The Thorns of Trauma: Torture, Aftermath, and Healing in Contemporary Fairy-Tale Literature

While classical fairy tales do not portray much depth of suffering, many contemporary fairy-tale retellings explore trauma and its aftermath in great detail. This article analyzes depictions tales, utilizing as a primary case study the “Beauty Beast” retelling A Court Thorns Roses by Sarah J. Maas, arguing that this text provides scientifically accurate representation aftermath, thereby articulating real tales. Further, classifies work simply “dark” tale (a contentious term invites rethinking) but rather torture porn, nod to horror genre foregrounds torture, surveillance, disruption bodily boundaries safety. However, text’s optimistic account healing is uniquely relevant time widespread due global pandemic, demonstrating remain germane contexts.