The Uses Of Enchantment By Bruno Bettelheim Summary
Finding meaning in one’s life is important in all stages of life. In the introduction to “The
Uses of Enchantment” by Bruno Bettelheim, he promotes reading fairy tales to children saying that they promote a child’s ability to find meaning in his or her life. He stresses the idea that fairy tales have certain qualities that do this that are not found in other children’s stories. Bettelheim employs sophisticated diction, punctuation in the form of dashes, and anecdotes from fairy tales to argue the importance of reading fairy tales to children.
Bettelheim successfully employs sophisticated word choice. This shows to readers that he is educated, and therefore, readers are more likely to trust him and agree with his argument. It is through the use of words like “chronological maturity” and “psychological maturity” that prove that he is educated on the subject and in turn, that makes him more credible (Par. 1). Also, the use of the word “psychoanalysis”, which is repeated multiple times throughout the excerpt, is very particular …show more content…
The use of dashes emphasizes the information that is placed within the dashes. In most cases, it clarifies or explains other information or adds important information to the argument. For instance, he says that characters “in fairy tales are not ambivalent - not good and bad at the same time, as we all are in reality” (Par. 26). In this instance, he clarifies what “ambivalent” means, and without that clarification, there is the possibility that most readers would not know the meaning of the “ambivalent”. He also uses dashes to define “primitive things” as “a tree, an animal, nature” (Par. 34)”. Again, he clarifies the meaning of a word. By doing this, he puts terms that are not necessarily well-known in layman’s terms which appeals to readers. This allows readers to understand what he is saying. and therefore decided whether or not they agree with his
Uses of Enchantment” by Bruno Bettelheim, he promotes reading fairy tales to children saying that they promote a child’s ability to find meaning in his or her life. He stresses the idea that fairy tales have certain qualities that do this that are not found in other children’s stories. Bettelheim employs sophisticated diction, punctuation in the form of dashes, and anecdotes from fairy tales to argue the importance of reading fairy tales to children.
Bettelheim successfully employs sophisticated word choice. This shows to readers that he is educated, and therefore, readers are more likely to trust him and agree with his argument. It is through the use of words like “chronological maturity” and “psychological maturity” that prove that he is educated on the subject and in turn, that makes him more credible (Par. 1). Also, the use of the word “psychoanalysis”, which is repeated multiple times throughout the excerpt, is very particular …show more content…
The use of dashes emphasizes the information that is placed within the dashes. In most cases, it clarifies or explains other information or adds important information to the argument. For instance, he says that characters “in fairy tales are not ambivalent - not good and bad at the same time, as we all are in reality” (Par. 26). In this instance, he clarifies what “ambivalent” means, and without that clarification, there is the possibility that most readers would not know the meaning of the “ambivalent”. He also uses dashes to define “primitive things” as “a tree, an animal, nature” (Par. 34)”. Again, he clarifies the meaning of a word. By doing this, he puts terms that are not necessarily well-known in layman’s terms which appeals to readers. This allows readers to understand what he is saying. and therefore decided whether or not they agree with his