Fairy Tales and the Liberation of the Imagination (original) (raw)
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Epitome International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research , 2018
Fairy tales, being a form of folk literature, continues to change and evolve according to the interpreters who gave them a written form. After years of being recognized as a source of entertainment, storytelling is now being viewed as a powerful tool for change and the overall development of an individual‟s personality, as well as an effective method to address social issues. As the characters depicted in children‟s fiction act as powerful cultural agents,fairy tales like Cinderella and The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood play a major role in the socialization process of the children who read them. However, a positive movement has been noted in the genre of fairy tales in the form of “feminist” versions of fairy tales. Perrault's classical fairy tales have thus been rewritten by feminists in recent times. Unfortunately, a close reading of many fairytales reveals that they set anoversimplified and un-questioned gender role stereotypes. As far as female stereotypes are concerned, the aim here is to explore how female characters in these fairy tales are represented as typical beautiful, submissive, enduring womenwhose happiness rests upon the men in their life. The fairy tales thus become a mere tool that men use or exploit to uphold and perpetuate the patriarchal conventions of society.
This article explores the cross-cultural significance of three iconic fairy tales: Cinderella, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty. Using a comparative analysis approach, the study investigates recurring themes, motifs, and symbolism found in these tales across different cultures and time periods. The research draws on primary and secondary sources such as literary works and scholarly articles to uncover the underlying messages that resonate with audiences worldwide. The historical and cultural contexts of the tales are also examined to provide a deeper understanding of their significance in shaping cultural identity and values. The findings of the research demonstrate the enduring legacy of these tales and their continued relevance in contemporary society. The study highlights how the tales have evolved and adapted over time to reflect changing cultural values and beliefs. The interpretation of the findings offers insights into the role of storytelling in shaping cultural identity and ...
2021
Bettelheim (1986) contends that Cinderella is the best-known and mostloved fairy tale with over 700 documented versions. The character and story of Cinderella is considered as exemplary, showing a positive message, where modesty and humility are rewarded (Zipes, 2006; Barthelmes ,2018). Born as an oral tale, it can be already found in ancient Egypt and Ancient China, and later being consolidated in Europe with literary versions such as La Gata Cerentolla1, or Aschenputtel2. In the last few years, especially at the beginning of the 2000s, The Walt Disney Company has been exposed to negative criticism regarding its portrayal of female characters (Menise, 2019), especially princesses. The 1990s feminist film theory developed an increasingly important role in many areas of academic study (Nelmes, 2011). Progressive critics argue with the idea of how badly, submissive and fragile the female figure had been represented within this company, along with sexist, racist and classicist values (Digón, 2005; Orenstein, 2006; Best & Lowney, 2009). Not only the female characters, but also the productions as a whole too, with ideas concerning that Disney intends to imbue values related to respect for authority, traditional nuclear family, defense of consumerism among others (Giroux, 2001). When looking at the points of study in this area, Cinderella is the target for many frustrated writers who try to convince and argue how this female character has nothing positive to transmit to children, neither adult generation, as in the studies from Yolen (1977) and Laderman (2000). The ones which are commoner to find, are those dealing with the dependence Cinderella shows from the prince, as found in the “Cinderella Syndrome”, created by Lewin in 1976. Additionally, other critics focus on the outer beauty as a tool for accomplishing goals is key and without it, you are lost. (Marín & Solís 2017). Submission and lack of power is often criticized as well. 1 Giambatista Basile (1634). 2 Brothers Grimm (1812). As a result, we have been able to see princesses who save a nation (Mulan 1998), hunt in the forest (Brave 2012), and cross the ocean (Moana 2016), and therefore generating comparisons with the old “classic” princesses from the XX century and judging them as apparently not morally exemplary and victims of a sexist world. Fairy tale scholar Jack Zipes (1997) has argued that, currently, children’s understanding and image associations of the fairy tale Cinderella are so closely linked with the Disney’s animated film Cinderella of 1950, that they are inseparable. However, the huge social impact that the American company carries, displaces the original version from Perrault to the shadows and performs a global hegemony in relation to the representation of the characters and the story. As Baker (2007), stresses: “When asked about Cinderella, the children responded with a characterization that is consistent of Disney’s well-known image”. (p.721) From my point