Jack Zipes, former professor of German at U. of Minnesota and scholar of childrens literature and culture, presents a social history of Western literary fairy tales focusing on their
transformation from "wonder folk tales" since the 15th century advent of the printing press. Specifically, he's interested in showing how fairy tales have participated in socializing and
politicizing people of all ages, with the potential for both subverting and conserving traditional values and mores. Topics include: the subversive role of women writers of fairy tales, fairy
tales giving voice to the dominated in Hans Christian Anderson, modern stories of hope and utopia in Oscar Wilde and Frank Baum, the liberatory potential of contemporary fairy tales and the
conservative, "civilizing" project of Walt Disney. Originally published in 1983, Zipes updates this edition with an introduction and two new chapters on early Italian writers' influence on
fairy tales and the late impact of Walt Disney on fairy tales. Annotation 穢2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
