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Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm were German authors who collected folklores. They published both the fairy tales “Cinderella” and “Snow White” in 1812. Although, “Cinderella” and “Snow White” was written in 1812, they are now still two most well known tales in the world. Though “Cinderella” and “Snow White” may hold some differences, in the end, the moral is the same; which is, inevitable punishments will come to those who are jealous and envious.
Snow White and Cinderella are the heroines of the said tales and they have similar family situations, and also, Cinderella beats Snow White in terms of intelligence and mental sufferings. First of all, they’re so gorgeous that even their names remind the readers of beauty, they’re daughters
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of wealthy men, and unfortunately, they have to live the life of a house maid/servant. For Cinderella, the step sisters “took away her beautiful clothes, dressed her in an old grey smock, and gave her some wooden shoes”. Cinderella is forced to labor every day and until the night sky unveils itself, “exhausted from work, she didn’t have a bed but had to lie down next to the hearth in ashes…always looked so dusty and dirty” (117). Cinderella’s step sisters are simply bullies, yet unnaturally, she never really stands up for herself or mentions the Pham 2 injustice to her father. Instead, there is a hazel tree and “Three times a day, Cinderella went and sat under it, and wept and prayed” (118). As for Snow White, seven dwarves told her: “If you keep house for us, cook, make the beds, wash, sew, knit, and keep everything neat and tidy, then you can stay with us, and we will give you anything you need” (85). This is a mutually beneficial relationship; a give and take one. Seven dwarves provide housing, Snow White pays her rent by doing their chores, and so, Snow White isn’t forced to do anything against her will at all. Both of the heroines’ biological mothers died and they have to cope and face adversities caused by the evil step mothers, and sisters too for Cinderella because her stepmom “brought with her two daughters, whose features were beautiful and white, but whose hearts were foul and black”. The authors also added: “This meant the beginning of a hard time for the poor stepchild” (117).Last but not least, envied and hated by the villains for their beauty; which is where all their hardships originate from. Differences between the heroines are mainly about their personality. Snow White isn’t so bright, she doesn’t learn from experience, she falls for her evil mother’s same trick repeatedly; which seems like she’s not that concerned about her well-being after almost dying two times, and also, Snow White relies heavily on the dwarves to stay alive. While Cinderella does not sit around waiting to be rescued, she instead, actively seeks help from the birds in order to go to the ball dance; she refuses to suffer. Whenever she needs help, she calls out: “O tame little doves, little turtledoves, and all you little birds in the sky, come and help me” (118), making Cinderella seem smarter than Snow White. Pham 3 Cinderella and Snow White both have similar circumstances; they both have their life problems caused by their stepmothers.
For example, both of their step mothers are bad, but Snow White’s is worse than Cinderella’s. Trembling with rage she cries out: “Snow White must die!”, “Even if it costs me my life” (87). Snow White’s step mother is so envious of her beauty that she wants to kill Snow White, even when she’s living with seven dwarves deep inside a forest where no one else can see her face. Although Cinderella doesn’t almost die and then act as if nothing has ever happened, Cinderella has to work all day every …show more content…
day. As for the fathers, they never really were mentioned nor care for their daughters, and Cinderella’s father even refers to her as “puny little Cinderella, my dead wife’s daughter” (121). Luckily, the seven dwarves and birds are there to help. They are guardians, always looking over the heroines. Dwarves kept Snow White around until she meets her prince. Birds assisted Cinderella through her struggles to meet prince charming, and so, both of the heroines’ lives change as soon as they meet their prince. At the end of the tales, the moral is uncovered; envy and jealousy are bad, and no one should ever put others down to make themselves feel better.
But interesting details are revealed at the end of the Snow White tale. Two doves punished Cinderella’s step sisters “for their wickedness and malice with blindness for the rest of their lives” (122), and so, Cinderella never has to feel bad about it. As for Snow White’s ending, seemingly, the coal-heated iron slippers were prepared by Snow White, who never showed any sign of hatred toward the evil queen. Snow White made the queen “dance in them until she dropped to the ground dead”
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(89), thus, somehow showing that Snow White finally takes a stand, and saying that she’s had enough, or it could be that she has turned evil now that she realizes she has greater power than before. A completely different Snow White from who she was before she met the prince.
