The Rise of Dark Fairy Tales

Author: Priscilla

Jun 7

It is probably no surprise to the passive reader of this blog (all two of you) that I am a fairy tale enthusiast. It’s a topic I keep returning to time and time again, and it’s a topic that provides hours of academic muddling for this mythologist. That’s what scholars such as the Jungians find so fascinating about fairy tales. In their simplicity, they speak archetypally, deeply, meaningfully… They can become… Continue reading

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Filed under: American Myth, Culture Thinking, Disney, Fairy Tales, Literature, Popular Culture, Theme Parks | Tagged as: , , ,

Current Events and Fairy Tales

Author: Priscilla

Dec 12

I have been decidedly quiet about current events lately. One reason is that I don’t actually read/listen to the news, and I try not to make opinions based on headlines. And the other reason is that I don’t often make it a habit to discuss current events in print. That said, there has been a lot over the last couple months that are worth considering, especially considering the idea that… Continue reading

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The Great Debate: Myth Versus Fairy Tale in Joseph Campbell’s The Flight of the Wild Gander

Author: Priscilla

Jul 29

When I was writing my Master’s thesis, I was asked to do the impossible: to define "myth." I had read enough of Joseph Campbell’s works to understand that "myth" in his use of the word is not definable. Further, to define it would destroy the very nature of mythology. Faced with this dilemma, I nonetheless set out to dream up a definition of "myth." My working definition came to me… Continue reading

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Filed under: Essays, Fairy Tales, Joseph Campbell, mythology | Tagged as: , ,

Prefabricated Mythologies: Dungeons & Dragons and Myth-Making

Author: Priscilla

Jul 28

It would be very easy to say that role-playing games are popular because of the apparent lack of myth in the society. In fact, from initial observation this would be the case. People flock to role-playing games, or RPGs, in order to interact with fantasy stories, not just read about them. A little further probing reveals that the games are essentially outlets for mythmaking. By assuming another identity, a person… Continue reading

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Fairy Tales and Utopian Ideals

Author: Priscilla

Jun 29

There are some scholars that, as much as I would like to try, I just cannot avoid. They are the ones that add conversation and dialogue to my research, taking it to a deeper level. Sure, it would be easy to ignore them, but then I’d be just as shallow a researcher as the Shallow Researcher “archetype” at the core of my academic shadow projections. Today’s unavoidable researcher: Jack Zipes.… Continue reading

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Disney and Sex–A Misguided Interpretation of Princesses

Author: Priscilla

Apr 20

So I’m at the PCA/ACA conference, which so far is a really fascinating experience. Being an introvert, I haven’t made any new professional best friends yet, but I have bought three books, which I will review once I read them because they just sound like the perfect way to spend my dissertation research time. Of course, they’re dissertation-worthy, but yet not dissertation-necessary, which is the case of just about all… Continue reading

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The Three Temptations of Snow White

Author: Priscilla

Apr 16

Last night, I gave a talk for the Jung Society of Austin as a practice for both next week’s PCA/ACA 2. Early Snow whiteconference presentation and the whole dissertation business. To underscore my argument about why Disneyification of fairy tales… Continue reading

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