Biblical Imagery in the Story of Rapunzel
Ostensibly, the story of “Rapunzel” is the tale of a young girl, locked up in a tower by a wicked witch, the real concern of the story, however, being lust and the dangers it represents to girls as they enter the rites of passage of puberty. Symbolism pervades the story of “Rapunzel”, as in all fairy tales, giving rise to diverse interpretations. While a great deal of the symbolism is commonly found in fairy tales, the Grimm’s infuse the tale of “Rapunzel” with much from the biblical stories with which their audience would most likely be familiar. In the final version of “Rapunzel,” the Grimms add a moral message, based primarily on stories taken from the Bible, in order to demonstrate the importance of female purity.
The Grimms alone can not be given credit for all biblical references contained in the tale of “Rapunzel.” Numerous cultures have tales that resemble this particular Grimm brothers’ story, containing many of the same elements, such as the garden, the stolen vegetables, the hair, and the tower (Luthi 109-119). The Grimms’ version of “Rapunzel was based largely on the French fairy tale, Persinette, composed by a lady in waiting at the court of Louis XIV” (Luthi 118). Only in the Grimms’ versions, however, does Rapunzel give birth to twins, is the prince blinded, and Rapunzel’s tears restore his vision (Luthi 118).
For their second edition of fairy tales, the Grimms and their publisher deemed their original version of “Rapunzel” to be inappropriate for children for “what proper mother or nanny could tell the fairy tale about Rapunzel to an innocent daughter without blushing?” (Tatar 18). The Grimms, in fact, changed details of “Rapunzel,” ridding the story of even t...
... middle of paper ...
... use the story of “Rapunzel” to transmit the message to young women that in order to avoid the kind of misfortunes Rapunzel had to undergo, they must learn from her mistakes and not duplicate them in their own lives, lives best lived according to biblical principles.
Works Cited
Biedermann, Hans. Dictionary of Symbolism. New York: Meridian, 1994.
Grimm, Jacob and Wilhelm. “Rapunzel.” Folk and Fairy Tales. Ed. Martin Hallett and Barbara Karasek. Peterborough: Broadview Press, 2002. 67-70.
Luthi, Max. Once Upon A Time. Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1976.
Tatar, Maria. The Hard Facts of the Grimms’ Fairy Tales. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1987.
Zipes, Jack. Fairy Tales and the Art of Subversion. New York: Wildman Press, 1983.
When Dreams Came True. New York: Routledge, 1999.
The Holy Bible. King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1984.
Fairy tales are a part of childhood. They go back through time depicting magical images of happy children, love stories, beauty, wealth and perfection. Authors, movie and film creators, artists and more draw beautiful images for people to remember and pass on through time. Many times the ugliness of the villains and the horrors that come into play throughout a fairy tale are often not as advertised. However, after careful analysis it is very clear that both authors of the original “Rapunzel” and its retell “The Root of The Matter” by Gregory Frost do not shy away from these evil aspects through their tales, while still capturing the magical moments that make a fairy tale memorable. The Root of the Matter fits the Rapunzel tradition with both
...n” is a great example of an old myth or tale reconstructed and adapted for a modern audience in a new medium. It is a progression on one hand in its use of modern language, setting, and style but it is also the product of the old myths in that it is essentially the same on the thematic level. In addition, the level of self-awareness on the part of the narrator and, by extension, the author marks it out as an illustration of the very notion of evolutionary changes of myths and fairy tales. Adaptation is the solution to the fairy tale, and fairy tales have been endlessly changing themselves throughout history and, by some strange transforming or enchanting power endlessly staying the same.”
The movie Tangled, by Walt Disney Pictures, follows the story of the classic character Rapunzel. In the movie, Rapunzel is kidnapped as a child by Mother Gothel, who locks her away in a tower so that no one will ever find her. She does this because Rapunzel 's hair has magical properties after her birth mother ate a magical flower while pregnant with Rapunzel. Eventually, Rapunzel makes the decision to leave the tower because she wants to see the floating lights that appear every year on her birthday. She is assisted in her travels by a man named Flynn Ryder. When Mother Gothel discovers that Rapunzel has left the tower, she employs various methods to try and force her to return. Eventually, Rapunzel discovers everything that Mother Gothel
Tatar, Maria. Off with Their Heads!: Fairy Tales and the Culture of Childhood. Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 1992. Print.
In the 21st centuries take on the fairytale Rapunzel, the movie “Tangled” depicts the troubled life of an adolescent that is raised by a woman whom is not her mother. Rapunzel is abducted from her crib as an infant by an evil witch, Gothel, for the sole purpose of using her magical hair to enhance her beauty to make her young again. As an eager Rapunzel ages, she soon wants to be set free into a world that she has yet to see.
The familiar story of Rapunzel, as told by the brothers Jacob Ludwig Carl and Wilhelm Carl Grimm, takes on new meaning with a psychoanalytic interpretation. It is a complex tale about desire, achievement, and loss. The trio of husband, wife, and witch function as the ego, id, and superego respectively to govern behavior regarding a beautiful object of desire, especially when a prince discovers this object.
