I am sure you have all heard how dark and horrible the original fairy tales from the Brothers Grimm are when compared to the magical, watered down versions of today. I would agree that they are dark and can be scary for little kids, but that was partially their purpose. Making kids afraid to go alone in the dark or to take candy from strangers is a good thing. However, there are points in the story where people get pregnant out of wedlock, like in Rapunzel, or where characters die in pretty horrible ways. But, if you were to look at some of the cartoons of today, I feel like you would be just as surprised at the weird things that you find. And if you were to go on YouTube, there is no limit to the odd, offensive, and inappropriate things you could find.
I think that if you compare the stories from The Brothers Grimm to modern day stories that are intended for a younger audience, then you will find that they are basically at the same level. One of the stories in particular that I read this week struck me as what would make a hilarious YouTube video. In "The Straw, The Coal, and The Bean," the titular characters survive a long, scary night of cooking and decide to run away together to increase their chances of staying alive. The bean, coal, and straw all talk to one another and they say a lot of nonsense. When they come to a small stream, they decide that it is a good idea for the coal to walk across on the straw. The coal freaks out, catches the straw on fire, and then they both fall into the stream. The bean is watching on the bank and laughs so hard that he splits open. This story is basically pointless, but I thought it was hilarious. If it was on YouTube, I would share it and watch it and tweet it and force my friends to watch it.
The ability for such a weird, humorous story to be in the middle of these dark stories, made me think that the dark parts were not actually meant to be taken that seriously. Apparently, people who write stories for children have always been really weird. When people look back at Adventure Time, I am sure they will wonder why anyone would watch such a weird, nonsensical show. But, they are forgetting that we know how weird it is and we like it anyway. Everyone has always seen how violent and odd these fairy tales are, but that will never stop people from sharing their magic and entertainment.
Adventure Time poster. Image Info.
No comments:
Post a Comment