Their aim was to put the stories down exactly as heard, to catch them in transmission, making no corrections or additions. Our first aim in collecting these stories has been exactness and truth. They considered each fairy tale a document not to be tampered with, and were determined to retain the simplicity, dialectical flavor and authenticity of each. The Grimms were the first adherents of fidelity to the original when committing oral folklore to print. We still hear voices of individual storytellers, their exact language and straightforward style.
Traditional folktales are best suited to the spoken word.
The special genius of the Grimms lay in their ability to transmit oral folk tales into a readable form without altering their folk character. From their very first appearance, Grimm's Fairy Tales have sparked the imagination of writers, translators, and illustrators. The tales lend themselves to a wide variety of artistic interpretations. Translations and re-tellings range from close imitation of the original German to broad rewriting into contemporary idiom, each with its own impact. Similarly, illustrations vary widely and give a distinctive flavor to the telling.