#fairy tales

[bethanydelleman]

You could look at Sleeping Beauty as being a story about an entire country being destroyed in favour of a single person because spindles are so fundamental to the economy. The ultimate selfishness of monarchs in preserving themselves above everyone else.

Ever since I learnt to use a drop spindle and I was shown a spinning wheel, I had the question that probably all handspinners have:

how the fuck did the Sleeping Beauty managed to get punctured by this?

Now, there are theories, very interesting about all that, but what people rarely think is how the consequence of Sleeping Beauty's curse was her parents burning all spinning related things so that she would never meet her fate.

This effectively means that in this kingdom they have to import most types of fabric and clothing. Or maybe they only import the thread, if they had a flourishing loom industry, but still. They probably can only work with leather and felted wool. Also a problem for ropes of all kinds, now that I think of it.

So the kingdom of Sleeping Beauty was known for about 18 years as (first of all) the kingdom with the terrible policy about spinning, and secondly as the best artisans of leather and felt.

But then, there is also the whole "I am too poor to care, I can just spin with a stick but I do not have any means to acquire thread or clothes in any other way". A whole black market of home-made spinned thread, a whole way of spinning in creative ways so that you can easily hide what you are doing. A sinking spinning wheel industry but a blooming "just a stick" industry.

And then, she met her fate and so people were like "so I guess I can use a spinning wheel again, or is it too soon?" Regions closer to the castle took longer but nobody really enforced the law after like 6 months anymore.

[maxyvert]

🦇Folktale week 2022 masterpost!🦇

Tree - Star - Rebels - Costum

Ko-fi - Inprnt - Patreon

[animepopheart]

★ ハッピーエンドの物語を。 ☆ ノーコピーライトガール ✔ republished w/permission ⊳ ⊳ follow me on twitter // bsky

[illustratus]

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by Roland Risse

[ronk]

Has this theory ever been put to the test? I like Albert, but this seems questionable.

If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.

Albert Einstein

[jewish-culture-is]

Jewish culture is learning about Jewish witches over the centuries and then dreaming a gritty reimagining of Hansel and Gretel where the witch was actually just trying to feed them but she’s Jewish so all the characters let their imaginations run wild.

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[sealixirfairytales]

TWST OC Based on my Anansi! :) Because the image's writing are small, here it is: Age: 17 Best Subject: Alchemy Birthday: November 18 Class: Second Year Club: Board Game Club Height: 172 cm Hobby: Telling riddles and stories, weaving intricate illusions Homeland: Afterglow Savannah Likes: Trickery, puzzles, stories Dislikes: Arrogance, hypocrisy, getting tangled in his own webs

Unique Spell: “Spider’s Whisper” – Plant a single thought, suggestion, or rumor in someone’s mind. It’s a subtle nudge rather than outright mind control, and the thought can be shaken off with enough willpower or suspicion. This power is especially potent in crowded areas, where rumors can spread quickly before anyone realizes who started it.

Anson is known for his sharp wit and his knack for riddles and stories. He often speaks in metaphors or gives half-truths, leaving others guessing at his intentions.

He uses tricks and schemes but tends to target those who are arrogant or hypocritical, teaching them humility or a lesson in perspective. His pranks have a habit of turning out “educational” in unexpected ways.

Anson is skilled at gathering information through stories and social connections. He’s the kind of person who knows all the secrets around campus and has contacts in every dorm—though getting him to share anything useful requires either clever negotiation or a clever enough riddle.

Anson is adept at thinking on his feet, adjusting his schemes as needed. He’s known to make use of unexpected resources.

Anson has a friendly rivalry with Azul, as both are adept at reading and manipulating others. However, Anson’s chaotic, mischievous nature contrasts with Azul’s more calculated approach. Anson might tease Azul for being too “predictable,” while Azul respects Anson’s skill but finds his unpredictability frustrating.

Anson has friends across the dorms, especially with characters like Ruggie and Floyd, who appreciate his humor and antics. He’s also intrigued by Leona, who he views as a “lion who needs humbling,” though he’d likely avoid getting on Leona’s bad side unless he had a clever scheme in mind.

Anson is amused by RSA and finds its students a bit too self-righteous, haugthy and/or naive. He occasionally sneaks over to cause harmless mischief, leaving confusing riddles or stories that RSA students believe are signs or prophecies.

