Fairy Tale and Folktale Fridays #22: Goldilocks and the Three Bears

Hey there!  Welcome to "Fairy Tale and Folktale Fridays," a new feature on my blog where I discuss about some fairy tales and folktales I have read throughout the years. 

Goldilocks and the Three Bears

 

Type: Fairy Tale

Country of Origin: England

Main Character Hero or Heroine: Heroine

Recommend?: Yes! 

Once upon a time, there lived three bears who consisted of a Papa Bear, Mama Bear and a Baby Bear.  One day, the three bears were about to eat their porridge, when they realized that their porridge were too hot to eat and they decided to take a walk in the woods until their porridge cooled off.  It was then that a little girl named Goldilocks was walking in the woods and spotted the cottage of the three bears.  Goldilocks then went inside the cottage and started tasting all of the porridge, sitting in all the chairs and trying out all the beds.  Then, the three bears came back to their home...

I have always enjoyed this cute little tale about a little girl going inside the house of the three bears and trying out all of their items with Goldilocks liking everything that the Baby Bear has (justified since the Baby Bear is about Goldilocks' size).  I also loved the little quotes that Goldilocks always say when she tries out the bears' stuff, such as:

"Papa Bear's Porridge: TOO HOT!
Mama Bear's Porridge: TOO COLD!
Baby Bears's Porridge: JUST RIGHT!"

The only problem I had with this story was the fact that Goldilocks just basically broke into the bears' home and not only does it send a negative message about how kids should break into other people's homes without their permission, but to also send a message about how it's okay to wonder into any stranger's house.  Who knows if the bears were cruel or nice or whatever and if the bears were cruel, then Goldilocks would have been in a world of trouble.  Yes, it's only a fairy tale and it's not really taken seriously, but still, the implications could be troublesome for some children.
 

1. How do you feel about Goldilocks going inside the bears' home while they were away?

As I've mentioned, I had an issue with this since it seems to encourage kids to break into people's homes without their permission and if the bears turned out to be cruel, then Goldilocks would have been in terrible danger.


  2. Should Goldilocks' parents tell Goldilocks the importance of not breaking into other people's homes?

Yes, I think that Goldilocks' parents could have stressed out the dangers of wondering into the woods by herself and going inside a stranger's house while they are away.  Although, Goldilocks' parents weren't a huge part of this story.

3. Have you ever tried out porridge?

I've never actually tried out porridge, but I would like to someday!

 

Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs by Mo Willems

 

 

Goldilocks and the Three Bears by Steven Guarnaccia

 

 

 

Goldilocks and the Three Bears by Jim Aylesworth; illustrated by Barbara McClintock

  

Goldilocks and the Three Bears by James Marshall

 

Goldilocks by Tom Roberts; illustrated by Laszlo Kubinyi

 

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