Cinderella, a more genteel Hunger Games

This idea got stuck in my head after a confluence of events. Last week I posted about Diamonds and Toads, aka The Fairy, and drew comparisons to Cinderella. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that it was part of the same fairy tale canon (Charles Perrault) and that even the author made changes to the story to make sure The Fairy didn’t resemble Cinderella too closely. At the same time, I was thinking about a blog I recently started following and she posted about reading The Hunger Games. The two ideas rolled around in my brain like billiard balls on a pool table. Then the two smacked together. The Hunger Games (if you haven’t read it) is about a girl who lives in a world that has been ravaged by a war. The people in charge coordinate a gladiator type game to the death made up of children every year and the winner gets essentially a better life. Cinderella is about a girl who lives in a world that has been turned upside down by the arrival of her father’s new wife and mean daughters. Because she’s good, a fairy godmother grants her the wish of going to the ball. She dazzles the prince for two nights and because she beat all the other pretty girls, she gets a better life. Granted if Katniss had been Cinderella, she likely would have run away from home, shot arrows through the overfed guests and brought all the food back to the less fortunate, ala Robin Hood, but I think the idea has merit. Balls designed to pit one woman against another in order to win the heart of a prince they don’t know, for a life they dream about but don’t understand sounds like a more refined (and less deadly) version of the Hunger Games. Call it Hunger Games, 17^th century edition. Just a thought.

FTBC The Fairy

FFT readers, I have a confession to make. I accidentally used this story as a post a few weeks ago entitled, Diamonds or Toads. I wrote, in detail, the plot as well as my feelings about its subject matter, which you can read about here. With that said, I still want to know your thoughts about this story. Reading it was like reading a precursor to Cinderella, which bares out because both were written (or should I say “collected”) by Charles Perrault. In fact, it is believed (but I can’t confirm this) that the good daughter was made into a step-daughter to lessen the similarities to Cinderella (not a very good try).What I liked about the story was how quickly it was all resolved. In Cinderella we have to suffer through two balls, a kingdom-wide search and two mean step-sisters trying to glom onto her man. Diamonds and Toads or The Fairy, as Perrault named it, has a good daughter—who helps a fairy in disguise, is granted wealth, and wins a prince. The bad daughter is too haughty to help the fairy, is immediately struck down with vipers and toads dropping from her mouth and is kicked out of her house. However, I do have some issues with the endings for both girls. For the bad one, I think it would have been more edifying if she learned her lesson and became a better person. As for the good daughter, I know the greatest reward any girl in the 17^th century was expected to want was an excellent match, but I’m calling foul on this one. Precious gems and sweet-smelling flowers fall out of her mouth and a prince wants to marry her? You have to wonder if it’s for the lady or the loot. Remember Rumpelstiltskin? A girl’s life is threatened three nights in a row and her reward is marrying the guy who issued the threats. That said, I do like the story (sans the creepy ending) and think it’s a great one to revise. Any takers? I would love to hear a new ending for this tale. Next month: Jack the Giant Killer

Diamonds or Toads?

I'm a bit of a news junkie. I get most of my news from newspapers both at home and abroad. But, I will admit that lately I've had to take news breaks because it's become frustrating and ugly.This is not a post about the news. I won't write about politics, nor will I push any agendas. No, what I wanted to write about is how our level of discourse has coarsened. We think attacks are funny or honest. Hateful speech tries to masquerade as free speech. And we're the lesser for it. What's worse, we've become inured to it and therefore can't tell anymore if we're hearing or participating in honest debate or mean-spirited jibes.Wouldn't it be great if there was a simple way to know the difference? Or better yet, a fairy tale way?Charles Perrault was a writer of French fairy tales based on his study of early folk tales. One of my favorite stories was called Les Fées, or The Fairies. Later it was called Diamonds and Toads in the English versions. Simply, the story is about two girls and a mother who favored one over the other. Of course she preferred the nasty daughter and the nice one was treated terribly. The younger one was sent to fetch water and was met by an old beggar woman who asked for a drink. The younger, good daughter was more than happy to help and was rewarded by the beggar (who was a fairy) with the gift of jewels and flowers falling from her mouth when she spoke. The mother sent her favored daughter to do the same, but her ill-tempered responses earned her a curse--to speak and have toads and vipers fall out of her mouth.I won't ruin the ending (mostly because the happily ever after for the good daughter is questionable from a feminist POV), but I think you understand what I'm advocating. Whenever we want to reach for a ugly comment imagine a toad oozing its way out of your mouth or a viper spitting venom at the person you're addressing. And when you instead reach for a kind remark or a engage in an honestly civil debate, jewels and flowers will fall at your feet.In other words, will you choose diamonds or toads?P.S. Remember to take a chance at winning a free copy of A Smuggler's Path. Contest closes July 23, 2018 at 11:59pm ET