Few children’s literary texts present truthful reflections of reality – highlighted by romanticized ideals set forth by their protagonists, such as Cinderella’s unwavering virtue in Charles Perrault’s “Cinderella” (97). Others, however, deviate from this model, offering conflicting character traits and at times questionable morals. These characters deviate from Jack Zipes’ condensation of Vladimir Propp’s functions of the oral wonder tale paradigm (372), thus entering the likeliness of literary fairy tales. Most notably, in his tale “Jack and the Beanstock,” Joseph Jacobs’ protagonist and wondrous items depart from Zipes’ oral paradigm model, suggesting that the story fits most neatly within the realm of literary fairy tale texts.
In the first
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Throughout the tale, Jack repeatedly steals valuable items from the ogres in the clouds with minimal repercussions and rich rewards for his efforts. Indeed, Jack turns prideful and more daring, eventually entering the storied chase with the male ogre, leading to the latter’s (literal) downfall. While this does skilfully lend its hand to a conclusion directly in line with Zipes’ function in which “the success of the protagonist usually leads to…marriage…[and] the acquisition of money (374)” – wherein “Jack and his mother became very rich, and he married a great princess… (Jacobs, 161)” – it is met with a compromising moral caveat. Jack does not face repercussions for his thievery or selfishness, and is rewarded for his deception and cunningness. He is left with no moral “clean slate,” aside from an ability to provide for his mother and new wife. What then, is the audience to make of the protagonist? Is he to be celebrated as a symbol of daringness, or condemned for his moral misjudgements? It is this problematic characterization that demonstrates that the purity of Zipes’ function is not truly met, as the story gravitates towards literary fairy tale through a morally suspect
The tradition of telling fairy tales to children effects not only the listener but also the reader. Maria Tatar, in her book Off with Their Heads!, analyzes how fairy tales instill and reaffirm cultural values and expectations in their audience . Tatar proposes that fairy tales fall into three different tale-types: cautionary tales, exemplary stories, and reward- and- punishment tales. These three types portray different character traits as desirable and undesirable. Due to the tale’s varying literary methods it can change the effectiveness of the tale’s pedagogical value. In Tatar’s opinion, all of these tales are similar in the way they attempt to use punishment, reward, and fear to encourage or discourage certain behaviors. In the cautionary fairy tale “The Virgin Mary’s Child”, the use of punishment and fear to discourage certain behaviors is enhanced by the Christian motifs and values employed by the tale. These literary devices encourage the audience to reflect on and internalize the lessons that are presented in the fairy tale.
In Robert Penn Warren's All the King's Men the narrator, Jack Burden attempts to distance himself from any darkness surrounding him and his actions, yet simultaneously disclaims all responsibility. Throughout the novel he accepts human responsibilities and dismisses the moral relativism and “The Great Twitch.” Jack is Willie Stark's political right-hand man, comes from a prominent family and knows many of the most important people in the state. He lacks his ambition and his responsibilities. By the end of the novel jack is transformed by different events like departure of Ellis Burden, the case of Judge Irwin and his relation with Anne Stanton that gives him a chance to live his life with a different manner.
clearly. Jack researches a scandal that occurred in one of his relatives past as a project when he was in college, but walks away from that piece of work because he simply cannot understand the reasoning behind his great-uncle’s (Cass
In the eyes of his father, Jack Boughton can do no wrong. However, to John Ames and others, this is not the case. An alcoholic and choleric-tempered being, Ames initially feels threatened by the younger man, anxiously worrying of a plot to replace him as his wife’s husband and their son’s father after his soon expected death. Moreover, Jack
Charles Perrault’s Cinderella or The Little Glass Slipper was published in 1697. It is considered to be one the most prevalent reinterpretations of the classic story. Perrault’s version was “addressed largely to an adult and highly sophisticated audience” (Cullen 57). For this reason, Perrault seldom emphasizes the details of Cinderella’s mistreatment and instead shifts the stories’ focus on the moral and materialistic concerns related to his audience in order to “to please [his] aristocratic audience” (Tatar 189). Accordingly, Perrault portrayed Cinderella to be dependent, self-sacrificing, and “exhibits
The story of Cinderella has become a classic fairy tale, known around the world, and past down from generation to generation. Yet, over the years, the story has been rewritten to better relate to different cultures. While some things never change, authors still manage to convey different messages by making the story their own. This can be clearly seen when the Grimm brothers version of Cinderella is compared to Charles Perrault’s version of Cinderella. While the core of the story does not change, the moral, tone, and “magical” aspects of the two stories are clearly shaped by the different cultures in which they were written in.
