Grimms' Fairy Tales is a collection of German folk tales collected and published by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm in two volumes in 1812 and 1815. The book contains over 200 stories that have become some of the most famous and enduring fairy tales in Western culture. The collection includes classic stories such as Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel, Hansel, and Gretel, as well as lesser-known tales like The Golden Bird and The Frog Prince. Many of the stories have become popularized through numerous adaptations, including Disney films. The tales in Grimms' Fairy Tales are often dark and contain elements of violence, cannibalism, and other adult themes. However, they also convey important moral lessons and reflect the cultural values and beliefs of 19th-century Germany. In addition to the tales themselves, the book also includes notes on the origins and sources of each story and commentaries on the stories' cultural significance. The Grimm brothers' work was instrumental in the preservation of German folklore and the development of the modern fairy tale genre.
Jacob Grimm (1785–1863) and his brother Wilhelm Grimm (1786–1859) were German academics, philologists, cultural researchers, lexicographers, and authors who worked together to collect and publish folklore. From 1807 on, the brothers kept adding to what they had. Jacob set up the structure, which stayed the same through many changes. From 1815 until his death, Wilhelm was the only one who edited and rewrote the stories. He gave the stories a similar style, added dialogue, took out parts "that might take away from a rustic tone," made the plots better, and added psychological themes. In The Owl, the Raven, and the Dove, Ronald Murphy says that the brothers, especially Wilhelm, added religious and spiritual themes to the stories. He thinks that Wilhelm took parts from old Germanic religions, Norse mythology, Roman and Greek mythology, and biblical stories and changed them.
