Once upon a Pamphlet

TWO recently published biographies of Bruno Bettelheim sent me searching for my old copy of Bettelheim’s The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales. Inside I found a folded-up copy of John Updike’s New York Times review, which I had placed there 21 years ago. I sat down to re-read it.

Updike described Bettelheim’s book as a profound work showing us “how cunningly, how lovingly, the anonymous generation of a ‘happier age’ prepared their children for the challenges of life and guided them toward sexual, ethical health” through the creation and retelling of fairy tales.