I do love the message that it is the underdog that will prevail in this crisis as opposed to the powerful figure. This is empowering and important in these times but I grew up in the 80's and the fairytale message I received is that a man (rich, powerful, prince) is the one that will save the day. I know the traditional fairytales are very different to the Disney version but there are generations of women that have received the same message as me and have been conditioned by them.
Time to do proper fairytales - that have lessons and morals that serve us, not delude us. We need to tell the brutal stories, and provide guidance as we do.
When I was teaching writing to late primary school age kids, we wrote 'fractured fairy tales' which allowed the imagination to rewrite original fairy tales using different lenses. So much fun especially when kids read their work aloud.
I re-read this chapter and I really like it. I think it is just the word fairytales (I automatically think Disney) that irks me. Shari called them folk tales and it may seem pedantic but to me using a different word conjures up something else entirely (no Disney bullshit)
I wrote my college thesis on comparing the different versions of the brothers Grimms‘ fairy tales throughout the centuries and how they reflect the different social norms in regards to violence, sexuality and gender roles. They were originally oral folk tales told to people of all ages, mostly as a source of entertainment during daily work. Sarah’s point is valid, they are reflections of the aspirations of the people, often citing the need to change social norms. Only later did the Grimms convert them as a didactic tool to teach young children about ‚proper‘ beliefs and values. Keep sociology and liberal art schools alive if we want to continue generations who think for themselves and see the big picture of who we are as a society!
Sarah, I loved your premise about hero's journeys being singular, potentially lonely, and about slaying dragons. Fairy tales are certainly more realistic about the messiness and unfairness of life.
However, isn't there a risk of extending the reliance on fairy tales to guide us in life's journey problematic. At least of the body of European fairy tales that we grew up with? They are reflective of the culture that they come out of - damsel's that need rescuing; living happy ever after; prince-charmings; horrible step-mothers; etc.
Is it time to write some modern fairy tales? (yet even the name itself seems to promise magical outcomes!)
I went to a performance last week called "Grimm", for the Brisbane Festival, produced by Shake and Stir theatre company, where they cleverly and humorously 're-imagined' the opus of Grimms' tales into a more modern take on the old tales. It was excellent, and still somehow 'magical', and didn't shy away from violence and characters' evil and weaknesses, as well as strength and persistence...
Yes, David. Maybe I need to emphasise my point isn't about being guided by the old fairy tales, but to create new ones. Or perhaps more directly and productively- to get alive to the notion of cooperation v lone ranger mentality, and the need for telling kids the brutal truth WHILE ALSO providing the moral, fortifying guidance.
It starts with writers bringing a different story into the world. Our current culture is still so bogged down with an unsustainable narrative.
Nate just interviewed Janine Benyus. She is an absolute gem.
She comments: Changing what it is we desire is really important. Life wants the continuity of life and I'm not sure we want that deep down.
Nate replies, it's not in our current values system as a culture.
-o0o-
This is totally why we're screwed. Not enough people are on board this different way of seeing and living life.
Our adolescent culture is about to learn the consequences of behaving in such a self-centred way. Oh to have more adults in the rooms where the decisions are made.
They need Janine's biomimicry words in their ears, “Nature runs on sunlight, uses only the energy it needs, fits form to function, recycles everything, rewards cooperation, banks on diversity, demands local expertise, curbs excess from within and taps the power of limits”.
I opine the lack of leadership around these well observed principles. What a difference that would make.
Yes David, Sarah - this is really the point I can see. I wonder how the current animated films fit this model? Films like Despicable Me have the daughters in who fix everything - although I suppose we still have the happy endings 🤷♀️. My kids are 17 and 20 - I’m a bit out of touch with what’s new. We were all Toy Story and Shrek,Up and Ratatouille. To name but a few 🤣. I know they’re not fairy tales as such
Oh, I love this! I feel like I’m forever talking about the ‘Heroines’ journey, but this is a much better distinction :)
I had a couple of very old fairytale books growing up, handed down from my Mum, and they were dark and brutal… and real. I loved them. No Disney in sight.
The images and additional storylines I imagined stay with me even now. They seemed to tell true stories of women and children’s pain - and the characters were always flawed but, as you’ve noted, ingenious in how they collaborated and relied on good character to prevail.
Let’s write new fairytales and reclaim the moniker! :)
I’ve worked in and around education settings as well as having two kids of my own. I’m aware of many instances of parents intervening, worried that their child will struggle too much. Their efforts to help also assumes that their kid can’t cope with the difficulty and when change is made to accomodate, the opportunity to develop resilience is lost.
In the last two decades or so there’s been a lot of talk and programs developed around building resilience in our kids. Some of this, I’m sure is to address the rise in anxiety and mental illness.
I don’t know who said it but… Don’t prepare the path for the child, prepare the child for the path.
Oh don't kill the darling on Moloch chapter! If anything, it's probably a book of its own. So my understanding of it all - it's important to recognise how and why we do things personally and collectively, and how crazy outcomes can be, to enable us to change our mindset, strengthen the muscle of working/playing with our intentions, following the beat of our heart, question the merits of the competition and 'just stop' etc. and how by doing so on a personal level can change the collective, but surrender to that too. It's so empowering when we come from the intentional space 'just stop' yet play. I experienced this somewhat when I went through my own crisis of going through a family separation - the coming from a space of love intention was powerful. So yes maybe later in the section where you "let rip with mindsets for the future". I feel the quote ascribed to Laozi "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" helps here too. I'm running out of time now and will read 'fairy tales' later. Best wishes as always and I did wonder if there were too many cooks in the kitchen with a serialised book - but I'm grateful for this journey.
Not planning to kill the moloch bit, just this fairytale side note...will see.
Your summation is gorgeous. Yep, I think seeing things from a different angle helps us "allow" and to access the space required to move forward in true congruence.
Shortly after trump was elected in 2016, I read a meme that likened the feeling of anxious anticipation many of us felt about the inevitable trajectory of our country to that of your dad moving out before the new boyfriend crashes his Camaro on your front lawn. This feeling initiates a state of adulthood in children who are otherwise unempowered to provide for themselves, a mismatch of authority and responsibility equally experienced by moms.
Considering our general tendency to look to the adults in the room to tell us what's next and the linear/traditional (masculine) approach to "solutions" that serve only to tighten the complexity of the tangle, I believe our next necessary steps are right into the twist of the mobius strip: evolving our identity from the child to the archetypal mother (a character commonly erased from our fairy tales).
Because, ready or not, we are the adults in the room; not just the moms, but any/all of us who see what's happening and want to know what happens next. We recognize that we are products of our environment and if all we can do is commit to/model joy even in the presence of suffering, change is inevitable. At their best, mothers bear witness to their child's pain—heartfully recognizing their feelings—and demonstrating its transmutation into empowerment.
