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