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Gender role stereotypes in fairy tales
Gender roles in literature examples
Gender role stereotypes in fairy tales
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The portrayal and role of characters in fairy tales is often something limited to gender; the adherence or deviation from those prescribed expectations is what labels a character 'good ' or 'bad ', particularly in the case of women. Female character were expected to be 'good ', which was described as following the rules and being submissive to embody the idea of femininity, and commonly described only by how beautiful and fair tempered they were. Women with outstanding characteristics outside the idea of femininity, such as ambition, vanity, greed, or want of authority, were handed the roles of the wicked witches, ogres, stepmothers, or were simply unimaginably ugly and made a point of describing them with unflattering imagery. While the …show more content…
Welty does not just highlight these gender role tropes, but simultaneously subverts, adheres to, and combines them through various characters, with their expectations filtered through the lens of the Southern Frontier. She calls upon gender motifs from other fair tales as well in her novel, with humorous nods to iconic moment such as those in Cinderella and Snow White that point out the ridiculousness of the cannon action/reactions and narration of the passive heroines to further bring into focus the 'traditional ' female …show more content…
This comment “clearly demonstrates that women are viewed as commodities in the marketplace” ( Donald pg 18) to men, a common aspect in fairy tales, and the concept is shown in several ways throughout the story through the burden of the dowry to take a wife, the offering of a daughter or asking for marriage as a reward, and the 'claiming ' of woman as
Jessica was suspicious of the queen, and rightfully so. When the queen entered the black room, the ghastly sight caused Jessica to faint in disgust. Suspicious, black, ghastly. These are just a few of the words an author can use to imply evil in a character. The connotation of dark as evil is prevalent in many stories throughout the history of western civilization. Fairy tales “emanate from specific struggles to humanize [forces initially perceived to be evil], which have terrorized our minds and communities in concrete ways” (Zipes), and their usually-heroic endings make us forget on a conscious level the lessons they’ve taught us. However, their impact remains on our subconscious views of the world. Because of this, fairly tales often address issues far more serious than one would think to teach to a young reader. The Brothers’ Grimm tale “Ashputtle”, the basis of our modern-day Cinderella archetype, takes advantage of this to address the issue of the continued oppression of women.
Whittier begins his story by writing, “Woman’s attributes are generally considered of a milder and purer character than those of man. ”(348) Right of the bat, the reader has a stereotypical idea in his or her mind about how a woman should act and what characteristics she should hold. Whittier does this to show how different and unique his main character, Hannah Dustan, will be seen throughout his piece of work. Whittier then goes on to say, “Yet, there have been astonishing manifestations of female fortitude and power in the ruder and sterner trials of humanity; manifestations of courage rising almost to sublimity; the revelation of all those dark and terrible passions, which madden and distract the heart of manhood.
...ight. The centuries that have elapsed between the two poems indicate that the power of women has increased in direct proportion to the later centuries. Though both these women have power, and each one of them practices it in her own right in accordance to the time period that each inhabits, the perception of their power is nowhere near that of their husbands. Where does that leave these women in their own societies? Though it may seem that both Wealhtheow and the Lady are in their husbands shadow, both considerably contribute to the control of the society in which they are part of the ruling class.
This passage from the story insinuates that men need women to see it they way they do, and men don’t appreciate it when women are free-thinking. Women in fiction, not just in books but in movies and television as well, are often represented in certain molds or ideas. The story of Cinderella and the story by Hurston both reinforce the idea that fictional portrayals of women are
For readers who observe literature through a feminist lens, they will notice the depiction of female characters, and this makes a large statement on the author’s perception of feminism. Through portraying these women as specific female archetypes, the author creates sense of what roles women play in both their families and in society. In books such as The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the roles that the main female characters play are, in different instances, both comparable and dissimilar.
It is often misread that women in Beowulf are presented as compliant to men, displaying them as the weaker gender of the human species. In the world of Beowulf, women serve as peace-weavers, cup-bearers, gift-givers and even monsters, all of which at first glance appear as inferior roles. Many examiners of Beowulf, who have touched on the role of women, have criticized on the words of Gillian R. Overing who believes they are "marginal, excluded figures." Although the women in Beowulf aren't as prominent as men are, they are not "excluded" from the picture as a whole. In fact, the roles these six women presented in Beowulf have, can be compared to real Anglo-Saxon women who held together nations, bring heirs and future generations into the world, all qualities that are necessary for the Anglo-Saxons to continue to strive. Wealhtheow and Hygd play the role of cup-bearer along with the political stance of queen allowing them to have equality among men. Freawaru and Hildeburh are what Anglo-Saxons consider peace-weavers which mend together nations if handled the right way. Then there are Grendel's mother and Modthryth who are described as monsters due to their aggressiveness as women, which is sought to be an unnatural trait that only males should hold. Lastly we have the few unnamed women that play roles similar or equal to the ones mentioned above but with little coverage or knowledge from the author for them to have no name. This essay will go further into the world of women in Beowulf and how their roles play in not only the poem, but also in Anglo-Saxon culture using Seamus Heaney’s translation.
Beowulf is an epic tale written over twelve hundred years ago. In the poem, several different female characters are introduced, and each woman possesses detailed and unique characteristics. The women in Beowulf are portrayed as strong individuals, each of whom has a specific role within the poem. Some women are cast as the cup-bearers and gracious hostesses of the mead halls, such as Wealhtheow and Hygd, while others, Grendel's mother, fulfill the role of a monstrous uninvited guest. The woman's role of the time period, author's attitude, and societal expectations for women are evidenced throughout the poem.
