Cinderella Vs Cinderella

The tale of Cinderella is one for the ages and hundreds of different versions of it have been created throughout the centuries that have been told. With these varied stories comes many different princesses and characteristics of each, but the biggest differences of all are found between the classic fairy tales, such as Charles Perrault’s omnibenevolent version of Cinderella, and modern stories that are shown and read to young children today. Mia Thermopolis, the main character in The Princess Diaries, is an awkward fifteen year old girl who is given the option to become the princess of Genovia after a surprise visit by her long lost grandmother. She just so happens to be the perfect example of a modern princess whom James Poniewozik, author

To the men who wrote these tales, these princesses were viewed as “the ideal bride” (Cullen 320). One important example of this would be Charles Perrault’s ever-so-popular version titled “The Little Glass Slipper,” where Cinderella is simply described by Perrault with the words “‘la bonne grace’” (Cullen 320). Modern Cinderella stories, however, tend to start out with a girl who does not represent or conform to the norms of her society. This girl is typically described as nerdy and bookish, a dork or a loser, a description that is quite similar to Mia Thermopolis. This hypothetical girl typically has other dreams in life that she wants to accomplish “and she should above all not want to be a princess--at least until she changes her mind” (Poniewozik 325). While past princesses desired the crown from the beginning of the tale, Mia takes time to consider her options, even though she originally despised the idea of being in that position of power. When Mia finally agreed to choose the crown, however, she explained that her reasoning was based on a feeling of responsibility for the people of Genovia during her speech. She said “If I cared about the other billion out there... instead of just me… that's probably a much better use of my time. See, if l were Princess of Genovia… then my thoughts… and the thoughts of people smarter than me… would be much better heard and just maybe… those thoughts could be turned into actions (Princess).