Themes in Fairy Tales Examples of such themes include: The value of hard work, as seen in ''The Three Little Pigs'' and ''The Tortoise and the Hare'' The power of true love, as seen in "Beauty and the Beast" and ''Cinderella'' The importance of cunning, as seen in ''Jack and the Beanstalk'' and ''Hansel and Gretel''

Most fairy tales begin with 'once upon a time' or 'a long time ago', and end with telling the reader that the characters 'lived happily ever after'. Fairy tales are often set in the past, but not in a defined period of history, and they usually have a happy ending where the hero triumphs over adversity.