Fairy tales help a child understand the basic parts of a story
The simplistic structure of fairy tales teaches children the basic components of stories such as the story arc of introduction, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. This helps kids gain a better understanding of literature.
<
(1 of 3)
Next argument >
The Argument
The simplistic nature of traditional fairy tales makes them an appealing way of introducing children to stories. The stories tend to contain very basic plot points as it introduces the characters, shows the obstacle or problem the character must overcome, and the resolution.[1]This basic story structure gives children the fundamental outline of how stories work. After a child reads multiple fairy tales, they will likely pick up on the commonalities between the arcs of the stories.
Learning about the basic components of a story helps a child develop better literacy skills. By reading traditional fairy tales, children gain a starting place for reading and understanding stories. If authors altered the characters or the plot, this could make the story too complicated for the child. It is their simplicity that makes traditional fairy tales worth reading to children. Therefore, fairy tales should not be rewritten for the modern world.
Counter arguments
By sticking with traditional fairy tales, it narrows a child's perspective of the world. At such a young age, it is critical for a child to understand that there are people that look, act, and practice different traditions than they do. If a child is only exposed to their own family's perspective and the narrow perspectives of fairy tales, they adopt a closed-minded view of the world.
Fairy tales could instead be written with the same amount of characters that portray different people. In addition, rewriting a fairy tale does not necessarily mean making it more complicated. Even if fairy tales were rewritten, children would understand the basic parts of a story and benefit more from the diversity portrayed.
Proponents
Premises
[P1] The structure of fairy tales are simple enough for children to understand the plot.
[P2] Adding characters or changing the plot could make it more difficult for the child to understand the story.
[P3] Therefore, traditional fairy tales should not be rewritten for the modern world.