Fairy tales portray woman in her different aspects: admirable and abominable. The underlying messages in these stories convey the praise and adulation of ‘Female’ beauty not only externally but also internally Thus, fairy tales are important pieces of children's literature that have had a lasting impact on our society. The classic tales have been retold through many generations and today have been transformed into major film productions treasured by not only children but by people of all ages. Fairy tales are beginning to recognize the change in societal values, being evolved and morphed to mirror the current society and their present day values. The roles of women are already changing in today’s culture. Disney fairy tales films namely The Little Mermaid and …show more content…
Nevertheless, she does, and in the end is given many accolades for her accomplishments. Her grandfather praises her bravery and is even proud of her disobedience. Women are mostly divided into two categories in fairy tales, the good victimized and submissive women, and the bad, wicked, and authoritative women who are their destructive deeds are in fight with those of godmother fairies. In this sense, fairy tales serves as a persuasive didactic model for women: they teach patience and sacrifice. On the other hand, feminists assert that these should be a serious challenge against the cultural ideals of subordinating women in most of the romantic fairy tale versions. Finally, in most of the feminists’ points of view, fairy tales are another chance to create woman’s voice and to develop self-expression. Thus, it is important for the female to portray in different roles and not the ‘traditional’ appearance. Other roles may include business women, single, warrior, widows to show the options that women have in front of them today. Such a drastic change in the structure of fairy tales shows how culture can change for the
In James Poniewozik's "The Princess Paradox" (323-325) the author explains how the idea of a feminist, independent woman becoming a fairy tale princess is a paradox and that society is engaging in a paradox through the belief of it. He utilizes the recent bout of Cinderella retellings to show the paradox of how girls cannot be both completely independent and a fairytale princess, and yet society perpetuates the paradox through believing that this is not only possible, but realistically attainable as well. Poniewozik exposes the contradictions that surround these new Cinderellas to defy these "realistic" stories that society has come to embrace. By showing how truly constrictive and illogical these fantasies are, Poniewozik also shows how hypocritical society has become for idolizing them and why this new princess is a true paradox.
When analyzing a classic fairytale such as, Snow White, by the Brothers Grimm through a feminist lens, it is clear that it is a phallocentric fairytale that includes stereotypes, gender roles, the male gaze, and paternalism.
The characterizations of women have, throughout history, been one of the most problematic subjects in literary tradition. An extraordinary dichotomy has existed with women as being both the paragon of virtue and the personification of evil. Ancient Greeks feared women, and poets such as Hesiod believed the female sex was created to be the scourge of the gods and the bane of men (Fantham 39). Romans, on the other hand, incorporated tales of brave and virtuous women as an intrinsic part of their legendary history (219). Many Catholic saints, revered for their piety, were notoriously misogynistic (Dollison 106), and yet the church counted legions of holy women in the rosters of saints alongside their male counterparts. Despite much historical controversy as to the precise nature of women, none of this confusion seems to seep into the writings of George MacDonald, and there appears to be no conflict to MacDonald’s regard towards women in his female characters in The Princess and the Goblin. The character of the Grandmother in particular is one of the most complimentary fabrications of the figure of the mature female in literature. MacDonald created this fascinating construct of femininity by steeping the Grandmother not only in the arcane feminine symbols such as spinning, pigeons, and the moon, but also in his own concept of the ideal woman, as wise and compassionate as she is mysterious.
Fairytales. Fairytales, having been around for centuries, are sending all kinds of important moral messages from being a child to facing the ‘beautiful’ world of adulthood. Fairytales surround us; almost as if they are haunting us and are presented in many books that we would never think could be an option. But what classifies a fairy tale or makes a fairytale? Fay Weldon’s classic feminist tale The Life and Love of A She-Devil is a strong candidate of an icily adult fairytale. This is a tale of how one woman, a mother and a normal housewife, is abandoned by her pig of a husband and replaced. The revengeful based novel shows many attributes on how it classifies as a post-modern fairytale. The scornful woman, Ruth is a very beastly and jealous woman who seeks revenge from her “lovely” husband Bobbo.
