Objective: Familiarize students with traditional fairy tale conventions and archetypes, and how they are used in The Princess Bride.
Materials: Excerpts from traditional fairy tales
Venn Diagram
1. Students should hand in their homework from yesterday. Ask for volunteers to share their thoughts.
2. Ask the class for examples of fairy tales they are familiar with, either in print or in film. Introduce the Venn diagram on SmartBoard/Overhead, using the student examples from their writing (book vs. film) to fill out as an example.
3. In pairs, students will read an excerpt from a traditional fairy tale and compare it to The Princess Bride by filling in a Venn diagram.What similarities and differences can be found between Goldman's story and traditional fairy tales? Look at setting, characters, and plot elements to complete the diagram.
4. As a class, use the completed Venn diagrams to come up with a general list of fairy tale conventions. What elements appear over multiple tales, even though they are from different times and traditions? Post the list somewhere in the classroom.
