This article by Nancy Mellon discusses both the power of storytelling and how the imagery in fairy tales can be used to promote healthy thinking toward our own heart, lungs, liver and more. The suggestion is that we can promote healthy body thinking in children by telling them such stories and fairy tales.
I found the stories discussed particularly interesting as most of them aren't well known. The writer concentrates on Grimm tales so those who've read them all will find them familiar.
Here are a couple of excerpts:How do stories nourish children's organs as they grow?... We can look with wonder and fascination at the fundamental archetypes of our organs to find characters and plot structures that express them.
Editors note (from the end): Stories have many levels of meaning and many possible interpretations... Contemplation and meditation about the images in these stories and how they may describe organ functions can reveal to connections.The fairy tales discussed are:
- The Twelve Huntsman (a true bride tale)
- Jorinde and Joringel
- The Juniper Tree
- Little Brother and Little Sister
- Two Brothers
- The Queen Bee (another Simpleton who-is-kind-of-heart wins story)
- Gutta Percha (by George MacDonald)
- The Prince Who Feared Nothing
- The Frog King
Here's the article:How-Do-Stories-Nourish-Childrens-Organs-As-They-Grow -
It's one way of using stories I haven't heard of before and although I admit I'm skeptical about children picking up this information subconsciously, I'm all for promoting health of mind and body through fairy tales.
You can download the article if you'd like to keep a copy HERE.* All images are from the excellent fairy tale series "The Storyteller" by Jim Henson & Co. There's an overview of the epiosdes/tales with summary and images HERE and you can get your own copy of the DVD set which includes the Greek Myth series too, HERE.
