These traditions continue in Cinderella's cinematic adaptations. These adaptations reflected unconscious misogyny, stripping the story of much of its feminist potential and making it instead about enchantment over representation. The Grimms turned the stepsisters ugly, as well as removed the fairy godmother in favour of a magical wishing tree. It was Perrault who introduced the famous pumpkin and the glass slipper, giving the tale its two most iconic features. But in doing so, they found in Cinderella not a story of female wish-fulfilment but a more general sense of escapism. As the story became increasing popular, male writers and artists became interested in adapting the tale. So what happened to poor Cinders to make her so powerless? But whatever incarnation, Cinderella has historically been a story about women and for women. In others, the stepsisters resort to slicing off their heels to win the heart of the prince. The precise story of Cinderella has always been in flux. Perhaps most significantly, it is a story about female desire in a world where women were denied any role in society. It is a story about domestic labour, female violence and friendship, and the oppression of servitude. According to feminist writers like Marina Warner, it is also why we have to come to associate gossip with women. It is where we get the notion of the old wives' tale. These storytelling traditions echo to this day. Female labourers and housewives passed the stories onto one another to dispense shared wisdom, or else to break up the boredom of another working day as they toiled away from the prying eyes of men. This version of the story probably entered into European society by the women working on the great Silk Road.Īt a time when only men could be writers or artists, women used folk tales as a means of expressing their creativity. The earliest recorded copy dates back to China in 850-860. But behind their versions of the classic fairytale lies an untold story of female storytellers like Marie-Catherine D'Aulnoy and the Comtesse de Murat.īefore the Grimms, these pioneering women were drawn to Cinderella not because they felt the story needed updating or revising, but because they were attracted by the culture that birthed it – a storytelling network created by and for women.Ĭinderella began its life as a folk tale, passed orally from household to household. You might have heard of figures like Charles Perrault, the Brothers Grimm and Walt Disney, each playing a key role in popularising the folk story for a new generation. In the words of its publicity department, Andrew Lloyd Webber's new production of Cinderella offers audiences nothing less than " a complete reinvention of the classic fairy-tale." Written by Emerald Fennell (Oscar-nominated for "Promising Young Woman"), the production promises a feminist revision of the classic fairy tale, updating the well-known story to reflect contemporary attitudes towards gender.īut Cinderella has always been a feminist text. This article was originally published on The Conversation.
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