Guillermo del Toro= s El laberinto del fauno contains a dual discourse of a concrete historical framework with that of a fairy tale. The intertitles AEspaña 1944@ and the explanation of the resistance to the Franco regime by the maquis contrast with the voice-over narrative that places it squarely in the discourse of the fairy tale: ACuentan que hace mucho tiempo...@ 1 This opening also establishes a spatial dichotomy that will play out throughout the rest of the film: the Areino subterráneo donde no existe la mentira ni el dolor@ contrasts (from the Republican point of view) with Franco= s Spain. 2 Del Toro comments regarding the alternating rhythm of the discourse that AThere is magic or a magical element in every other scene in the movie, almost like a checkerboard.@ The importance of the structure of the film rests both on the interweaving of the two discourses, and that the fairy tale discourse correlates to the morphology of classic fairy tales and myths as conceived by critics such as Vladimir Propp, Max Lüthi, Jack Zipes, and Joseph Campbell.

The interweaving of the two discourses commences at the very beginning of the film. The zoom-in to the eye of the dying girl takes us to the underground world of blue-gray palaces, which is either an inner reality or fantasy world. Juxtaposing the princess who escapes with Ofelia in the car reading a fairy tale immediately establishes a link between the two. The voice-over narration establishes the circular structure of the narrative, as well as foreshadowing the happy ending, announcing the death and return of the princess to her father= s kingdom. Ofelia= s tale reflects the broad structure of the hero= s tale, which Campbell theorizes as having three stages: Separation and departure; Trials and victories of initiation; and Return and reintegration into society (36).