Blog Post 3

            The fairy tale can be defined as a concise magical story that involves a succession of motifs. Fairy tales or as their also known märchen all contain similar themes which exist no matter their country of origin. Fairy tales tend to be exact in their descriptions of time. For example, in the brothers Grimm fairy tale of Briar Rose, the titular character is asleep for one hundred years. The number one hundred is even and exact. Fairy tales are written like this in order for them to be simple, straightforward as well as “smooth” and “round”. This is in contrast to the saint’s legend which tend to have less perfect or even numbers to make the reader feel as though the story is true and are being given exact dates and numbers. For example, in the saint’s legend Legenda Aurea the twelve apostles sleep for 372 years. Since it seems like a more precise number the reader is supposed to feel as though the speaker is reliable thus believing the saint’s tale is true and renewing their faith in their religion. Another popular fairytale motif is the hero’s ability to save the day at precisely the right moment. They never have time to spare or are late in their efforts. For example, in the Grimm fairy tale of Briar rose the prince by chance arrives at the briar bush surrounding the castle exactly one hundred years after the princess and everyone else in the castle were put to sleep. This motif is seen again in the Swedish fairy tale called Silberwiss and Lillwacker. Silberweiss sees each of the three princesses right before they are supposed to be taken away by a sea troll. Lastly, a fairy tale motif seen across various fairy tales is that the protagonist or hero is isolated before they can save the day. In the Swedish fairy tale previously mentioned Silverweiss is left alone with his dogs to defeat the sea troll in three isolated events all involving a princess and a sea troll. This isolation of the protagonist is also evident in Briar Rose when the titular character is alone in the castle, with her parents being away when she pricks, her finger on the spinning wheel. This creates a “sharply designed structure” of the fairy tale which intensifies the severity of the event making it more enjoyable.