Rapunzel Battles the Gruffalo

From the New York Times parenting blog Motherlode, Are Fairy Tales Too Scary For Children? by Lisa Belkin:

Of the 3,000 British parents polled by the TheBabyWebsite.com, earlier this month, 50percent said they would not read fairy tales to their children until they were at least five-years-old. Of those, 20 percent said they rejected the oldies as politically incorrect, while close to that number, 17 percent, said the stories would give their children nightmares.

I'll let you read the rest of the post without quoting the best bits here. While I'm glad that the discussion of fairy tales continues to thrive, I'd like to see more mainstream articles move beyond the "Are fairy tales good for children?" motif to discussing children's reactions to particular fairy tales and delving into some of the lesser-known stories.

Check out The Princess Questionnaire. The post will only be up until January 19th, as it's part of the author's thesis.

Thanks to Pipers at the Gates of Dawn for the article and tony.dowler.com for the princess thesis link.

Rapunzel, Rapunzel

April 10, 2008 update: Elaine Magliaro of Wild Rose Reader has posted an original Rapunzel poem.


One of my favorite Rapunzel renditions

I figured Disney would never try to make "Rapunzel" into a film because of what a sad story it really is. There's a happy ending, but it's not tidily wrapped up: Mother Gothel, the antagonist of the story, is still at large, and somewhere in the world, Rapunzel's parents are still mourning the loss of their daughter taken from them at birth. In an early version of the story, Rapunzel unwittingly reveals her prince's secret visits by asking Mother Gothel, "Why is my dress getting so tight around my stomach?" and in all versions, Rapunzel has given birth to twins by the time the prince finds her again. In both versions, Rapunzel did not have premarital sex-- the text clearly states that they were married in the tower. They married themselves, and I totally buy it. For the purpose of the fairy tale, the device works.

Unbeknown to me before now, Disney has had plans for Rapunzel for years. Despite my misgivings about a lot of Disney films, I'm keen to see an original, newly-imagined fairy tale in The Princess and the Frog. I'm not sure why they're bothering with "Rapunzel," and I cringe to think of what they're going to do to the storyline. (Yes, I'll probably see it eventually, but I reserve the right to grizzle and groan.) Here's to hoping that "The Goose Girl" and "Toads and Diamonds" are unpalatable to the Disney franchise....


Another one of my favorite Rapunzel renditions

More Princess Interviews

I'm still technically on blog-break, but I wanted to let you know about two "princess interviews" inspired by my recent princess post in which Lucia informed me that princesses are "kind," "don't whine," and "don't glug juice." I'll add more links if they arrive:

* Els of Librarian Mom

*Susan of Crunchy Granola

It's Good to Be a Princess

My best friend from high school (and the one friend from high school with whom I still keep in touch) is submitting a proposal to teach a course on fairy tales with a focus on Cinderella stories* and our society's fascination with princesses. In the closing to one of our emails, she wrote, "If you asked Lucia, 'Beside being pretty, what is it that is so special about princesses?' what would she say?" This is the conversation that followed:

Q: Why do you like being a princess?

A: It’s good to be a princess!

Q: What do you like about being a princess?

A: Pretty things.

Q: Like what?

A: Pretty dresses. Pretty crowns.

Q: What do princesses do?

A: Carry pretty purses.

Q: What do princesses do that is good?

A: Be kind! Don’t whine! Don’t glug juice!

Q: What do you like best about being a princess?

A: Playing dolls.

It was a humbling conversation from my point of view. I'd never talked about princesses as "pretty," and in fact, talked about them more in terms of attempting to get Lucia to do what I wanted a la "Princesses don't pick their noses."

When I was Lucia's age, I was never a princess-- I was always the Queen. For some reason, I equated princesses with marriage, and I was having none of that. I wasn't going to go to college, either. Both marriage and college seemed too grown up, and I still wanted to dress up and play with dolls.

Lucky me. I got to go to college, get married to Bede and I still get to dress up and play with dolls.

April 8 update: Here are two more princess interviews via Librarian Mom (a.k.a. Book, Book, Book) and Crunchy Granola.

*Caveat emptor: Some of the stories listed in this link are not accurate representations of the cultures they claim to represent.

Princess finger-puppet

I have a new princess finger-puppet! I'm always searching for finger-puppets that represent people of color other than Caucasian. I especially want multicultural girl finger-puppets to represent the heroines of the fairytales I tell. Self-esteem starts young, and it can be quite disheartening when the general run of princess dolls have light-skin tones.

My new finger-puppet's name is Almira, which means "princess" in Arabic. Keep a lookout for her future appearances in storytimes.

One of Seven

Princess in the mirror

We have returned from our brief trip to Idaho. Seattle-Jane married her swain, the seven flower-girls hailed them with petals tossed from baskets, and we all toasted the newly-married couple with tasty vintages provided by the wine-cellar where the wedding took place. Lucia had studied her flower-girl duties beforehand with the help of Lilly's Big Day, and carried herself with simple dignity. Had we let her, Lucia would have slept in her garland that night.

On the way back from Idaho, Bede got a speeding ticket for traveling 83 mph in a 70mph zone. The fact that Bede got the ticket instead of I had only to do with our recent switch of driving-duties. We weren't peeved about getting the ticket as much as we were incredulous that drivers going as fast as us got away like the proverbial fox [that] went out on a chilly night. We threw our hats on the ground and shook our fists at the cars that escaped with impunity.* Next time, we vowed, we would put getaway music** on our iPods.


Bede and Lucia in Eastern Washington

*The cop thought we were a little bit odd.
**Really, anything with fast banjo riffs will do.

Cajun Princess

Maddy, Disney's next princess

Finding Wonderland reviews the concerns over Disney's project to feature its first Black princess: Frogs, Rejected Suitors, and Things that Make You go "Hmmm."

