The Uses of Enchantment Quotes

“The child intuitively comprehends that although these stories are unreal, they are not untrue ...”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“The unrealistic nature of these tales (which narrowminded rationalists object to) is an important device, because it makes obvious that the fairy tales’ concern is not useful information about the external world, but the inner process taking place in an individual.”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“If we hope to live not just from moment to moment, but in true consciousness of our existence, then our greatest need and most difficult achievement is to find meaning in our lives.”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“Since there are thousands of fairy tales, one may safely guess that there are probably equal numbers where the courage and determination of females rescue males, and vice versa.”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“Even Aristotle, master of pure reason, said: 'The friend of wisdom is also a friend of myth.”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“what redeems us as human beings and restores us to our humanity is solicitude for those whom we love.”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“Therefore, even more than at the times fairy tales were invented, it is important to provide the modern child with images of heroes who have to go out into the world all by themselves and who, although originally ignorant of the ultimate things, find secure places in the world by following their right way with deep inner confidence.”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“The myth of Oedipus . . . arouses powerful intellectual and emotional reactions in the adult-so much so, that it may provide a cathartic experience, as Aristotle taught all tragedy does. [A reader] may wonder why he is so deeply moved; and in responding to what he observes as his emotional reaction, ruminating about the mythical events and what these mean to him, a person may come to clarify his thoughts and feelings. With this, certain inner tensions which are the consequence of events long past may be relieved; previously unconscious material can then enter one's awareness and become accessible for conscious working through. This can happen if the observer is deeply moved emotionally by the myth, and at the sametime strongly motivated intellectually to understand it.”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“He disappears, and her endless wanderings in search of him take her to the moon, the sun, and the wind.”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“Maybe if more of our adolescents had been brought up on fairy tales, they would (unconsciously) remain aware of the fact that their conflict is not with the adult world, or society, but really only with their parents. Further, threatening as the parent may seem at some time, it is always the child who wins out in the long”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“The fairy tale offers the child hope that someday the kingdom will be his. Since the child cannot settle for less, but does not believe that he can achieve this kingdom on his own, the fairy tale tells him that magic forces will come to his aid. This rekindles hope, which without such fantasy would be extinguished by harsh reality. Since the fairy tale promises the type of triumph the child wishes for, it is psychologically convincing as no "realistic" tale can be. And because it pledges that the kingdom will be his, the child is willing to believe the rest of what the fairy story teaches: that one must leave home to find one's kingdom; that it cannot be gained immediately; that risks must be taken, trials submitted to; that it cannot be done all by oneself, but that one needs helpers; and that to secure their aid, one must meet some of their demands. Just because the ultimate promise coincides with the child's wishes for revenge and a glorious existence, the fairy tale enriches the child's fantasy beyond compare.”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“If only we could recall how we felt when we were small, or could imagine how utterly defeated a young child feels when his play companions or older siblings temporarily reject him or can obviously do things better than he can, or when adults—worst of all, his parents—seem to make fun of him or belittle him, then we would know why the child often feels like an outcast:”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“This is the tragedy of so much "child psychology": its findings are correct and important, but do not benefit the child. Psychological discoveries aid the adult in comprehending the child from within an adult's frame of reference. But such adult understanding of the machinations of a child's mind often increases the gap between them—the two seem to look at the same phenomenon from such different points of view that each sees something quite different. If the adult insists that the way he sees things is correct—as it may well be, seen objectively and with adult knowledge—this gives the child a hopeless feeling that there is no use in trying to arrive at a common understanding. Knowing who holds the power, the child, to avoid trouble and have his peace, says that he agrees with the adult, and is then forced to go it alone.”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“He said: “My mother washed out my mouth with soap because of all the bad words I used, and these had been pretty bad, I admit. What she did not know was that by washing out all the bad words, she also washed out all the good ones.” In therapy all these bad words were freed, and”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

“Freud’s prescription is that only by struggling courageously against what seem like overwhelming odds can man succeed in wringing meaning out of his existence.”
― Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales