Master's Thesis, A Grimm Affair

After several months of pondering what topic is worth 25 pages of research and mental sweat, I've finally settled on my thesis topic: The Grimm's fairy tales, their historical censoring, and the pros and cons of teaching them as children's morality stories.

Different periods of German history led to different versions of the tales...in general, it's the story of the progression of more clear-cut good v. evil, and less violence and lewdness. It all culminates in Disney...where the Grimms tales are reappropriated to be so sterilized and rose-tinted, they are only the skeleton of their former, more ribald selves.

Anyway, a bigger question I'm interested in is the goal and educative role of myths and mythical fiction. What's so everlasting about these stories that manage to regenerate themselves with each new society's remake and interpretation? What's to be gained from twisting stories for children? And what are the societal repercussions of censorship?

So far, some initial texts to work with:

And this beautifully illustrated coffee table book version of the final Grimms Brother's edition by Art book publishing king: Taschen.

 

And finally, what inspired my whole endeavor: This National Geographic resource on some of the original tales.