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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What animal is Jorinda turned into in Jorinda and Joringel?

2. Which of the following is not one of the morals of the story "The Queen Bee"?

3. Which character do the young men in "The Devil's Sooty Brother" and "Bearskin" meet with?

4. Which tale of "The Wedding of Mrs. Fox" shows Mr. Fox in a better light?

5. To what biblical story is "The Singing Bone" similar?

Short Essay Questions

1. Discuss the differences between the two tales of The Wedding of Mrs. Fox and how each portrays Mr. and Mrs. Fox.

2. What lessons are taught in Old Sultan?

3. What is the lesson in the fairy tale, The Dog and the Sparrow?

4. The Louse and the Flea and Clever Hans both use different story-telling styles than many of the other fairy tales. What techniques do they use?

5. What is the moral of The Three Little Birds?

6. How is the story of The Singing Bone similar to the story of Cain and Abel?

7. What lesson is being told in the story Mother Holle?

8. What does Gambling Hansel explain of the world?

9. What are the similarities and differences between The Devil's Sooty Brother and Bearskin?

10. The number three is used several times in some of the fairy tales. Give a brief list of which stories that use the number three, what is represented in threes, and what the number three might represent.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the overall elements that create a fairy tale and label a story as one. What is the backbone to a fairy tale? What factors must be present? What are the archetypal characters? What other elements are normally seen in a fairy tale and what is the structure of a fairy tale? Be sure to include several specific examples to support each point.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the gender roles in fairy tales. Is the damsel in distress always saved by the gallant knight? Can a princess save the poor servant boy? What are the typical roles played by female characters? What are the typical roles that male characters play? Are these roles set in stone? What determines the gender roles?

Essay Topic 3

Evil stepmothers, beautiful maidens, and clever princes are a few examples of certain types of characters that have shown up in several fairy tales. What other character types have reappeared in the tales? Give a description of each character type and explore the different tales that use them. Compare and contrast the characters. Why did the Grimm Brothers use reoccurring characters? What roles do they play and are they realistic in any sense? Why did these characters have a set role? (For example, why is the stepmother always evil?)

(see the answer keys)

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