In conclusion, even though there are some differences between the two tales. Like the heroines’ personality, family, and circumstance. The heroines have a happy ending in the end, married to the prince, becomes rich, and powerful. In contrast, the evil characters get what they deserve, either through karma or from who they were mean
to.
As the world has transformed and progressed throughout history, so have its stories and legends, namely the infamous tale of Cinderella. With countless versions and adaptations, numerous authors from around the world have written this beauty’s tale with their own twists and additions to it. And while many may have a unique or interesting way of telling her story, Anne Sexton and The Brother’s Grimm’s Cinderellas show the effects cultures from different time periods can have on a timeless tale, effects such as changing the story’s moral. While Sexton chooses to keep some elements of her version, such as the story, the same as the Brothers Grimm version, she changes the format and context, and adds her own commentary to transform the story’s
During the 1800’s two brothers, known as Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, began writing short stories that reflected their lives in central Europe. At this time the French under Napoleon’s rule had overrun Germany, which caused a lot of political issues. Germany’s new governmental ruler cut off the country of its local culture (National Geographic). The Grimm brothers tried to preserve the traditional oral stories of the time. They didn’t plan for their writings to become popular, or for them to be for the younger population. The Grimm brothers were motivated to change the stories up a bit as their tales captivated more people. They incorporated a softer side with a primary moral of the story for the readers (GrimmFairytales.com). It is from these original Grimm versions that modern fairytales, such as Cinderella originated from.
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.
The Grimm’s stories have strict criteria for good and evil. Good women are not the hero, they do not plan, nor do they get themselves out of bad situations; they are obtuse and wait until a Prince saves them. These qualities doom the female protagonists (and readers) to pursue the only destiny women have, and that is to be a wife and mother (Rowe, 1978). Cinderella is the heroine and the ideal good girl. She is unambiguously beautiful, kind, and compassionate. She does not complain or get angry. This is foreseen early in the Grimm’s Cinderella story:
Few people can grow up within today's society without knowing the tale of Snow White. From the Grimm Brothers to Disney, it has been told and retold to children throughout the ages. However, what is often overlooked are the true meanings within the story. Fairytales typically have underlying messages that can be found written between the lines, generally in terms of the key themes. Snow White discusses the themes of envy and beauty, and shows how humans' obsessions can lead to their own downfall as well as the harm of others. When focusing on the relationship between Snow White and her step-mother the Queen, it is evident that the combination of these two themes results in a power struggle in which beauty is seen as a commodity and is the basis for the step-mother?s envy towards Snow White.
“Cinderella” the tale of a suffering young girl who finds her prince charming, and lives happily ever after in a big beautiful castle. Truly, the dream of many young female readers. This story is well known all around the world and has many different versions. This paper will specifically focus on the versions by Charles Perrault and Giambattista Basile. One cannot argue that while writing their individual version of Cinderella both Charles Perrault and Giambattista Basile were strongly influenced by the many other tales of Cinderella, and this can be seen by the repetitive plot line, character and morals in both their stories. Giambattista Basile story was called “The Cat Cinderella” and Charles Perrault named his “Cinderella” or “Little Glass
The Brothers Grimm and Charles Perrault are both very well-known authors of fairytales. Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm are usually the most recognized in our society, but Perrault has his own version of many of the same tales. These authors have very different methods and styles of writing, as well as differences in morals of their stories. Here I will assess some of the differences between certain tales, as well as provide some background behind the authors.
