The Real Version of Tangled

This cartoon by Wiley Miller is both comical and gender-role destroying. As you can see, the male dressed in green assumes that Rapunzel wants to be rescued, and she assures him that she is fine with her TV, and can handle things on her own.

I already like this a lot, although I do love the Disney film, Tangled, where she is rescued. And the Grmms version honestly ins't too bad either, in their own grim fashion. It addresses the fact that it fairy tales the girl most often can't do things on her own and she has to be saved by some guy. Who, nine times out of ten, just happened to stumble upon them. I won't complain too much though, because I love damsel in distress scenes, which is so anti-feminist I know.

So, in Rapunzel the original fairy tale, the prince sings the mother's song (Rapunzel, let down your hair) so that she will let down her hair, because he was entranced by her singing. In this cartoon, Rapunzel does not seem to be singing, nor does she have long blond hair. She has vibrant blue hair, that looks rather short. In the fairy tale, once she discovers that it is a man that has climbed up she is frightened. In this fairy tale, she doesn't seem scared. rather, she sounds annoyed that he tried to stereotype her into being one of those girls that needs saving.

I honestly think it's always refreshing breaking away from a stereotype. Poor guy must have been disappointed when he figured out that she didn't need saving though. I mean, he even came prepared with a sword. . .

The Grim(m) Story of Bluebeard

Bluebeard is by far one of the most gory fairy tales I've ever read. I can't say that I'm much of a fan of the story, although it does end well in a typical fairy tale fashion...for the most part at least.

The ending is something that is actually similar for the three versions of Bluebeard. In Perrault's version, the terrified wife is saved by her brother, who arrive just in time. That's actually a profound similarity in all three tales: a man either saves them or helps save them. Perrault's tale really does build up anticipation because of how close the poor wife came to being killed by her doting husband. Very loving, he was. In Fitcher's Bird by Brothers Grimm, the youngest sister of course is tempted by her curiosity and enters the forbidden room. Only this time, she manages to save herself and bring her sisters back to life. She actually accomplishes the most out of all three tales, because she gets rid of the evil husband and his gang with the help of her brothers. the ending was very similar to that of The Robber Bridegroom, where the guests help to get rid of the robber and his band.

Another outstanding similarity is the art of curiosity, which is more prominent in Bluebeard and Fitcher's Bird. The wives have a interest in the room although their husband strictly tells them they are not to enter it. All of the sisters are subject to it and let their curiosity win. This is where The Robber Bridegroom is a bit different though, because the woman is never really curious about anything. She's cautious from the beginning of the tale, like the sisters in Bluebeard when they are first courted.

As similar as they are, there are some differences. In Fitcher's Bird, Blue Beard gives the wives not only a key, but an egg. The egg is dropped when the wives discover what is behind the closed doors, and it stains just like the key in Perrault's version, which tells the husband that they did not listen. Bad things happen when you don't listen to your husband. The Robbers Bridegroom definitely has a more gory turn of the story, as the wife sees the robber and his gang cut up a screaming maiden. She actually witnesses the murder not just the dead bodies.

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These stories are differently all unique in the fashion that they are pretty dark. It's the main reason that I'm not all that into these three stories. I like my happy love endings. What makes Fitcher's Bird unique is the egg and its symbolization of ruined innocence. They didn't listen to their husband and now their mind has been tainted, innocence lost. The wife fro The Robbers Bridegroom is unique because she is cautious from the beginning. Nothing ever settled right within her when it came to her husband. And in Perrault's Bluebeard, he directly teaches a lesson about curiosity. Curiosity can lead to regret. 

Hansel and Gretel: The Film vs. The Grimm Fairy Tale

Hansel and Gretel, one of the few fairy tales that shows a close bond between siblings. And one of the few where the main characters have "relateable" names.

 Finally, a break against a hateful relationship between siblings. The portrayal of the bond was something that the movie keeps the same as the tale. Rarely ever are Hansel and Gretel are apart and it shows that they truly do care for each other and enjoy each other's company. Another similarity is the fact that the two end up lost in the woods, and in the house of a witch. One of the highlighted similarities is the fact that ultimately Hansel and Gretel save themselves. And just like in Grimms tale, Gretel is the one who specifically orchestrates the death of the witch in order to save her brother. This can show both maturity-her transition from a child to an adult, and female empowerment. In most tales, females are conveniently saved by a man.

