Image Analysis

http://movies.disney.co.uk/sleeping-beauty

http://movies.disney.co.uk/maleficent

The above images show two rather different interpretations, both by Disney. The first image (left) shows Disney’s animated motion picture released in 1959, right showing their live-action version ‘Maleficent’, released in 2014. Obvious distinctions can be seen between both, one of which concerns the protagonist. The newer version shifts the focus to Maleficent- the ‘villain’ within the original narratives and attempts to transform the audience’s perception of her by explaining the reasoning for her wickedness. Folklorists may argue that this drastically obstructs the message being communicated as well as going against the usual conventions of a fairy tale- outlining ‘good’ and ‘bad’. This usually takes place within characters, in order for the reader to make clear distinctions, a theory suggested by Bettelheim in his statement- ‘In practically every fairy tale good and evil are given body in the form of some figures and their actions’ (Bettelheim, 1977, p.8-9) and proceeds to explain that ‘The figures in fairy tales are not ambivalent- not good or bad at the same time, as we all are in reality’ (p.9). This could therefore suggest the issues with representing Maleficent as both good and bad in this new interpretation. Furthermore, it is evident within the image (right) that Maleficent is a thing of beauty, regardless of the fact that she is a witch. It somewhat distracts the audience away from her evil nature by presenting something aesthetically pleasing for the audience’s enjoyment when viewing rather than focusing on the ‘deeper significance’ (p.24) of the story. This explains the reason for which Bettelheim suggested that as a result of TV and film developments, ‘fairy tales have turned into empty-minded entertainment’ (p.24), also supported by Joseph Campbell (Campbell, Moyers and Flowers, 2012). However, in contrast to this, Tatar claims that ‘For a good part of the last century, Disney studios kept fairy tales alive.’ (Tatar and Byatt, 2012, p.xvi) and this is further supported by Zipes who states that although they have been ‘geared to pure entertainment’, they have not lost their relevance throughout the world (Zipes 2013, p93). 

Wolf Ideas

I made a big spider diagram of possible ways I could explore the image of the wolf, suggesting techniques, materials and general ideas. I want to really exhaust this part of my visual investigation and left one side of my journal to do so, meaning I need 34 ways to draw a wolf (excluding the very last page for something else). Even though I want each outcome to be different, I still want them to link and show a journey, so I planned every thing out to help me. Hopefully it'll work!

Unexpected Feelings

The strangest thing has happened. I am actually ENJOYING writing my essay... how unexpected.

I usually find it really difficult to get into cop and the thought of writing an essay always looms over me like a dark cloud for most of the year until I muster up the courage to make a start on it. However, since changing my theme, I'm actually having fun! Fairy tales are something I enjoyed as a child and now researching and finding out more about the psychology behind them is really interesting to me. As a result of this I've collected a good amount of research. This has made it so much easier to actually think about what I want to talk about in my essay and how to go about this. I've made a solid essay plan that I can keep referring to to give me guidance on what to talk about next and even though I've only written about 400 words of it so far, I feel as though it's already better than my first draft and I'm not dreading getting it all done. Waheyy. 

Things I've realised and can take away from this for next time:

• The importance of choosing a subject you're interested in- it makes the task so much more enjoyable and drives you to want to research more, which in turn makes it easier to find points to write about.
• The value in taking the time to write a detailed plan- this makes sure that the actual writing of the essay is easier and more efficient. Everything is already there for you, it just has to be fleshed out with some fancy writing and a bit of analysis.

https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/101331060338477806/

(Visual Journal) Idea!

I had a thought. It is common knowledge that fairy tales have been reinterpreted and modified many times over the course of time. What if I used this idea to drive some visual exploration in my journal? I could pick out a key symbol or image or something within fairy tales and draw it over and over, modifying it slightly as a go or just creating different versions using different materials, but still keeping the same subject in the way that fairy tales do. They keep the original themes, features and lessons as the originals do, but in a slightly different way. This will be fun! I just need to figure out what I want to continuously draw.