The middle English poem Beowulf also defines the important ways in which the feminist heroine is part of an ancient poetic tradition in the depiction of empowered women in patriarchal society. For instance, the plot of the story revolves around Beowulf’s indoctrination into the court of King Hrothgar, since he has been chosen to destroy to the monster Grendel. However, an unusual break with patriarchal tradition finds Wealhtheow, the wife of King Hrothgar, passing the mead cup to Beowulf as part of this indoctrination. In this ceremony, the tradition of the king passing the mead cup has been disavowed due to the power of the Wealhtheow in the royal court: “Wealhtheow came in,/ Hrothgar’s queen, observing the courtesies./ Adorned in gold, she
In contrast, there is an alternative perspective (i.e. nurture) that has been gaining popularity. This
In a society unbridled with double standards and set views about women, one may wonder the origins of such beliefs. It might come as a surprise that these ideals and standards are embedded and have been for centuries in the beloved fairy tales we enjoyed reading as kids. In her analytical essay, “To Spin a Yarn: The Female Voice in Folklore and Fairy Tales”, Karen Rowe argues that fairy tales present “cultural norms which exalt passivity, dependency, and self-sacrifice as a female’s cardinal virtues.” Rowe presents an excellent point, which can be supported by versions of the cult classics, “Cinderella” and “Snow White”. Charles Perrault’s “ The Little Glass Slipper” and the Brothers Grimm’s “ Snow White” exemplify the beliefs that females are supposed to be docile, dependent on the male persona and willing to sacrifice themselves. In many cases, when strong female characters are presented they are always contradicting in these characteristics, thus labeled as villainous. Such is the case of the Cinderella’s stepsisters in Perrault’s “Cinderella” and the stepmother in the Brothers Grimm’s “Snow White.” These female characters face judgment and disapproval when they commit the same acts as male characters. With such messages rooted in our beloved fairy tales it is no wonder that society is rampant with these ideals about women and disapprove of women when they try to break free of this mold.
Folktales are a way to represent situations analyzing different prospects about gender, through the stories that contribute with the reality of the culture in which they develop while these provide ideas about the behavior and roles of a specific sex building a culture of womanhood, manhood and childhood. This is what the stories of Little Red Riding Hood of Charles Perrault (1697) and Little Red-Cap of the Grimm Brothers (1812) show. This essay will describe some ideas about gender in different ways. First, the use of symbolic characters allows getting general ideas about the environment in the society rather than individuals. Second, it is possible to identify ideas about gender from the plot from the applied vocabulary providing a better understanding of the actions. Finally, the narrative perspective of the tales analyzes deeply the status of the characters referring to the thoughts among the society.
Thinking back to our childhood, we all remember hearing many kinds of fairy tales. Some of them inspired us others confused us, and most of them taught us valuable lessons. Through out centuries tales and stories have been used as a valuable tool to pass on our culture to new generations. There is a strong belief that these fairy tales mirror and influence society. All cultures interpret tales in their own unique way. They add and subtract various aspects of the tale to fit the needs of their particular society. The same tale in the United States is different from the tale told in Asia. A good example of tale evolution can be seen in one of the most famous tales ever told which is “Cinderella”. As a professor of women’s history Karol Kelley points out in her essay Pretty Woman: A Modern Cinderella “There are some 700 versions of Cinderella”.This fairy tale as many others has been changing for many years, and in recent years Cinderella has come under some criticism for its depiction of women’s roles in society.
In most of the fairy tales, the beauty is the justice. Perrault always described his princesses as the most beautiful young lady, and follow that, her virtue is also as good as her appearance (Sunderland 110). In other words, if a girl wants to marry a prince and live happily ever after, she must be pretty, and if she is pretty, she also has a lovely personality. On the contrary, the evil stepsisters were portrayed as the ugliest creatures, who are exactly like their mother, “the proudest and most haughty woman that was ever seen” (Perrault). If putting those two facts together, it is really easy for the audience to see the connection between the physical and personality beauties. Another instance where readers observe the value of being beautiful
The folk tale of “Little Red Riding Hood” has numerous variations and interpretations depending on what recorded version is being read or analyzed. “Little Red Cap,” by the Grimm Brothers, and “The Grandmother,” as collected by Achille Millien, are different in numerous ways: the depth of the narrative structure, characters involved, length – yet, the moral lesson is largely unchanged between the two versions. One of the more glaring differences between the two versions is the way that the narrator and the actions of the characters are used to describe the young girl, female, and the wolf, male. Being either female or male are matters of biological makeup. The characteristics of femininity and masculinity that are associated with being female or male, however, are socially and culturally defined. How do these different descriptions inform gender construction, and more specifically, how do gender constructions help to naturalize stereotypes within the collective conscience of society?
Throughout literature, authors employ a variety of strategies to highlight the central message being conveyed to the audience. Analyzing pieces of literature through the gender critics lens accentuates what the author believes to be masculine or feminine and that society and culture determines the gender responsibility of an individual. In the classic fairytale Little Red Riding Hood, the gender strategies appear through the typical fragile women of the mother and the grandmother, the heartless and clever male wolf, and the naïve and vulnerable girl as little red riding hood.