An archaic tale, “Jack and the Beanstalk,” has its roots in antiquity, yet it is adapted to modern days in multiple variations. Three-story analogs, including “The Giant’s Toe” by Brock Cole, “Jim and the Beanstalk” by Raymond Briggs, and “Jack and the Beanstalk” by Mara Alperin will be compared in the present paper. Similar to the original fairytale, they may be regarded as valuable pieces of literature for children since they teach how to overcome difficulties and be compassionate with others.
The selected adaptations are based on the story where the interaction between a boy and a giant is the major element in the plot. Thus, each of them features a giant and a boy as well. Alperin’s book is the closest to the original in terms of character representation. It portrays a poor boy named Jack who lives with a widowed mother and an angry ogre. Brigg’s book also depicts a giant and a boy. Based on the plot, it is clear that the giant in his version is the same one who features in the original tale yet older. Jim is a new boy who visits that giant by climbing the beanstalk. Lastly, Cole’s book focuses on the life of a giant who, by accident, cuts off his toe, which then turns into a mischievous boy. Jack appears in Cole’s adaptation by the end of the plot, yet leaves without any trophies since the giant’s toe gets rid of them by that moment.
The main theme of the tale may be defined as the counteraction between evil and good. After deceiving and killing the male ogre in the original story, Jack becomes a hero since the ogre is an evil man-eater (Quinn and Wild). Thus, after defeating the giant, Jack is rewarded for his good deeds by getting access to the treasures and magic things possessed by the former.
The same theme is shared by the selected adaptations, yet some of them end differently. Alperin’s book is the closest to the original one and ends with Jack becoming rich by killing the evil ogre. At the same time, Brigg’s book emphasizes the importance of cooperation as Jim helps the old giant throughout the story and, as a result, they become friends. Cole’s book is about finding the common ground as well. It ends with the giant and his toe living happily ever after, regardless of all the troubles caused by the latter.
The tone in each of the books may be defined as humorous. The illustrations, like the one given in Figure 1, also serve to add humor to the narration, set the tone and mood, and evoke appropriate responses from readers (“Mood”). Besides that, illustrations in the books are closely linked to various elements of the plot. For instance, Figure 2 shows the moment of suspense as readers are waiting for an outcome of the beanstalk growth. Figure 3 depicts an element of irony as Jack and the giant’s toe confront each other by the end of the story, and when Jack finds out that his little doppelganger has already done all possible harm to the giant. In the illustration, readers may see how similar the toe and Jack are.
The conducted analysis demonstrates that approaches to adapting archaic tales may significantly vary and depend on the overall creative potentials of the authors and the limits of their imagination. It is interesting to see how plots may become more and more moralized over time. While the initial story was slightly controversial in terms of ethics, Cole and Briggs eliminated that controversy by emphasizing the importance of patience, cooperation, and communication. Nevertheless, all the selected pieces may be viewed as fine examples of children’s literature. They demonstrate how closely the visual and the textual elements of book composition are interrelated and can be used together to attain the desired effect on readers.
Works Cited
Alperin, Mara. Jack and the Beanstalk. Tiger Tales, 2015.
Briggs, Raymond. Jim and the Beanstalk. Paw Prints, 2008.
Cole, Brock. The Giant’s Toe. Farrar, 2001.
“Mood.”Literary Devices, Web.
Quinn, Blake, and Caitlin Wild. “Archetypes.”Jack and the Beanstalk, Web.