Brothers Grimm - Reception and Legacy

Reception and Legacy

Kinder- und Hausmärchen was not an immediate bestseller but its popularity grew with each edition. The early editions attracted lukewarm critical reviews, generally on the basis that the stories were unappealing to children. The brothers responded with modifications and rewrites in order to increase the book's market appeal to that demographic. By the 1870s the tales had increased greatly in popularity, to the point they were added to the teaching curriculum in Prussia. In the 20th century the work has maintained status as second only to the bible as the most popular book in Germany. Its sales generated a mini-industry of criticism which analyzed the tales folkloric content in the context of literary history, socialism and psychological elements often along Freudian and Jungian lines.

In their research, the brothers made a science of the study of folklore, generating a model of research that "launched general fieldwork in most European countries", and setting standards for research and analysis of stories and legends that made them pioneers in the field of folklore in the 19th century.

During the Third Reich the Grimms' stories were used to foster nationalism and the Nazi party decreed Kinder- und Hausmärchen was a book each household should own; later in occupied Germany the book was banned for a period. In the US, the 1937 release of Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs shows the triumph of good over evil, innocence over oppression, according to Zipes: a popular theme that Disney repeated in 1959 during the Cold War with the production of Sleeping Beauty. The Grimms' tales have provided much of the early foundation on which the Disney empire was built. In film, the Cinderella motif, the story of a poor girl finding love and success, continues to be repeated in movies such as Pretty Woman, Ever After, Maid in Manhattan, and Ella Enchanted.

20th century educators debated the value and influence of teaching stories that include brutality and violence, causing some of the more grim details to be sanitized. Dégh writes that some educators believe children should be shielded from cruelty of any form, that stories with a happy ending are fine to teach whereas those that are darker, particularly the legends, might pose more harm. On the other hand some educators and psychologist believe children easily discern the difference between what is a story and what is not and that the tales continue to have value for children. The publication of Bruno Bettleheim's 1976 The Uses of Enchantment brought a new wave of interest in the stories as children's literature, with an emphasis on the "therapeutic value for children". More popular stories such as "Hansel and Gretel" and "Little Red Riding Hood" have become staples of modern childhood presented in coloring books, puppet shows and cartoons. Other stories, however, have been considered too gruesome and have not made a popular transition.

Regardless of the debate, the Grimms' stories have continued to be resilient and popular around the world, although a recent study in England appears to suggest that parents consider the stories to be overly violent and inappropriate for young children, writes Libby Copeland for Slate.

The university library at the Humboldt-Universität Berlin is housed in the Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm Center (Jakob-und-Wilhelm-Grimm-Zentrum). Among its collections is a large portion of the Grimm Brothers' private library.