Gender Roles In Fairy Tales

Are Fairy Tales Really the Cause of Passivity in Females?

In her publication “Onceuponatime: The Roles” Andrea Dworkin addresses the concrete roles given to specific genders in fairytales that stem from patriarchal societies. Dworkin states that genders are born into a world that predisposes their destiny, a world in which we are forced to conform to sex roles. The degrading of females in society has always been a condescending issue that most people are aware of from very young. Growing up watching fairytales, we are taught that the man is always the heroic figure, he’s always good and never seems to be aware of any evil as if he’s blinded to the fact that evil exists. And the “evil” is always presented in the female figure; her “evil” ways are reflected by her constant strive for power. Thus, they are always hated and looked down upon. However, the

We normally walk away from watching or reading a fairytale with the basic knowledge that the prince was so romantic and sweet. We walk away craving the same kind of love, a fake and unrealistic kind of love. For the most part, parents encourage their kids to watch fairytales and read them. They instill these notions from a very young age creating unrealistic fantasies. Most parents aren’t aware of the real meaning behind fairytales, they don’t take the time to notice that most of the princess’ are passive have such a stagnant personality. Dworkin sums up her claims by saying “The moral of the story is the happy ending. It tells us that happiness for a woman is to be passive, victimized, destroyed, or asleep”. For the most part, females need to understand that they have the same capabilities as males, they can accomplish the same exact as males, even more but the constant ramification of standing still and allowing the male population to succeed will inevitably lead to little success. Being passive is being naïve. Being successful and ambitious is no longer a malicious