Clara From Confessions Of An Ugly Stepsister

358 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: Feminism essay writing

Clara from Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire is considered as a round, dynamic, indirectly characterized character. Cinderella, who is Clara in this novel is considered to hold an extraordinary beauty. She is treated as an object of admiration and not expected to learn or interact with every other outside the world, which leads herself to treat her as a changeling child. Firstly, Clara is round character by having many motivations which led her to have complex emotions. "A long time ago happened to me, and I was a changeling. The crow man changed me. That's all" (Maguire 169). Her story starts from the past. When she was a child, she was kidnapped and kept inside the hostage of a windmill by a man, who received an enormous

Show More
Related

  • Sara Smolinsky in The Bread Givers

    1005 Words  | 3 Pages

    During the early 1920s the Great Depression took place. The Great Depression affected many people's lives. The immigrants caught the worst of it. They had just come from another country and were trying to start their new lives when the depression hit. They had to struggle once more with poverty and desperation in taking care of their families, the main reason they had left their old countries was to escape the same epidemic that was now overtaking ?the land of the free?. Immigrants, such as the Jewish immigrants, had to live in poverty-stricken ghettos without the necessities they needed to live healthy lives. The 1920s was the time of rapid change, it was the time of risque fashion, it was the time of which that if you were rich and had all the latest fashions then you were ?in? but if you did not then you were an outcast.

    Read More

  • Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, by Gregory Maguire

    786 Words  | 2 Pages

    In most fairytales, there is a character that stands out as a visionary; the one who defends happiness, and leads the way allowing others to find their destiny. This person usually has the will power to influence not only them self, but also has the ability to influence the person who seems to be the least likely to accept another’s view of the world, especially if they’re living in a world that is detached from everyone else's. In Gregory Maguire’s book, Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, the visionary to see beyond her own sanity and look into the depths of another person’s chaos is Iris. It is with no question that without Iris’s willingness to explore the world, not just through her eyes, but the eyes of everyone around her, Cinderella may have never been released from her shackles that bound her to live the life of a changeling, and invalidate what inkling she had of creating the idea in the first place; the idea of a new journey to escape the fears brought on by childhood, and escape to a life of reason; the life where adults make decisions based on reason, not fear. Even though there are others who surround Clara’s transformation into womanhood, Iris is undeniably the big sister that Clara so desperately needed.

    Read More

  • Comparing Fay Weldon's The Life And Love Of A She-Devil

    2210 Words  | 5 Pages

    One key of Weldon’s allusions’ to fairytales through transformation is that it is obtained by surgery, not nature. The character, Ruth Patchett, takes matters into her own hands and takes actions that help lead to her transformation, while having an effect on others that come in her path. Her home life ultimately being this utopia, transforms into a prison where she will eventually begin her journey as a she-devil. The Life and Loves of a She-Devil, a strong fairytale motif, strongly illustrates an illusion of adult fairytales in its novel, by its depiction of transformation and how it differs greatly from the expectation that we have from a classic

    Read More

  • Imitation In 'Confessions Of An Ugly Step-Sister'

    1558 Words  | 4 Pages

    This is typical of antagonistic characters written during the time Perrault was alive and writing. In a certain variation rehashing of Cinderella, “Confessions of an Ugly Step-Sister” by Gregory Maguire, even though the setting is a long time ago like Perrault’s version, the writer is of modern times and it is a book instead of a short tale. Because of these factors the characters are more fleshed out and person-like. The reader sees that these ‘ugly stepsister’ are merely girls in poverty trying to have a happy life. They are not evil or cruel; if anything Clara, the Cinderella of this story, can be very cruel despite her beauty. One factor that is similar in both the modern and old tale is the eventual antagonism the stepmother directs at Cinderella. In Maguire’s version even though (stepmothers name) does not force Clara to become a maid(it is in fact Clara’s own choice), the reader finds out that the evil stepmother actually poisoned Clara’s mother so that she could marry Clara’s rich father. In Perrault’s version, the stepmother isn’t shown to be evil to that extent, but she is much more cruel to Cinderella. In both the old and new stories the stepmother remains an evil character, which is a common trop in fairy

    Read More

  • Grimm's Cinderella Story

    1894 Words  | 4 Pages

    Instead, she takes her burdens as they come. Clare R. Ferrer noted in her article, “heroines are not allowed any defects, nor are they required to develop, since they are already perfect.” At the beginning of the story, Cinderella is described as “remaining pious and good” in-spite of the loss she endured. Cinderella is such a good person, that she takes the abuse from her step-sisters with grace and never asks for anything, nor does she reveal to her father or the Prince the type of life she has succumbed to living. Beauty goes hand-in-hand with being a good woman. According to Parsons, “a high premium is placed on feminine beauty…Women are positioned as the object of men’s gaze, and beauty determines a woman’s ...

    Read More

  • Sibling Rivalry: Cinderella by Charles Perrault

    1201 Words  | 3 Pages

    Any child growing up will be enamored by the lustrous glorified ending of a fairytale; most notably Walt Disney’s. As this child progresses into maturity a realization of how the world actually revolves occurs demeaning their once happy thought. Charles Perrault wrote his version of Cinderella to appeal towards the naïve, yet inquire those with sophisticated intellect. A mask is created by the mysticism of magic and buoyant endings. Beneath that masquerade lies wretchedness within family and how at times freedom is only possible with the help of something non-existent.

    Read More

  • Stella Cross In Alive

    515 Words  | 2 Pages

    Stella Cross is an interesting character in the Novel Alive. She displays several qualities which make her interesting. Stella is eager we witness this when she is about to go back to school after her long wait for her heart transplant. She is also insecure we witness this trait when she refers to her little sister as her replacement and when she talks about how she isn’t the most attractive. Lastly, Stella is curious we witness this when she decides to go after a boy who “literally” makes her heart jump out at him, but later comes to find out that he is the boy who died to give her, her heart and later he tries to kill her.

