How Superheroes Made Their Way into the World of Fairy Tales: The Appeal of Cooperation and Collective Action from the Greek Myths to the Grimms’ Tales and Beyond

Abstract

This chapter highlights an important theme in the Grimms' fairy tales that few scholars have discussed—cooperation or superhuman cooperative efforts necessary to defeat evil. It shares a string of associations about cooperation in fairy tales before explaining why a tale such as “How Six Made Their Way in the World” and other similar tales in the Grimms' Kinder-und Hausmärchen significantly touch on a relevant memetic topic that we can find in myths and folk and fairy tales throughout the world. The chapter explores the appeal of tales about superheroes and why we are all more or less attracted to them as they work together to help underdogs.