2002;GUTFREIND, 2002GUTFREIND, , 2003LUZ;ZANETTI, 2003;GARCIA;GARCIA, 2005;SAFRA, 2005;SCHNEIDER;TOROSSIAN, 2009).…”