I have my own issues with Disney chewing up fairy tales while shoving all of the interesting bits under its corporate napkins. Still, I have been rooting for a Black princess for a a long time. I am leery of the potential stereotypes and misrepresentations for Princess Maddy and her Cajun roots. After all, look at what happened with the historical fiction of Matoaka. I hope that The Frog Princess fares better.

Thanks to Fuse for the link.

Goth princess

For Christmas, Bede gave me the Playmobil goth queen:



The description of the dolly was "evil queen," but since when did a penchant for wearing black and gold with heavy eye-makeup make a person "evil?" Silly, woozy marketers. The dolly was obviously a goth queen. As Lucia introduced Esmeralda to the other dollies, she said, "The goth queen walks in the night." How did she know? The child is uncanny.

This rare, discontinued Playmobil dolly is now on my wishlist:



This dolly is billed as a "witch." How many witches do you know (even stereotypical ones) wear hennins? Again, the marketers are addled. As we established earlier, hennins are now known as fashion accessories for fairy tale princesses. Ergo, this dolly is a goth princess. Esmeralda is probably the auntie of the goth princess, not the mother. Think about it: If the goth princess' mother were a goth queen, the princess would probably rebel by dressing in shirts with Peter Pan collars and wearing sensible shoes.

You might wonder why the goth princess has a "fillet of a fenny snake" in her hand if she's not a stereotypical witch brewing amphibious/reptilian stew? I'm glad you asked. Remember in the book of Exodus, when Aaron, brother of Moses, threw down a staff in front of Pharoah? Remember that the staff turned into a serpent?

Somehow, there's a connection.

Cone Hats

Blog posts about fashion rules are amusing in small doses and tedious when they become long lists of the writers' gripes against high trouser-hems and the perils of mixing white socks with black shoes. While there are some clothing choices that still make me shudder (no dark-colored socks with shorts!), having a child who likes to mix striped trousers with patterned shirts has made me more easy-going these days. However, there is one ladies' fashion item with its accompanying faux pas that I must address: the hennin.

You must have noticed by now that the hennin, a cone-shaped hat traditionally worn by noblewomen in 15th Century Europe, is making a come-back. Individual tastes differ as to whether you should tuck your hair completely under the hennin (tweeze the hairline!) or allow the hair to hang loose in enticing tendrils. Also, whether or not you wear a thin veil pendant draped over the tip of your hennin is completely up to you. Choose a full cone-shape akin to the Burgundian steeple hennin if you have high ceilings or a more minimalistic truncated hennin for cozy dwellings. It is best to leave the hennin with two cones for Halloween parties and practical jokes.

Hennin fashionistas all agree on one thing: you must wear your hennin tiled backward, not pointed straight up. At social functions, staff meetings and parent nights, I repeatedly see hennins worn as if they were dunce caps or party hats.

Wrong
Wrong
Very, Very Wrong

This practice simply will not do. I rely upon you, dear readers, to set good examples for your hennin-wearing peers and gently but firmly correct their fashion errors. I wouldn't be surprised if improperly-worn hennins show up on Go Fug Yourself. Any day now...



Tune in for next week's fashion advice on why wearing hoop skirts with jeans is just a terrible idea. Wearing hoop skirts with jeans only ended in heartbreak for Pecos Bill and Slue-Foot Sue.

Secrets I keep from my daughter

In the second drawer of my bureau, I am hiding a paper Victorian dollhouse that opens into a carousel shape. Lucia has played with a similar paper-dollhouse before, but she is not the most careful of toddlers when it comes to keeping the little pieces all together. I have a "bits box" where I put all of the little crowns and scepters I find on the floors, behind beds, and under couches, but they vanish anyway. Someday, I'll let Lucia play with my paperdoll house. Right now, it's mine, mine, all mine.

I'm also keeping my fairy tale books illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman on the top shelf of my bookcase. Lucia wants me to read them to her, but I'm not ready. That's what I say to her: "I'm not yet ready to read these books to you. Someday, I will read you these books, but not today." We've started reading some folk and fairy tales together, but they're more along the lines of "The Three Billy Goat's Gruff" and "Goldilocks and the Three Bears." Also, "Stone Soup" and "The Old Lady Who Lived in a Vinegar Bottle" are new favorites, too. Lucia won't eat soup, but she does like to hear stories about soup.

As you know, I have some issues with the Disney versions of the fairy tales. As a child, I enjoyed "Sleeping Beauty" and "Cinderella," but I have to be honest with you: what I liked best about the films were the costumes and stage-sets. I couldn't care less about winning the love of the handsome prince (my tastes ran more toward Superman and Han Solo), but oh, those fabulous clothes. I even coveted Cinderella's plain house-dress, and wished I could make a dress like it. Of course, I admired the glittery evening dress with long white gloves. Snow White's clothing didn't thrill me. I thought her dresses lacked proper swish.

I suspect that Lucia will have similar reactions to the Disney films when she finally sees them someday. Her favorite Playmobil dollies are the ones with poofy dresses and their "feet peeping out." Then again, her first word was "gace" (her attempt to say "lace"). Right now, I'm in no hurry for Lucia to see the films. If she gets it into her head that princesses don't wear sleeves on their dresses, it is going to be one long winter around here.

Memo to princesses of the world, royal and otherwise: will you please wear more dresses with long sleeves? I'd appreciate it if you'd wear mittens, coats and hats, too. Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, for the most part, you are off the hook, even though you look a bit chilly here. Put on a sweater. Please. You're making my teeth chatter just by looking at you.

P.S. Today, I started telling Lucia, "Princesses don't eat boogers." Princesses of the world, I'm counting on you to back me up on this one.