Anthologies
Beauties, Beasts and Enchantment: Classic French Fairy Tales by A beautiful new collection of 36 French fairy tales translated into English by renowned writer and authority on fairy tales, Jack Zipes. Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Sleepy Beauty, Puss In Boots, Bluebeard, and Little Red Riding Hood are some of the classic fairy tales in this 600+ page amazing book.
Enchanted Eloquence: Fairy Tales by Seventeenth-Century French Women Writers by ISBN: 9780772720771Date: 2010This is a superb book on all levels. The translations of the tales are excellent. The research is impeccable. The introduction and notes are highly informative. Most important, Lewis Seifert and Domna Stanton have focused on unusual fairy tales that have never been translated before and are seminal for understanding the development of the literary fairy tale as genre. French women writers played a central role in the institutionalization of a literary genre in the French civilizing process that had huge ramifications in opera, theater, vaudeville, music, and film. Moreover, their tales influenced other writers of fairy tales in Europe. This book does an honor to their creative efforts and provides the basis for further research on the development of European fairy tales (Jack Zipes Professor of German, Emeritus, University of Minnesota).
Fairy Tales for the Disillusioned: Enchanted Stories from the French Decadent Tradition by ISBN: 0691161658Date: 2016A new collection of subversive French fairy tales. The wolf is tricked by Red Riding Hood into strangling her grandmother and is subsequently arrested. Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella do not live happily ever after. And the fairies are saucy, angry, and capricious. Fairy Tales for the Disillusioned collects thirty-six tales, many newly translated, by writers associated with the decadent literary movement, which flourished in France in the late nineteenth century. Written by such creative luminaries as Charles Baudelaire, Anatole France, and Guillaume Apollinaire, these enchanting yet troubling stories reflect the concerns and fascinations of a time of great political, social, and cultural change. Recasting well-known favorites from classic French fairy tales, as well as Arthurian legends and English and German tales, the updated interpretations in this collection allow for more perverse settings and disillusioned perspectives—a trademark style and ethos of the decadent tradition...
Background
To better understand folk and fairy tales, it is helpful to think about the distinction between folklore and literature. Folklore, which refers to "artistic communication in small groups" (Ben-Amos 1971), covers a broad range of expressions including material culture, rituals and customs, foodways, and folk narratives (e.g., folktales, legends, myths, etc.). All folklore includes tradition, or elements that stay the same, and variation, or elements that change (Glassie 1989). Since folklore is transmitted "in small groups," it is typically conveyed informally and often via face-to-face communication. On the other hand, materials that are formally communicated, published (like literature), standardized, or disseminated on a mass scale through popular culture or the media are not generally considered folklore. In other words, literature—broadly defined as "written works"—may draw from folklore, but literature is not folklore.
The folktale is a folk narrative genre that depicts marvelous and fantastical events; it is not usually believed as true. As a form of folklore, the folktale is typically communicated face-to-face in small groups, containing elements of both tradition and variation. The fairy tale as most think of it today came about primarily as a literary genre, i.e., published stories depicting marvelous and fantastical events that were "based only marginally on folklore." Some scholars suggest that the term "fairy tale" and the resulting literary genre stemmed from one of the works featured below, Les contes des fées (Tales of Fairies), which was written by the French baroness and writer Madame D'Aulnoy (Ashliman 2004). The selection below features some of France's best-known fairy tale collections alongside compilations of folktales that were collected from oral tradition.
Selected Works
Beauty and the Beast: The Original Story by ISBN: 9780866986274Date: 2020Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve, the little-known author of Beauty and the Beast, was a successful novelist and fairytale writer in mid eighteenth-century France. While her novels are rarely read today, her compelling fairytale has become universally recognized. This edition is the first integral English translation of Villeneuve's original tale. The introduction seeks to illuminate the publication of Beauty and the Beast in its historical and literary context, and brings to life the dynamic female characters that first populated this enchanting tale: the courageous Beauty, the Fairy Queen, the Amazon Queen, the Lady Fairy, and the powerful, but mischievous elderly fairy.
The Complete Fairy Tales by ISBN: 9780199236831Date: 2009Charles Perrault's versions gave classic status to the humble fairy tale, and it is in his telling that the stories of Little Red Riding-Hood, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella and the rest have been passed down from the seventeenth century to the present day. Perrault's tales were enjoyed in the salons of Louis XIV as much as they were loved in the nursery, and it is their wit, humour, and lively detail that capture the imagination of adult and child alike. They transmute into vivid fantasies the hidden fears and conflicts by which children are affected: fears of abandonment, or worse, conflicts with siblings and parents, and the trials of growing up. This new translation by Christopher Betts exactly captures the tone and flavour of Perrault's world, and the delightful spirit of the originals.In addition to the familiar stories, this edition also includes the three verse tales—the troubling account of patient Griselda, the comic Three Silly Wishes, and the notorious Donkey-Skin. The introduction explores the nature of the stories and how they have been interpreted; Gustave Dore's wonderful illustrations add a further dimension to their imaginative power.
