Os contos de fadas sob uma ótica psicanalítica no mundo infantil: as fantasias e expressões inconscientes do conto “A bela e a fera”

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the importance of fairy tales in children’s psychological development from a psychoanalytic perspective, focusing on the tale Beauty and the Beast, in the version rewritten by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont (1756). This is a qualitative, exploratory, and bibliographic study, grounded in psychoanalytic and literary authors who discuss the symbolic function of fairy tales in childhood. The methodology consisted of reviewing and analyzing classical and contemporary works, particularly from Freudian and Jungian perspectives, including contributions from authors such as Sigmund Freud, Melanie Klein, Carl Jung, and Bruno Bettelheim. The findings indicate that fairy tales function as symbolic instruments that help children process internal conflicts, cope with anxieties, and structure emotional experiences. The analysis demonstrates that the characters represent unconscious content, repressed desires, and processes of psychological maturation, especially regarding ego development and the integration of dissociated aspects of the psyche. It is concluded that Beauty and the Beast has significant therapeutic and educational potential, contributing to children’s subjective development and symbolic elaboration of emotional experiences. Thus, the articulation between art, psychoanalysis, and psychological development is emphasized as essential for understanding the child’s subjective formation.