This is so nearly impossible for those of us who received no such demonstration from our own parents and now operate in our own family without a meaningful source of similar support. But we have to undo the conflation of mothering and self-sacrifice—both in our own experience and as a society. I’m positive that by responding to suffering with compassion and recommitment to our own joy, the substrate will change. Even if just a little and for just a breath. But a sustained practice will move the needle.
It's not easy work and it's certainly not quick. But as I sort through my own evolution from disempowerment to self-actualization, it's changed my family and enriched my life. Sometimes a problem is relieved just on the other side of its acknowledgment-- and sometimes a problem demands political/economic/systemic restructuring, but that also doesn't happen before it’s acknowledged.
So much in this comment. The Camaro on the front lawn...and having to become the adult overnight....and I love this "evolving our identity from the child to the archetypal mother (a character commonly erased from our fairy tales)." Mother is the role we are being called to embody.
Also, your point that a problem is relieved just on the other side of its acknowledgment...this sums up a lot of what I'm trying to do here...thank you.
Hi, just wondering if you wouldn't mind elaborating on your journey from disempowerment to self-actualization and how it has enriched your life. My family is quite fractured at the moment and I would be very interested to hear more (only if you are comfortable sharing).
I thought I knew the other day when I wrote this comment (which I would say had something to do with trust and detachment) but after a humbling from my teenager on all the answers I thought I had, I'm realizing the only road to wholeness is via radical honesty (ha! That actually sounds like a road name) which is a fuzzy one at best thanks to all the versions of truth floating around out there but the only one that really matters is the one we see for ourself. Trust that everyone is doing what works for them even if it's not what the say they want. And then give them grace because the same is true for you <3
your way through is reflected in your honesty-- in my experience, if you feel lost, your work is to find yourself. What are your values and interests? How does your life reflect those? I got so lost in mothering before I realized that "mother" is something one does and should never have been used as an identifier. Find Kristy H. The way you do it, warts and all, teaches and makes space for others to find themselves and really, this is what our teenagers should be doing at this point-- both learning who they are as well as the ever-evolving nature of their "self". As hard as this work is/can be, know that you are all right where you should be and you can do it. Teach your teen kindness by being kind to yourself. Turns out, the parenting I performed was typically lost to the fundamental demonstration of my humaning.
These recent chapters are really ringing bells for me Sarah. You are teaching and bringing together a lot of my experiences, observations and preferences. It feels weird (I am a thinker rather than a feeler), but it is also giving shape and substance, which is reassuring. Full disclosure I read fiction every night before I go to sleep. Ok that's not full disclosure - the type of fiction is. I love Sci-fi and all sorts of fantasy, especially dystopian futuristic stuff. I recently stopped buying dystopian fiction from US authors and only buy from a few UK authors now. the difference ? the US style [I am really generalising now] is hero driven, he wins through violence and it is all about the 3Fs (faith, family and firearms - seriously at least 2 have stated that as the justification for the lone wolf prepper to march to victory). the UK style examines more collaboration, even the more male lead fiction has a few strong (non-dependent) females, it brings in more morality and psychology, and is so much more than fighting your way from A to B. violence is there (that is often reality) but it isn't the whole point.
So please keep it all going, thank you for leading the way and shining the torch into the shadows, as well as escorting us through the hall or mirrors. I am getting a week bit hysterical here - I think my reaction to the heaviness of the state of play. but thanks
Interesting observation re UK v US. American film also - almost comically - continues with the goodie v baddie narrative. I'm thinking of that godawful netflix film Leave the World Behind.
Funnily, I'm just reading Ursula Le Guin's The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas....
Sheri S Tepper - another good one, similar age/era to Ursula. try Gibbon's Decline and Fall , or Family Tree. Both strong feminist and sci-fi/fantasy writers.
Please don't kill this darling, I love this aside. It touches on the depth of the conditioning that got us here and the essential transformation that is required moving forward. Even the notion of continual rewriting of these stories over time has power - we are needing to rewrite again, that is an invitation to join the continuum of humanity and use them to reshape our current narratives. xo
Really interesting to hear your process. It was your grandfather's version of Hansel and Gretel that I was subjected to! I remember being on holidays by the sea in Wexford, at the age of five and having the most vivid nightmare of my life in which I was the unfortunate Gretel. I couldn't wake up....The fear was real!
I love the idea of the women and children needing to be co-operative and to work with the wisdom inherent in nature and the elders. It is a pity that the male heroic journey abandons such things. An ode to toxic masculinity.
Every time I see on the news (the only time I watch TV is for SBS & ABC news) the steady stream of refugees traversing the globe trying to find a safer place to live, reminds me of how lucky I am in Australia. It also reminds me of the many successful people who have risen to the top of their profession here in Australia who were at some point in their lives refugees. They had a hero’s journey but at the time of bobbing around at sea in a leaking boat or walking for weeks over land, they are in the middle of a nightmare.
I can’t relate to the desperation that drives a refugee, but I can relate to folk tales of fleeing evil, the struggle to find oneself and the celebration after a battle.
In fiction writing the key to a good story is the journey towards a campfire huddle before a battle, the explosion of emotion during the intense fight scene and the feel of joy / good / so worth it in the end of the journey. where the good guys get to live happily ever after.
Following this narrative we are in the huddle around the campfire before the battle and it has been a long journey to get here. In writing the epic tale, we are poised to enter the foray, the battle scene is next... Then tension is building and building… and we all know what happens next - don’t we?
Can we please just skips to the good part? Is activated hope.
I too learnt the gruesome version of the fairy tales. I think this is a great analogy. Especially with the concept of most of us just being ordinary people, looking for ways to find a way through the emerging polycrisis. With an uncertain ending. And doing so by collaborating with each other, and being kind. (Then there are Frodo and Sam in the Fellowship of the Ring - fairy tale format?) I love this ingredient that you've come up with. I am enjoying your occasional exploration of what is popping out. And curious as to whether there will be an eventual alternative version of this book with all the popped out bits threaded in, in different ways. (Sorry I can't join you in London - the timing doesn't quite work for me - but looking forward to hearing all about it in some way in due course.)
Once again I am triggered by the binary boys/vs girls perspective
Let the boys do their shit , they are learning , they are getting there. I could side fire back and say how many girls took to TikTok or online shopping during those times.
Or I would rather speak about how much we cried and learnt that we need each other SO SO much.
I think they sit well together
Demonstrate the two mindsets and the two paths and how they intersect our own journeys into the dark night of the soul.
And the dark nights of societies soul (children being sold into slavery , eaten , abused) when times get so tough , good people need to make the toughest decisions. Or we become so numb to ourselves, that we become brutal monsters.
