Difference between Fairytale and Folktale

In every society, fairytales and folk tales always grab interest of people and these tales usually becomes an important part of culture and literature of a civilisation or society. Storytelling and words of wisdom have always been remained a source of inspiration in every civilisation. Many people think that fairytales and folk tales are the same tales which fascinate people in different ways. However, fairytales and folk tales cannot be identified as the same because both of these terms are used in different perspectives. There is a huge difference between the context and nature of these tales that make them distinguished from each other.

Folk tales are short stories which are also known as folklore that are associated with the common or ordinary people of any civilisation or society. On the other hand, fairytales are the stories that are associated with supernatural characters, not the common people. The folk tales always deal with the common problems of people which are quite simple to understand. On the contrary, the supernatural characters of fairytales do not deal with common or ordinary problems of people as they deal with big adventures and mighty problems. Folk tales belong to the realities of life along with all of its simplicities while fairytales always talk about fantasies and unrealistic things. The target audience of folk tales is adult people while fairytales are liked by children who love fantasies and always enjoy fairytales. Folk tales usually contain lessons through which people learn many things while fairytales do not offer such things as they usually tell different adventures of supernatural characters.

Instructions

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    Folk Tale:

    Folk tales are short stories that have become a part of a particular civilisation and people go on passing these tales to their new generation. These tales are about common people that have simple problems and eventually teach lesson to the later generations. Folk tales always grab attention of people in a particular society because they show a constant conflict of good and evil and thus leave a moral lesson for the readers. Everyone can identify himself with the characters of these folk tales.

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    Fairytale:

    Fairytales are the short stories that fascinate children because these stories contain supernatural elements. Characters of the fairytales usually possess supernatural powers and these stories reveal different adventures and fantasies that make children more involved in these stories. Usually older people tell these fairytales to children in order to make them excited.

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