Blog 1: Introduction

                I grew up on a steady diet of peanut butter and jelly and Disney movies. At one point, I knew every line and every lyric to the movies, especially those involving princesses. However, it was not until High School when I read the seventh Harry Potter book, which features the wizarding fairy tale of “The Three Brothers”, that I considered what exactly fairy tales in the real world mean. In this tale, there was a clear moral disguised in a clever tale that parents tell their children. This got me thinking more about the fairy tales I heard as a child and the Disney movies I had memorized.  I soon learned, through a quick Google search, that many of these stories were originally published by the Brothers Grimm. Naturally, I had heard of these brothers, but I had never read any of the original fairy tales. Furthermore, I could not recall a single moral lesson from the movies that I had seen over a hundred times each. So, when I saw the description of this FYS, I was instantly intrigued and wanted to know more.

                I’m mostly hoping to satisfy my curiosity through this FYS, and become a more educated viewer of the Disney classics that I used to love. I’m also excited to examine the lessons that I was unconsciously taught as a young child and think about possible societal implications that occur due to teaching the distorted morals in these movies.

                My favorite fairy tale is Cinderella, and has been since I was a little girl. There is not a very specific reason for this story being my particular favorite. It is probably a combination of being wowed by seeing her castle at Disney World when I was five, and also thinking that we had a lot in common. Occasionally, my older sister and I would argue when I was younger. I thought she was being very bossy, and I liked to imagine that she was an evil stepsister. Now, I realize that Cinderella and I have basically nothing in common, but I had a big imagination when I was little and that scenario was very entertaining.