And demonstrate the play of moloch (maybe call it satanic energy / fear ? And what happens when it is allowed to run riot. Both in the individual and in society.
And then demonstrate that we have a choice at any point in those journeys. Even at the end of the road, when we have reached rock bottom.
That we are worthy of redemption, and can be reborn, and be of help to others.
I hear you, Steve. I can see you're challenged by my language and direction on this.
Everyone is worthy of redemption. Yes. And we must always turn around and help. I always will.
AND...the dominant narrative is the hero's journey, it's the tech bro disaster etc...and these narratives are dragging everything down. Girls are on TikTok, women are hurting men etc...but I'm honed in on the societal, civilisational level, systems stuff. Yes it's complex and we are ALL implicated. AND we have to really robustly tackle the dominant mindset/narrative. I'll also add...I feel (and I won't speak for all women and active men)...fed up with waiting for the blokes (the bloke narrative) to catch up and shift to a better expression of masculinity. It doesn't serve us at the moment. I think that work will need to be done (and it must be done) WHILE we move onwards to a new mindset. The boys will need to learn and adjust en route. I tend to think this will also happen as the new narrative emerges and leads.
We need men and women to come home to themselves via their own personal heroes journey (which is fundamentally an ego death and recognition of and integration of the monster within.)
They teach us that we can overcome it, and be more , and better. And worthy of a place in society. And it demonstrates that sometimes we need to be a monster , to destroy a monster.
We also need the old fairy tales , without censorship , which teaches us that times can and will get hard , that there are snakes in the forest , and cannibalistic elders displaced from our tribe.
Or the odd billionaire (have you noticed the homicidal billionaire movies about at the moment?) out hunting.
Kids TV used to be brutal and honest (apart from Disney (but he was a weird nazi) (and a good businessman)). I know ladies, Disney fucked it for boys too, I was waiting for my princess for so many years 😝.
It progressively got dumbed down since 96, ie wiggles , Teletubbies , blue clues etc. Thank god for the new Heartbreak High 😝.
A side project Sarah?
A re release of the original fairy tales?
And some You Tube movies , in full 1700s brutality.
I agree, men and women are best with their different journeys. Alas, men have not kept check on their hero's journey. They don't tend to drop their egos, nor do the humble return home. But at a broader level, there are better stories for certain times. I think the fairytale is the more appropriate one for our times. Thoughts?
Life is throwing me the most spectacular curve balls and my heart and mind are just standing on the side line , looking at each other and mouthing WHAT THE FUCK!!! 😆
Considering packing up all my things and going to a monastery , or maybe back to Europe. Or rather just keep on standing here and smiling.
Keep pointing back to the old wisdom Sarah , there is so much that has been learnt before that has been forgotten.
We need to get right back to basics and get ready for rock bottom
Steve, was going to DM you, but, as you say, you like honesty. Never a hindrance, however, I know at times you do have to step away for a bit and maybe that's where you're at again? I have to do the same...I get too close to the cinema screen and I have to just fling myself into bushland and do something physically hard or dangerous to get grounded and real again. To remember. As my friend Tim would say, this doesn't mean leaving the cinema and missing the shoW! Many of us here veer toward the more intense end of the care spectrum...so intensity can be held and is also appreciated. I just see care coming from you...and I see you need to care for yourself, too. Go camping. Come back. Keep us on our toes!
I have also questioned myself and wondered if I have anything of relevance to say in this space. I have come to the conclusion that we should all keep sharing and connecting. The kindness and compassion and wisdom that I have seen and received in this space has given me so much hope for the future.
Your feedback is needed (by me in a first instance). IT's some of my favourite.
I , too, wonder at times, what "right" or authority do I have to be doing this, sharing this stuff. But I feel it's best we are in the fray, creating an island of sanity for each other and others feeling lonely in their observations. It's an emergent wrangle we're doing here together and we need all the components.
I have considered leaving this space , both because I do not agree with some of the binary arguments or reflections on masculinity.
But also because of an internal hissy fit 😆
Allowing things and people to just be is something I am learning to do. I have a LOT to say, and I have a LOT of wisdom and observations to share.
But it gets out of balance when my anxiety is high. I become an arrogant stoic, and miss the audience or reading the room. Or leave enough space and silence to allow the other to share what they see and want to achieve.
We are just as fucked as everyone else here online. But the ability to stop, and pause and consider is something that we are all getting better at.
The masculinity thing...I've been feeling your tension around this and your interpretation that what I share is binary. It no doubt is at times...I'm ensconced in the same language and have the same internalised framings. And to make a point to the system, you have to be in the system.
I want to keep hearing what you have to say on this, and how the point can be made in a way that brings men along. I know this is what you're trying to steering me to. However, the way women have been doing it for eons (and I've been in this space for 32 years now) does not work. Women giving sound, calm, coaxing arguments, asking for decency and equality, doesn't cut through. Clearly. I'm not sure "saying it as it is" will either, but I am feeling quite tired of the overly considered, pussy footing (so I don't make a man angry and violent) way of doing things that my generation have had to play by. I want to make the point and move on to change in my world. There isn't time to be wasted and I'm rather thinking it might be best if men are "forced" to just catch up. There was a very lovely comment made here by a reader, something along lines of how they are starting to find it cute that humans seem to only change when forced to. I think this is more so with men - nagging doestn' cut it, shit hitting fans does.
I agree with and feel that I understand all of which you say Sarah. Thank you for this reply.
And yes, your understanding of my intentions are spot on. In no way do I wish to find excuses or any way to shift the blame for what men have done and continue to do.
I am soooooooo damn tired of this disharmony and discussion in my own life. And it is reflected on the world stage. I feel your pain and frustration Sarah.
My frustration here on this platform has been around the lack of reply or reflection when I push back on what I perceive to be victimisation of women , or what feels like belittling or bullying of men.
I pour my heart out and reveal my desires and also my stinky as fuck bullshit. And I get crickets in return.
This is frustrating and damn right scary. Not because I need a reply or justification or praise.
But because I cannot grow or self correct or worst of all, I cannot be with these people here that I feel genuine love and regard for. Because I do not feel safe.
Because I will forever need to be on guard for the behaviour that I call out , or am curious about.
I am particularly sensitive around this because I have been the recipient of this behaviour for my whole life , first in my father, and then in my wife, and then her parents, and now in my daughter.
I am calling them all out , and how do they reply , manipulation, belittling, bullying and then crickets.
My experience is reminiscent of many male/female relationships.
When I say no to something which does not align with my values, my physical health or my mental health. When I am emotionally dumped on. Or expected to deliver things which I cannot.
I am made to feel like a piece of shit. I am shunned and abused.
