Folk Tales and Fairy Tales

Marshdale Elementary LMCMrs. Meyer, Librarian

What makes a storya folk tale or fairy tale?

• Characters are simple.

• One is good.

• One is wicked.

• One character is someone of royalty (king, queen, prince, princess, etc.)

Characters

Plot

• The story begins with “once upon a time” or something similar.

• Plots are simple and direct.

• Magic events, characters and objects are part of the story.

Setting

• They were told as oral stories before they were written down.

• They represent our cultural heritage.

• Certain numbers like three and seven are often in the story.

Other story elements...

• They reveal truths about human nature.

• The story ends with “…they lived happily ever after.”

Types of folk tales

• Cumulative• Pourquoi (why)• beast

Where are they?• In our library you will find most folktales and

fairy tales in the 398.2 section in non-fiction.

398.2