Over centuries of children have been enjoying the classic fairy tales of the Grimm Brothers and Charles Perrault. The fanciful plots and the vivid details allow children to be entranced by characters and adventures that can only be found in these stories. One of the most beloved fairy tales, which both the Perrault and the Grimms have their own separate versions of, is Cinderella. Cinderella is able to show how both versions are able to feed off the same plots while personifying the century and social economic situation in which they have lived.
During the 19th century, Grimm’s fairytales were strongly disapproved of due to harsh, gruesome details and plots. One American educator from 1885 stated, “The folktales mirror all too loyally the entire medieval worldview and culture with all its stark prejudice, its crudeness and barbarities.” As childre...
In the nurse-patient relationship, there are three phases that help the relationship develop. Craven and Hirnle (2009) describe the first phase, orientation, “consists of introductions and agreement between nurse and client about their mutual roles and responsibilities” (p. 329). It is in this orientation phase that first impressions are made a...
“Emotional Intelligences and Reflective Practice are Integral Components of Building a Therapeutic Relationship in Nursing”
The simplicity of fairy tales and non-specific details renders them ideal for manipulation allowing writers to add their own comments often reflecting social convention and ideology. Theref...
A fairy tale is seemingly a moral fiction, intended mainly for children. A lesson in critical analysis, however, strips this guise and reveals the naked truth beneath; fairy tales are actually vicious, logical and sexual stories wearing a mask of deceptively easy language and an apparent moral. Two 19th Century writers, the Grimm brothers, were masters at writing these exaggerated stories, bewitching young readers with their prose while padding their stories with allusion and reference: an example of which is "Rapunzel." Grimm's "Rapunzel" is packed with religious symbolism, which lends a new insight to the meaning of this classic story.
Though Rapunzel’s lengthy confinement in one room, her home, is convincing evidence of the female’s domestic belonging, it does not adequately demonstrate the connectedness of the woman to the domestic. The ambitious young Prince faces an insurmountable task when he plans to elope with Rapunzel; he must, temporarily, displace the woman from her domestic home. After the Prince decisively wins Rapunzel’s affection, Rapunzel delineates her escape plan: “ 'I will willingly go away with you, but I do not know how to get down. Bring with you a skein of silk every time that you come, and I will weave a ladder with it, and when that is ready I will descend, and you will take me on your horse’” (The Brothers Grimm). First, Rapunzel states she will “go away with [the Prince]” and he will “take [her] on [his] horse,” two statements which reveal both Rapunzel’s dependence upon the Prince and her lack of independence. Though Rapunzel agrees to leave her domestic realm, she does so only to elope in the safe, steady hands of the Prince, venturing from one sphere of domesticity, with her mother, to another sphere of domesticity with a man. Rapunzel also promises to “weave a ladder with [silk].” Weaving, a deep-rooted, traditional female activity arises in Rapunzel because it is both feminine and perfectly accessible within a domestic setting. The woman’s skills, in any patriarchal work, are not
Most modern fairytales are expected to have happy endings and be appropriate for children, nonetheless, in past centuries most were gruesome. Consequently, fairytales have been modified throughout time. The stories “Beauty and the Beast” by Jeanne-Marie LePrince de Beaumont and “The Summer and Winter Garden” by Jacob and Wilherm Grimm share similarities and differences. The two stories are distinct because of the peculiar year they have been written in. LePrince de Beaumont’s story is written in London of 1783 and Grimm’s in Germany of 1812. At the time, wealthy people in London, were educated and had nannies who would read to their children; whereas, in Germany, the Grimm brothers created their own interpretation into a short story. Because many high class parents in 18th century London would not be able to spend time with their children, nannies would read “Beauty and the Beast” to them since they were intended for children and considered appropriate. In “The Summer and Winter Garden,” the Grimm’s’ story was mostly based to entertain misbehaved children and teach them the valuable lesson that everyone should be treated with kindness. The Grimm brothers’ goal in rewriting this short story is to better children’s behavior which worked quite well. Since these stories have been re-written for children, it would be safe to say the reason why parents expose the two stories to their children is because they both portray the same moral: good things happen to good people. The two interpretations of “Beauty and the Beast,” although written in separate countries, share important similarities and differences even though the authors have different interpretations and came from different cultures.
I chose to research the genre of fairytales because the genre retold by Grimm’s caught my attention. Fairytales in modern day usually have a happy ending after the good versus evil concept. Rapunzel specifically, isn’t told in its original form.Theres much more darkness and even though happily ever after is in play, not all fairytales end that way. Fairytales have much more depth than people realize in modern day. It portrays the real struggles we face growing up. In Rapunzel, her mother gave her away and she was raised by an enchantress who locked her away. This very much explains child abandonment or a child that has been given up for adoption and the things they face growing up.Theres a connection between these fairytales and real life situations .Fairytales have a way of expressing real life situations in a way that uses a few elements that help tell the story in a way children can understand. Some of the elements include: magic, morals, royalty and love.