Because the other does not want to have to feel unheard, unacceptable, unkind, or to take responsibility for their life, or the consequences of their actions.
I am fearful when I see these things that we humans , separated into genders and races will never step off the victim / perpetrator sea saw.
The Zionists are now the Nazis
The women are now the men, or becoming so.
And the men are now playing the victim card and trying to regain power via hissy fits , battering women , and bullshit podcasts.
I am fearful that we will drown each other in a sea of bullshit.
Back on track 🤣
Sorry for the emotional dumpage 💩
These fairy tales are here to remind us of our shadows , make them familiar and in our periphery so that we can catch them when they grab our asses.
The danger of woke culture is that it shed so much light on the dark. That it became the dark. And allowed darkness to wrap itself in woke behaviour and language.
I appreciate your response and will reply some more (rushing out for a surf and a fish)
I have realised lately that my response to this issue is not broad reaching, nor considerate of or inclusive of other women and men’s experiences.
I am lucky to have been brought up by two pretty damn good human beings , dad though flawed always treated mum with respect , and mum the same.
And I am surrounded by really good men , who do stupid shit , but in general own it and go , no , not again.
I read about the guy in Paris who drugged his wife and sold her to men. A good friend of mine was used the same way by her father. I have heard the most horrible and horrific stories. And have been guilty of predatory behaviour myself on some levels.
I have also been at the receiving end of years of abuse from several females whom I held in high regard. So I can see both sides , but not all sides , and no one else’s sides.
And as you say Sarah, I am just trying to find the way to say it
To say clearly FUCK OFF
Which wakes people up, and does not turn them into an animal
You are doing well , I think the answer is to just model respect and clearly state want you want. No badgering or you did this.
Just NO , FUCK OFF
I want peace , love , respect and opportunity to grow something awesome
Your behaviour does not allow this to happen
So go back to the drawing board , talk with JP, Elon, Huberman , god , who ever. And come back when your ready to party
be here Kristy ... I would question whatever 'relevance' even means because it is so so very valuable to have a safe (cliched yes) space to share and be seen, heard, loved, valued, edified and yes .. your presence is the relevance.
I always appreciate your thoughts - If I've a busy week I don't always have time to read them all but that is a decision for me to make about my capacity and should not influence your contributions! Please keep sharing.
And before anyone rolls their eyes about me seeing a Marvel movie (I know , it’s lame)
And yes , they have reached an all time low , they have bastardised the hero’s journey arc.
And Moloched and Murdoched and Trumped the fuck out of it.
Ryan Reynolds is most likely a sociopath who has perfected the art of appearing like a gentleman, while spewing out cardboard flavoured bullshit. And he is cashing in on it , along with his wife.
This movie was THE most gratuitously violent movie I have ever seen (both physically and sexually). And it is all mixed in with laughter.
It Stops with Us is about domestic violence (physical and emotional), but all you could tell from the shorts or promo is that it is about some hot chick who looks confused or slightly smug. Who appears to want to sell a line of floral dresses and perfume?!?
Anyway
I was bought up on Disney and Studio Ghibli , and The Afternoon Show on ABC.
I believe in good triumphing over evil.
And I love graphic novels , of all types
If you want some modern fairy tales , that shine light on the current predicaments , and the potential future then I could suggest the following
This comic is actually about the survivors of the apocalypse, but not the zombies (it’s the humans who are the walking dead). And how we tear each other apart whilst walking amongst the Moloch of the zombies.
Kind of like modern politics 😆🙏🏼
I would place the Handmaids Tale in there also
Does anyone know of any modern fairy tales or short stories ?
Maybe I can write one about the billionaire who disappears in the forest after a ayahuasca ceremony and is about to be consumed by a starving tribe cut off from their traditional way of life. But is saved by a child who is touched by his tears. He then buys up the Amazon, and launches nukes on his rockets at Mar a Lago. The end….
Reading this piece, I am drawn to recall "Women Who Run with the Wolves" by Clarissa Pinkola Estés, and her exploration of myth, folklore and fairy tale and the meanings and power behind them. Amazing book. And a very relevant aspect to delve into in your work Sarah.
I feel this could be one of your threads, perhaps?
I do love the message that it is the underdog that will prevail in this crisis as opposed to the powerful figure. This is empowering and important in these times but I grew up in the 80's and the fairytale message I received is that a man (rich, powerful, prince) is the one that will save the day. I know the traditional fairytales are very different to the Disney version but there are generations of women that have received the same message as me and have been conditioned by them.
Time to do proper fairytales - that have lessons and morals that serve us, not delude us. We need to tell the brutal stories, and provide guidance as we do.
When I was teaching writing to late primary school age kids, we wrote 'fractured fairy tales' which allowed the imagination to rewrite original fairy tales using different lenses. So much fun especially when kids read their work aloud.
I re-read this chapter and I really like it. I think it is just the word fairytales (I automatically think Disney) that irks me. Shari called them folk tales and it may seem pedantic but to me using a different word conjures up something else entirely (no Disney bullshit)
I tend to be someone who refuses to get bogged down by semantics (within reason). I prefer to reprogram my thinking around a term or word.
I always loved fairy tales, so i like opportunities to play with my ideas about a word and rewrite its meaning over and over again
I know Kristy - but as we age, and seriously take on adulthood, it is our own responsibility to question out conditioning.
I wrote my college thesis on comparing the different versions of the brothers Grimms‘ fairy tales throughout the centuries and how they reflect the different social norms in regards to violence, sexuality and gender roles. They were originally oral folk tales told to people of all ages, mostly as a source of entertainment during daily work. Sarah’s point is valid, they are reflections of the aspirations of the people, often citing the need to change social norms. Only later did the Grimms convert them as a didactic tool to teach young children about ‚proper‘ beliefs and values. Keep sociology and liberal art schools alive if we want to continue generations who think for themselves and see the big picture of who we are as a society!
Yes...the liberal arts are the closest to a forum for this kind of moral guidance!!! A chapter to come on this.
Ooh interesting 🤔
Sarah, I loved your premise about hero's journeys being singular, potentially lonely, and about slaying dragons. Fairy tales are certainly more realistic about the messiness and unfairness of life.
However, isn't there a risk of extending the reliance on fairy tales to guide us in life's journey problematic. At least of the body of European fairy tales that we grew up with? They are reflective of the culture that they come out of - damsel's that need rescuing; living happy ever after; prince-charmings; horrible step-mothers; etc.
Is it time to write some modern fairy tales? (yet even the name itself seems to promise magical outcomes!)
I went to a performance last week called "Grimm", for the Brisbane Festival, produced by Shake and Stir theatre company, where they cleverly and humorously 're-imagined' the opus of Grimms' tales into a more modern take on the old tales. It was excellent, and still somehow 'magical', and didn't shy away from violence and characters' evil and weaknesses, as well as strength and persistence...
