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Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Info Post
By Mattie MacDonald


Stories and myths about monstrous dragons and their supernatural abilities have kept children awake and agog throughout the centuries. Various versions of these winged, magical creatures exist in folklore and tales of all cultures. Nobody knows dragons better than children, because only kids have the ability to speak and understand dragon language.

Everybody has heard one or more stories about dragons. Young boys dream of slaying the monster and earning knighthood for saving a damsel in distress from the evil dragon. Young girls normally swoon over the fantasy prince in fairy tales who wins the hand of the beautiful, captive princess by slaying the dreaded monster. Almost every childrens book about dragons feature an impressive phantom monster with supernatural skills that appeals to their vivid imagination.

But why are dragons so popular? Where do they come from? And why is mankind so fascinated by these mythical creatures that never even existed?

Aah, says who? Never tell a kid that dragons do NOT exist and are NOT real. Kids have mystical powers and sensory abilities that grownups have lost . . . And that's why only THEY can see and hear the great many dragons living among us.

Dragons come in many shapes and sizes. Some are kind, some are bad. They can be gentle giants, or cruel, man-eating monsters. In the realm where giants live, there are no human laws or limits - it's a dragon dreamworld!

Most children have a favorite dragon friend whose character and traits appeal most to them. All dragons have fancy or meaningful names and kids can talk to them and play with them whenever they want. Popular dragons pop up like magic in a child's world. They are in books, on TV, in video games and some even attach themselves to the clothes or bedding of their favorite human friend to stay in close contact! If a child wants to communicate with a specific dragon, he or she can summon it by drawing or painting it's picture.

Clever artists and illustrators know there is no scientific proof of what a dragon truly looks like, and that only children can see them. That's why they listen to kids and study children's drawings of dragons to get an idea of how to portray them. Unlike in the human world, dragons can be any color, size or shape. Some can fly, while others have long legs and huge claws to jump across mountains and oceans. Cruel, man eating dragons have horns and razor sharp teeth, while baby dragons are cute and cuddly.

One would expect such a huge, fierce animal to be a mammal that gives live birth, but in many stories, baby dragons are hatched from huge eggs. The age old battle between good and evil are also fiercely fought in children's books about dragons. Many dragon stories have a deeper moral lesson where the kind, friendly dragon, representing good, has to save a princess, or even an entire town or country from the evil, bloodthirsty enemy.

Nobody seems to know where dragons originated from and where they live. The first seafarers believed the gigantic creatures they saw on the horizon - the place where the earth supposedly ended abruptly - were the "sea gods" protecting their aquatic kingdom. Many dragons have wings and supposedly live in the sky on a far-away planet from where they occasionally sweep down to earth to feed or . . . Kill!

Do these magical creatures stem from exaggerated myths about huge snakes, lizards and dinosaurs, or are they real and only visible to children? Who knows? One thing is for sure: mankind has always, throughout history, been fascinated by dragons and the thousands of children's books about dragons that are still being published today, prove that they are still alive and well . . . And probably will be with us forever!




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