Carrie a Modern Day Fairytale
Although Stephen King=s novel, Carrie, is considered a horror, it can also been seen as a modern day fairytale, through setting, character development, and plot. Carrie follows that outline of many common fairytales, but can be closely related to the fairy tale, Snow White. With references to such common fairytale topics such as setting, character development, and plot, Carrie is an effective example of a fairy tale set in the twentieth century.
Setting is key to any fairytale, or novel, without the correct setting to set the mood of the written works the entire novel could be thrown off track.
Like the fairytale, Snow White, Stephen King=s novel, Carrie, takes place in a small, isolated town. >Mrs. White continued to live in their small town suburban Chamberlain bungalow= (King 11). This quote explains the circumstances under which Carrie White was born, and tells the reader that the White family lived in a small town.
Snow White
Franz Jüttner (1865–1925): Illustration from Sn...
Betty Buckley as Margaret White, with Linzi Hatele...Like the novel, Snow White, Carrie takes place away from a city where the later happening may have been prevented. It is because of the setting in Stephen King=s novel that the incidents which occur are so believable.
Most fairytales take place in a desolate forest or community. >You must run away and hide in the forest= (Disney 196). Snow White took place in a desolate forest away from anything urban, which helped create the fairytale illusion. Carrie too, creates the
illusion of the fairytale, by separating itself from the rest of the modern world. Therefore in order to create the successful illusion a fairytale requires, setting must be utilized in a way in which it may separate itself from the modern world, and anything that would break the illusion.
Character development is next in order of key...