Yes, David. Maybe I need to emphasise my point isn't about being guided by the old fairy tales, but to create new ones. Or perhaps more directly and productively- to get alive to the notion of cooperation v lone ranger mentality, and the need for telling kids the brutal truth WHILE ALSO providing the moral, fortifying guidance.
It starts with writers bringing a different story into the world. Our current culture is still so bogged down with an unsustainable narrative.
Nate just interviewed Janine Benyus. She is an absolute gem.
She comments: Changing what it is we desire is really important. Life wants the continuity of life and I'm not sure we want that deep down.
Nate replies, it's not in our current values system as a culture.
-o0o-
This is totally why we're screwed. Not enough people are on board this different way of seeing and living life.
Our adolescent culture is about to learn the consequences of behaving in such a self-centred way. Oh to have more adults in the rooms where the decisions are made.
They need Janine's biomimicry words in their ears, “Nature runs on sunlight, uses only the energy it needs, fits form to function, recycles everything, rewards cooperation, banks on diversity, demands local expertise, curbs excess from within and taps the power of limits”.
I opine the lack of leadership around these well observed principles. What a difference that would make.
I will listen. That first line is confronting.
https://youtu.be/lxeN7V0rTSM?si=m1YNAxHASn_OXG3E
Damon Gameau thought about it 2 years ago. Watch his TED talk to get the ball rolling 👍
There is something in that
The collective shame is determined to self immolate
To go out in a collective silent scream
I love this comment. Sounds like a really interesting interview
Yes David, Sarah - this is really the point I can see. I wonder how the current animated films fit this model? Films like Despicable Me have the daughters in who fix everything - although I suppose we still have the happy endings 🤷♀️. My kids are 17 and 20 - I’m a bit out of touch with what’s new. We were all Toy Story and Shrek,Up and Ratatouille. To name but a few 🤣. I know they’re not fairy tales as such
Oh, I love this! I feel like I’m forever talking about the ‘Heroines’ journey, but this is a much better distinction :)
I had a couple of very old fairytale books growing up, handed down from my Mum, and they were dark and brutal… and real. I loved them. No Disney in sight.
The images and additional storylines I imagined stay with me even now. They seemed to tell true stories of women and children’s pain - and the characters were always flawed but, as you’ve noted, ingenious in how they collaborated and relied on good character to prevail.
Let’s write new fairytales and reclaim the moniker! :)
It's madness, right - we obscure the truth (the brutality of life) and leave out the helpful moral guidance.
Kids are far more resilient than current parenting models give them credit for. The missing bit is the adult guidance.
Removing life’s lessons, madness indeed.
I’ve worked in and around education settings as well as having two kids of my own. I’m aware of many instances of parents intervening, worried that their child will struggle too much. Their efforts to help also assumes that their kid can’t cope with the difficulty and when change is made to accomodate, the opportunity to develop resilience is lost.
In the last two decades or so there’s been a lot of talk and programs developed around building resilience in our kids. Some of this, I’m sure is to address the rise in anxiety and mental illness.
I don’t know who said it but… Don’t prepare the path for the child, prepare the child for the path.
Oh don't kill the darling on Moloch chapter! If anything, it's probably a book of its own. So my understanding of it all - it's important to recognise how and why we do things personally and collectively, and how crazy outcomes can be, to enable us to change our mindset, strengthen the muscle of working/playing with our intentions, following the beat of our heart, question the merits of the competition and 'just stop' etc. and how by doing so on a personal level can change the collective, but surrender to that too. It's so empowering when we come from the intentional space 'just stop' yet play. I experienced this somewhat when I went through my own crisis of going through a family separation - the coming from a space of love intention was powerful. So yes maybe later in the section where you "let rip with mindsets for the future". I feel the quote ascribed to Laozi "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" helps here too. I'm running out of time now and will read 'fairy tales' later. Best wishes as always and I did wonder if there were too many cooks in the kitchen with a serialised book - but I'm grateful for this journey.
Love this feedback.
Not planning to kill the moloch bit, just this fairytale side note...will see.
Your summation is gorgeous. Yep, I think seeing things from a different angle helps us "allow" and to access the space required to move forward in true congruence.
Oh...and to "play" and to REALLY live. x
Shortly after trump was elected in 2016, I read a meme that likened the feeling of anxious anticipation many of us felt about the inevitable trajectory of our country to that of your dad moving out before the new boyfriend crashes his Camaro on your front lawn. This feeling initiates a state of adulthood in children who are otherwise unempowered to provide for themselves, a mismatch of authority and responsibility equally experienced by moms.
Considering our general tendency to look to the adults in the room to tell us what's next and the linear/traditional (masculine) approach to "solutions" that serve only to tighten the complexity of the tangle, I believe our next necessary steps are right into the twist of the mobius strip: evolving our identity from the child to the archetypal mother (a character commonly erased from our fairy tales).
Because, ready or not, we are the adults in the room; not just the moms, but any/all of us who see what's happening and want to know what happens next. We recognize that we are products of our environment and if all we can do is commit to/model joy even in the presence of suffering, change is inevitable. At their best, mothers bear witness to their child's pain—heartfully recognizing their feelings—and demonstrating its transmutation into empowerment.
This is so nearly impossible for those of us who received no such demonstration from our own parents and now operate in our own family without a meaningful source of similar support. But we have to undo the conflation of mothering and self-sacrifice—both in our own experience and as a society. I’m positive that by responding to suffering with compassion and recommitment to our own joy, the substrate will change. Even if just a little and for just a breath. But a sustained practice will move the needle.
It's not easy work and it's certainly not quick. But as I sort through my own evolution from disempowerment to self-actualization, it's changed my family and enriched my life. Sometimes a problem is relieved just on the other side of its acknowledgment-- and sometimes a problem demands political/economic/systemic restructuring, but that also doesn't happen before it’s acknowledged.
So much in this comment. The Camaro on the front lawn...and having to become the adult overnight....and I love this "evolving our identity from the child to the archetypal mother (a character commonly erased from our fairy tales)." Mother is the role we are being called to embody.
Also, your point that a problem is relieved just on the other side of its acknowledgment...this sums up a lot of what I'm trying to do here...thank you.
Hi, just wondering if you wouldn't mind elaborating on your journey from disempowerment to self-actualization and how it has enriched your life. My family is quite fractured at the moment and I would be very interested to hear more (only if you are comfortable sharing).
