Rumplestiltskin illustration by Walter Crane Photo: wikipedia
Dr Ellen Handler Spitz explains the psychology of fairy tales. Why they're necessary, irresistible, and why being frightened by them is important. Dr Spitz is a writer, lecturer and scholar, noted for her expertise on children, psychology, and the arts.
She is the author of eight books and has written reviews for The New Republic and The New York Times, and currently holds the Honors College Professorship of Visual Arts at University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Her work focuses on children's literature and children's cultural lives.
She says that fairy tales are important because "they give us access to a world of imagination throughout our culture" and act as connectors; connecting readers to another time, another place and to each other.
