It is extremely common that when growing up a child reads, watches or is told about a fairytale in their lives. Fairy tales have been passed down to many many generations and have been told in many different ways. No matter how you have been told the story there is always a lesson at the end. Even through versions like the Brothers Grimm fairy tales, or Charles Perrault’s retellings there are many differences but they always stay true to the meaning of a fairy tale. There is always magic of course but the characters are what people always remember. Ask a kid, name a fairy tale they know off the top of their head and they could list all the princesses like Sleeping Beauty, or stories like the three little pigs. As children get older, though, it’s less about the magical feeling and more about the true meaning behind the story. The perspective of a fairytale begins to shift. In the Jack Zipes article, A Second Gaze at LRRH’s Trials and Tribulations, the author analyzes and gives his perspective behind the true meaning of LRRH. There’s always a hidden message in all fairy tales. Whether it’s about beauty, love, believing, listening and more all fairy tales have a message to their story. It’s about how they convey the message to readers is what really matters. 

Little Red Riding Hood is a story that everyone knows. A popular version of Little Red Riding Hood is that LRRH is told to go into the woods in order to get to her grandmother’s house to give her food. On her way to her grandmother’s house, she encounters the big bad wolf. For Little Red Riding Hood, it was the journey she took into the woods to her grandmother’s house that revealed and shaped the lesson of the story. Zipes uses a different perspective to help readers see how the story is developed. Through many analyses of the story what really stuck out was the depiction of the red cape on Little Red Riding Hood. Jack Zipes describes the irony of the story where the fairy tales try to warn children about strangers or else there will be consequences (80) and yet LRRH is sent out into the woods with a bright red cape and a basket full of treats to her grandmother’s house. Both the girl and the grandmother were vulnerable targets. To younger children hearing the popular version of this story may not see how naive LRRH is. In addition, red is a color that universally means danger, stop or even blood. The red cape symbolizes something sinful or guilty. LRRH may seem innocent, but she is not. LRRH intentionally attracts the wolf, indulges in him, instead of resisting her lustful temptations. In some retellings, LRRH is warned by her mother. Also it’s important to note that in a way people could relate to the desires of LRRH because sometimes it’s hard to do what is right all the time. The wolf is hidden in many parts of life. In LRRH, the wolf is a predator and could just represent other things. The wolf doesn’t have to be seen as an actual wolf. It doesn’t mean that men are wolves. 

Cinderella is a very common fairy tale among many people. Cinderella is a story that is retold so many times and yet it never gets old. There are many ways that the story of Cinderella is developed. Some of the ways that Cinderella is developed is through many symbolisms of the glass slipper, her magical dress and more. When creating a fairy tale for children it is common that the gender is seen as “normal”. In the Virtuous Footwear: Pamela’s shoe Heel and Cinderilla’s “Little Glass Slipper” book, the author describes how humans “construct symbolic meaning using dress… and gender identities”  (Alicia Kerfoot 346) to develope Cinderella. Also the glass slipper is slipped onto her foot like a wedding ring and the Prince from the ball was the one who saved her from her horrible life. Some may even see it as being saved from the lower class status that her wicked stepmother put her in after her father passed. In addition Cinderella’s story stresses the act of kindness to develop the story. Even though it’s exciting that Cinderella gets her happy ending and true love, some may not see it that way. In a research called The Cinderella Complex, it is proven that through the interactions of Cinderella and Kit, “ the dependency of females on males in the pursuit of happiness” (3)  is important because the absence of a male figure in a woman’s life is tragic. When Cinderella’s father died she went from being happy to miserable. Then when the Prince found her, her life was restored. From a beautiful ball gown to a kind heart, Cinderella gets her happy ending. 

Both Little Red Riding Hood and Cinderella are tales that describe the story of young females who are put to the challenge. The two characters’ responses to the troubles they faced were very different. LRRH faces the big bad wolf and is too caught up in the moment to think of the consequences; while Cinderella does what she is told (except for when she goes to the ball) and is saved by a Prince. Through it all male characters played a vital role in how the story shifts. With magic, interactions, lessons and more fairytales continue to grow in the lives of young children.

Works Cited Page

“The Cinderella Complex: Word Embeddings Reveal Gender Stereotypes in Movies and Books.” Edited by Ilya Safro, Shibboleth Authentication Request, 2019, web-a-ebscohost-com.ccny-proxy1.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=5. 

Kerfoot, Alicia. Virtuous Footwear. 2018, web-b-ebscohost-com.ccny-proxy1.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=6. 

Zipes, Jack. The Trials And Tribulations Of Little Red Riding Hood PDF. mandieselturbo.ca/bd54c2/the-trials-and-tribulations-of-little-red-riding-hood.pdf.