Compare and Contrast: Beauty and Beast

1361 Words3 Pages

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. Following this further, Le Prince De Beaum... ... middle of paper ... ... alive at the end, there is a fairy that turned them into statues because of their evil actions where as the beautiful daughter’s sisters supported one another in all situations. In conclusion, it is common that both Beauty and the Beast stories written in different countries have their similarities and differences since the authors imagined different ideas. It makes Beauty and the Beast an even more interesting story being that there are many versions of it around the world. Works Cited Grimm, Jacob, and Grimm, Wilhelm. “The Summer and Winter Garden.” Trans. D.L. Ashliman. Children’s and Household Tales. Germany: N.P.: 1812. Print. LePrince de Beaumont. “Beauty and the Beast.” Trans. D.L. Ashliman. The Young Mistress Magazine, Containing Dialouges Between a Governess and Several Young Ladies of Quality Her Scholars. London: C. Nourse, 1783. Print.

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