#fairy tales

[ajmonarch]

Gates to other worlds were once believed to be hidden in the roots of Hawthorn trees...

And I swear, when trees look like this, I'd volunteer as tribute to check.

[nicecarito]

I FINALLY FINISHED THIS 😭 It took me 119 layers and 2 days to finish! I wanted to draw my two Ocs like this. Malik (Magic Natura) confessing his love to Clavel (Earth Natura)

(yes, they remind to Ivy and Harley jahsdjd)

I really felt inspired by Kathryn Hudson piece of Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn , who also got inspired by this old magazine poster!

[samchambersart]

“Let’s hunt some Orc”

My friends & family know how much I love all things Tolkien. My geeky heart is singing.

[laurasimonsdaughter]

If you answered yes and there's anything about the story you'd like to share, I would love to hear it!

[strigeart]

Illustrations like this are the reason I dedicated my life to learning how to tell stories through images.

Heinrich Lefler (Austrian, 1863--1919)

[thestuffedalligator]

I drew this in a fugue state last night

[prokopetz]

I enjoy a joke about fucked up German fairy tales as much as the next nerd, but it's genuinely striking how often the source for the really fucked up stuff turns out to be "yeah, this is only in the Brothers Grimm version and doesn't appear in any extant oral tradition, and we're like 80% sure they added it themselves". To a large extent it's not German fairy tales that are fucked up, it's two specific German dudes.

[julnites]

Red riding hood comic collab with the wonderful @yeehawpim (go check out their blog for loads of great comics!) 🌷 See the layouts he did here!

[maimoncat]

Watch me feed the obsession!

'Cause I recently found this really cool boook that put together a bunch of the older fairy tales that may have inspired Villeneuve, as well as many later (also folk) versions that were influenced by it. The book is called "La Bella e la Bestia: quindici metamorfosi di una fiaba" (Beauty and the Beast: fifteen metamorphoses of a fairy tale), and it's structured like this:

First we have Villeneuve's tale, in all its fascinating details. This book came out in 2003, and this is actually the first published italian translation of that version.

Before. Here we have all the older versions: Apuleius' Cupid and Psyche, Straparola's King Pig, Basile's the Snake, Perrault's Riquet with the tuft and Madame d'Aulnoy's the little green snake. These are all kinda particular reads, since they come from the earliest fairy tales: Straparola and Basile still look at the genre preceding the literary fairy tale, the late medieval novella, so their stories can be quite grotesque and irreverent. Perrault's story here is very intellectual, we spend a lot of time discussing and debating what makes us fall in love, beauty, intelligence, or a secret third thing? This is because this tale is actually a response of him to a friend's tale, Catherine Bernard's. D'Aulnoy's story is also quite long and rich in details and tangents, as was her style.

After. Here we also get to the versions that came later and/or were inspired by Villeneuve. We start with the most famous, Leprince de Beaumont's shortened, child-friendly take on the story. Then we have folk versions, like the Grimm Brothers' the enchanted lion/the singing, springing lark, Bearskin and Hans my Hedgehog or the serpent king and Bellinda and the Monster from Calvino's "italian folktales". But we also find Angela Carter's takes on the classic story, with her Courtship of Mr Lyon and the Tiger's Bride.

The Beast and the Beauty. We close on Vincenzo Cerami's own retelling written precisely for this collection, from the view point of a beastly professor

It is a quite beautiful collection, and though I doubt it ever got outside of Italy, but I hope by listing the tales used I could offer some possible reading options :)

Also, there are various illustrations, from Cupid and Psyche, to a Midsummer Night's Dream's Bottom, to movie posters, to René Gruau's sketch for a fashion magazine, which was used as the book's cover:

What we really need is an adaptation of the original 1740 The Beauty and the Beast

