Fairy Tales, Volume 1 (of 2) — Context and Discussion

The Editor’s Principles and Sources

Lansing’s preface reveals a methodical approach: she aims for “proportionate representation to each of the great story-tellers, and to each kind of story,” and to introduce “the best examples of the leading motifs of folklore.” She distinguishes fairy tales from sagas like “Jack the Giant Killer,” which she reserves for a later volume, Tales of Old England. The preface also notes that very few tales are “distinctly English,” though those from other lands have been “adopted by English-speaking peoples.” This editorial framing suggests the collection is deliberately international, drawing on traditions from Germany, France, and beyond.

Evidence of Retelling in the Excerpts

The excerpts show Lansing’s retelling style. In “Beauty and the Beast,” the narrative is direct and economical: “Beauty turned to the beast to inquire what had happened, but he had disappeared, and in his place stood the Prince of her dreams.” The dialogue is simple and functional, as when Beauty says, “No, you shall not die, dear Beast! for I love you.” In “The Steadfast Tin Soldier,” the opening is similarly plain: “There were once five and twenty tin soldiers. They were brothers, for they had all been made out of the same old tin spoon.” The language avoids ornate description, focusing on clear action and character.

Recurring Motifs and Structural Patterns

Both excerpts employ classic fairy-tale motifs: a transformation brought about by love (Beauty’s declaration breaks the enchantment), and a protagonist marked by physical difference (the one-legged tin soldier). The tales also share a pattern of testing and reward. Beauty’s dream of the dying beast prompts her return, while the tin soldier’s steadfastness leads to his remarkable fate. Lansing’s versions retain these core elements without elaboration, consistent with her preface’s emphasis on “beautiful simplicity.” The excerpts suggest the collection prioritizes narrative clarity over decorative detail.

Readers approaching this volume should note Lansing’s editorial lens: she is less concerned with preserving a single author’s voice than with presenting what she considers the purest traditional forms. The excerpts show a preference for straightforward prose and clear moral arcs. Those interested in the history of fairy-tale transmission will find the preface a valuable statement of early twentieth-century editorial practice.

After years shelving Fairy Tales, Volume 1, I still remember how its characters waited, patient as tin soldiers, for love to find them. That same quiet patience drifts through The Stars in the Pool: A Prose Poem for Lovers — Key Ideas to Explore, where longing mirrors itself in still water, never rushing, just holding its breath. A soft echo, nothing more.