(1) Characters.  The characters must be unique and original, so that they catch the eye at once.  They dare not be colorless, they must have striking experiences.  The Elephant’s Child, Henny Penny, Medio Pollito, Jack of the Beanstalk, the Three Pigs, the Three Bears, and Drakesbill—­the characters of the fairy tales have no equal in literature for freshness and vivacity.  The very mention of the thought brings a smile of recognition; and it is for this reason, no doubt, that leading men in large universities turn aside from their high scholarly labors, to work or play with fairy tales.  Besides the interesting chief characters, moreover, there are many more subordinate characters that are especially unique:  the fairies, the fairy godmothers and wise women, the elves of the trees, the dwarfs of the ground, the trolls of the rocks and hills, and the giants and witches.  Then that great company of toilers in every occupation of life bring the child in touch with many novel phases of life.  At best we are all limited by circumstances to a somewhat narrow sphere and like to enter into all that we are not.  The child, meeting in his tale the shoemaker, the woodcutter, the soldier, the fisherman, the hunter, the poor traveler, the carpenter, the prince, the princess, and a host of others, gets a view of the industrial and social conditions that man in simple life had to face.  This could not fail to interest; and it not only broadens his experience and deepens his sympathy, but is the best means for acquiring a foundation upon which to build his own vocational training.  This acquisition is one contribution of literature to industrial work.  Those characters will appeal to the child which present what the child has noticed or can notice.  They should appear as they do in life, by what they say and by what they do.  This, in harmony with the needs of the young child, makes the tales which answer to the test of suitability, largely dramatic.

(2) Plot.  The characters of the tales can be observed only in action.  Plot is the synthesis of the actions, all the incidents which happen to the characters.  The plot gives the picture of experience and allows us to see others through the events which come to them.  According to Professor Bliss Perry, the plot should be entertaining, comical, novel, or thrilling.  It should present images that are clear-cut and not of too great variety.  It should easily separate itself into large, leading episodes that stand out distinctly.  The sequence of events should be orderly and proceed without interruption.  The general structure should easily be discerned into the beginning, the middle, and the end.  Various writers of tales have their particular ways of beginning.  Andersen loses no time in getting started, while Kipling begins by stating his theme.  The old tales frequently began with the words, “Once upon a time,” which Kipling modified to “In the High and Far-Off times, O Best Beloved,” etc.  Hawthorne