Autism Soccer: Fairy Tales: A Form of Inclusive Literature

They are an important part of raising children since they teach them to comprehend culture and folklore.

The fairy tales are a source of wisdom and entertainment at the same time, and it’s not surprising that throughout history, countless parents have used them as a tool to educate and keep their children happy, making these stories become an important part of childhood.

In the case of children on the autistic spectrum, this is not very different. The appropriate story can captivate the attention of any child according to the chosen theme, and in turn, we have the opportunity to teach the child about what metaphors, comparisons and morals mean.

Are There Any Fairy Tales About Autistic Children?

There are some theories about this, one good example is Grimm’s Brother “Clever Hans”.

According to the tale, a boy named Hans brings a series of objects home to show them to his mother. These range from a pin, through a knife, a slice of bacon, a goat, a calf and finally a person.

Hans uses inappropriate means to get each item home, so his mother tells him each time how he should have transported that particular item. Each time Hans is told how to transport an item home he uses that exact same method to the next item. But the next item is something quite different from the other so that the method is, again, inappropriate.

Finally, Hans’ mother instructs him to “cast friendly eyes upon his betrothed”. Hans then digs the eyes out of all the goats and cows in the shed and throws them at the girl, who (with good reason, some would say) breaks their engagement (remember that Grimm’s tales can be quite raw in their content sometimes).

Hans takes everything literally and is unable to adapt or see that those instructions that were given for one job are inappropriate for another. Hans, therefore, needs instructions for every single job.

This story makes an accurate portrayal of how the minds of the autistic children work: they are literal, they need to have instructions to carry out the simplest of tasks, and they are unable to adapt such instructions to slightly different situations.

Could we say that Clever Hans talks about an autistic person? We’ll leave it to your own opinion, dear reader.

On other instances, fairy tales from the British Isles, Germany, and Scandinavia bring us stories about creatures, named “changelings”.

A changeling (according to European folklore) is a child who exhibits remarkable and sudden changes in behavior and/or appearance, explaining that supernatural folk steal normal children and replace them with one of their own, or some other substitute.

The new child (the changeling) is characterized by unresponsiveness, resistance to physical affection, obstreperousness, inability to express emotion, and unexplained crying and physical changes such as rigidity and deformity. Some are unable to speak.

The parallels between these changeling tales and autistic children have been briefly noted by writers on the history of the disorder. Some of the features of these tales, including the initial health and beauty of the human child, the change after some period of regular behavior, and the specific behaviors of the changeling are well matched to symptoms in some presentations of autism.

Scholars on changeling tales have concluded that the stories explained the birth of disabled children in pre-scientific cultures. The legends were society’s attempt to make sense of, and cope with, the autistic spectrum and other conditions, providing a coherent explanation for its occurrences.

Modern Fairy Tales With Autistic Positive Leading Roles

A new, inclusive and clever twist on Hans Christian Andersen’s, The Princess and the Pea (written by Jewel Kats and illustrated by Richa Kinra Arts) is guaranteed to be loved by all fairy tale enthusiasts and parents of ASD children alike.

According to most critics, this modern fairy tale it’s both entertaining and educational, teaching children to be comfortable in their own skin and to respect the differences of others.

Synopsis: one cold winter night, something changes in a small kingdom; a young girl shows up at the king and the new queen’s castle doorstep wearing little more than a purple jacket and carrying a black pouch. The king recognizes this girl to be the long-lost princess without her uttering even a single word. The new queen is not convinced, nonetheless. She refuses to believe the king’s claims. In turn, a devious plan is hatched, but this unique girl knows how to solve the queen’s test.

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