The Snow Child

The Snow Child – Coursework
The subtexts of fairy tales present the view that women are either helpless damsels or wicked vixens, created from the fantasies of male desires. How and to what extent does Angela Carter’s Snow Child challenge or reinforce this view?
Angela Carter’s The Snow Child is a feminist revision of the Grimm Brothers classic fairy tale Snow White. Whilst reading the story, it is clear that Carter challenges the “repeated familiar cultural stereotypes” which is a common theme in these fairy tales which have a huge impact on the minds of young children. Critics such as Kathleen Regan challenge these stories for portraying negative female stereotypes such as a “beautiful passive princess” and a “ruthless woman” who is “dangerously beautiful”. These relate to the helpless damsels and wicked vixens that we are referring to. The dangerous beauty of some of these stereotypical women can be related to the fact that they are created from the fantasies of male desire.
Carter’s characterisation of the Count and “his wife” give us an insight into the gender roles that she is trying to portray. A general rule of fairy tales is that the males should be of higher class than the women, and they should also show a social dominance. However Carter seems to go against this theme from the very beginning of the Snow Child as she tells of how the Countess rides a “black mare” whilst her husband is on a “grey” one. This gives the reader their first glimpse of the authority that the Countess has.
We see the Countess dressed in “glittering pelts” and “spurs” which conveys a sense of power and strength. We get the impression that the Countess is being held back by society because of her gender.
It could be argued that the mysterious transfer of the Countess’ clothes to the Snow Child represents the absurdity of the gender constraints that have been placed on women by society. It may also show that Carter feels it is ridiculous that females are stereotyped to two roles, the helpless damsel and wicked vixen. The clothing symbolises the transfer of power and shows that a man’s desire can turn a helpless damsel into a wicked vixen. We see this as the Snow Child becomes “furred and booted” and begins to replicate the Countess.
The Snow Child is quitter clearly the Counts “child of desire”. She appears “stark naked” to show her purity and innocence as she stands as a rival to the Countess, despite the fact she does not say a word throughout her entire existence. This takes away from the personality of the Snow Child and distances her from the audience as she seems to almost become a non-human like figure. The fact that Carter portrays a character with no personality may show that she feels that society does not value women’s views and opinions, and that women are here for the sole purpose of serving a man and fulfilling his “desire”.

Carter uses colour to reflect the gothic nature of the tale. We see this with the “red” of the blood, “white” of the snow and the “black” of the raven’s feather. The Count wishes for a girl as “white as snow” which symbolises her purity and virginity. The girls “red lips” could be Carters way of symbolising the danger that lies ahead. Whilst the “black of the raven’s feather” contrasts the purity of the white snow and symbolise the death and darkness which the audience are about to witness. Another way that Carter uses colour in the story is when the “black” and “grey mares” destroy the beauty and perfection of the “midwinter” snow by walking on it.
Carter characterises the Countess with colours which epitomise the height of male desires with her “glittering pelt of black foxes” and her “scarlet heels” suggesting that she is also a product of male lust. Male desire has been subverted by the gothic symbol of death and is now seen to represent danger rather than sartorial elegance. This allows Carter to challenge the preconceptions that are written into the symbolic use of colours within the fairy tale.
Overall I believe that it is undeniable that most fairy tales contain subtexts of profound sexism. Carter comments on the lack of responsibility taken by male protagonists in stories such as these. She does so by portraying the fact that the Count appears to go unpunished throughout all of the suffering that is going on throughout this tale. In the ideal male fantasies, punishment and pain for men is not seen as an option in any way. These tales are an integral part of society and early education. They have a lasting effect on the vulnerable minds of young children.
The Snow child reinforces some of the subtle stereotypes of women by almost showing they are afraid to voice their opinions. This is shown through the silence of the Snow Child and the fact that the Countess does not challenge her husband at any stage despite being portrayed as the wicked vixen that has more authority and power than a helpless damsel such as the Snow Child. Although Carter seems to challenge the larger prejudices against women when she states that the Count “didn’t last long” whilst having sex with the corpse of the Snow Child. This challenges men’s power and mocks the Count because of the standards he is willing to drop to in order to feel like he is receiving female affection.
Carter chose to represent fairy tales in this way in order to inspire a wave of new feminists in the 1970’s aiming to educate and raise awareness of female stereotypes such as the helpless damsel and the wicked vixen. Society has “largely ignored the position of women” and Carters tale was her attempt to try and change the “familiar cultural stereotypes” put in place by these fairy tales which have become common and are now widely accepted within literature, especially in stories of male fantasies and desire.