Social pathways of traditional fairy tale heroines: Teaching social trajectories through a compare-contrast model with story maps

ABSTRACT

The paper aims to develop a compare-contrast model that will help students understand the gender and social-status stereotypes that appear in some texts of fairy tales, and are further deepened in their screen versions. The paper accentuates classic fairy tales perceived by critics as traditional (conventional and conservative) due to their gender, class, etc. stereotypes. These stories are an important factor in maintaining the stereotypical pattern of female inferiority, which is encoded through different types of media in the cultural patterns of our age. In order for those patterns to be deconstructed, it is necessary to apply methods that will develop critical literacy skills during education. We developed story maps as graphic organisers to show the social status trajectories of heroes and heroines. Story maps show social trajectories and allow the possibility of viewing the stereotypes embedded in the story.

KEYWORDS:

• Critical thinking skills
• fairy tale heroine
• feminist approach
• media literacy
• social trajectory
• story maps

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

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Dijana Vučković

Dijana Vučković teaches methodology of teaching mother tongue and literature and methodology of developing speech at preschool age. Her interests in research include the reception of literature by young readers, reading literacy, reading with understanding, critical reading etc.