The best stories, then, the stories that transcend time and place, are more than simply entertaining — they are in some way useful to us, children and adults alike. They help us work through unconscious pressures and deal with fear, anger, and anxiety, and they lend expression to deep yearnings we are often unable to articulate or even identify. They may be cloaked in quite contemporary dress — and the “delivery system” may be a film, a well-told joke, or a 30-second commercial — but if it provides this kind of profound value or utility, it will move us powerfully.

— The Hero and the Outlaw: Building Extraordinary Brands Through the Power of Archetypes by Margaret Mark, Carol S. Pearson