    Read More

  • Comparing Where Are you going, Where Have You Been and Hills Like White Elephants

    1329 Words  | 3 Pages

    She argues with her mother and she thinks she is jealous of her. The start of the plot is not very dramatic, rather it is more like an introduction. We get a good description of the story’s protagonist, Connie, at the beginning of the story and throughout. She is familiar, the typical American teenager, who dreams, fantasizes and has difficulty differentiating the real world from fairytales. Kozikowsky compares the story to the popular Disney tale “Cinderella” (1999).

    Read More

  • Colette Dowling's The Cinderella Complex: Women's Hidden Fear of Independency

    1362 Words  | 3 Pages

    Charles Perrault was a French nobleman, whose project was to collect tales from all over the world and rewrite them in such a format as would make them suitable for his intended audience, namely the French court. In the world of royalty, it is the man who is truly important, the sole purpose of his wife being to bear him children and make him look good in public. Perrault's Cinderella is a perfect example of what, in the eye of his audience, would be considered the perfect wife. She was a hard worker, who never objected to anything that she was told. She was "sweetness itself", according to Perrault, a perfect girl without a trace of animosity in her being--as is shown in her final treatment of her stepmother and sisters. She would ne...

    Read More

  • Uncle Apolonio Character Analysis

    1103 Words  | 3 Pages

    Round characters are people that change and grow throughout a literary work. The author provides many details in order to fully develop and change the character. An example of a round character is Luisa from “The Shunammite”, written by Inés Arredondo. Luisa is a teenage girl who goes to care for her dying Uncle Apolonio. While she is at his house, some lewd events take place. These incidents alter her life and she experiences a complete change from who she was at the beginning of her last youthful summer (391). While these changes could have come through less corruptive experiences, she was overall changed for the better from the person that she started as.

    Read More

  • Clara Barton

    760 Words  | 2 Pages

    Clara Barton was an important and respected part of American history, and here is how she she

    Read More

  • Comparison Of Cinderella By Charles Perrault And Giambattista Basile

    1055 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Cinderella” the tale of a suffering young girl who finds her prince charming, and lives happily ever after in a big beautiful castle. Truly, the dream of many young female readers. This story is well known all around the world and has many different versions. This paper will specifically focus on the versions by Charles Perrault and Giambattista Basile. One cannot argue that while writing their individual version of Cinderella both Charles Perrault and Giambattista Basile were strongly influenced by the many other tales of Cinderella, and this can be seen by the repetitive plot line, character and morals in both their stories. Giambattista Basile story was called “The Cat Cinderella” and Charles Perrault named his “Cinderella” or “Little Glass

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Anne Sexton And The Brothers Grimm's Cinderella

    1358 Words  | 3 Pages

    As the world has transformed and progressed throughout history, so have its stories and legends, namely the infamous tale of Cinderella. With countless versions and adaptations, numerous authors from around the world have written this beauty’s tale with their own twists and additions to it. And while many may have a unique or interesting way of telling her story, Anne Sexton and The Brother’s Grimm’s Cinderellas show the effects cultures from different time periods can have on a timeless tale, effects such as changing the story’s moral. While Sexton chooses to keep some elements of her version, such as the story, the same as the Brothers Grimm version, she changes the format and context, and adds her own commentary to transform the story’s

    Read More

  • A Ladys Maid and Cinderella

    1377 Words  | 3 Pages

    Children’s stories are often simple, with loveable characters and a feel-good ending. However, these simple plots sometimes have an underlying meaning that may be the basis for adult stories with social, intellectual, or emotional themes. For example, The Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum, is not only about a girl who is looking for the way home who meets some charming friends along the way. It was written as Populist propaganda for the entire Populist movement of the early 1900’s! The children’s tale of Cinderella can be interpreted in much the same way. It portrays a young orphaned girl named Cinderella who is enslaved by her stepmother. She works diligently throughout her life, searching for love, comfort, and a home. The myth in Cinderella is very strong. The presence of a Fairy Godmother creates a supernatural element in the story. Through the mythical godmother, Cinderella eventually obtains happiness by marrying Prince Charming. In “The Lady’s Maid,” by Katherine Mansfield, the narrator and maid is named Ellen. (Name similarity?) She, much like Cinderella, is loyal and quiet in performing her daily duties. Ellen is also searching for something to complete her life. But several incidents in Ellen’s life contribute to her un-Cinderella-like ending, including the fact that she does not have a mythical figure to help her out. These scenes, which are shown through Ellen’s responses to interactions with characters around her, prove Ellen to be a very complex character. Both Ellen and Cinderella experience sadness from childhood experiences and devotion to the ladies that they serve, but whereas Cinderella overcomes her problems in the end and finds happiness, Ellen carries her emotions so deeply that she cannot break free from her enslaved life.

    Read More

  • Impact Of Social Classes In Cinderella

    1051 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the history of folklore and fairytales, many interpretations of tales have been created and introduced. When exchanged, many details have been lost in translation, only to be redistributed as a similar tale following a certain moral. But throughout the life of the tale “Cinderella,” one objective has never been misconstrued; the social structure and the status Cinderella falls and rises to. Many fairytales display a rise and fall of a protagonist, often in the case of social classes. The many versions of “Cinderella,” including Ever After, exhibit a definite, strong, monarchical settlement with a defined arrangement of classes that create and develop the beloved character of Cinderella, or Danielle De Barbarac, herself.

    Read More

More about Clara From Confessions Of An Ugly Stepsister

Open Document