In "Cinderella" by Charles Perrault, the story depicts an imaginative fairytale through the hardships of a mistreated daughter and the magic of a fairy; in essence, Cinderella demonstrates that focusing on materialism is more important and more effective other than working up the path to majesty. Cinderella is a character who is often mistreated by her stepmother and god sisters. Bearing unsuitable personalities, they treat her harshly, leaving all of the chores to her. However, she admits that her tattered clothes are not worthy of a formal event, and continues to be belittled by her stepsisters. Portrayed with low self-esteem and insecurity, she does not respond harshly to their cruel insults. As a result, the main character relies on
“Jack, painted and garlanded, sat there like an idol” (Golding 149). Jack’s mask of paint and garlands set him visibly apart from the other boys, showing that he is not only the authority, there to guide the society and keep order, but that he is an idol, meant to be worshipped. Jack cares more about his status as ruler than doing what is right for society. He creates false promises of fun and hunting, ignoring the need to be rescued. Like many authoritarian governments, these promises keep him in power at the expense of the welfare of his subjects.
In Tatar’s article, An Introduction to Fairy Tales, she draws us in by describing childhood books as “sacred objects.” She takes a quote from Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. describing how the stories give lessons about what a child subconsciously knows - “that human nature is not innately good, that conflict is real, that life is harsh before it is happy - and thereby reassure them about their own fears and their own sense of self,” (Tatar 306). She describes how many adults long for the simplicity of enjoying those stories in their childhoods, only to realize that they outgrew them, and instead have been introduced to reality. The original stories were more for adults rather than for children. Nowadays, stories have been adapted to be more suitable for children. Fairy tales may allow a kid to wonder due to their charm, but they also can
However, few realize that there are many communal ideas imbedded in the plots that often go unrecognized. Fairy tales, more often than not, highlight a multitude of social aspects which might seem inappropriate for children. Constantly evolving, fairy tales, as indicated by Yolen and Zipes, illustrate the sexist views of the dominating class, the societal beliefs as they change throughout history as well as the community’s values especially during crisis.
When imaging the ideal audience of fairytales, children are quick to come to mind, although, our perception of Little Red Riding Hood as an innocent fable is far from the truth. Alternatively, the origins of this story are derived from Italo Calvino’s “The False Grandmother”, a story immersed in symbolism and metaphorical symbols intended strictly for a mature audience. The preceding tale was “Little Red Cap “written by Charles Perrault and then later the “Little Red Riding” written by the Brothers Grimm. Although the details of these tales vary, they all maintain similar storylines. The stories revolve around the young female character Little Red Riding Hood who is sent off on a mission to bring her grandmother a basket of goods. During her adventure she encounters a wolf who engages in a hot pursuit to eat both the Grandmother and Little Red Riding Hood, only to succeed in the earlier rendition of the story. In this essay I will prove that when the Grimm’s Brothers and Perrault’s Little Red Riding Hood stories are critically analyzed, it becomes evident that they are inappropriate tales for children as they exemplify the consequences of a minor transgression by Little Red Riding Hood as being the misleading cause of the violence and seduction that occurs thereafter.
In a society unbridled with double standards and set views about women, one may wonder the origins of such beliefs. It might come as a surprise that these ideals and standards are embedded and have been for centuries in the beloved fairy tales we enjoyed reading as kids. In her analytical essay, “To Spin a Yarn: The Female Voice in Folklore and Fairy Tales”, Karen Rowe argues that fairy tales present “cultural norms which exalt passivity, dependency, and self-sacrifice as a female’s cardinal virtues.” Rowe presents an excellent point, which can be supported by versions of the cult classics, “Cinderella” and “Snow White”. Charles Perrault’s “ The Little Glass Slipper” and the Brothers Grimm’s “ Snow White” exemplify the beliefs that
In Margaret Atwood’s poem “There Was Once”, Atwood uses irony to point out the societal problems within the genre of fairy tales. Charles Perrault, the author of the short story “The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood”, writes about fantastic creatures, magic, and love, following the generic conventions of fairy tales. When compared to Perrault’s short story “The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood”, Atwood’s poem both compliments and contrasts Perrault’s. These two texts, although similar, offer different views on the genre of fairy tales.
Jack’s creation of a fictional brother Ernest gives audience an impression that he is a hypocritical person who ignores the consequences of being dishonest. Only when his desire to marry Gwendolen is threatened does he learn that he cannot escape from responsibility or “come up to town as often as [he] like[s]” (Act 1, p.8). Suffering from the dilemma, his hidden sincerity and kindness are discovered. This makes him become a rounder character. As a consequence, the rest of the plot will be affected and advanced by his unique traits and