It is difficult to put into words why it’s so important that our students hear and read old myths and fairy tales. I’ve never been convinced that a person’s ability to rattle off the names and preserves of pagan deities has much bearing on their ability to live decently, and while there’s much to be said for sharing a common cultural store of images and expressions, there are disappointingly few contexts in which crying “fee, fi, fo, fum” seems appropriate. Some ancient sto