The Fairy Tales of Charles Perrault by Charles Perrault

(2 User reviews)   4038
By Robert Nguyen Posted on Dec 11, 2025
In Category - Exploration
Perrault, Charles, 1628-1703 Perrault, Charles, 1628-1703
English
Ever wondered where Cinderella's glass slipper really came from, or why Sleeping Beauty's castle was surrounded by thorns? Before Disney, there was Charles Perrault. This collection is the original source code for so many stories we think we know. But be warned: these 17th-century versions are sharper, stranger, and sometimes much darker than the bedtime stories you remember. It's a fascinating trip back to where our most beloved fairy tales began, complete with talking cats, hungry wolves, and morals that will make you think twice. If you love stories, you need to meet their great-grandfather.
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In the plain text version Italic text is denoted by _underscores_. Small caps are represented in UPPER CASE. The sign ^ represents a superscript; thus e^ represents the lower case letter “e” written immediately above the level of the previous character. The musical files for the musical examples discussed in the book have been provided by Jude Eylander. Those examples can be heard by clicking on the [Listen] tab. This is only possible in the HTML version of the book. The scores that appear in the original book have been included as “jpg” images. In some cases the scores that were used to generate the music files differ slightly from the original scores. Those differences are due to modifications that were made by the Music Transcriber during the process of creating the musical archives in order to make the music play accurately on modern musical transcribing programs. These scores are included as PNG images, and can be seen by clicking on the [PNG] tag in the HTML version of the book. Obvious punctuation and other printing errors have been corrected. New original cover art included with this eBook is granted to the public domain. * * * * * THE ART OF MUSIC The Art of Music A Comprehensive Library of Information for Music Lovers and Musicians Editor-in-Chief DANIEL GREGORY MASON Columbia University Associate Editors EDWARD B. HILL LELAND HALL Harvard University Past Professor, Univ. of Wisconsin Managing Editor CÉSAR SAERCHINGER Modern Music Society of New York In Fourteen Volumes Profusely Illustrated [Illustration] NEW YORK THE NATIONAL SOCIETY OF MUSIC [Illustration: The Singing Angels] _Altar piece by Hubert and Jan van Eyck_ THE ART OF MUSIC: VOLUME SIX Choral and Church Music ROSSETTER GLEASON COLE, M.A. Introduction by FRANK DAMROSCH, Mus. Doc. Director Institute of Musical Art in the City of New York Conductor, Musical Art Society of New York, etc. [Illustration] NEW YORK THE NATIONAL SOCIETY OF MUSIC Copyright, 1915, by THE NATIONAL SOCIETY OF MUSIC, Inc. [All Rights Reserved] PREFATORY NOTE The field of choral and church music is so vast and the subject so inclusive that the author has felt the constant pressure of the necessity for sifting and abbreviating and condensing the voluminous material at hand in order not to go far beyond the prescribed limits of this volume. He has resolutely shut his eyes to the allurements of the many by-paths that constantly beckoned away from the historical highway he was appointed to tread; and he has endeavored to keep this object constantly in mind--to trace the development of the forces and tendencies from which have sprung the various musical forms that have gone to make up the literature of choral and church music as century followed century. In this volume, therefore, the great personalities of musical history will receive far less attention than the particular musical forms and art-tendencies that flowed from their, oft-times, combined creative activities. While a large number of choral and organ works of every class have been analyzed with much detail and a still larger number given definite classification, it is hoped that the historical summaries and the discussions of styles and periods, scattered throughout this volume, will be even more helpful to the reader in enabling him to place any given musical work in its true musical, as well as historical, perspective. It is a matter of some regret that from sheer lack of space several interesting and wholly relevant topics--such as hymnology, contemporaneous church music, the whole relation of music to the present-day church, etc.--must be left untouched. In the chapters on contemporaneous choral music, it was necessary...

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This isn't a single story, but a collection of the stories that built our imagination. Charles Perrault didn't invent these tales, but he was the first to write them down in a way that made them stick. We're talking about the original blueprints for Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty, and Puss in Boots.

The Story

There's no one plot. Instead, you get a series of short, potent stories. A clever cat tricks a king into believing his poor master is a rich marquis. A young girl in a red hood has a very disturbing conversation with a wolf in her grandmother's bed. A beautiful princess pricks her finger and sends an entire kingdom to sleep for a hundred years. Perrault presents them as if they're true, with a dry wit and a keen eye for human nature—both good and bad.

Why You Should Read It

Reading Perrault is like finding the director's cut of your favorite movie. The skeletons are in the closet where they belong. The stepsisters in Cinderella don't just have big feet—let's just say they get creative with a knife. Perrault ends each tale with a moral, which are often funny and surprisingly practical. The real magic is seeing the raw, unvarnished versions of stories that have been polished smooth over centuries. It makes you appreciate how enduring these archetypes are.

Final Verdict

Perfect for curious readers who want to know the 'why' behind the stories we all share. It's a must-read for fantasy fans, parents who want to share the classics (maybe with some editing for the very young!), and anyone who thinks they know how a fairy tale ends. This is where the magic started, and it hasn't lost its power.



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This title is part of the public domain archive. Access is open to everyone around the world.

Steven Clark
9 months ago

My professor recommended this, and I see why.

Donald Robinson
2 months ago

If you enjoy this genre, the plot twists are genuinely surprising. I will read more from this author.

4.5
4.5 out of 5 (2 User reviews )

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