Unravelling the Sexual Mystique of Sleeping Beauty
Sleeping Beauty has an allure that is undeniable. Her story has retained a place in our traditions. Time has reshaped her dilemma and salvation.
The Human Heart in the Middle Ages and the Practice of Ablation – or Treatment of the Dead for Valentine’s Day
As Valentine’s Day comes around, spare a passing thought for that ubiquitous red heart that has come to symbolize the event. Historically speaking, there is a lot more than is at the surface for that emblem of love.
#PhallusThursday – The Penis as Potent Symbol
Many classical sculptures today have lost their penises to time and prudery but the ancient world was awash with explicit graphic imagery.
The Dargle Lovers: An Interview with Storyteller Brendan Nolan
Today Dee Dee Chainey interviews Brendan Nolan, a storyteller and writer from Dublin, Ireland. His many books cover both fact and fiction, and he regularly shares his stories through workshops, public tellings and in schools. Q. The folklore of the story is very intertwined with the local places, and you evoke a sense of place […]
The Secret History of the Grimm Fairy Tales
Like many people, I thought the Grimm brothers had lived long ago & travelled around Germany collecting stories from old women hunched over spinning wheels.