A Fairy Garland: Being Fairy Tales from the Old French by Date: 1928A Fairy Garland – Being Fairy Tales from the Old French contains a collection of stories, written by Charles Perrault, Madame D’Aulnoy and Count Anthony Hamilton. These individuals were among the first writers to bring magical children’s stories into the literary mainstream, proving to their original seventeenth century readers that such works were important, enjoyable, as well as thought-provoking. The stories in this particular text encompass favourites such as Perrault’s ‘Puss in Boots’ and ‘Riquet with the Tuft’ as well as other less well-known classics such as D’Aulnoy’s ‘The Green Dragon’, ‘Princess Rosetta’ and ‘The Blue Bird’ and Count Antony Hamilton’s dazzling ‘Mayblossom' (from the Pook Press edition).The Fairy Tales of Madame d'Aulnoy: Newly Done Into English by
Date: 1892 (1697)Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville, or Madame d'Aulnoy (1650/1651–1705) was a French author primarily known for writing fairy tales. Many scholars attribute the the term fairy tale—in French, contes de fées—as stemming from her literary works.
French Folktales From the Collection of Henri Pourrat by ISBN: 9780394544519Date: 1989Selected from Henri Pourrat's classic Le tresor des contes, one of the finest folktale collections in the world, these one-hundred-odd legends, fairy tales, devotional pieces, jokes, and animal stories from the rural provinces of France comprise a magical volume. Fairies, changelings, giants, demons, bumpkins, knaves, bewitched and bewitching princesses, bandits, and others enact stories of perilous tests of love, contests with the devil, the beneficence of saints, and more. Royall Tyler's translation deftly captures the vigor and resonance of the originals, and his cogent introduction illuminates for the reader the earthy, chilling, mischievous, and mystical realm these tales evoke.
The Island of Happiness: Illustrated Tales of Madame d'Aulnoy by ISBN: 0691213666Date: 2021An enchanting selection of Madame d'Aulnoy's seventeenth-century French fairy tales, interpreted by contemporary visual artist Natalie Frank Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville (1650-1705), also known as Madame d'Aulnoy, was a pioneer of the French literary fairy tale. Though d'Aulnoy's work now rarely appears outside of anthologies, her books were notably popular during her lifetime, and she was in fact the author who coined the term 'fairy tales' (contes des fées). Presenting eight of d'Aulnoy's magical stories, The Island of Happiness juxtaposes poetic English translations with a wealth of original, contemporary drawings by Natalie Frank, one of today's most outstanding visual artists. In this beautiful volume, classic narratives are interpreted and made anew through Frank's feminist and surreal images. This feast of words and visuals presents worlds where women exercise their independence and push against rigid social rules. Fidelity and sincerity are valued over jealousy and greed, though not everything ends seamlessly. Selected tales include 'Belle-Belle,' where an incompetent king has his kingdom restored to him through an androgynous heroine's constancy. In 'The Green Serpent,' a heroine falls in love with the eponymous snake, is punished by a wicked fairy, and endures trials to prove her worthiness. And in 'The White Cat,' a young prince is dazzled by the astonishing powers of a feline. Jack Zipes's informative introduction offers historical context, and Natalie Frank's opening essay delves into her aesthetic approaches to d'Aulnoy's characters. An inspired integration of art and text, The Island of Happiness is filled with seductive stories of transformation and enchantment.
Le Magasin des enfants, ou Dialogues d'une sage gouvernante avec ses élèves by Date: 1865 (1758)Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont's (1711–1780) version of "Beauty and the Beast" is considered the most well-known version of the famous literary fairy tale. It inspired Jean Cocteau's classic film version La Belle et la Bête (1946). An English translation, with an afterward by Cocteau and illustrations by Hilary Knight, is available here.
Les contes des fées. / Texte integral des vingtquatre contes. by Date: 1956 (1697)This two-volume set include the complete text of twenty-four literary fairy tales adapted by Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville, Baroness d'Aulnoy, or Madame d'Aulnoy.
Le Tresor Des Contes by Date: 1948-This ten-volume set contains folktales and songs collected, primarily in central southern France, by Henri Pourrat (1887–1959).
Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, and Other Classic Fairy Tales of Charles Perrault by ISBN: 9780143105367Date: 2008Ten beloved fairy tales, given new life by the one and only Angela Carter. Little Red Riding Hood. Cinderella. Sleeping Beauty. Bluebeard. The Fairies. Many classic fairy tale characters might not have survived into the present were it not for Charles Perrault, a seventeenth-century French civil servant who rescued them from the oral tradition and committed them to paper. Three centuries later, Angela Carter, widely regarded as one of England's most imaginative writers, adapted them for contemporary readers. The result is a cornucopia of fantastic characters and timeless adventures, stylishly retold by a modern literary visionary.
Old French Fairy Tales by ISBN: 9781447449133Date: 2012Old French Fairy Tales is a collection of french folklore and fairytales, penned by Sophie Rostopchine, Countess of Ségur (1799–1874). Ségur was a French writer of Russian birth, best known today for her novel Les Malheurs de Sophie (Sophie’s Misfortunes), intended for children. The anthology contains stories split into four categories: ‘Blondine, Bonne-Biche, and Beau-Minon’, ‘Good Little Henry’, ‘Princess Rosette’, ‘Little Gay Mouse’ and ‘Ourson’. The stories in Old French Fairy Tales are accompanied by the truly beautiful illustrations of Virginia Frances Sterrett (1900–1931). Presented alongside the text, her illustrations further refine and elucidate Ségur’s masterful storytelling... You can access a different edition available online here.
The Sleeping Beauty and Other Fairy Tales from the Old French by Date: 1910The Sleeping Beauty and Other Fairy Tales from the Old French contains a collection of stories, adapted and translated by Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch. Quiller-Couch was a Cornish writer, who published under the pen-name of Q. Originally penned by such famed folklorists as Charles Perrault and Madame D'Aulnoy, these stories proved to their original seventeenth century readers that such works were important, enjoyable, as well as thought-provoking. The stories in this particular text encompass favourites such as 'Sleeping Beauty,' 'Blue Beard,' 'Cinderella, or the Little Glass Slipper,' and 'Beauty and the Beast.' This edition of Sleeping Beauty and Other Fairy Tales further contains a set of dazzling coloured illustrations by a true master of the 'Golden Age;' Edmund Dulac (1882–1953). A French artist himself, Dulac had a particular affinity with these old French tales as well as a rigorously painterly background. The end result was beautifully coloured images which further refined the wonderful stories of Perrault, D'Aulnoy—retold by Arthur Quiller-Couch. Appearing alongside the text, his illustrations enhance and elucidate the enchanting narratives (from the Pook Press edition).
Wonder Tales: Six Stories of Enchantment by ISBN: 0195178211Date: 2004Once upon a time, in the Paris of Louis XIV, five ladies and one gentleman—all of them aristocrats—seized on the new enthusiasm for 'Mother Goose Stories' and decided to write some of them down. Telling stories resourcefully and artfully was a key social grace, and when they recorded these elegant narratives they consciously invented the modern fairy tale as we still know it today. For this beautiful anthology of six masterpiece wonder tales, Marina Warner gathered five writers with a special sympathy for the French stories they render here in burnished, cunning and amusing English. The stories, 'The White Cat' (translated by John Ashbery), 'The Subtle Princess' (Gilbert Adair), 'Bearskin' and 'Starlight' (Terence Cave), 'The Counterfeit Marquise' (Ranjit Bolt), and 'The Great Green Worm' (A.S. Byatt), are as unforgettable today as they were when first published centuries ago. Wonder is the key to the stories, and each tale abounds with transformation and magic. Wonders can be benign (like the garden fruits that come when you whistle) or baneful (like the bad fairy Magotine's spells), producing dread and desire at the same time. But, fortunately, they almost always punish those who deserve it: tyrants, seducers, and other forces of malevolence. Heroes and heroines are put to mischievous tests, and their quest for love is confounded when their objects of desire change into beasts or monsters. Still, true understanding and recognition of the person beneath the spell wins in the end, for after wonder comes consolation, and after strange setbacks comes a happy ending. In Wonder Tales, a magical world awaits all who dare to enter.
