THE USES OF ENCHANTMENT ‘The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales Bruno Bettelheim VINTAGE BOOKS, A 9f Random HouseTHE USES OF ENCHANTMENT “ those who have done something realy bad get destroyed, the fable seems to teach that it i wrong to enjoy life when it is good, asin summer. Even worse, the ant in his fable ia nasty animal, without lany compassion forthe suffering of the grasshopper—end this isthe figure the hid asked to take for bis example “The wolf, on the contrary, is obviously a bad animal, bocause it wants to destroy. The waif badness is something the young child ‘ecognizes within himself his wish to devour, and its consequenco— the anxiety about possibly mflering such a fate himself So the wots tan externalization, a projection of the child's badness—and the story tells how this can be dealt with constructively. "The various excursions im which the oldest pig gets food in good ‘ways are an easly neglected but sgncant pat ofthe story, because they show that there & a world of ference between eating and devouring. The cild subconsciously understands it asthe diference ‘between the pleasure priniple uncontrolled, when one wants to do- ‘our all at one, ignoring the consequences, and the realty principle, Inline with which one goes about intelligently foraging for fod. The ‘mature pig ets wp good time to bring the goodies ame before the ‘wolf appear on the scene. What beter demonstration ofthe value of seting onthe basiof the reality principe, nd what it consists of, than the pis ring very cary in the moraing to secure the dalicious food tnd, in 10 doin, fing the walfs evil designs? Tn fairytales its typeally the youngest child who, although at fist ‘ought tl of or scorned, turns out tbe vetoriousin the end. "The “Three Little Pig” doviats from this pattern since it isthe aldest pi whois superior to the two litle pigs all long. An explanation ean be Found i the fact that ll three pgs are “Lite ths immature, a is the child himself, The child Wenties with each of them in ten and recognizes the progression of identity. “The Three Litle Pigs” is a {airy tal because of ts happy ending, and because the wolf gets what he deserves, ‘While the chil’ sense of justice is ffended by the poor gasshop- ‘er having to starve although itdid noting bad, hisfeeling of fires ‘is stisiod by the punishment of the wolf. Since the three litle pigs ‘epresent stages inthe development of man, the dsppearance ofthe Fst two litle pigs i not traumatic; the child understands subcon- seiouly that we ave to she earlier forms of existence if we wish to ‘move on to higher ones In talking to young children about “The ‘ines Little Pigs," one encounters enly rejicing about the deserved punishment ofthe wolf and the clever victory of the oldest pig—not The Child's Nod for Moaie 6 sricf over the fate ofthe two litle ones. Even a young child seems to Cinderstand that ll three are relly one and the same in diferent Sages—which s suggested by their answering the wolf in exactly the Same words "No, no, not by the har of my chinn-chin-chiat” If we Survive in only the higher form of ou sdentiy, this ia it shouldbe. "The Three Little Pigs” directs the chil’ thinking about his own development without ever telling what tought to be, permitting the ‘hil to draw his own conclsions Ths process alone makes for true ‘maturing whl telling the child wat to do ust replaces the bondage ‘of his own immaturity with a bondage of servitude to the dicta of = sults ¢ os x ‘THE CHILD'S NEED va FOR MAGIC “Myths and fairy stories both answer the eternal question: What the ‘work tally lke? How am Ito live my life in it? How can I truly be Iytelf’ The answers given by myths are definite, while the fry tale is magestve ts messages may imply solutions, but it never spells them out, Fairy tals leave othe ch fantasizing whether and how to apply to himself what the story reveals about life and human na- "The fairy tale proceeds in a manner which conforms tothe way a ‘ll thinks and experiences the worlds this is why the fairytale is 50 Convincing to him. He can gain much better solace fom a fairy tale than he an from an effort to comfort him based on adult reasoning fand viewpoints, A child trusts what the fairy story tel, because is ‘worldview accords with his own. ‘Whatever our age, oly story conforming to the principles under Iying our thought proceses caries conviction for us If thi i 0 for adults, who have learned to accep that there is more than one fame (Of reference for comprehending the world—although we find it dif. cult if not impossible truly to think in any but our own-—it is exclu sively true for the cil His thinking i animistic. Tike all prlterate and many iterate people, “the child assures that his relations tothe inanimate word are of one patter with those tothe animate word of people he fondles ashe would his mother the‘rue uses OF ENCHANTMENT 6 prety thing that pleased him he srkes the door that has slammed fn him" It should be added that he does the Brst because he i ‘Sonvinced that this prety thing loves tobe petod as much ashe does; fd he punishes the door because he is ertain tha the der slammed