The Fairytale Feminista
Answering life’s questions one fairy tale at a time.
Food & Fairy Tales
With Thanksgiving just around the corner, I started to think about the relationship of food and fairy tales. Just a cursory look is a mixed bag. Food is a weapon, a threat, transportation, or an opportunity to change your life, just to name a few.
In Snow White, the evil queen’s last-ditch effort to rid herself of her stepdaughter is an apple. A poisoned apple. Hansel and Gretel is probably the scariest of the food references. After being abandoned by their father and mother, they come to a home made of candy and gingerbread only to be trapped by the witch inside who eats children!
With Thanksgiving just around the corner, I started to think about the relationship of food and fairy tales. Just a cursory look is a mixed bag. Food is a weapon, a threat, transportation, or an opportunity to change your life, just to name a few.
In Snow White, the evil queen’s last-ditch effort to rid herself of her stepdaughter is an apple. A poisoned apple. Hansel and Gretel is probably the scariest of the food references. After being abandoned by their father and mother, they come to a home made of candy and gingerbread only to be trapped by the witch inside who eats children!
Cinderella needed a way to get to the prince’s ball and her fairy godmother created a carriage from a golden pumpkin. She also makes footmen and coachmen from various crawling animals. (Who knew there were lizards in France?) The Golden Goose never would have happened if Dummling (the youngest son) hadn’t shared his burnt biscuit and soured ale with a stranger, who used magic to improve the meal and find a gold egg laying goose for the generous young man.
So what do we learn about food in fairy tales? Strangers offering food are suspect, but strangers willing to share your food might be magical. Gourds aren’t just for pie or cornucopias. And never, ever, eat someone’s house without expecting a hefty bill. Don’t know if these are rules to live by, but they’re a good starting point.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Marking Time with Tale Friends
The other day I was trying to conjure up my quarantine fantasy (not that being under quarantine should be anyone’s idea of a fantasy other than the whole stuck on a desert island with your dream lover, but that’s for another post). It included things like spending an entire day in bed with meals delivered up to my bedroom and reading an entire book, cover to cover, without interruptions. Actually, that last one figures in a lot of fantasies of mine!It got me thinking about what people do when they’re stuck at home and because this is a blog primarily about how I feel about fairy tales, it seemed only natural to consider what a quarantine would be like with one of them.
The other day I was trying to conjure up my quarantine fantasy (not that being under quarantine should be anyone’s idea of a fantasy other than the whole stuck on a desert island with your dream lover, but that’s for another post). It included things like spending an entire day in bed with meals delivered up to my bedroom and reading an entire book, cover to cover, without interruptions. Actually, that last one figures in a lot of fantasies of mine!It got me thinking about what people do when they’re stuck at home and because this is a blog primarily about how I feel about fairy tales, it seemed only natural to consider what a quarantine would be like with one of them.
First, I’d stress clean with Cinderella. I have a feeling even after the prince whisked her away from servitude, he’d find her scrubbing the throne room floor on particularly anxious days.The only sewing I do is the occasional button reattachment, so it might be nice to learn some handy crafts from the Valiant Tailor. Bonus: he knows how to brag and won’t mind if I crow about my meager accomplishments.After all that activity some peace and quiet might be in order and who better than to spend some moments of quiet contemplation with than The Little Mermaid (obviously pre-foaming). Shared meditation requires someone unobtrusive and she is it!Meditating makes me sleepy and I know Sleeping Beauty knows about napping through your troubles. It’s not the best way to deal with a problem, but it plays into my desire to spend an entire day in bed. She’d totally understand and never judge.Eventually I’d have to get up again and face the reality of all the people in my house who are quarantined with me. I love my family, but I love alone time too. To remind me of how lucky I am that I’m only sharing my home with two people and a dog, I’d switch with Snow White. Cooking, cleaning and sharing space with seven people—my nightmare!To clear my head after all that togetherness, I need to take a walk. Who better to invite along than Little Red Riding Hood and Grandma? They like the woods, despite the occasional double-talking wolf, and after you’ve survived being eaten, socially distant hiking should be a breeze.And lest your think I’d only hang out with the goody-goodies, I think some baking with the Old Woman in the gingerbread house, while risky, is worth learning how to make baked goods the size of building! And because I’d ask before nibbling on her frosted shingles, I think she’d forgo trying to make me into a pie.Lastly, Zoom cocktail hour with The Evil Queen because I am almost positive she can mix a mean drink!
Who would you spend your quarantine with, if you could pull them out of your favorite stories?
Breadcrumbs and the Dark Woods, the "What If" Game with Hansel & Gretel
I like playing the "What If" game. If you don't know it (see what I did there?) it's the game you play with yourself (or others, rules are optional) wondering what can or did happen. It's especially gratifying with fairy tales. For me, happily ever after isn't enough of a denouement to satisfy.One of my favorite to play the game with is Hansel and Gretel. Spoilers ahead!
I usually forget the ending where they return to the parents who essentially left their starving children in the forest to be eaten by roving carnivorous animals. I think when you're a kid the idea of some old woman in the woods eating small children makes it pale in comparison. But as a parent, the ending horrifies me. The pictures we take away are of the gingerbread house and the crone luring them in, but it should be the picture above--Hansel and Gretel alone in the darkened woods left by their parents.But they do go back, with no idea what kind of reception they'll receive. They fill their pockets with jewels and money and return to their home, hoping that the windfall will gain the access to their beds. Tragic, right? So, I like to play the game. Imagine trying to ask them to do anything after that, like, "No, I didn't take out the trash because I thought the door would be locked when I got back." Or, "Remember when you left me and my brother in the woods? Yea, not going to collect firewood for you." Snarky, I know, but wouldn't you be if you'd live through abandonment and near cannibalism?But maybe Hansel and Gretel can teach us something. Resilience, ingenuity and even forgiveness. They went back not knowing what to expect. Hansel and Gretel could be a tragedy, but what if it's more about courage?What if 2019 is the year we look at things differently? By the way, visit my sister site, Books By I.L. Cruz to read this month's MAIAM guest, Azaaa Davis!
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