Upon asking a random individual in what they thought of when they heard the word fairy tale, the response I received involved "princesses, pixie dust, castle 's and princes," all elements that Walt Disney specifically highlighted in his renditions of fairy tales. Although these elements exist in the Charles Perrault or Brothers Grimm tales, they were not dramatized as largely as in
Although Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid,” published in 1837, contains many patronizing nineteenth-century attitudes towards women, a value system that at least acknowledges the legitimacy of femininity shapes the fairytale. Unfortunately, Walt Disney’s 1989 film version of “The Little Mermaid” eliminates the values that affirm femininity in the original story (Trites 145)
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.
Fairy tales have been known to identify different aspects of life such as modern issues and concerns without having to directly point them out. In Anne Sexton’s poem, her version of “Cinderella”, modern issues and concerns are discussed through the lens of the fairytale. She touches on aspects of marriage such as wealth and possessiveness of money by discussing how most of the women in fairytales want to marry into wealthy families. Sexton also discusses how fitting into society’s complex standards is another modern issue by showing that in order for Cinderella to go out in public, she feels as if she needs to dress according to the way society dresses. Furthermore, many women in society today admire models and actresses because they
The definition of a 'fairy tale' could be described in the loosest of terms. From the dictionary of Merriam-Webster, it is defined as “...a simple children's story about magical creatures, or a false story that is meant to trick people. (Merrium-Webster 2014)” Some people would say that it is an ‘unrealistic and possibly untrue story,’ which highlights the need of society to deconstruct and put meaning to every tidbit of information that is presented to them. This need to understand the so called transformation and changing mindset of ideas, and the concepts of gender equality and inequality as the tides of society change, is seen as quite prevalent in relation to the stories of The Snow Queen and Frozen - its new age counterpart; more so, with the deconstruction of Frozen, the inequality of the female character(s) and independence, is rather rampant. Though several relatively strong ideas found in The Snow Queen, have transcended the pages of time to be found in Frozen, a good majority of what makes The Snow Queen to be a strong story of female independence, empowerment, and equality to the male archetype, is lost.
The way society views women has changed drastically over the centuries. We see it through history books, but what about fairytales that have been around for centuries? After reading the three very different versions of “Little Red Riding Hood” it will be very hard for me to look at the story the same. Growing up, I always thought the theme of the story was to not talk to strangers when going to visit your granny in the woods. However, the three authors of these stories have very different themes, but at the same time I saw a blatant difference in each piece how woman were viewed at the time the story was written.
I want people to see past the differences and treat others with respect, as individuals, as equals. In my fairytale, I will put the story mainly in the Beast’s point of view to exemplify how the feminist perception can be applied on males as well as I will counter three gender stereotypes: dominance, animalistic behavior, and power.
Fairy Tales have been around for generations and generations. Our parents have told us these stories and we will eventually pass them down to ours. In this time of age the most common fairytales are Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and The Beast and many more. Children idolize their favorite character and pretend to be them by mimicking everything they do in the stories. The character’s behavior is what is viewed as appropriate in society. These fairy tales show a girl and a boy fall in love and live “happily ever after”. The tales in many people’s eyes resemble a dream life that they would want to have of their own. However, have you ever really looked at what makes up a fairy tale? Many things are unrealistic but the most unflattering aspect of these tales is how women are depicted in them. Fairy tales give an unrealistic view to how women should look and behave in real life.
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.
"The Cultural Studies Reader." : Henry Giroux: Children's Culture and Disney's Animated Films – Summary. The Cultural Studies Reader, 6 June 2011. Web. 17 Oct. 2013.
Fairy tales are not generally considered to be shining examples of modern-day feminism. They tend to reduce their female characters to simple objects of physical attractiveness, and usually center their conversations and actions around other male characters, because everyone knows that women exist solely to look pretty and talk about men. In the classic fairy tale “Snow White,” made popular by the Disney film adaptation, this stereotype holds true, although this particular woman actually has value, since she can cook and clean. Both Snow White and her evil stepmother are controlled by societal pressures to be beautiful, the primary way women of the time could grasp onto any semblance of power in a world that only saw their exteriors.