Question

I figured out what my question is. I realised a lot of the ones I was considering were a bit long-winded so I've made it short and snappy. I then wrote my thesis and this explains the question in more detail.

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How and why have fairy tales remained within our sociocultural environment?

This essay aims to explore the methods and reasons in which fairy tales have continued to stay with us throughout the years and as a result become an important influence within our sociocultural environment, especially for children.

Study Task 8- Rationale

What is your theme?

The overarching subject matter of my investigation for cop is fairy tales, but more specifically the re-interpretations and adaptions of fairy tales over the course of time. A lot of the research I have carried out so far looks into these modified versions and explains how they have changed from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, but also, the contents of fairy tales.

How are you exploring it visually (methodology)?

One of the changes made by the Grimm Brothers in their newer renditions of their own original stories is a change in writing style. They proceeded to make the stories longer and more descriptive, helping the audience (which changed from adults to children) to visualise the stories better. Reading through some of them formed images in my head and thus provided me with potential ideas to illustrate to start my visual journal. I have illustrated quotes from the stories, and also, hand-lettered the quotes. I have also explored visual metaphors have begun to look at colour theory.

Why are you doing it this way?

I am going to have the quote written on one page and the illustration on the next. The reason I am doing it this way is to recreate the look of a fairy tale book. I wanted to make the composition more interesting than simple having an illustration on a page. The combination of text and image lent itself well to the idea of recreating book pages. 

Materials?

I started off by sketching my ideas out in pencil and pen. I have written out the quotes in hand-lettering and produced a paper cut illustrations to go alongside each of them.  At the moment, I am enjoying the process of paper cut as it also incorporates texture but more predominantly, it brings in a contemporary element to a theme that is quite traditional. For this reason, I also created the outcomes for the visual metaphors in paper cut. 

Any key theorists who have influenced this?

Through carrying out research I came across some theories, one of which described fairy tales as talking in a language of metaphors- “communicate feeling in efficient metaphorical terms”- Jack Zipes (2013). This informed and inspired the visual metaphors produced in my visual journal. Furthermore, I found some information into the colours commonly used in fairy tales- bringing me to look at colour theory. These consist of red, white, black, gold & silver. I also found out that the colour green is not considered a significant colour in fairy tales, so I am going to try and create something based on this. 

Colour Connotations

I did some outcomes in my visual journal that look into connotations of colour. The first shows an apple. Presented in red it has connotations of poison, danger and death- most likely as a result of the poisoned apple in Snow White. However, the green apple suggests ideas about health and well-being. 

Secondly, I looked at the idea of the forest- a common feature within fairy tales. Presented in black in suggests danger and darkness whereas the green version has connotations of nature.

Colour Psychology

Another thing I found out in my research was based on the analysis of colours within fairy tales. Luthi states that the main colours that are specific within fairy tales are red, white, black, gold and silver. And also that the colour green is almost never specifically mentioned. I thought it would be interesting to find out the connotations of there colours, so I did some research:

-Red-

Red is the color of fire and blood, so it is associated with energy, war, danger, strength, power, determination as well as passion, desire, and love. Red is a very emotionally intense color. It enhances human metabolism, increases respiration rate, and raises blood pressure. It has very high visibility, which is why stop signs, stoplights, and fire equipment are usually painted red. In heraldry, red is used to indicate courage. It is a color found in many national flags.

-White-

White is associated with light, goodness, innocence, purity, and virginity. It is considered to be the color of perfection. White means safety, purity, and cleanliness. As opposed to black, white usually has a positive connotation. White can represent a successful beginning. In heraldry, white depicts faith and purity.

-Black-

Black is associated with power, elegance, formality, death, evil, and mystery.

Black is a mysterious color associated with fear and the unknown (black holes). It usually has a negative connotation (blacklist, black humor, 'black death'). Black denotes strength and authority; it is considered to be a very formal, elegant, and prestigious color (black tie, black Mercedes). In heraldry, black is the symbol of grief.

