Challenging the Fairytale

Every Monday night I stop everything I am doing to sit down at 10pm and turn on the TV to watch NBC’s Grimm. 

Grimm, Monday nights on NBC
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Based in Portland, Oregon, the show takes well-known fairytales and spins them, creating a whole new look at “happily ever after.” The princesses, or damsels in distress, are evil, the werewolves are friendly, and the sly foxes are helpful.  Even though that is not the case in every situation, Grimm allows the viewer to question their modern day notions of fairytales and the way these stories have represented good and evil.

Growing up, I used to love to hear fairytales from my parents, my grandparents, and of course, Disney. Looking back, I realize that these fairytales I used to cherish were part of a stereotype. They taught me that women always needed to be saved by a prince or a knight, who was considered the only symbol of courage and worth. Anything that was out of the ordinary was always deemed evil, including women and animals.

Today, the standard is changing, and for the better. Fairytales are more diverse and teach children morals and values that should be taught. Even Disney has begun to change its image of fairytales by recently coming out with Brave, which stars a young princess who faces adversity and prevails.  So as I sat down to watch Grimm, I began to reminisce about my childhood and about the lessons I was already learning from such a young age.  This show makes the viewers reconsider and question what is considered good and what is considered bad. By seeing different characters in different lights, the fairytales I valued as a child don’t seem so prevalent now. Anything can happen, and anyone can be a hero or the bad guy; not everyone is a damsel in distress