of view, it could be seen as something unfair for Perrault’s version due to the fact that can be forgotten, leaving the character of Cinderella automatically linked to Disney. However, Perrault’s version was neither the first one; prior to these, authors such as Basile (1634) had already written their version, and it was at the same time an inspiration to Perrault. Nonetheless, Disney’s film adds the reference to the French author in its opening credits3. The chosen topic for this paper stemmed from those negative critics, which I interpret as a superficial reading, ignoring the full context of the story. Thus, I will demonstrate, based on a rigorous and systematic analysis, that Cinderella provides valuable ethical and moral values such as resilience, forgiveness and patience, and how the character of Cinderella transmits and performs them. These morality principles are going to play a very relevant role in the dissertation because of the fact that they will be the sustain of my analysis
More than a millennium after the earliest-known version was committed to text, fairy tales continue to occupy our bookshelves and airwaves. The current popularity of fairy tale-based television programs such as Grimm and Once Upon a Time offer continued proof that the appeal of these tales is not lost on 21 st century audiences. Beginning with the rise of fairy tales in the ancient cultures of China and India, this paper will follow their journey through Asia, long before these tales reached their traditionally recognized European birthplace. In this examination of the multicultural variations of a single tale-the Cinderella story-we begin to understand just how these stories have evolved. By means of textual analysis, I will examine the familiar French literary version (Perrault) of Cinderella using Propp's (2008) morphology of "function" and character, and semiotic theories advanced by Berger (2000). I will then apply this structure to three television adaptations of the Cinderella story: the 1957 live-television broadcast of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, the 2006 pilot episode of ABC's Ugly Betty, and the 2007 Mexican production of La Fea más Bella. Likewise, I will examine the ways that the
"If the Shoe Fits"--The Evolution of the Cinderella Fairy Tale from Literature to Television
More than a millennium after the earliest-known version was committed to text, fairy tales continue to occupy our bookshelves and airwaves. The current popularity of fairy tale-based television programs such as Grimm and Once Upon a Time offer continued proof that the appeal of these tales is not lost on 21 st century audiences. Beginning with the rise of fairy tales in the ancient cultures of China and India, this paper will follow their journey through Asia, long before these tales reached their traditionally recognized European birthplace. In this examination of the multicultural variations of a single tale-the Cinderella story-we begin to understand just how these stories have evolved. By means of textual analysis, I will examine the familiar French literary version (Perrault) of Cinderella using Propp's (2008) morphology of "function" and character, and semiotic theories advanced by Berger (2000). I will then apply this structure to three television adaptations of the Cinderella story: the 1957 live-television broadcast of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, the 2006 pilot episode of ABC's Ugly Betty, and the 2007 Mexican production of La Fea más Bella. Likewise, I will examine the ways that the
Cinderella Wants to Decide: A Feminist Study of Several Versions of This Fairy Tale Over the Years
2014
The literary fairy tale, present along history since the Middle Ages, is a device that portrays the ideology, politics, values, and morals of a society. However, they have also worked as an acculturation device for many centuries now. The language used in these tales is a key element, for it is selected by the tale collector or the tale writer with a purpose. A clear example is the fairy tale "Cinderella". People with power, men in the majority of cases, have articulated some specific discourse in order to reproduce or, rather, create, a reality in which men are strong while women are weak, men are active while women are passive, men are the leaders while women are the followers, just to mention a few dichotomies. Male collectors of fairy tales such as Basile, the brothers Grimm, and Charles Perrault have used their power as storytellers to reproduce a hierarchical structure of society, namely, patriarchy. These biased ideas on women, which the literary fairy tale has help...
Gender Stereotypes in Fantasy Fairy Tales: Cinderella
This paper explores gender stereotypes and culture depicted in three different versions of Cinderella children textbooks. The researcher has limited the study of fairy tales to Cinderella, the western version that she grew up reading it, and two other eastern versions: The Egyptian Cinderella and The Korean Cinderella. The characteristics of all versions represent different ethnics and cultural backgrounds. Findings that are based on discourse analysis show that the criteria of beauty and stereotype vary among all of the three versions of Cinderella children textbooks. That variation is based on the perspective of the culture represented in each one of the stories. Some valuable educational implications to limit the stereotypical gender misconceptions in children literature are presented to both parents and teachers.