The human mind is one of the most intricate and phenomenal tools a person has. The brain allows us to think, comprehend, feel, and completely control our bodies. Included among its amazing abilities is the power to hold dark secrets and mysteries that sometimes people themselves do not know of. Throughout history, the study of psychology has proved to be an important factor in interpreting the unconscious mind. Although, visiting a psychologist is not the only way to reveal inner thoughts and fears, fairy tales also uncover information about ourselves and basic human tendencies. They fantasize aspects of human nature and potential, for example, werewolves represent our core animal tendencies, and the story of Rapunzel demonstrates the struggle …show more content…
The phallic symbols, desires, inappropriate complexes, and sexual aspects completely change the innocent tale of defiance and love. The abundance of Freudian theories manifest themselves through actions, themes, characters, and objects. A large question brought up by interpreting the story this way is: was this fairy tale purposely written to reveal the inner desires and fears of all humans?
In the tale of “Rapunzel,” a beautiful girl with hair as “fine as spun gold” is locked in a tower, completely closed off from the outside world (NP). The only person that she has ever interacted with was the enchantress. Therefore, due to her state of isolation, she is stuck in the genital stage of psychosexual development (Hawruk NP). According to Freud, Rapunzel only having a parent of the same sex and not interacting with the other gender or anyone her age makes her skip the phallic and latency stages of development. Her solitary confinement allows her to mature quicker and therefore, she has already reached the last psychosexual stage. Plus, her isolation causes her to be naive. Therefore, once she meets the prince she is intrigued yet frightened. Rapunzel's natural instincts awaken her libido and so a sexual relationship builds quickly. We can determine
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In psychology, the Electra complex is a daughter’s unconscious libidinous desires for the father and the competition between the mother and daughter. In this case, Rapunzel longs for a father, who can be viewed as the prince. Also, it is reasonable to conclude that Rapunzel despises her “mother.” As shown in the cutting of Rapunzel's hair and her exile, the enchantress prevents the prince and her from being together. It is reasonable to determine that the enchantress did this out of jealousy. Like in the Electra complex, a mother will compete for the child's affection as well, however, the child also fears this. It is reasonable to conclude that the enchantress locked Rapunzel away so that she could only love the enchantress. The enchantress also locked her away to keep her virginity which explains why she is locked up in the tower at age twelve, the time of puberty, and why she freaks out when she hears of a male being in the tower. Once the prince arrives, the enchantress becomes jealous of this new lover and ultimately wins which in theory ends the sexual relationship. Elements of the Oedipus complex also manifest throughout the story for the prince. According to Iakov Levi a psychohistorian, “as in Oedipus’ myth, “the thorns into which he fell pierced his eyes” is synonymous of castration. Both Oedipus, and the king’s son, wander helpless in their
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
Through fresh writing, the character of Witch is allowed to have the most contradictions, therefore blurring the rigid binary of good vs bad, an idea ingrained in popular culture for eons, in effect making her the play’s most human character. This is key to de mystifying the Grimm Brother’s fairy tale “Rapunzel”, as she is no longer placed in a 2 dimensional mold of evil figure. While her defining moments in the text are marked by unexplained rage, jealousy and retribution lensed with zero objective perspective within into the Woods she is given opportunity to be viewed in a more well rounded light as she is central in everyone else’s story allowing the audiences to experience more of her. Through this there is chance to
Living a distant life can have dire effects on a person which Elisa consistently displays in the story which acts as the first reason on why Elisa does not come of age. When Henry, Elissa’s husband, approaches Elissa, she nervously asks,“ Henry, who were those men you were talking to?” ( Steinback 2). Just by hearing the phrase, rReaders can tell something is not sitting right with her as if she were riddled with anxiety or fear. These characteristics in her voice are signs she is disconnected from the people around her. Elisa most likely does not receive much attention in her life from other people, and Henry appears to be Elisa’s only person to talk with. Without Henry, Elisa would truly be alone which would cause her to feel even more distress than she already does. Elissa may have abandonment issues which is why she tensed up when she saw Henry speak to the people from the meat company. Elisa’s self-alienation stops her from coming of
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.
