Hansel And Gretel Punishment
The lack of originality appears in the story Hansel and Gretel as well. Hansel and Gretel are interpreted in the story as juvenile delinquents who do not get much of a punishment. Hansel and Gretel are considered as wise children who go through their hardships with wisdom. However, in a realistic point of view, these children have committed a serious crime. German poet Jesef Wittmann treats this question in his short “Hansel und Gretel” poem (1976) that Hansel and Gretel actually killed the witch by pushing her into the oven (Mieder). Why is this criminal act ignored and disguised as a heroic action in modern fairy tale? Do people have the right to kill a person if the person is a villain? No. The gruesome act by the young Gretel of killing
…show more content…
Folklorists, cultural anthropologists, historians, sociologists, educators, literary critics, psychologists, even criminologists have different opinions about the same fairy tale (Tatar). For example, Little Red Riding Hood has probably suffered more interpretative tribulations than any other fairy tale. Charles Perrault, a French author in the 17th century said, “From this story one learns that children, especially young lasses, pretty, courteous, and well-bred, are wrong to listen to any sort of man (Tatar 39).” Many scholars have different opinions when interpreting this story. For one of them, the wolf displays pregnancy envy by attempting to put living beings into his belly. Another contends that the Red Riding Hood as a symbol of the German people terrorized and victimized, but finally liberated from the clutches of Jewish wolf. Also, some readers see the wolf as frightening male figures somewhere in the world and the Red Riding Hood as a female who are helpless before them. Each of these interpretations tells the readers as much about the ideological orientation and professional bias of its author as about the tale itself. These different views of fairy tales have been integrated as a whole abandoning the liberty to express opinions of readers. The modern fairy tales that are adapted for children lack not only originality but also liberty of
Folklorists, cultural anthropologists, historians, sociologists, educators, literary critics, psychologists, even criminologists have different opinions about the same fairy tale (Tatar). For example, Little Red Riding Hood has probably suffered more interpretative tribulations than any other fairy tale. Charles Perrault, a French author in the 17th century said, “From this story one learns that children, especially young lasses, pretty, courteous, and well-bred, are wrong to listen to any sort of man (Tatar 39).” Many scholars have different opinions when interpreting this story. For one of them, the wolf displays pregnancy envy by attempting to put living beings into his belly. Another contends that the Red Riding Hood as a symbol of the German people terrorized and victimized, but finally liberated from the clutches of Jewish wolf. Also, some readers see the wolf as frightening male figures somewhere in the world and the Red Riding Hood as a female who are helpless before them. Each of these interpretations tells the readers as much about the ideological orientation and professional bias of its author as about the tale itself. These different views of fairy tales have been integrated as a whole abandoning the liberty to express opinions of readers. The modern fairy tales that are adapted for children lack not only originality but also liberty of