 |  | | | Dark tales | 3 February 2005 | | |
What do they do for children's development?
From the Grimm Brothers tales, to the Lemony Snicket books, children have been encouraged to explore the darker side of human imagination through their bed-time stories. Successive generations continue to display a fascination with disturbing tales.
So what function do the tales of abused orphans, red shoes that won't let you stop dancing, or the grandma who turns out to be a wolf, play in children's development, and why when we protect them from dangers outside the home, do we sanction such horrors on the bookshelf?
Livi Michael has two sons and teaches English and Creative Writing at Sheffield Hallam University. Dr Diane Purkiss is fellow and tutor in English at Keble College Oxford,
Livi Michael
The Whispering Road
Puffin
Diane Purkiss
Corydon and the Island of Monsters
Simon and Schuster
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