So were you aware that the The Beauty and the Beast story we all know is a heavily abridged and rewritten version of a much longer novella by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve?  And that a lot of the plot holes existing in the current versions exist because the 1756 rewrite cut out the second half of the novella, which consisted entirely of the elaborate backstory that explains all the weird shit that happened before?  And that the elaborate backstory is presented in a way that’s kind of boring because the novel had only just been invented in 1740 and no one knew how they worked yet, but contains a bazillion awesome ideas that beg for a modern retelling?  And that you are probably not aware that the modern world needs this story like air but the modern world absolutely needs this story like air?  Allow me to explain:

The totally awesome elaborate backstory that explains Beauty and the Beast

Once upon a time there was a king, a queen, and their only son

But while the prince was still in his infancy, in a neat reversal of how these fairy tales usually go, the king tragically died, leaving his wife to act as Regent until their son reaches maturity

Unfortunately, the rulers of all the lands surrounding them go, “Hmm, the kingdom is ruled by a woman now, it must be weak, time for an invasion!”

And the Queen goes, “Well, if I let some general fight all these battles for me, he’ll totally amass enough fame and power to make a bid for the throne; if I want to protect my son’s crown, I have no choice but to take up arms and lead the troops myself!”

(Btw, I want to stress that this woman is not Eowyn or Boudica and nothing in the way her story is presented suggests that she had any interest martial exploits before or in any way came to enjoy them during these battles.  This is a perfectly ordinary court lady who would much rather be embroidering altar covers for the royal chapel and playing with her child until necessity made her go, “Oh no, this sucks, I guess I have to become a Warrior Queen now” and she just happened to kick ass at it anyway.)

And the Queen totally kicked ass, but the whole “twice as good for half the credit” thing meant that no matter how many battles she won, potential enemies refused to take her and her army seriously until she had defeated them so no sooner would she fend off one invasion than another one would pop up on a different border.

So she spent the majority of her young son’s life away from the castle leading armies, but it was OK because she left him in the care of her two best friends, who just happen to be fairies!  This was an awesome idea because a) fairies have magic, and therefore are like the best people to protect the prince from any threats and b) fairies consider themselves to be so above humanity that the lowest fairy outranks the highest mortal, so they’d have no interest in taking a human throne.  Good thing they were both good fairies instead of one good and one evil one!

(Spoiler:  they were not both good fairies.)

So the two fairies basically take turns raising the prince until he’s old enough to rule.  And on the eve of his twenty-first birthday, the evil older one comes into the prince’s bedroom.

“So listen, kid.  You’re about to become king, your mother’s on her way home from the war to see you crowned, and I have a third piece of good news for you!  You see, I’ve actually been spending so much time here lately because Fairyland’s become a bit too hot to hold me for reasons totally not related to me being secretly evil.  And if I have to hang in the human world, I might as well reside in the upper echelons of it, so even though as a powerful fairy I completely eclipse your puny human status in a staggeringly unimaginable way, since you’re about to be king and since my premonition that I should stick this whole guardianship thing out because you would be hot one day has totally proved accurate (go me), I will graciously lower myself to allowing you to marry me.  Please feel free to grovel at my feet in gratitude.  (Btw, we can totally start the wedding night now, we’ll tell your mother about it when she arrives tomorrow.)”

Keep reading

[thecollectibles]

Art by 冯伟 Feng Wei（c12）

[mysharona1987]

[elleskinner-justart]

Microcomic Summer 2024: The Search for Cindermeowla

Happy Microcomic Summer day!

This year's comic is the Search for Cindermeowla, aka the tale of a prince who isn't very bright.

I had a completely different concept scripted, and then the image of Cindermeowla running down the stairs muscled its way into my brain and demanded context. Inspiration can be fickle that way!

-

patreon

[maimoncat]

just discovered that the first two volumes got translated in italian and were at my local library! I immediately got them and read them through! My dad also saw them and devoured them as well. He told me, if the other volumes ever came out here as well, to let him know!

Fairytales in BD: Garulfo

I will conclude (so far, because there's a lot more to say) this look at Franco-Belgian comics with THE most famous BD series when it comes to fairy tales. I speak, of course, of Garulfo.