Oedipus is cursed by a terrible change in fortune when he goes from believing that his “father’s death has lightened up the scene” (52) to realizing that Polybus is not his father and, in reality, he has killed his father and then that he has had children with his mother. Oedipus goes from believing he is finally free from his cursed fate to suddenly realizing his treachery; this dramatic turn of fortune leads Oedipus in undergoing a severe transfiguration. In his transformation, Oedipus who was once supremely prideful and confident becomes a man “deluded, lost and damned” (60), “that deepest damned and god-detested man” (73). Oedipus sees himself as a “monster” (73) and blinds himself in shame. Oedipus is changed from a revered king to a sinful outcast. The audience fears this impending change of fortune and pities Oedipus after his grotesque transformation. Instead of blaming his actions on ignorance, which would likely have been a somewhat acceptable response to his people, he self-inflicts a punishment that is far too severe. In blinding and condemning himself an abominable exile, Oedipus impacts the audience and his country by evoking a sense of pity within them. “Oh, the pity and the horror!” (71) the Chorus cries, summarizing the emotions that Oedipus’ turmoil
It is around this clearly defined three-part structure of the plot, that invisible layers of meaning exist – often very different for each reader. Between the clever design of the plot – which allows several stories to surface within a seeming individual tale – and multiple layers underneath the literal action, exists a limitless journey of personal exploration. A fairy tale such as Rapunzel has many possible functions in a child’s life and development – explaining the desire for the tale to be read time and time again by the eager young mind.
From the beginning Belle’s characteristics reveals anti-social behaviors perhaps even a personality disorder. Belle keeps to herself reading alone and hardly any interaction with the villagers
Ironically, this causes the king to gouge out his eyes, which have been blind to the truth for so long. He screams, You, you'll see no more the pain I suffered, all the pain I caused! Too long you looked on the ones you never should have seen, blind to the ones you longed to see, to know! Blind from this hour on! Blind in the darkness—blind! Oedipus furthers Sophocles' sight metaphor when he defends his decision to humble himself through blindness: "What good were eyes to me?
When Oedipus hears that he fulfilled the prophecy, he moves from being in power to becoming an outcast (123HelpMe). “They will all come out clearly! Light of the sun, let me look upon you no more after today! I who first say the light bred of a match accursed, and accursed in my living with them I liked with, cursed in my killing” (1297-1302). Oedipus presumed that he deserved to be punished for his treacherous deed, and decided to gouged out his eyes as a symbol of opening his eyes to the truth (123HelpMe).
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.
Enchantment, this element is present in almost all fairytales. In fact, it is the very thing that adds fantasy to the story itself. In “The Necklace,” the main character, Madame Mathilde Loisel dreams daily about
Tatar, M. (1987). Sex and Violence: The Hard Core of Fairy Tales. The hard facts of the Grimms' fairy tales (p. 3). Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.
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.
...nges that are used to adapt to the culture they are being told in. The Brother's Grimm and Giambattista Basile each wrote a fairytale that was almost the same as the other, but as previously mentioned they are different in order to adapt to their surroundings. Nevertheless, psychologically speaking, the psyche of the characters besides the father are both the same. They portray different archetypes that contrast and cause tension in the fairy tale. Each character can easily represent a certain personality trait. Regardless, fairy tales appear to people and their is more to why they are passed down time and time again in different versions. This reason falls back to the human psyche. According to Jungian theory, subconsciously we enjoy telling fairy tales because they relate so much to us and are basically showing a closer view of our subconscious on a cultural level.
A person can take a story and look at it from many ways. Fairy tales represent the transformation of young people. Beauty is transformed into a young woman; she passes through the stages successfully and in turn is able to love. Every story teaches a lesson and in this case more than one lesson is taught. Not only is the lesson of sexuality and maturity taught, an even more important lesson is taught. Beauty and the Beast shows that true love comes from within the inside and if it is meant to be it will prevail.