If we hope to live not just from moment to moment, but for true fulfillment, we must return to the wisdom of our ancestors, either by re-creating it as we are able, or by continuous striving to approximate it as closely as possible.Bruno Bettelheim
The child intuitively comprehends that although these stories are unreal, they are not untrue ...Bruno Bettelheim
The fairy tale rescues the child from despair because it offers examples of both temporary and permanent solutions to pressing difficulties.Bruno Bettelheim
The monsters of fairy tales are not true, but their evil is real, and it is truly necessary for the child to let it develop fully before the happy ending can be considered.Bruno Bettelheim
Each fairy tale is a magic mirror that reflects some aspects of our inner world, and one of the steps required by our evolution from immaturity to maturity.Bruno Bettelheim
The child must have an opportunity to let rip, by himself, in play, and his fantasies.Bruno Bettelheim
While we now live in a world that often seems entirely secular, fairy tales remind us that many, if not all of the secular occurrences we experience, have religious undertones.Bruno Bettelheim
The perfect way, it turns out, is only the result of numerous and often highly imperfect intermediate steps.Bruno Bettelheim
The unrealistic nature of these tales (which narrowminded rationalists object to) is an important devise, 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
Through fantasy fairy tales give our imagination a chance to shape – on the most primitive level – an experience of profound meaning.Bruno Bettelheim