Published in six volumes between 1995 and 2000, created by Alain Ayroles and Bruno Maïorana (with colors by Thierry Leprévost), Garulfo began as a two-part (two volumes) humoristic retelling/parody that many summarized as "What if the tale of The Frog Prince had been told by Voltaire"? Garulfo is a talking frog living in a pond in a fairytale realm. And he has enough of living among wild and savages animals in a dirty, uncivilized swamp. He is endlessly fascinated and obsessed by humans, that he believes to be the epitome of beauty, biology and civilization: he dreams to become one. As such, hearing about stories of princess' kisses turning frogs into princes, he goes to a fairy so she can cast such a spell on him...

Problem is the "fairy" Garulfo visits is a witch - and quite open about her witchcraft, but Garulfo believes fairy and witches are all the same. So she does put the spell on him, but with the warning that it will only bring bad things... And indeed, as Garulfo is kissed by the princess of the realm and welcomed as a prince by the court, the naive frog ends up causing the most massive chain of "butterfly effect" you ever saw within the kingdom. Because, as he comes to learn, the world of human is filled with corruption, cruelty, lust, hypocrisy and other manipulations, and the arrival of an innocent, mysterious newcomer starts a whole series of events - courtly conspirations, assassination attempts, peasant rebellion, old secrets brought to light, tragic misunderstood identites - all culminating, of course, with the arrival of a dragon...

This humoristic, though cynical, BD proved such a success it was extended by four more volumes for a series of six tomes - the second "arc" of Garulfo exploring the relationship between the nice Garulfo the frog, and the human prince who he "took" the shape of, who turns out to be a selfish, arrogant jerk. The two end up again entangled in a set of transformations and identity swap, as a tournament is organized to win the hand of the princess in marriage - and this journey of the naive and the jerk learning from each other for personal growth gets derailed when an ogre kidnaps the princess and makes her a prisoner of his castle. But the rescue mission reveals that the story might not be so much "The Little Thumbling" as rather a bittersweet "Beauty and the Beast"...

As I said before, Garulfo is considered the number 1 BD when it comes to fairy-tales in the Franco-Belgian comics. And one of the classics of humoristic fantasy in BDs.

[star-ocean-peahen]

After watching Cinderella (the original animated movie, which was my favorite as a child), it strikes me how it solves many common problems people have with this fairy tale. Like:

Why did they try to identify the mystery girl using her shoe size? Because the bullheaded king's only clue to her identity was the shoe the Grand Duke picked up off the steps.

Why didn't the prince recognize her by her face? Because his father wouldn't involve him in the process at all, and wasn't the one going around trying to find her.

Why did the prince want to marry a lady he only met that night? Because his father was going to force him to marry someone, and he genuinely liked this woman.

Why did Cinderella want to marry a man she only met that night? Because marriage was her best and most secure way to freedom. Fucked up, but you can't say it's unrealistic for the setting of a fairy tale. She also genuinely liked him.

If they're using the slipper to find her, wouldn't it be more sensible to search for the person with the other slipper? Yes. The King is purposefully nonsensical and the Duke is purposefully terrified enough of him to carry out his orders to the letter. Furthermore, they end up doing that in the end anyway, because the Duke's glass slipper is shattered, and Cinderella brings out the one she has to prove her identity.

Why didn't the stepmother and stepsisters recognize Cinderella at the ball? Because they were dancing too far away, and then left the party to dance in private, which was possible because the King wanted very badly for his son to hit it off with someone and tried to arrange the best conditions for that to happen.

Why didn't Cinderella save herself? Because in real life, abuse victims should not have to shoulder that responsibility, and usually can't. In real life, you need and deserve an external support system. Asking for help, in this kind of situation, is very important. She is saved by others because she is loved. Because she is not alone. Because she has friends who love her, and want her to be happy and safe and free. Because in real life, people who want to help someone who is suffering are like the mice. We can't pull out miracle solutions, but we can provide companionship and if we're in the right place at the right time, we can help the person find a better life.