I thought I knew the other day when I wrote this comment (which I would say had something to do with trust and detachment) but after a humbling from my teenager on all the answers I thought I had, I'm realizing the only road to wholeness is via radical honesty (ha! That actually sounds like a road name) which is a fuzzy one at best thanks to all the versions of truth floating around out there but the only one that really matters is the one we see for ourself. Trust that everyone is doing what works for them even if it's not what the say they want. And then give them grace because the same is true for you <3
Your teenager is a sage.
she is my greatest teacher.
Ah teenagers, I have some of those. Sometimes I think I feel more lost than they do
your way through is reflected in your honesty-- in my experience, if you feel lost, your work is to find yourself. What are your values and interests? How does your life reflect those? I got so lost in mothering before I realized that "mother" is something one does and should never have been used as an identifier. Find Kristy H. The way you do it, warts and all, teaches and makes space for others to find themselves and really, this is what our teenagers should be doing at this point-- both learning who they are as well as the ever-evolving nature of their "self". As hard as this work is/can be, know that you are all right where you should be and you can do it. Teach your teen kindness by being kind to yourself. Turns out, the parenting I performed was typically lost to the fundamental demonstration of my humaning.
Thank you, this was really insightful and relevant to my situation. Your words moved me x
These recent chapters are really ringing bells for me Sarah. You are teaching and bringing together a lot of my experiences, observations and preferences. It feels weird (I am a thinker rather than a feeler), but it is also giving shape and substance, which is reassuring. Full disclosure I read fiction every night before I go to sleep. Ok that's not full disclosure - the type of fiction is. I love Sci-fi and all sorts of fantasy, especially dystopian futuristic stuff. I recently stopped buying dystopian fiction from US authors and only buy from a few UK authors now. the difference ? the US style [I am really generalising now] is hero driven, he wins through violence and it is all about the 3Fs (faith, family and firearms - seriously at least 2 have stated that as the justification for the lone wolf prepper to march to victory). the UK style examines more collaboration, even the more male lead fiction has a few strong (non-dependent) females, it brings in more morality and psychology, and is so much more than fighting your way from A to B. violence is there (that is often reality) but it isn't the whole point.
So please keep it all going, thank you for leading the way and shining the torch into the shadows, as well as escorting us through the hall or mirrors. I am getting a week bit hysterical here - I think my reaction to the heaviness of the state of play. but thanks
Interesting observation re UK v US. American film also - almost comically - continues with the goodie v baddie narrative. I'm thinking of that godawful netflix film Leave the World Behind.
Funnily, I'm just reading Ursula Le Guin's The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas....
Sheri S Tepper - another good one, similar age/era to Ursula. try Gibbon's Decline and Fall , or Family Tree. Both strong feminist and sci-fi/fantasy writers.
Please don't kill this darling, I love this aside. It touches on the depth of the conditioning that got us here and the essential transformation that is required moving forward. Even the notion of continual rewriting of these stories over time has power - we are needing to rewrite again, that is an invitation to join the continuum of humanity and use them to reshape our current narratives. xo
Nice, thanks GnLB
Agree, beautifully said
Really interesting to hear your process. It was your grandfather's version of Hansel and Gretel that I was subjected to! I remember being on holidays by the sea in Wexford, at the age of five and having the most vivid nightmare of my life in which I was the unfortunate Gretel. I couldn't wake up....The fear was real!
I love the idea of the women and children needing to be co-operative and to work with the wisdom inherent in nature and the elders. It is a pity that the male heroic journey abandons such things. An ode to toxic masculinity.
We are all Gretel!
Every time I see on the news (the only time I watch TV is for SBS & ABC news) the steady stream of refugees traversing the globe trying to find a safer place to live, reminds me of how lucky I am in Australia. It also reminds me of the many successful people who have risen to the top of their profession here in Australia who were at some point in their lives refugees. They had a hero’s journey but at the time of bobbing around at sea in a leaking boat or walking for weeks over land, they are in the middle of a nightmare.
I can’t relate to the desperation that drives a refugee, but I can relate to folk tales of fleeing evil, the struggle to find oneself and the celebration after a battle.
In fiction writing the key to a good story is the journey towards a campfire huddle before a battle, the explosion of emotion during the intense fight scene and the feel of joy / good / so worth it in the end of the journey. where the good guys get to live happily ever after.
Following this narrative we are in the huddle around the campfire before the battle and it has been a long journey to get here. In writing the epic tale, we are poised to enter the foray, the battle scene is next... Then tension is building and building… and we all know what happens next - don’t we?
Can we please just skips to the good part? Is activated hope.
I'd say the refugee journey requires fairy tale cooperation at times...The happy end comes when we all take part in the the cooperative fairy tale.
The campfire element is great.
I too learnt the gruesome version of the fairy tales. I think this is a great analogy. Especially with the concept of most of us just being ordinary people, looking for ways to find a way through the emerging polycrisis. With an uncertain ending. And doing so by collaborating with each other, and being kind. (Then there are Frodo and Sam in the Fellowship of the Ring - fairy tale format?) I love this ingredient that you've come up with. I am enjoying your occasional exploration of what is popping out. And curious as to whether there will be an eventual alternative version of this book with all the popped out bits threaded in, in different ways. (Sorry I can't join you in London - the timing doesn't quite work for me - but looking forward to hearing all about it in some way in due course.)
LOTR def a fairy parable.
I definitely think that there will be a version where I take what I've done and massage it a little into a book format.
Loved this!
and yes
we need the elders
Leunig should write some now
Some graphic novels about working for the devil
And how at the end of the day , the devil will not be there for you
In your hour of need
But he will teach you to sleep in the bed you have made
Once again I am triggered by the binary boys/vs girls perspective
Let the boys do their shit , they are learning , they are getting there. I could side fire back and say how many girls took to TikTok or online shopping during those times.
Or I would rather speak about how much we cried and learnt that we need each other SO SO much.
I think they sit well together
Demonstrate the two mindsets and the two paths and how they intersect our own journeys into the dark night of the soul.
And the dark nights of societies soul (children being sold into slavery , eaten , abused) when times get so tough , good people need to make the toughest decisions. Or we become so numb to ourselves, that we become brutal monsters.
And demonstrate the play of moloch (maybe call it satanic energy / fear ? And what happens when it is allowed to run riot. Both in the individual and in society.
And then demonstrate that we have a choice at any point in those journeys. Even at the end of the road, when we have reached rock bottom.
That we are worthy of redemption, and can be reborn, and be of help to others.
I hear you, Steve. I can see you're challenged by my language and direction on this.
Everyone is worthy of redemption. Yes. And we must always turn around and help. I always will.