-Gold-

The color gold is the color of success, achievement and triumph. Associated with abundance and prosperity, luxury and quality, prestige and sophistication, value and elegance, the psychology of this color implies affluence, material wealth and extravagance.This color is linked to masculine energy and the power of the sun, compared to silver which is associated with feminine energy and the sensitivity of the moon.

Silver

The color silver has a feminine energy; it is related to the moon and the ebb and flow of the tides - it is fluid, emotional, sensitive and mysterious. It is soothing, calming and purifying. It helps with the cleansing and releasing of mental, physical and emotional issues and blockages as it opens new doors and lights the way to the future.

Green

Green is the color of nature. It symbolizes growth, harmony, freshness, and fertility. Green has strong emotional correspondence with safety. Dark green is also commonly associated with money. Green has great healing power. It is the most restful color for the human eye; it can improve vision. Green suggests stability and endurance. Sometimes green denotes lack of experience; for example, a 'greenhorn' is a novice. In heraldry, green indicates growth and hope. Green, as opposed to red, means safety; it is the color of free passage in road traffic.

http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/meaning-of-colors.html

http://www.color-wheel-pro.com/color-meaning.html

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The colours used appear to have both positive and negative connotations, and a pretty even amount of both. This represents the element of 'good' and 'bad' that is commonly used within fairy tales. It is interesting that the colour green isn't seen as significant within fairy tales when there is a lot of reference to nature, which the colour green represents. An example of an instance where the colour green has actually been replaced to portray a negative connotation rather than positive one is in the idea of the forest. The colour green is replaced with the colour black when visualising the forest in fairy tales due to it always being depicted as scary and dark- (i.e. in Little Red Riding Hood & Hansel and Gretel). 

Study Task 7- Focus

Visual Metaphors

“communicate feeling in efficient metaphorical terms”- Jack Zipes, 2006

I used this quote that I found when reading 'Why Fairy Tales Stick' (Zipes, 2006) to inform some visual experimentation in my journal. I looked at the idea of creating visual metaphors and based these upon key features of specific fairy tales. I wanted to show clearly the way I reached the outcomes- produced in paper cut- so I did a page of roughs alongside them to portray my train of thought.

 

Proper Introduction

As mentioned in the last blog post, I realised I needed to have a proper introduction that explains to the reader what the essay is about. 

Fairy tales first made their way into popular culture many years ago, the earliest stories dating back to the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and are continuing to work their magic to this day. They have been endlessly re-worked and re-written over time but have never ceased to entice the hearts and minds of many, be it old or young, male or female. This timelessness is a result of their ability to evolve and respond to current cultural affairs and issues within society and it is this very fact that makes them so valuable. This essay aims to explore the specifics of how and why this has come to be and the reason individuals such as poet Wystan Hugh Auden have considered fairy tales “next to the Bible in importance” (Haase, 1993). 

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Mini Introduction

I have written a little introduction for my essay. I wanted to start the essay with the words 'once upon a time' in order to reflect the beginnings of fairy tales. I feel as though upon reading these first words you are able to depict exactly what the essay is about. I also wanted it to be quote descriptive and sound like a fairy tale to portray the way they are written. 

'“Once upon a time” is phrase not uncommon in the world of narrative. It is a phrase that tells one that they are about to hear something enriched with endless fantasy, an enchanting plot and folkloric characters that are both alluring and bizarre. A tale riddled with morality and told with a captivating narrative energy. An utterance traditionally used to begin a fairy tale.

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I'm pretty happy with it as a mini introduction. It does what I wanted it to do- entice and make people want to read further, as fairy tales tend to do at the start. I think to begin the next paragraph I need to talk about what I am going to talk about in the essay. 

Roughs for Visual Metaphors

I did some quick roughs to help plan the visual metaphors I am going to make in paper cut. This was helpful in getting out ideas.