Voice Lines • Login: “Heh, you’re back? Ready for another story, or did you want me to spin a web of mysteries for you today?” • Friendship: “A friend is just another kind of challenge, y’know. Make sure you’re clever enough to keep up with me.” • Battle Victory: “Caught like flies! Too easy. Who’s next?” • Unique Magic: “Ah, whispers in the wind, thoughts that linger. Let’s see where this thread leads…Spider's Whisper!”

His inspiration, Anansi the spider god:

[yoongisgayvanz]

need more knight Dean Winchester fics out here fr 😪⚔️

[exilesgarden]

Interesting discussion about the origins of the 'Speculative Fiction' genre and how the the definition has shifted over the years to become the umbrella genre it is now. It's a term I use quite frequently when talking about my tastes as it's an easy way to refer to a collection of genres that deviate away from literary realism. 'Speculative fiction' as it is used currently is so much more than just science fiction. I don't mean that in a disparaging way either. I love science fiction. But often when I say I'm a fan of speculative fiction I'm actually more likely to be talking about horror, weird fiction, mystery, magical realism, slipstream, supernatural, dark fantasy and folklore.

I'm not educated enough in this area to know why "speculative fiction" exists as a term separate from "science fiction" but it always felt like an attempted rebranding to make scifi sound more literary. I'm of the opinion that sci fi should not need to rebrand itself to be taken seriously as literature, but I have to admit the term speculative fiction is fun. We're speculating. Come, speculate with me. There's something very Twilight Zone about it. "Imagine, if you will,....."

[thestuffedalligator]

“Are you the witch who turned eleven princes into swans?”

The old woman stared at the figure on the front step of her cottage and considered her options. It was the kind of question usually backed up by a mob with meaningful torches, and the kind of question she tried to avoid.

Coming from a single dusty, tired housewife, it should’ve held no terrors.

“You a cop?”

The housewife twisted the hem of her apron. “No,” she muttered. “I’m a swan.”

A raven croaked somewhere in the woods. Wind whispered in the autumn leaves.

Then: “I think I can guess,” the old woman said slowly. “Husband stole your swan skin and forced you to marry him?”

A nod.

“And you can’t turn back into a swan until you find your skin again.”

A nod.

“But I reckon he’s hidden it, or burned it, or keeps it locked up so you can’t touch it.”

A tiny, miserable nod.

“And then you hear that old Granny Rothbart who lives out in the woods is really a batty old witch whose father taught her how to turn princes into swans,” the old woman sighed. “And you think, ‘Hey, stuff the old skin, I can just turn into a swan again this way.’

“But even if that was true – which I haven’t said if it is or if it isn’t – I’d say that I can only do it to make people miserable. I’m an awful person. I can’t do it out of the goodness of my heart. I have no goodness. I can’t use magic to make you feel better. I only wish I could.”

Another pause. “If I was a witch,” she added.

The housewife chewed the inside of her cheek. Then she drew herself up and, for the first time, looked the old woman in the eyes.

“Can you do it to make my husband miserable?”

The old woman considered her options. Then she pulled the wand out from the umbrella stand by the door. It was long, and silver, and a tiny glass swan with open wings stood perched on the tip.

“I can work with that,” said the witch.

[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!

[thecollectibles]

Art by 冯伟 Feng Wei（c12）

[valentineblacker]

A little while ago I reblogged a post about finding collections of fairy tales- here's a bunch of them. You can click through on the links that say "source" to read the entire books.

“Woodblocks in Wonderland: The Japanese Fairy Tale Series”, @chrisdecou on how a pioneering cross-cultural endeavour gave rise to a magnificent chapter in the history of children’s publishing: https://publicdomainreview.org/essay/woodblocks-in-wonderland-the-japanese-fairy-tale-series

[mysharona1987]

[mist-the-wannabe-linguist]

Dunno how to put it properly into words but lately I find myself thinking more about that particular innocence of fairy tales, for lack of better word. Where a traveller in the middle of a field comes across an old woman with a scythe who is very clearly Death, but he treats her as any other auntie from the village. Or meeting a strange green-skinned man by the lake and sharing your loaf of bread with him when he asks because even though he's clearly not human, your mother's last words before you left home were to be kind to everyone. Where the old man in the forest rewards you for your help with nothing but a dove feather, and when you accept even such a seemingly useless reward with gratitude, on your way home you learn that it's turned to solid gold. Where supernatural beings never harm a person directly and every action against humans is a test of character, and every supernatural punishment is the result of a person bringing on their own demise through their own actions they could have avoided had they changed their ways. Where the hero wins for no other reason than that they were a good person. I don't have the braincells to describe this better right now but I wish modern fairy tales did this more instead of trying to be fantasy action movies.