Folklore Friday: roses
plus, last day to sign up for Twice Told
Hi, friends. To date, I’ve shared at least 14 plant-related Folklore Fridays. That’s pretty neat! I dream of putting them together into a little PDF or zine for you someday. In lieu of ADHD, however, I’m not promising a date at this time. Thank you for understanding!
I thought, in honor of the rose in Beauty and the Beast and the last day to sign up for Twice Told, I would share some rose folklore and the ubiquitous, amateur poem with you. The sign up form for this fairy tale writing course is at the end of this newsletter.
There is so much rose mythology and folklore throughout the ages. From their origins in Central Asia to the Victorian language of flowers (which was also possibly adapted via misunderstanding from Turkish customs), roses have been utilized as symbols for millennia.
Their given meaning has varied widely. Early Christians eschewed the flower for their association with Islam, until someone decided that the rose was an appropriate symbol for the Virgin Mary.
The term ‘sub rosa’ originates is ancient Roman times, meaning ‘under the rose’ and signaling that anything spoken under the rose should be kept in confidence. Architecture made use of this motif in plaster ceiling roses.
One bit of folklore I found interesting was the belief that if you are being chased by a vampire, throwing the petals of a dog rose behind you will force the vampire to stop and count them.
Are we expecting this guy?
So if you, like me, are wondering how the rose made its way into fairy tales, then I have mixed news for you.
Firstly, I couldn’t find quite enough information as I’d hoped. But I did find some unexpected tidbits. In early versions of Snow White, instead of a huntsman sent to kill her, she’s simply sent into the forest to pick roses and then abandoned.
You’re probably familiar with Sleeping Beauty’s association with roses (Briar Rose). In Beauty and the Beast, some have posited that the rose represents both female (the blossom) and male sexuality (the thorns).1 The rose does have a very yonic appearance.
But beyond these snippets I couldn’t find anything on why the rose was chosen in fairy tales, if such reasons exist. They totally might. I just didn’t find them.
Anyway, this flower has been through a lot. I wonder what she might think of all this?
Rose
I listen unseen
colors riot on stems of green
full blooms to petals strewn
parts of a whole
my only role
fundamental flora mundi
Painted with platitudes
I contain multitudes
©Stephanie Ascough 2025.
Additional sources:
Last day to sign up for Twice Told!
Remember how I said this course would offer 18 pages of downloads? Well, I had so much to share in this course, that it’s a lot more than 18. Twice Told is full of practical tools for writing, plus lots of additional resources. I’m so excited for all the good things packed into this course.
The sign up form will close first thing tomorrow.
In this five-day email course, we will be reading three different variations of Beauty and the Beast, exploring them, and comparing their elements as a way to write our own fairy tales.
If you’re looking for the previous posts about Twice Told, here they are:
You don’t have to share your story with anyone. This is the perfect writing course for introverts. For those who sign up, however, I am offering free feedback on a short story of your choice. I will read your story (up to 8k words) and offer you a written exploration of your characters, story pacing, and clarity.
I have years of experience in reading and providing feedback for other people’s work. I am also well acquainted with the difference between feedback that does more harm than good and what actually helps! You can expect a kind, clear, gentle, and constructive approach from me. Your story and you deserve to be handled with care.
The whole course plus writing feedback (if you so choose) is available on a sliding scale of $30-$40 (pay what you can). Sign up today:
Thanks for reading, friends.
Meet you over the orchard wall.*
*One of my wonderful early readers for my book started signing her emails like this. I like it.
Thanks for being here. My AuDHD brain is a bit scattered and prone to change things last minute, but here in The Purple Vale you can count on reflections on folklore, fairy tales, and the seasons from my little corner of East Tennessee–which is unceded Cherokee and Muscogee land.
Mintz, Thomas. "The Meaning of the Rose in 'Beauty and the Beast.'" The Pscyhoanalytic Review. Vol. 56, no. 4. 1969-70. 615-620.