As in the Grimms version, Hansel and Gretel are elated to see that they can finally eat, and that it can be what they'd like. They take a liking to the witch and don't seem to mind her appearance at all. Once difference with their interaction with the witch is the fact that Hansel calls her "Grandma." This isn't done in the Grimms tale. When Gretel questions this, he tells her that the witch can replace their grandmother who had died. 

There are some stark differences that I noticed. Particularly in the father. In the tale he is someone who is protective of his children but alas, submissive and passive. He succumbs to the wishes of his wife when she wants to abandon the kids in the forest so that they don't starve during the famine. In the MGM version, many times he seems to snap at Hansel and Gretel. And when the mother finds out that her kids are lost, she is genuinely concerned (at first I thought that she was faking it). But I figured that it's just another difference between Grimms version and the 1897 movie. He is the one who ends the search for his kids, saying that she doesn't need to worry and that they won't be able to find the kids in the witch's forest at night.

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The Big Bad Wolf is Your Facebook Friend

The cartoon depicts the big bad wolf approaching Little Red Riding hood. She looks at him as he says "Hi-I'm one of your facebook friends.

This cartoon in particular is a social one. To me, it means that we have anyone on our social media. I know I personally don't know everyone who is on my different social media outlets. Not everyone we let into our life has good intentions. As we all know from the story of the Little Red Riding Hood, the wolf wasn't a good person.  The cartoon can be saying to beware of you have on your socials, but there's another way it can be interpreted and that's that social media doesn't respect privacy. For instance, Snapchat can give someone your location. If you do a Facebook live, someone can find your location. In this cartoon, the wolf may have used the naive Little Red Riding Hood's social media in order to findher. How else would he know that she was on a trail in the forest? It doesn't seem like he just ran into her.

Cartoon: http://www.slane.co.nz/privacycartoons2.html

The Frog King vs Cupid and Psyche??

The fairy tale The Frog King is very different from the story Cupid and Psyche. I wouldn't really think that these two stories would be one to compared. They both have different backgrounds, considering one is based on Greek mythology and the other is from the Brothers Grimm, who were from Germany. It took some thinking to figure out how to compare the two stories.


Psyche


Princess, The Frog Prince

 One similarity that I found between them is the fact that both of the main females are princesses who have sisters. They are the youngest of the siblings but also the most beautiful. In Cupid and Psyche, it states that ". . .but the beauty of the youngest was so wonderful that the poverty of language is unable to express its due praise." Similarly, in The Frog Prince, it's stated that. ". . .but the youngest was so beautiful that the sun itself, who indeed, has seen so much, marveled every time it shown upon her face."

Another similarity is the presence of an "evil" character. In Cupid and Psyche it would be Venus, who is so jealous of Psyche's beauty that she curses her love to be a monster. In The Frog Prince the evil character is the frog, at least in the young princess's mind. She isn't very fond of him until the end, when he is a beautiful man. In fact, she doesn't even want to honor the promise of companionship that she made to him. Her father makes her do so.

The parents have honorable figures in these tails. The father makes the daughter keep her promise to the frog in The Frog Prince, despite the fact that she definitely does not want to. And in Cupid and Psyche, her parents make her climb the mountain to await her fate.

There's also a happy ending in both tales. Psyche ends up married to Cupid, and the frog from The Frog Prince transforms to a young prince, who the princess is happy to marry.

Grimms Fairy Tales vs Disney

There were definitely some differences when it came to watch Disney's Snow White and reading Grimms. Disney kind of took the fairy tale and made it his own, and here are some ways how:

1. Disney's Snow White largely centers around the dwarfs. There are painfully slow scenes where the main focus was not on Snow White. For example, the scene when they are walking home from the mines is crazy long. And another scene when they're finally bathing after being told too is also a little lengthy. 

2. The prince comes in at the beginning of the film. Although, he doesn't have a very big role until the end. 

3. The father? Who's that? He was never mentioned. 

4. Snow White offers to clean and cook for the dwarfs. In the Grimm's version. the dwarfs tell her that in order to stay that is what she has to do. 

5. The evil stepmother dies by falling off of a cliff. This time, she doesn't have to dance in flaming hot shoes until death comes. 

There are more differences, but those are just a few key ones. Disney didn't change everything though. Here are the things that remained the same. 