The movie Mirror Mirror is based off of the classic Disney movie “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”. The story follows Snow White as she lives with her evil stepmother who becomes jealous of Snow’s kind heart and innocent looks that make her the fairest of them all. Within the modern interpretation, the storyline takes on a new perspective that molds the characters to have different traits than the original. Even though the basic concept remains, the fact that the creators tweaked each personality results in a more intense and adventurous story. Disney fans will be drawn to this movie because not only does it add more life to a classic fairytale and gives the characters a stronger personality, but is also ties in other Disney fairytales into the details. Feminism is also viewed in this film, and creates a healthy balance
...cardinal virtues.” This cannon is exemplified in multiple fairy tales, especially Charles Perrault’s “ The Little Glass Slipper” and the Brothers Grimm’s “ Snow White”. Throughout these two fairy tales the main characters are perfect embodiments of these ideal female virtues. Cinderella is passive and forgiving even though she is mistreated. Snow White is passive and her life is completely dependent on the males present in the tale. In both instances the opposing women in the narratives are characterized as villains because they are strong and dominant. In the case of “Snow White” only the queen is looked down upon when she tries to kill Snow White, while the huntsman is proclaimed a hero even though he was intent on killing her. These cannons and ideals, demonstrate why our society is full of double standards and set ideals that women are suppose to live up to.
Over the years, Snow White’s story has been told in numerous different versions then its original version in 1812 by the Grimm Brothers. The main basis of the story has remained the same. Only a few minor tweaks to the story have changed. The three versions of the story that are going to be analyzed are the original story “Little Snow White” by the Brothers Grimm, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” by Disney, and “Mirror, Mirror” by Disney also. They each were created in very different times and the original story has changed over the years to appeal to the audience of that time. No matter how many versions there are Snow White is considered, one of the most cherished fairy tales of all time. They each use different methods to get their story across by using different colors, word usage, and scenes.
Each person in the world has heard of Cinderella, no matter what kind of version it may be. Cinderella is the one fairy tale story that has been popular and will always be the one tale that has to be told to children. Words and story lines might be twist and turn, but in the end the knowledge of the story will be learned in similar ways. As we all know when one story is told another is created, when one is at its best then another is at its worse. One version will always be better than another, but no matter what version it might be the story will be told.
Fairy Tales are made of many different ideas. There is no exact author because there are many versions. The beauty about Tales is that anybody can make it their own. Because ones imagination is unique, many come up with ideas to slightly alter the tale to make it their very own. very always leave the readers thinking, and leaves the reader to interpret a moral. There are many different lessons an audience can take from just one tale. However, Different versions of “Snow White” are comparable to each other because they all show the positive and negative aspects of the expectations that society has on each gender.
A lot of the fairy tale stories that we have seen as young adults and even as adults are original folk tale stories that have been modified and rewritten to accommodate our new cultures. Cinderella happens to be one of these stories that have been changed over the years. There are many different versions of Cinderella, an African Cinderella, a Hungarian Cinderella and even a Chinese version. All of the Cinderella’s are similar in plot, but the author dictates the story’s theme based on the people whom he is writing for which completely changes the story’s tone, mood and other elements. While Perrault's version stresses the values and materialistic worries of his middle-class audience, Grimm’s' focus is on the harsh realities of life associated with the peasant culture. Perrault’s and Grimm’s Cinderella’s have the same plot, but their writing style is different which completely modifies the tale.
Even though the two versions are extremely similar, they contain slightly different morals. When the Grimm Brothers wrote their story, the world was a different place and children did not need to be babied. That is why they chose to write such a cruel ending to their version. In the modern-day Cinderella, there is a profusion of magic and there is no violence, which is a change from the original story. By changing this and the ending, children receive a different message from the story. However, both stories give kids hope that they will live happily ever after.
The comb is an example of having beautiful long hair in a female which is often classified with femininity. When the queen brushes Snow White’s hair she states “there my beauty” and “beauty wears at a good price.” This shows that the queen possibly acknowledges and identifies Snow White as her “beauty” which could support the statement that Snow White is just a figurative metaphor for the queen’s life and past beauty. It is further asserted when she says “Beauty wears at a good price” which suggests that her beauty is fading and price means aging and becoming a queen. The corset further alludes the theme of the queen’s insecurities but now implies that she might have lost not only her beauty but her youthful figure. The corset is seen as tool of beauty and the perfect figure; therefore, by using it as a way to kill Snow White, it shows that her youthful body has disappeared along with her beauty. The objects used to kill Snow White further alludes to the idea that the queen is feeling vulnerable and fragile in this fairytale as she continues to age. This provides a further insight into the queen’s