Perrault's Fairy Tales - Charles Perrault

About the Book

Eight of the twelve tales in this book are from the master hand of Charles Perrault (1628-1703). Although Perrault enjoyed much distinction in the French literary circle of the late seventeenth century, his fame today rests upon his authorship of the traditional Tales of Mother Goose, or Stories of Olden Times. And it is true to say that as long as there are children to listen spellbound to the adventures of Cinderella, Red Riding Hood, and that arch rogue Puss in Boots, his memory will endure. Three of the tales, The Ridiculous Wishes, Donkey-Skin and Patient Griselda, are seldom included in Perrault collections as they were written in a very florid verse form. Not only Perrault, but Boccaccio, Chaucer and others have used the story of Patient Griselda. The last story, Beauty and the Beast, again not by Perrault (it was penned by Mme. Leprince de Beaumont 1711-1781), has a similarity of style and celebrity which justifiably merits its inclusion. With the exception of the morals and the three tales taken from verse, the translations are by A. E. Johnson.

About the Author

Charles Perrault

Charles Perrault, a French author and a leading intellectual of his time best known for writing children's stories and laying foundations for a new literary genre - fairy tale. He is best remembered for his fairy tales collection Tales of Mother Goose.

Charles Perrault was a French writer and a member of the Academie Francaise, which laid the foundations of a new literary genre; fairy tales. The most famous Perrault stories include Le Petit Chaperon (Little Red Riding Hood), Cendrillon (Cinderella), Le Chat Botte (Puss in Boots), La Belle au Bois dormant (The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood), and La Barbe Bleue (Bluebeard).

Many of Charles Perrault's stories, transcribed by the Brothers Grimm, will continue to be printed and many have been adapted for opera and ballet (such as Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty), theater, and movies (Walt Disney). Perrault was a very influential figure on the French literary scene of the seventeenth century.