Archetypes In Little Snow White

Has your desire for something you don’t have ever driven you to the point of making life-threatening decisions? The tale “Little Snow White” by Brothers Grimm tells a story that, at the heart is about one’s internal conflict of low-self esteem and wanting what someone else possesses. Looking at the narrative through Jungian archetypes, feminist and psychoanalytic critical lenses, reveals the overlying theme of jealousy that influences each aspect of the plot.

The first lens, Jungian archetypes, shows both literary and biblical archetypes throughout the story. In the beginning, the loss of Snow White’s mother opens the door for the evil stepmother to step in. The stepmother fulfills the literary archetype of the “witch” in a number of ways.

When she is told Snow White is more beautiful than her she tells the huntsman, “ Take the child out into the woods, so that I may set eyes on her no more. You must put her to death, and bring me her heart for a token” Grimm. She not only brings in an element of evil by trying to kill Snow White but later uses magic to try and trick her. The stepmother takes the form of an old hag, typical of a witch, to try and convince snow white into eating poison, “for the apple was so cunningly made, that all the poison was in the rosy half. Snow White longed for the beautiful apple, and as she saw the peasant woman eating a piece of it she could no longer refrain but stretched out her hand and took the poisoned half” Grimm. Little Snow White also fulfills the classic role of a “maiden” and is seen as nearly helpless, relying on the rescue of various men throughout the story. When she is about to be killed she is spared, “as she was so lovely the huntsman had pity on her” Grimm. The dwarves also embody the “sage” of literary archetypes. They offer wisdom to Snow White each day as they leave her and try to counsel her out of danger, “ you must beware of letting anyone in when we are not here” Grimm.
There are a number of biblical archetypes in the narrative as well. At the end of the story, the stepmother tries to coax Snow White into eating a poison apple and eventually snow white gives into the temptation, and falls dead. This is a clear parallel to the story of Adam and Eve, when satan tries to tempt Eve into sinning against God, she gives in and mankind falls dead in sin. The stepmother is representative of satan and evil, just as the apple is representative of the forbidden fruit in the bible. In a sudden turn of events Snow White comes back to life, “they stumbled over a bush, and with the shaking the bit of poisoned apple flew out of her throat” Grimm. This event can be seen as a biblical archetype of the resurrection of Jesus, where something seemingly dead comes back to life.
The second critical lens is the feminist lens. The tale of “Little Snow White” has a classic portrayal of a “weak and needy” female character and the “superior” male figure. Snow White from the very beginning is helpless and in need of saving from her evil stepmother, she is depicted as a “passively beautiful female character with very limited options” Bacchilega. The huntsman saves her life but still she needs to seek refuge in the woods. Then, Snow White is in need of rescuing day after the day by the dwarves who save her each time that her stepmother has plotted against her. In the ending, Snow White is thought to be dead and even then is seen as helpless and as someone’s property. The prince simply takes possession of her because of her beauty and thus feels entitled to it, demanding the dwarves give him her body, “ I beseech you to give it to me, for I cannot live without looking upon Snow White” Grimm. The story also has a somewhat typical portrayal of vanity in women. The stepmother is so obsessed with her outward appearance it drives her mad, “she railed and cursed, and was beside herself with disappointment and anger” Grimm. This portrayal of women as vain and emotional in their decisions is something often seen in literature. The stepmother’s obsession with her beauty is what pushes her to deeply envy Snow White, so much so it causes her to attempt to kill her numerous times.
Throughout the story, the female is portrayed as someone in constant need of saving while the male figures are consistently the “savior”.

It was the male huntsman that saved Snow White from death in the beginning and afterwards the dwarves continually aid her. The dwarves are a safe place and promise her protection in exchange for the household chores to be done, “if you will keep our house for us, and cook, and wash, and make the beds, and sew and knit, and keep everything tidy and clean, you may stay with us and you shall lack nothing” Grimm. In a less classic fairy tale ending the prince again has authority over her, in that he takes her dead body because he feels he needs to due to her beauty, and once she is revived claims her as his bride, “come with me to my father’s castle and you shall be my bride”. The marriage to the prince is seen as a final saving moment from Snow White’s lifelong escape from her envious stepmother. This overarching theme of male superiority is something very common in classic literature and fairy

tales.
The third critical lens is psychoanalytic. Looking through this lens, the aspect of low self-esteem is very evident in the stepmother. The stepmother prides herself on her outward appearance and that alone. When the idea of someone being more beautiful than her arises, everything she has put into her identity shatters. The stepmother no longer feels comfort in who she is because what she has always considered herself to be has been taken away from her. This intense insecurity and low self-esteem is what fuels the entire plot of the story. The stepmother is driven to try and kill Snow White because her envy for her beauty is so deep, “ she became yellow and green with envy, and from that hour her heart turned against Snow White, and she hated her” Grimm. The narrative reveals an inner issue within the stepmother, low self-esteem and insecurity, something that many people carry in their own lives. The stepmother in the beginning of the story seemingly thinks she is the most beautiful person in the world, but the second that title is threatened her belief crumbles away. That reveals that she does not truly have confidence in who she is and what she looks like, but has a real struggle with outward appearance. The stepmother is described as having “envy and pride like ill weeds grew in her heart higher every day” Grimm. This deep need to be beautiful leads to such intense emotions and pushes her to make decisions she otherwise would not have made.
Another aspect of the psychoanalytical lens is the projection the stepmother places on Snow White.

The evil stepmother is filled with envy and rage that Snow White is more beautiful than her and orders that she be executed because “she could not bear to be surpassed in beauty by anyone” Grimm. This shows that the stepmother is actually just displacing the emptiness she feels in herself onto Snow White. As previously stated, the stepmother is full of insecurity and low self-esteem which is what is causing her to project her feelings of inadequacy onto her step child. It’s less that she hates Snow White and more that she is pushing her feelings of wanting to be perfect onto the person who is taking that identity away, “the idea of absolute beauty that causes the conflict emerges from within the Queen herself” Takenaka. The entire narrative of “Little Snow White” is stemmed out of this projection of dissatisfaction onto Snow White. It causes her to try and kill her over and over and gives the reader a sense of internal

conflict.
In conclusion, through the critical lenses of feminist, psychoanalytic and Jungian archetypes there is an over laying theme displayed, that is driven from intense jealousy and inner self-hatred. There are classic weak female and strong male roles given to the characters and the typical beauty obsessed vain female character. The stepmother not only gives allusions to a “witch” and evil archetype, but it is her feelings of jealousy that pushes her to kill. All of these critical lenses reveal that the true narrative of “Little Snow White” , by Brothers Grimm is rooted in one’s feelings of low self-esteem and envy for another.