8/23

Today we were expected to read "Snow White" and "Cinderella". As I was reading the material I was surprised at how well Anne Sexton depicted the original Grimm tales in short easily read poems. The whole moral lesson of the tales were also carried through her poems. To be honest reading the poems reminded me how much the Disney version is altered from the original versions. The Disney version of "Snow White" only has the step-mother come to the seven dwarfs' house one time; not three. In the Disney version of "Cinderella" the prince does not chase Cinderella three nights in a row before he steals her shoe. Cinderella loses the shoe on the first night at the ball. Also, the Disney versions are much less gruesome. I feel, Anne Sexton is trying to depict both Cinderella and Snow White as unintelligent women. They are oblivious to the danger around them, and the obvious betrayal. The step-mother in "Snow White" is obviously trying to kill Snow White, while Snow White seem unconcerned about her safety. While the Prince in "Cinderella" has clearly got a few screws loose in his head. I say this because he takes an ax and proceeds to chop open a door just to see her, and lays wax on the steps of the castle just to steal her shoe. Is Cinderella unconcerned about his mental stability? Or is she so happy to have his attention she doesn't care?