Once upon a time, women in fairy tales

Résumé du document

The release of Rapunzel in December 2010 tackles the issue of the female condition by re-interpreting and modernizing a classical fairy tale. In the original one, the heroine is a princess, whose hair are three-meter long, locked in doorless tower. She is victimized and passive, undergoing the will of others, the prince and the witch. On the contrary, in the movie, she is an active heroine who is at the origin of action. This movie reveals that fairy tales reflect a certain idea of feminity present in society.

When reading fairy tales, we tend to think that they are childish and manichean. However, with a deeper analysis, we notice that they are relevant ways to understand society.Fairy tales are not only for children and they are not so insignificant. They convey a particular image of women which has been shaping female identity for centuries. In this respect, we want to understand the impact of fairy tales on women and their identity. To do so we will base our analysis on classical fairy tales and their adaptation by Walt Disney. And this will only concern our generation and the previous one, that is to say people born until the late 1980s.

We want to understand how and why fairy tales have such an influence on our behavior and our subconscious. How do fairy tales take part in shaping a certain image of women in our society? We will organize our ideas around two main orientations: first, we will analyze the representation of women in fairy tales. Then, we will see how these representations contribute to build female models in society?

Extraits

[...] Critique sociale du jugement, Editions de Minuit TANNER, “Images of couples and families in Disney feature-length animated films”, The American Journal of Family Therapy p BROWN, “June 3. Recessional”, The Saturday Review p. 28-30. HOWARD, A., MUSKER, J., & DONLEY. M., The Little Mermaid Disney, W., & Hands, D., Cindirella O'BRIEN, happiest films on earth: a textual and contextual analysis of Cinderella and The Little Mermaid”. Women's Studies in Communication p. 155-183 DOWNEY, ”Feminine empowerment in Beauty and the Beast”, Women's Studies in Communication p.185-212. BROWN and GILLIGAN, Meeting at the crossroads: women's psychology and girls 'development O'BRIEN, op. [...]

[...] Another characteristic of woman in fairytales is the complex relationships she has with her peers. Indeed, women in fairytales are most of time presented as fiercely jealous of other women, especially when they are relatives or close friends. They are many examples of this vice: in Snow White, the stepmother is so jealous of Snow White's beauty that she sends an assassin after her in order to be the most beautiful person in the kingdom. Likewise in Cinderella[13], where the stepsisters of the heroine are extremely mean to her just because Cinderella is much prettier. [...]

[...] It took a long time to admit that girls could feel pleasure in their intimate privacy. Another point about male domination emphasized in fairy tales is that the woman is always the character who has to be rescued. She is the permanent feature of princes' conquests. Besides, this victimization is widely used in the media today. Women are chosen to embody the victim in tragic events. They allegedly represent an emotional factor as well as children. The theme of the female victim is still relevant today, and this representation given in fairy tales is not yet really archaic, destitute of objective reality. [...]

[...] She is the perfect incarnation of physical perfection. She is stunning, and moreover, she is blonde; a color that reminds of virginity and that conveys a lot a fantasy for men. So fairy tales take part in representing the female characteristics in society : a woman has to use a specific gesture if she wants to appear feminine. She has to be very delicate in her way to move, walking softly[19], speaking with a quiet voice, or even remaining silent. [...]

[...] Social structures have a strong impact on mental structures. In most of our actions, we don't really think, we act on the base of our conception of the world that we have been learning. We are taken by what Pierre Bourdieu calls the “social game”[21]. Objective social structures belong to our own subjectivity. Thus, there are some norms, such as the codification of female and male roles, which are engraved in our bodies. This is what we saw hereinbefore about physiology as a justification for our social functions. [...]