1. Snow White is portrayed as innocent, and really isn't the brightest gal out there.

2. She lacks a present proper parent figure. Her mother dies in both versions.

3. The huntsman takes pity on her and doesn't kill her. He tricks the queen into thinking it's her that she killed by killing another animal. 

Rags to Rich with the Use of a Little Magic?

Can magic and marriage lead to success in the real world?

That's a heavy question. I personally don't believe in magic. Not everyone is as lucky as Cinderella, who has fairy god mothers to help them catch the eye of a prince. I think that's stuff that sticks to television and books, and definitely doesn't apply to the real world. People who do believe in that are usually quickly labeled as a little cuckoo in the head. Those that do believe in magic try to practice it, hoping that it would lead to success and riches. I certainly have not heard of any cases where it has actually worked.

But marriage is another thing, and this is very much real. I do think that marriage can lead to both success and riches. There are a lot of people who marry into money for the hope of personal success, or just for wealth in general. And there are those that marry into it simply because the love of their life are rich. People can also rise together once married, and work for their money.

I think that there is a definitely a downside to marrying into riches though. The couples can get so wrapped up in money that they drift apart. If one stops working, the other might think that they're trying to live off of their money. If someone in the marriage does want to work, it may be ridiculed and shot down if they're already really wealthy. It can cause a lot of stress, but to some the money is worth it.

To sum up my point, I don't think anyone is getting rich from magic any time soon. If that happens, I would like to be the first to know. But by marriage? Yes, much more achievable. 

The Shocking Differences and Similarities of the Book and the Film

I noticed that there were a lot more differences in the film "The Brothers Grimm" than similarities to the book written by Jack Zipes. One of the most prominent differences I noticed was the relationship between Wilhelm and Jacob. In the book, the relationship between the two is very intimate and full of love. The brothers are very close to one another, and even work in the same field. Yet in the film, the two seem to tolerate each other. It seemed as though Jacob was constantly annoyed by Wilhelm, and his fascination with fairy tales. They argued a lot, and even got in a physical fight, which was never mentioned in the book. In the movie, they didn't really come together until the end.

Also, in the film, Wilhelm is in love with a woman named Angelika, and he isn't the only brother showing interest. At the end of the Wilhelm kisses her, but so does his brother, after he wakes from death.

Angelika, The Brothers Grimm

This brings me to another interesting difference; Jacob's death. In the film, Jacob dies when he is stabbed. In the book, Wilhelm is the brother who dies first, and Jacob is deeply saddened by the loss of not only his brother, but his best friend. 

While there were some startling differences, the film did seem to get some things, in fact, correct. For instance, their relation and the fact that their last name was Grimm remained the same. That's one point for the producers of the movie. 

Another similarity, is that they worked with fairy tales. They traveled in the film to hear different stories. One final point is the fact that they remained German.

Although there was a lot of fiction in the film, it was definitely a very entertaining, and well thought out movie.

Why Grimms to Disney?

As I was scrolling through the list of first year seminar classes we could take, Grimms to Disney instantly caught my attention. The description of the course drew me in, and I knew it would be a class that I would love. One of my favorite things to do is read, and once I learned that we’d be reading about fairy tales and their origins, it was a no brainer to choose this FYS course. This was a great decision, seeing as I love the professor and already feel very comfortable in this class.

I look forward to seeing just how much fairy tales have changed over time. I’ve already learned things that I didn’t know, like the fact that they’re of German descent. I’d always thought fairy tales came from America because of Disney, and when I began reading and watching them, they were already very Americanized. I can’t wait to see how they have changed over time, and who’s helped to shape them. I’m also excited to analyze these fairy tales and see them from an entirely different perspective. While I’m nervous to have my childhood view of these stories corrupted, it’s nice that my analytical skills will improve. I think that I will accomplish being able to look at these tales successfully from different perspectives, and maybe even apply acquired analytical skills to other books.

My favorite fairy tale would have to be Cinderella. I admire how she remained herself throughout everything her stepmother and stepsisters put her through. Not only that, but she ended up rich and married to a prince. It does not get any better than that. The moral message in Cinderella is one I try to listen to as much as I can. I treat others with kindness as often as I can, and I forgive others when it comes time to forgive. I have always loved, and always will love, Cinderella.