Fairytales can be read as primary sources in history. They help to map out the cultural mindset of "the people" in Early Modern Europe. German stories like Hansel and Gretel are particularly riddled with poverty and abuse . . . but it's the French stories that usually have fantastic food imagery such as the candy house. Perhaps Hansel and Gretel originated in the Alsace-Loraine region. My daughters, ages 4 and 5, worked on this drawing together last week after I gave them some fine tipped pens. In the drawing, Hansel and Gretel are crying but oddly they look like cats.
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