Bluebeard

The wife of Bluebeard in the folk tale “Bluebeard” by Charles Perrault is an interesting representation of a female character in a folk tale. Her happiness comes to her with many objections from her part in the beginning due the dislike of a man with a blue beard, and the fact that he had married before without a trace of the past wives seen anywhere.

A lady of quality had two daughters who were perfect beauties. He desired of her one of them in marriage, leaving to her choice which of the two she would bestow on him. Neither of them would have him, and they sent him backwards and forwards from one to the other, not being able to bear the thoughts of marrying a man who had a blue beard. Adding to their disgust and aversion was the fact that he already had been married to several wives, and nobody knew what had become of them. (Perrault 1889)

She of course is a beautiful woman who would be desirable to any man, as we have learned almost all the folk/fairy tale female characters are, such as Snow White and Little Red Riding Hood. Due to their beauty they do acquire the man’s affections and will marry them.

Unlike other stories, the wife of a Bluebeard had her fairy tale life only for a brief moment. She was too curious to obey her husband’s wishes, and opened up the door to the forbidden closet despite of his warnings of the consequences. She was expecting of more lavish items, more gold and shiny things, more riches, but was faced with death. Her husband was a murderer, and the tale took another turn from there.

After several goings backwards and forwards, she was forced to bring him the key. Bluebeard, having very attentively considered it, said to his wife, "Why is there blood on the key?" "I do not know," cried the poor woman, paler than death."You do not know!" replied Bluebeard. "I very well know. You went into the closet, did you not? Very well, madam; you shall go back, and take your place among the ladies you saw there."Upon this she threw herself at her husband's feet, and begged his pardon with all the signs of a true repentance, vowing that she would never more be disobedient. She would have melted a rock, so beautiful and sorrowful was she; but Bluebeard had a heart harder than any rock! (Perrault 1889)

She was no longer blinded by his riches, but scared for her life. This realization created the character into something that we often do not see in the folk tales. She became also more intellectual in her ways of finding a way out of certain death. She did need to be rescued but she also was able to divert her husband’s attention for long enough for her brothers to arrive. She deserved to stay alive, and when she did she used her inherited riches for good. A true happy ending!

Hansel and Gretel

The tale by The Brothers Grimm of “Hansel and Gretel” brings us back to the world where the female character is this kind of weak, whiney, scared little girl, and the character needs to be protected and taken care of by her brother. 

“The two children had not been able to fall asleep because of their hunger, and they heard what the stepmother had said to the father.”

“Gretel cried bitter tears and said to Hansel, "It is over with us!"”

"Be quiet, Gretel," said Hansel, "and don't worry. I know what to do."” (Grimm 1857)

In the beginning of the story she is just that, she depends on her brother 100 percent, and has no wit or capabilities to come up with plans to rescue them when being left alone in the forest to die by the parents. She is crying and being comforted by her brother at all times. He is the strong one; she is the one just being able to follow her brother’s lead.

But something happens towards the end of the story, when the children are trapped in the evil witch’s house, and Gretel is forced to feed her brother week after week to fatten him up for the witch to cook and eat him eventually. There is a moment when I saw the scared little girl that Gretel was in another light. When she was called upon by the witch to the fiery oven, another side of Gretel came out: 

"Climb in," said the witch, "and see if it is hot enough to put the bread in yet."

“And when Gretel was inside, she intended to close the oven, and bake her, and eat her as well.”

“But Gretel saw what she had in mind, so she said, "I don't know how to do that. How can I get inside?"

"Stupid goose," said the old woman. "The opening is big enough. See, I myself could get in." And she crawled up stuck her head into the oven. Then Gretel gave her a shove, causing her to fall in. Then she closed the iron door and secured it with a bar.” (Grimm 1857)

Gretel showed that she was clever even smart, and also very brave. She saw the witches plan to kill her in addition to her brother, and decided to outwit her. And she did by pushing the witch into the oven after pretending that she did not know how to climb in. She ended up being the one rescuing her brother, a great way to end the story in the feministic perspective. Compared to other folk and fairy tales we have read, such as “Little Red Riding Hood”, “Snow White”. This is the first one where the female character turns out to be the heroine of the story, saving the day.

Little Red Riding Hood, a sex symbol?

 

      

        The Little Red Riding Hood I know from the childhood fairy tales from such collections as The Brothers Grimm is nothing but a good, sweet, and naïve girl in desperate need for some supervision and protection. The big bad wolf is just that, a wolf. But now another side of the story has become very clear to me, another side of Red, the sexual, seductive and owning a strong will. Angela Carter tells the story of Red as I never read it before, so sexually charged but carrying the main elements from the traditional fairy tale within it, in “The Company of Wolves”. She now carries her red cape as a symbol of her femininity, and to signal she is a full bloomed woman, waiting for that one special man.

A little late-comer, had been indulged by her mother and the grandmother who’d knitted her the red shawl that, today, has the ominous if brilliant look of blood on snow; her breasts have just begun to swell; her hair is like lint, so fair it hardly makes a shadow on her pale forehead; her cheeks are an emblematic scarlet and white and she has just started her woman’s bleeding, the clock inside her that will strike, henceforward, once a month. (Carter 3)

         Carter’s version is a story of Red and the wolf but in this case a werewolf, both a man and a wolf. Red is charmed by the human side of the world she meets in the dark forest while on her way to the grandmother’s. She is not afraid, she is intrigued. She now carries a knife with her to show her independence and ability to protect herself, and she also is well aware not to stray from the path. The whole story of her now can be defined by one sentence: “she knew she was nobody’s meat.” (Carter 6)

         The sexual side of her is shown as she interacts with the wolf at the grandmother’s, after the wolf already killed the grandmother. She still isn’t afraid. “The firelight shone through the edges of her skin; now she was clothed only in her untouched integument9 of flesh. This dazzling, naked she combed out her hair with her fingers; her hair looked white as the snow outside. Then went directly to the man with red eyes in whose unkempt mane the lice moved; she stood up on tiptoe and unbuttoned the collar of his shirt.” (Carter 6) She will face the wolf and despite the danger, she is more curious about the sexual tension between them she is feeling. She will not run, she will not fight, but she will seduce the wolf, and go to bed with that man, and there is the ending. Makes me wonder what happens with Red and her lover next.