New Research Question?

I've been struggling with with what I want my essay question to be. I've carried out a lot of research and have loads of things I could talk about. But I need to have more of a focus on what aspect of fairy tales I want to look into. Otherwise it won't be very cohesive and it'll be extremely difficult to try to sum it all up in the conclusion. I decided to make a list of any kind of question I would be able to answer from the research I've carried out (some of them are just re-wordings of the previous question):

• Why are fairy tales so valuable in the upbringing of children?
• How have fairy tales changed over time?
• Are fairy tales still relevant today?
• What makes fairy tales so valuable within society and how are they still relevant today?
• How have fairy tales shaped the sociocultural environment we live in today? 
• How and why have fairy tales continued to guide and encourage our socialcultural development?
• How do fairy tales shape our sociocultural environment and is there a need to keep them alive? 
• Is there a need to keep fairy tales alive?
• How and why have fairy tales continued to evolve and stick with us and do we need to keep this momentum? 
• How have fairy tales continued to stay with us throughout the years and how do they influence our sociocultural environment?

 I think I might begin to actually write my essay and see where things start to head, but at the moment, the last one seems the most likely.

Essay Plan

I felt as though I had collected enough research to start writing up an essay plan, so I did! It's a lot longer than I was expecting it to be, partly because I wanted to just write up everything I have found out so far to make it easier when it comes to writing. I can just refer back to it. I definitely won't be using everything but it's handy to have it there just in case. 

Jack Zipes- Why Fairy Tales Stick (2006)

I wanted to look at a source that was more contemporary and talked more about fairy tales and society in recent years so I found this book written by Jack Zipes about the reasons fairy tales are still popular today. 

Annotations

Key Notes & Quotes

• Many of us “try to make a fairy tale out of our lives” even without knowing it
• Initial purpose- “communicate ideas about natural instincts, social relations, normative behaviour, character types, sexual roles, and power politics.”
• Purpose now- to entertain and instruct
• How they came about- oral storytelling
• Functions of fairy tales varied depending on sociocultural context
• Have been condensed and refined
• Friedmar Apel- Lost deeper significance due to torn relationship between imagination and reality
• Jack Zipes (counter-argument)- Apel failed to take into account adaptability and evolvability
• Fairy tales made or reiterated in the 20^th/21^st century- for entertainment
• More relevant today due to increase in literacy & technology
• Sperber- Due to mental representation & public representation- “Only those representations which are repeatedly communicated and minimally transformed in the process will end up belonging to the culture.”
• Contagious/ “they are injected in our systems almost as a cure for dreaded social diseases.”
• Appeal- utopian transformation- feeds desire for a better life
• Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza- “an idea is like a circuit of neurons, once an idea has been formed in our brains, it has the capacity to live for a long time, even for an entire lifetime”
• Live at a time where divorce, families of stepchildren and stepparents, dysfunctional families, child abuse is high- gives children hope- overcome abuse i.e. Cinderella
• Stories should not be explained- independent process of learning
• Tackles fears of Abandonment
• Tackled issues that haven’t been resolves over time- family legacy, sibling rivalry, parental love
• Social Darwinism?
• Norbert Elias & Pierre Bourdieu- western civilising process?
• Problems – solutions- “communicate feeling in efficient metaphorical terms”
• “use classical fairy tales in mutated forms trough new technologies to discuss and debate urgent issues that concern our social lives and the very survival of human species”

Paper Cut Quotes

I have illustrated 10 of the found quotes in paper cut. It feels great to have finally started my visual journal. This is one of the main things that I was dreading as 70 pages seems like a lot of work on top of what we already have to do in our other modules. However, I actually found doing these pretty fun! I decided to recreate the look of a fairy tale book, by having the quotes written (in hand-made type) on one page with the illustration to go with it on the next. I tried to make each illustration very simple and with a limited colour palette as I am working on the idea of simplification within my practice a lot more. Being able to say a lot with a little is a powerful thing.