AND...the dominant narrative is the hero's journey, it's the tech bro disaster etc...and these narratives are dragging everything down. Girls are on TikTok, women are hurting men etc...but I'm honed in on the societal, civilisational level, systems stuff. Yes it's complex and we are ALL implicated. AND we have to really robustly tackle the dominant mindset/narrative. I'll also add...I feel (and I won't speak for all women and active men)...fed up with waiting for the blokes (the bloke narrative) to catch up and shift to a better expression of masculinity. It doesn't serve us at the moment. I think that work will need to be done (and it must be done) WHILE we move onwards to a new mindset. The boys will need to learn and adjust en route. I tend to think this will also happen as the new narrative emerges and leads.
Yes Sarah
I agree
It’s time to call a spade and spade
And get to work 😊
Oh and don’t get me wrong
My comments have nothing to do with gender , race or creed, or boys vs girls
It’s too late in the game for any of that crap
What I am talking about is just human behaviour
Kindness or meanness , good or destructive
An arsehole is an arsehole
They all pretty much come in the same colour
And it’s the one thing we all have in common 😝
Maybe maybe moloch is too obscure a concept?
It does describe the death spiral that we are in though and why it occurs
It's not a complete explainer.
I believe it's certainly part of the path to some clarity for some of us and important it lives in some version of this clusterfuckery
First thought is , annoyingly
Both are correct
We need men and women to come home to themselves via their own personal heroes journey (which is fundamentally an ego death and recognition of and integration of the monster within.)
They teach us that we can overcome it, and be more , and better. And worthy of a place in society. And it demonstrates that sometimes we need to be a monster , to destroy a monster.
We also need the old fairy tales , without censorship , which teaches us that times can and will get hard , that there are snakes in the forest , and cannibalistic elders displaced from our tribe.
Or the odd billionaire (have you noticed the homicidal billionaire movies about at the moment?) out hunting.
Kids TV used to be brutal and honest (apart from Disney (but he was a weird nazi) (and a good businessman)). I know ladies, Disney fucked it for boys too, I was waiting for my princess for so many years 😝.
It progressively got dumbed down since 96, ie wiggles , Teletubbies , blue clues etc. Thank god for the new Heartbreak High 😝.
A side project Sarah?
A re release of the original fairy tales?
And some You Tube movies , in full 1700s brutality.
I agree, men and women are best with their different journeys. Alas, men have not kept check on their hero's journey. They don't tend to drop their egos, nor do the humble return home. But at a broader level, there are better stories for certain times. I think the fairytale is the more appropriate one for our times. Thoughts?
I agree Sarah
The hero’s journey is way too done these days
Just walked out of Deadpool and Wolverine
Fuck me , that guy , and his wife , Jesus Christ
If she ain’t gonna do it, then fuck it , it stops with me 😝
Fairy tales , manners , boundaries , responsibilities and self respect.
They all need to be retaught and rediscovered
On that point Sarah
Can I get a big bucket of brutal honesty please
Am I of hindrance or of help in this space ?
Life is throwing me the most spectacular curve balls and my heart and mind are just standing on the side line , looking at each other and mouthing WHAT THE FUCK!!! 😆
Considering packing up all my things and going to a monastery , or maybe back to Europe. Or rather just keep on standing here and smiling.
Keep pointing back to the old wisdom Sarah , there is so much that has been learnt before that has been forgotten.
We need to get right back to basics and get ready for rock bottom
Steve, was going to DM you, but, as you say, you like honesty. Never a hindrance, however, I know at times you do have to step away for a bit and maybe that's where you're at again? I have to do the same...I get too close to the cinema screen and I have to just fling myself into bushland and do something physically hard or dangerous to get grounded and real again. To remember. As my friend Tim would say, this doesn't mean leaving the cinema and missing the shoW! Many of us here veer toward the more intense end of the care spectrum...so intensity can be held and is also appreciated. I just see care coming from you...and I see you need to care for yourself, too. Go camping. Come back. Keep us on our toes!
I have also questioned myself and wondered if I have anything of relevance to say in this space. I have come to the conclusion that we should all keep sharing and connecting. The kindness and compassion and wisdom that I have seen and received in this space has given me so much hope for the future.
Your feedback is needed (by me in a first instance). IT's some of my favourite.
I , too, wonder at times, what "right" or authority do I have to be doing this, sharing this stuff. But I feel it's best we are in the fray, creating an island of sanity for each other and others feeling lonely in their observations. It's an emergent wrangle we're doing here together and we need all the components.
Thank you Sarah, thank you for your words and for creating such a beautiful space for us x
Communication is the most important thing
I have considered leaving this space , both because I do not agree with some of the binary arguments or reflections on masculinity.
But also because of an internal hissy fit 😆
Allowing things and people to just be is something I am learning to do. I have a LOT to say, and I have a LOT of wisdom and observations to share.
But it gets out of balance when my anxiety is high. I become an arrogant stoic, and miss the audience or reading the room. Or leave enough space and silence to allow the other to share what they see and want to achieve.
We are just as fucked as everyone else here online. But the ability to stop, and pause and consider is something that we are all getting better at.
Fuck yes!!! 🙌🏼
You allow plenty of space for others, Steve.
The masculinity thing...I've been feeling your tension around this and your interpretation that what I share is binary. It no doubt is at times...I'm ensconced in the same language and have the same internalised framings. And to make a point to the system, you have to be in the system.
I want to keep hearing what you have to say on this, and how the point can be made in a way that brings men along. I know this is what you're trying to steering me to. However, the way women have been doing it for eons (and I've been in this space for 32 years now) does not work. Women giving sound, calm, coaxing arguments, asking for decency and equality, doesn't cut through. Clearly. I'm not sure "saying it as it is" will either, but I am feeling quite tired of the overly considered, pussy footing (so I don't make a man angry and violent) way of doing things that my generation have had to play by. I want to make the point and move on to change in my world. There isn't time to be wasted and I'm rather thinking it might be best if men are "forced" to just catch up. There was a very lovely comment made here by a reader, something along lines of how they are starting to find it cute that humans seem to only change when forced to. I think this is more so with men - nagging doestn' cut it, shit hitting fans does.
I agree with and feel that I understand all of which you say Sarah. Thank you for this reply.
And yes, your understanding of my intentions are spot on. In no way do I wish to find excuses or any way to shift the blame for what men have done and continue to do.
I am soooooooo damn tired of this disharmony and discussion in my own life. And it is reflected on the world stage. I feel your pain and frustration Sarah.
My frustration here on this platform has been around the lack of reply or reflection when I push back on what I perceive to be victimisation of women , or what feels like belittling or bullying of men.
I pour my heart out and reveal my desires and also my stinky as fuck bullshit. And I get crickets in return.
This is frustrating and damn right scary. Not because I need a reply or justification or praise.
But because I cannot grow or self correct or worst of all, I cannot be with these people here that I feel genuine love and regard for. Because I do not feel safe.
Because I will forever need to be on guard for the behaviour that I call out , or am curious about.
