Folktales, Myths, Fables, and Legends for Children
This paper examines four well-known children's narratives across four distinct literary genres: the folktale "Hansel and Gretel" by the Brothers Grimm, the myth of Odysseus and the Cyclops from Homer's Odyssey, Aesop's fable "The Tortoise and the Hare," and the legend of Robin Hood. For each story, the paper discusses plot, cultural origin, narrative style, illustration, and literary devices. The analysis highlights how genre conventions shape storytelling techniques—from the dramatic reversals of fable to the epic similes of myth—and considers how each story has been adapted for young audiences across time and cultures.
- Folktale: Hansel and Gretel: Plot, style, and cultural feel of Grimm folktale
- Myth: Odysseus and the Cyclops: Homer's myth adapted for children's audiences
- Fable: Aesop's The Tortoise and the Hare: Universal underdog fable and its simple style
- Legend: The Legend of Robin Hood: English legend's cultural richness and literary devices
✍️ How to write this paper — guide, tools & examples ▾
What makes this paper effective
- Applies a consistent analytical framework across all four genres, examining plot, cultural origin, narrative style, illustration, and literary devices for each story.
- Grounds observations in specific textual details—such as the witch's "Neeble neeble" rhyme and Odysseus's "Nobody!" trick—making the analysis concrete rather than abstract.
- Connects genre conventions to audience reception, explaining why particular features (the underdog reversal, vivid candy-house imagery) resonate with child readers.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates comparative genre analysis: by examining four stories side by side under the same evaluative criteria, it reveals how each genre—folktale, myth, fable, and legend—uses distinct narrative and stylistic tools to achieve its effects. This structure is a useful model for any assignment that asks students to analyze multiple texts through a shared critical lens.
Structure breakdown
The paper is organized into four parallel sections, one per genre. Each section summarizes the story's plot, evaluates its narrative and cultural feel, discusses how illustrations relate to the text, and comments on literary style and vocabulary. The conclusion of each section ties those observations back to the story's appeal for children. This modular, parallel structure makes the comparison easy to follow and ensures no genre is shortchanged.
Folktale: Hansel and Gretel
Hansel and Gretel by the Brothers Grimm is a narrative tale that can easily be read aloud to children. It is about two siblings whose father is a poor woodcutter who can no longer afford to feed the family. The cruel and selfish mother convinces the woodcutter to abandon the children in the forest, which he sorrowfully does. The children make their way back home the first time because Hansel is clever enough to drop stones as their father takes them into the forest. The stones reflect the moonlight at night, and Hansel and his sister follow them home. The mother is furious, however, and so they do it all over again—but this time Hansel uses breadcrumbs, which the animals of the forest eat. The children are left to wander.
Eventually they arrive at a witch's house. She pretends to be friendly but then locks Hansel in a cage and plans to fatten him up to eat him. Gretel tricks the witch into climbing into the oven to see if the fire is hot enough, whereupon the girl slams the door and the witch burns up. The siblings raid the witch's house and carry gold and jewels with them back home. The mother is dead—or gone, in some versions—and the father is overjoyed to have his children back.
It is a tale that most people are familiar with because it has been translated and adapted so many times all over the world. It is difficult to tell whether the sound or feel of the Grimms' Germany is preserved in the English versions of the tale. The names are certainly German, however. The illustrations match the text and help tell the story for children; the style is contemporary, so that the pictures are large and colorful. There are no rich flourishes in the telling of the tale—no epic similes or rhymes—but there is a stylistic moment when the two children begin eating the witch's candy house and she says, "Neeble neeble like a mouse, who is nibbling at my house?" Children are drawn to the dramatic nature of the tale and to its vivid imagery—such as a witch's house made entirely of candy.
Create your account
Always verify citation format against your institution’s current style guide requirements.