Department of English

An examination of the history and forms of the fairy tale (Märchen) as
an oral narrative genre and as a literary construction. Topics covered
include the history of collection and publication in Europe and the
United States; the issue of “authenticity” of the tales; and fairy tales
as folk, popular, and high culture.  This course will address the
relationship between fairy tales and geography, gender, and sexual
desire.  And we will examine transformations of the genre in film, and
in the work of authors including Angela Carter, Bill Willingham, and
Neil Gaiman.