I am particularly sensitive around this because I have been the recipient of this behaviour for my whole life , first in my father, and then in my wife, and then her parents, and now in my daughter.
I am calling them all out , and how do they reply , manipulation, belittling, bullying and then crickets.
My experience is reminiscent of many male/female relationships.
When I say no to something which does not align with my values, my physical health or my mental health. When I am emotionally dumped on. Or expected to deliver things which I cannot.
I am made to feel like a piece of shit. I am shunned and abused.
Because the other does not want to have to feel unheard, unacceptable, unkind, or to take responsibility for their life, or the consequences of their actions.
I am fearful when I see these things that we humans , separated into genders and races will never step off the victim / perpetrator sea saw.
The Zionists are now the Nazis
The women are now the men, or becoming so.
And the men are now playing the victim card and trying to regain power via hissy fits , battering women , and bullshit podcasts.
I am fearful that we will drown each other in a sea of bullshit.
Back on track 🤣
Sorry for the emotional dumpage 💩
These fairy tales are here to remind us of our shadows , make them familiar and in our periphery so that we can catch them when they grab our asses.
The danger of woke culture is that it shed so much light on the dark. That it became the dark. And allowed darkness to wrap itself in woke behaviour and language.
Leaving us in a confused , gaslit haze of WTF
Love you all
Have a beautiful day
Rant over ✌🏼
Thanks Sarah
I appreciate your response and will reply some more (rushing out for a surf and a fish)
I have realised lately that my response to this issue is not broad reaching, nor considerate of or inclusive of other women and men’s experiences.
I am lucky to have been brought up by two pretty damn good human beings , dad though flawed always treated mum with respect , and mum the same.
And I am surrounded by really good men , who do stupid shit , but in general own it and go , no , not again.
I read about the guy in Paris who drugged his wife and sold her to men. A good friend of mine was used the same way by her father. I have heard the most horrible and horrific stories. And have been guilty of predatory behaviour myself on some levels.
I have also been at the receiving end of years of abuse from several females whom I held in high regard. So I can see both sides , but not all sides , and no one else’s sides.
And as you say Sarah, I am just trying to find the way to say it
To say clearly FUCK OFF
Which wakes people up, and does not turn them into an animal
You are doing well , I think the answer is to just model respect and clearly state want you want. No badgering or you did this.
Just NO , FUCK OFF
I want peace , love , respect and opportunity to grow something awesome
Your behaviour does not allow this to happen
So go back to the drawing board , talk with JP, Elon, Huberman , god , who ever. And come back when your ready to party
Steve I really do value your posts .. I appreciate your courage and honesty .. thanks for being here
be here Kristy ... I would question whatever 'relevance' even means because it is so so very valuable to have a safe (cliched yes) space to share and be seen, heard, loved, valued, edified and yes .. your presence is the relevance.
*hugs*
I love this, thank you Nat. Your thoughtful words have summed up my point so perfectly x
🙏🏼
And because I know you care
Please be honest
And don’t worry about my mental health , or feelings etc
I am good , actually I am in the best shape mind and body wise ever in my life
And pretty much nothing can hurt my feelings more than they have been hurt lately 😆🤓
So fire away ✌🏼
I reckon, like me, you fire enough at your beautiful self.
Beautifully said.
Sometimes 😝
As long as we forgive ourselves then it is okay
I always appreciate your thoughts - If I've a busy week I don't always have time to read them all but that is a decision for me to make about my capacity and should not influence your contributions! Please keep sharing.
And before anyone rolls their eyes about me seeing a Marvel movie (I know , it’s lame)
And yes , they have reached an all time low , they have bastardised the hero’s journey arc.
And Moloched and Murdoched and Trumped the fuck out of it.
Ryan Reynolds is most likely a sociopath who has perfected the art of appearing like a gentleman, while spewing out cardboard flavoured bullshit. And he is cashing in on it , along with his wife.
This movie was THE most gratuitously violent movie I have ever seen (both physically and sexually). And it is all mixed in with laughter.
It Stops with Us is about domestic violence (physical and emotional), but all you could tell from the shorts or promo is that it is about some hot chick who looks confused or slightly smug. Who appears to want to sell a line of floral dresses and perfume?!?
Anyway
I was bought up on Disney and Studio Ghibli , and The Afternoon Show on ABC.
I believe in good triumphing over evil.
And I love graphic novels , of all types
If you want some modern fairy tales , that shine light on the current predicaments , and the potential future then I could suggest the following
https://www.penguin.com.au/books/safe-area-gorazde-9780224080897
Joe Sacco is a brilliant writer who captures this cluster fuck so well (Bosnian War)
https://www.comicsetc.com.au/products/y-the-last-man-omnibus?srsltid=AfmBOoqZF9BX2E49V5yt9zviyIh_4bVLmYCpFtRJCVacBPvpZd6ocP09
The last man on the planet and how the world reforms around the removal of the male gender
https://allstarcomics.com.au/products/walking-dead-omnibus-hc-new-ptg-vol-01-o-a-mr
The Walking Dead
This comic is actually about the survivors of the apocalypse, but not the zombies (it’s the humans who are the walking dead). And how we tear each other apart whilst walking amongst the Moloch of the zombies.
Kind of like modern politics 😆🙏🏼
I would place the Handmaids Tale in there also
Does anyone know of any modern fairy tales or short stories ?
Maybe I can write one about the billionaire who disappears in the forest after a ayahuasca ceremony and is about to be consumed by a starving tribe cut off from their traditional way of life. But is saved by a child who is touched by his tears. He then buys up the Amazon, and launches nukes on his rockets at Mar a Lago. The end….
I must confess I considered seeing the Deadpool movie. I'm glad I didn't, it sounds pretty awful.
It was next level fucked up Kristy
I took my daughter along as we like weird , out there humour. Aka Rick and Morty
But I was instantly fuck , abort mission 😆
Age inappropriate for any age really
Hugh should be ashamed of himself , he should have left it at Logan. That was a fitting send off. And a half decent movie with some moral fibre.
Oh you are a sweetheart 🤗
I am the same
Sometimes I am just , nahhh fuck you guys , love you lots , but nooooo capacity 😆
And then I come storming back in
Whatsssssss UPpppppp 🤪
I just wanted to say thank you to you all for your kindness and also meeting me in my intensity and my intentions
✌🏼🙏🏼
You're appreciated here, Steve. Held cos you hold us.
Love this.
Reading this piece, I am drawn to recall "Women Who Run with the Wolves" by Clarissa Pinkola Estés, and her exploration of myth, folklore and fairy tale and the meanings and power behind them. Amazing book. And a very relevant aspect to delve into in your work Sarah.
I feel this could be one of your threads, perhaps?