5 ms·

These stories weren't meant to be children's stories. They just became popular as such and have been edited to make them more child friendly to the point that w

• david927 11y ago
  That's not remotely true. Many of these stories were specifically to protect children. If you can't watch your children all the time, you can't just tell them, "Don't go too close to the water." They'll go anyway. So you tell them, "There are Wassermen (German) / Vodnik (Czech) who will grab you by the feet and pull you in."
  • marshray 11y ago
    "... and stay the hell out of the woods too"
  • pixl97 11y ago
    When my daughter was pretty young we were walking on the sidewalk beside a road. There was an unfortunate squirrel that hand not made the crossing alive, and died in a rather gory fashion. Rather than sheltering her from the cruelty of death I told her that this squirrel didn't listen to its parents and played in the road. The imagery was powerful enough that she 'self-policed' rather well and kept herself and friends away from the road unless an adult was helping them cross. It's this same imagery we see in old tales like that. Vivid and terrifying creatures and events that apply enough fear to curb our curiosity in places that it might get the better of us.
  • brownbat 11y ago
    Some have useful morals for children. Others tell you that your family is evil and you should seek advice from talking animals instead. But the original was published as "Kinder- und Hausmärchen" or "Children's and Household Tales," so you're right that the Grimm's fully expected these would be read to or by kids.
• kagamine 11y ago
  Finished reading Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid to my daughter just last night. That ending was brutal. Not at all what my daughter or I were expecting having seen the Disney film.