Selected Resources
Fabulous Identities: Women's Fairy Tales in Seventeenth-Century France by ISBN: 9789042005228Date: 1998Fabulous Identities revises traditional interpretations of the fairy-tale vogue which was dominated by salon women in the last decade of the French seventeenth century. This study of women's tale narratives is set into an investigation of how aristocratic identity was transformed by political and social realignments forced by royal absolutism or ambitious materialism. Women's distinctive contributions to the genre are defined by drawing upon various texts that articulated the century's moral, cultural, and aesthetic values, as well as upon contemporary critical perspectives including seventeenth-century historical and cultural studies.Caught up in the philosophical, political and social controversy over woman's nature, seventeenth-century women writers benefited from salon culture and their access to writing through the literary genres of fairy tales and novels, to explore new identities and expand representations of subjectivity. Women's tales can be seen as a theater for staging an authorial persona at odds with their portrait as presented in male-authored didactic treatises and in the fairy tales of Charles Perrault. At a time when the pressures of social conformity weighed heavily upon them, the conteuseshighlight through metamorphosis the affective dimension together with its impact on evolving notions of personal autonomy.
Fairy Tales, Sexuality, and Gender in France, 1690-1715 by ISBN: 9780521026277Date: 2006Between 1690 and 1715, well over one hundred literary fairy tales appeared in France, two-thirds of them written by women. The first part of this book situates the rise of this genre within the literary and historical context of late-seventeenth-century France, and the second part examines the representation of sexuality, masculinity and femininity within selected groups of tales. The book proposes a new model for the application of feminist and gender theory to the literary fairy tale, from whatever national tradition.
French Fairy Tales: A Jungian Approach by ISBN: 9780791454695Date: 2002Bettina L. Knapp explores the universal and eternal nature of fourteen French fairy tales, including the medieval Romance of Mélusine, Charles Perrault's seventeenth-century versions of Sleeping Beauty and Bluebeard, and Jean Cocteau's film version of Beauty and the Beast. She demonstrates the relevance of these fairy tales for modern readers, both for the psychological problems they address and for the positive resolutions they offer. Through her careful examination of these tales, Knapp shows that people in past eras suffered from such supposedly 'modern' problems as alienation and identity crises and went through harrowing ordeals before experiencing some sort of fulfillment. By imparting the age-old wisdom embedded in these works, French Fairy Tales triggers new insights into psychological problems and offers helpful ways of dealing with them.
Love, Power, and Gender in Seventeenth-Century French Fairy Tales by ISBN: 1496216156Date: 2020Love is a key ingredient in the stereotypical fairy-tale ending in which everyone lives happily ever after. This romantic formula continues to influence contemporary ideas about love and marriage, but it ignores the history of love as an emotion that shapes and is shaped by hierarchies of power including gender, class, education, and social status. This interdisciplinary study questions the idealization of love as the ultimate happy ending by showing how the conteuses, the women writers who dominated the first French fairy-tale vogue in the 1690s, used the fairy-tale genre to critique the power dynamics of courtship and marriage. Their tales do not sit comfortably in the fairy-tale canon as they explore the good, the bad, and the ugly effects of love and marriage on the lives of their heroines. Bronwyn Reddan argues that the conteuses' scripts for love emphasize the importance of gender in determining the 'right' way to love in seventeenth-century France. Their version of fairy-tale love is historical and contingent rather than universal and timeless. This conversation about love compels revision of the happily-ever-after narrative and offers incisive commentary on the gendered scripts for the performance of love in courtship and marriage in seventeenth-century France.
Mother Goose Refigured: A Critical Translation of Charles Perrault's Fairy Tales by ISBN: 9780814338926Date: 2016Charles Perrault published Histoires ou Contes du temps passé (Stories or Tales of the Past) in France in 1697 during what scholars call the first 'vogue' of tales produced by learned French writers. The genre that we now know so well was new and an uncommon type of literature in the epic world of Louis XIV's court. This inaugural collection of French fairy tales features characters like Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Puss-in-Boots that over the course of the eighteenth century became icons of social history in France and abroad. Translating the original Histoires ou Contes means grappling not only with the strangeness of seventeenth century French but also with the ubiquity and familiarity of plots and heroines in their famous English personae...
Out of the Woods: The Origins of the Literary Fairy Tale in Italy and France by ISBN: 0814326870Date: 1998Out of the Woods studies the birth and early evolution of the literary fairy tale in Italy and France in the 17th and 18th centuries, from the early Italian collections (Straparola and Basile), through the 'first wave' of fairy tale production in the France of Louis XIV (Perrault and d'Aulnoy), up to later 18th-century manipulations and transformations (Hamilton, Gozzi, Casanova). The tales analyzed here were appropriated from the oral tradition and transformed by professional men and women of letters into sophisticated literary creations for an elite audience of court and salon frequenters. This, far from being minor works or 'entertainment for little ones,' these fantastic tales contributed to an interrogation and revision of the cultural history of their times, offering new paradigms of narrative representation and social interaction.
