DIS NE Y ' S BE AU T Y AND T H E BE AST
A TALE AS OLD AS TIME As with many fairy tales based on folklore, stories similar to Beauty and the Beast have been around for thousands of years. The myth of Cupid and Psyche by the Roman writer Apuleius is perhaps the most famous ancient antecedent. However, similar tales can be found in Chinese, Italian, Russian, and Norse folklore, among others. The Beauty and the Beast adapted and popularized by Disney has its origin in the 1740 French novel La Belle et la Bete by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve. Sixteen years later, Jeanne-Marie Leprince De Beaumont shortened and simplified the tale and established the basis for most future versions. The Brothers Grimm included a similar story “The Singing, Soaring Lark” in early editions of their Kinder - und Hausmärchen. Below is a shortened version of the tale that contains many of the elements found in Beaumont’s adaptation. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
them all, said to her father:
Once upon a time, as a merchant set off for market, he asked each of his three daughters what she would like as a present on his return. The first daughter wanted a brocade dress, the second a pearl necklace, but the third, whose name was Beauty, the youngest, prettiest and sweetest of
“All I’d like is a rose you’ve picked specially for me!”
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When the merchant had finished his business, he set off for home. However, a sudden storm blew up, and his horse could hardly make headway in the howling gale. Cold and weary, the merchant