Happily Ever After in Roach Honors: Inside Dr. Nina Cook’s Fairy Tale Course

In her Culture, Literature, and Adaptations course, “Happily Ever Afterlives,” new John V. Roach Honors College professor Dr. Nina Cook is encouraging students to look beyond the familiar endings of classic fairy tales and explore what these stories reveal about the cultures that tell and retell them.

Throughout the semester, students are examining beloved stories through new perspectives, considering how they shape—and are shaped by—human culture.

Cook's interactive teaching style encourages students to develop their own interpretations of readings and films, sparking thoughtful discussions about how the themes and lessons of classic stories have evolved through modern adaptations.

“We’re given instruction that’s more collaborative or creative in the sense of talking about more types of media. There’s lots of compare and contrast,” second-year Roach Honors student Ann Huffaker said.

Beyond the Fairy Tale

From Beauty and the Beast to The Little Mermaid, students examine the themes embedded in original literary works before exploring how those ideas are reimagined through films, short stories and even video games.

During a discussion of The Little Mermaid, Cook challenged students “to consider whether humanity is defined by our physical form, our capacity for love, or our moral choices.”

“I've been particularly impressed by how readily students have embraced the philosophical questions embedded in these seemingly familiar stories,” Cook said.

Storytelling Beyond the Page

The course also explores how storytelling continues to evolve across different forms of media. In one class session, fellow Roach Honors professor Dr. Wendi Sierra joined Cook to demonstrate how video games serve as modern cultural responses to familiar stories.

Among the examples Sierra shared was the 1993 Sega Genesis video game Aladdin, based on Disney's animated film adaptation of a tale from The Arabian Nights. Students had previously explored the collection's stories through group projects earlier in the semester, giving them an opportunity to consider how the same narratives take on new meaning across different media.

First-year student Eloise Wallace especially appreciates how the class highlights how classic tales “change with the times,” particularly through Disney adaptations.

“Without Disney's adaptation, I wouldn't have known the original story. It’s very interesting,” Wallace said.

By revisiting stories students grew up with, Cook's course connects childhood nostalgia with deeper questions about identity, morality and the influence of storytelling on society.

As the semester draws to a close, Cook hopes students leave with more than a new appreciation for familiar fairy tales.

“I hope that students take with them an understanding of the didactic power of art,” Cook said.