Why didn't the fairy godmother save Cinderella from her abusive household, or try to help her sooner? Because she's magic, and magic can't solve your problems. Quote: "Like all dreams, well, I'm afraid it can't last forever." This (and Cinderella's dream of going to the ball) is a metaphor for pleasurable things in bad circumstances. An ice cream won't get rid of your depression, but it will provide you with momentary happiness to bolster you, as well as the reminder that happiness in general is still possible for you. Cinderella doesn't want to go to the ball so she can get away from her stepmother and stepsisters, or so she can meet someone to marry and leave with. She wants to go to the ball to remind herself that she can still have things she wants. That her desires matter. This is important because the movie does a very good job of illustrating Lady Tremaine's subtle abuse tactics, all of which invisibly press the message that Cinderella doesn't matter. While going to the ball and fulfilling her dreams may not be a victory in the material sense, it is still a victory against Lady Tremaine's efforts.

Why is Cinderella's choice to be kind and obedient framed as a good thing, when you are not obligated to be kind to your abuser? This one walks a very fine line, but I think the movie still makes it make sense. Lady Tremaine never acknowledges her cruelty. She always frames her punishments of Cinderella as Cinderella's fault. Cinderella is interrupting, Cinderella is shirking her duties, Cinderella is playing vicious practical jokes. Cinderella is still a member of the family, of course she can go to the ball, provided she meet these impossible conditions. Lady Tremaine's tactics are designed to make Cinderella feel like she must always be in the wrong and her stepmother must always be in the right. If Cinderella calls her stepmother out on her cruelty, or attempts to fight back, Lady Tremaine can frame that as Cinderella being ungrateful, cruel, broken, evil, etc. If Cinderella responds to her stepmother's cruelty defiantly (in the way she's justified to), she's not taking control out of Lady Tremaine's hands. Disobedience can be spun back into her stepmother's control. She wants Cinderella to be angry and sad and show how much she's hurting. So since Cinderella is adapting to her situation, she chooses to be kind. Not only because she naturally wants to be and it's part of her personality, but because it is a form of defiance in its own way, and it allows her to keep a reminder of her agency and value. Her choice to be kind is her chance to keep her own narrative alive: she is not obeying because her stepmother wants her to and she has to do what her stepmother does, but because she wants to. It's a small distinction, but one that makes all the difference in terms of keeping her hope and identity. (Fuck, I wrote a whole paragraph about how this doesn't mean you can't be angry at people who hurt you or that you need to be kind to deserve help, and then deleted it by accident. Uh. Try again.) Expressing anger and pain is an important part of regaining autonomy and healing. Although it is commendable to be kind while you are suffering, it is NOT required for you to get help or be worthy of help. If Cinderella's recovery was explored beyond "happily ever after" she would need to let herself be angry and sad to heal. Cinderella is not only kind because it comes naturally to her, but because it's her defense against the abuse she's suffering. Everyone's story and experiences are different, and one does not invalidate the other.

Bonus round for answers that aren't part of the movie:

Why didn't Cinderella run away? Where would she go? Genuinely, in hundreds-of-years-ago France, where would she go if she snuck out of the window with a change of clothes? With her step-family, she's miserable and abused, but she's fed, clothed, and in no danger of dying or being taken advantage of by anyone other than her stepmother and stepsisters. Even if she escapes and manages to find financial security, her stepmother might be able to find her and get her back.

Why didn't Cinderella burn the house down with them inside it/slit their throats in the night/poison their food/etc.? Because that's a revenge fantasy, and this story is a fantasy about being saved. There's nothing wrong with making Cinderella into a revenge fantasy. That's perfectly fine, as long as you acknowledge that the other type of fantasy is also a valid interpretation. (I mean, the original fairy tale features the stepsisters getting their feet mutilated and all three of them getting their eyes pecked out, so go for it.)

Why isn't Cinderella more proactive in general? Because she's a child who has been abused for the back half of her life, who has had to be focused on survival because. you know. she's an abused kid.

How did she dance in glass slippers? Gotta agree with you there man, that's weird.

[ed13d1]

will you remember me?