Essay Sample on Once Upon a Time: Digital Revolution & Fairy Tale Retellings

Introduction

The digital revolution has brought significant change to the dissemination of fairy tale thus solidifying its presence in the culture of 20th and 21st century. The new media has utilized the materials of fairy tale hence keeping the genre to the public. Despite the migration of fairy tale to the new culture, the present years have experienced highly innovative and disputable fairy-tale retellings in the prevailing culture. For example, in the series "Once Upon a Time" it utilizes the print and web related paratexts which provide the reader with the potential of engaging with the programs which go beyond using the televised texts. The continuing diversification of the fairy tales in the society permeates different cultures which range from film and television to the advertising, commercial platforms and the marketplaces to capitalize on the consumer products. Also, the fairy tale varies from graphic novels and popular literature to the new media. For example, the quote by Maria Tatar "it is through beauty, poetry and the visionary power that the world will be renewed" shows that the progressive change in the media to the new culture will lead to a revolution in the world (Hensley 359). The technological tools such as the tablets and computers enable us to read, listen and engage with the fairy tale materials from different places in the world.

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The "Three Little Pigs" by Lang elaborates how the three little built houses which were brought down by the hungry wolf. The first little pig had built a house with straws and the second one had built using sticks. The three little pigs tend to leave their home so that they can find a secure place free from the threatening wolf. The fairy tale teaches the children the difference between the good and evil where the Three Little Pigs portray an example of the lessons and ethics which are learned by reading the fairy tale. The children can meditate on the text while acknowledging the effects of laziness portrayed by the two little pigs and outcomes of evil for the hungry wolf (Hurt and Jamie 30). This tale describes the theme of hard work when the third pig builds a house which is made of bricks, and it lives a happy life. Therefore, the use of fairy tales does not scare the children, but it helps them to learn the moral lessons which are portrayed by the frequent repetition and vivid illustrations. Storytelling is a performance art which is utilized in the modern fairy tales, and it has grown into the neo-tradition in the United States (Jarv 99). The contemporary storytellers usually perform the stories in front of the audience without using the memorized literary texts. Therefore, the current storytellers rely on manipulation of their language which helps them to relate the anecdote and utilize dramatic skills such as narration, characterization, reflective action and the vocalization.

The fairy tales are present in the modern culture through the films which are viewed by people thus encouraging them to read more about the fairy tales. This is among the most straightforward principles in the world which makes the tales to remain still relevant to the current world. The contemporary fairy tales are made unique by the ways they are being presented to the current society (Mohammad 750). The use of films, narration in front of the audience has made the fairy tales to become unique from the traditional tales.

Works Cited

Hensley, Nathan K. "Network: Andrew Lang and the Distributed Agencies of Literary Production." Victorian Periodicals Review 48.3 (2015): 359-382.

Hurt, Andrew C., and Jamie L. Callahan. "A fractured fable: The Three Little Pigs and using multiple paradigms." New Horizons in Adult Education and Human Resource Development 25.3 (2013): 27-40.

Jarv, Risto. "A Hen Who Doesn't Lay Golden Eggs? Fairy Tale Advertisements and Their Strategies." Estonia and Poland: Creativity and tradition in cultural communication 2 (2013): 99-120.

Mohammad, Saif M. "From once upon a time to happily ever after: Tracking emotions in mail and books." Decision Support Systems 53.4 (2012): 730-741.