Introduction
Fables and fairy tales have various inexplicable origins and they have been aesthetically transformed over the years to suit the cultural representations of various countries which have added their patina to it. They seem to be slices of life, and have some core values as well as mythical elements in them.
Cinderella is one such tale which has seen its circuit across the world. The women in the talks seem to take multiple roles such as ‘maiden, matron or crone.’ In this tale itself, you have the various representations - the step mother is the crone, the elder sisters are probably the matrons as they are not married despite attaining the marriageable age. But, it is a fact that Cinderella is the maiden.
Body
The tale is a transformation of Cinderella’s individual identity which is lost, crushed by circumstances but eventually she surfaces. As a good mother, she helps her as a hazel bush or fairy godmother. These are the various versions of the tale that say that she helps her combat evil. The evil stepmother seems to throw obstacles the heroine’s way and forges the transformation of an otherwise steady pace of life.
In "A Chinese "Cinderella" by Ch'eng-shih, the girl happens to rely on a goldfish to be her only companion and solace, but the stepmother vindictively kills it and makes a soup. On advice, she saves the bones which help her through times of need.
The transformation process is a cycle. One understands that the transformation is not on an external approval like that of the prince or the stepmother but it is actually from within. The decision to look for the invisible brother in "Oochigeashw - the Rough-Faced Girl," or to go to the spring festival to find a suitor in "A Chinese "Cinderella" by Ch'eng-shih, or to attend the ball in Perrault’s ‘Cinderella’ is the heroine’s personal decision. She is actually forbidden to do so by the elder sisters and the stepmother but she transcends that hurdle to make a life for herself.
The heroine triumphs at the end to live happily ever though, in a fairy tale tradition, it is a simplistic view. Hers is a journey of ordeal where she starts with an idyllic life of a happy family. She faces her first conflict when she loses her mother and her father remarries. And, a stepmother, who is jealous of her innocence and beauty, ill-treats her.
When life throws its challenges, Cinderella faces them with courage and boldness. Although she appears submissive, she is hardly servile as seen in her characterization. Her sense of security is visible when she dresses her sister’s hair in Perrault’s Cinderella, where the elder sister is taunting her about not going to the ball.
She is proud of her bearing and does not want to present a state of pathetic victim to the world. So, she either cries to her fairy godmother to transform her, or asks the fish bones to give her a new dress or better still. She actually dresses up in barks and shells to make herself presentable.
Gould (2005) points out that: “feminist’s past arguments that fairy-tale heroines, Cinderella in particular, are helpless victims who wait to be rescued or run to the arms of a Prince are missing the point that Cinderella repeatedly runs from the Prince while undergoing her transformation. It is the likes of Disney who shift the intent of the story from transformation to a crusade of possession fought between the hero and the witch under the guise of romance. Meanwhile, the heroine is required to survive the battle and reproduce.”
She seems to be yearning for her unrecognized beauty and talent to be showcased. She does exhibit her skills in the womanly chores that she is designated to do. She is good at the washing, cleaning and sewing and fixing hair and gowns. According to Perrault’s Cinderella
“ it was she who ironed her sister's linen and pleated their ruffles. .. They also consulted Cinderella in all these matters, for she had excellent ideas, and her advice was always good. Indeed, she even offered her services to fix their hair, which they very willingly accepted Anyone but Cinderella would have fixed their hair awry, but she was very good, and dressed them perfectly well.”
Thus Cinderella perceives truth even when the step-mother makes things difficult for her. She probably sees in her stepmother, an ambitious woman who wants to come up in life, because the man she married is spineless. Although Cinderella too wants to come up, she at least knows what lessons not to follow as she moves from her humble beginnings to triumph through inner courage and mettle.
Another way of interpreting her is this that the elder sisters want to marry the prince and so try and fit into a shoe way too small for them. But, Cinderella calls the shots and gets shoes made for her size. She seems to be in command of the situation because of her inner peace and calm and resoluteness.
Cinderella wants to escape from the clutches of her shackled life and transcend to betterment. As herinner core is strong, she does not give up. She connects with nature, with the fish, with the barks, with the birds and thus overcomes her potential threats in the form of human beings. One of magical abilities in all the heroines appears to be her competence to see what others can’t.
Perrault’s Cinderella- she sees the fairy godmother and also experiences the transformation of the pumpkin into a coach, mice into horses, Rat into a coachman and lizards into footmen!
In “A Chinese "Cinderella" by Ch'eng-shih, she not only sees the power of the fish and its bones but the invisible old man who advises her to preserve the bones;
In "Oochigeashw - the Rough-Faced Girl", she can see the invisible soldier’s shoulder strap made of rainbow;
Thus, the humble trappings seem to carry the magical elements in them, and the girl from humble beginnings transforms into recognition and fame. This transformation is seen as the physical beauty where Cinderella is actually dressed up and is not seen in her rags, ashes and embers, and rough face and scars.
The prince, who is invisible soldier, seems to symbolise the destination of transformation, material comfort as well as inner peace.Cinderella makes a proactive step of finding her way through the bleakness by seeking the fairy godmother’s help, using her own devices as in soaking the moccasins to fit her size or using the power of bones. Furthermore, this humble woman, towards the end, blooms into an assertive individual who seems to take life in her hands with courage, and goes for a man she wants. Finally, she endures the strife of the world with tenacity and perseverance.
Conclusion
In the light of the aforesaid analysis and interpretation, in all three versions, Cinderella is culturally at the mercy of elder women - be it a step mother or sisters and the jealousy of these women over her beauty. Her grace seems to subject her to trauma. She comes out of it using her courage, and triumphs and establishes that humble beginnings to see heights. In the words of Perrault:
“Beauty in a woman is a rare treasure that will always be admired. Graciousness, however, is priceless and of even greater value. Young women, in the winning of a heart, graciousness is more important than a beautiful hairdo. It is a true gift of the fairies. Without it, nothing is possible; with it, one can do anything. Without doubt, it is a great advantage to have intelligence, courage, good breeding, and common sense. These, and similar talents come only from heaven, and it is good to have them. Thus, when one puts it to good use, one can raise beyond their humble beginnings.
Work Cited
1. Gould, J. (2005). Spinning straw into gold: What fairy tales reveal about the transformations in a woman's life. New York: Random House.
2. Hollis, James, Swamplands of the Soul, Inner City Book, 1996
3. Larsen, Stephen, The Mythic Imagination, Inner Traditions International, 1996
4. Newcomb, Jason, The New Hermetics, Weiser, 2004
