Having rediscovered the traditional German fairy-tale about Snow White and the wicked queen, Neil Gaiman introduces a perspective, quite different from others previously expressed. In his story Snow, Glass, Apples Snow White and the queen appear in different colors. They are both strong, and they both appear to implement their powers in their own ways. In the story, Neil Gaiman seems to present both female characters from different perspectives, enduing them with both traditional and feminist traits of their personalities.
The entire story by Gaiman seems to be a feminist interpretation of the traditional German fairy-tale by Grimm brothers. The fairy-tale by Grimms is, as all fairy-tales of the time, intended to teach children certain values. Here the values are young girl’s submissiveness and passiveness, her readiness to perform her household duties with pleasure and without asking anything in return, and to subdue to a man that takes care of her (Grimm and Grimm). This perspective is actively criticized by modern feminist ideologists (Golden and Canan 44), and not only in the context of the Snow White’s story but also regarding other traditional fairy-tales such as Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty (“Fairytales and Feminism”). Such mentioned characteristics and traits contradict with Mary Wollstonecraft’s opinions of feminist nature. This philosopher and feminist ideologist of the 18th century has always radically advocated rights of women. In her A Vindication of the Rights of Woman Wollstonecraft criticizes traditional values of the time and the upbringing and the role women have obtained in the society. From her point of view, women should be more educated, care less about what people say about them, get interest in life beside household, servitude to men and looks, and have a more fulfilling life (Wollstonecraft).
The central character in Snow, Glass, Apples is the queen, and she is a narrator here, telling her own story which appears to be much different from the originally and widely known, which itself is a feminist approach (Klapcsik 328) – of saying her own word, offering her own version of scenario. As for Snow White, she is the antagonist, the evil one who terrorizes the inhabitants of the castle as well as people of the land. While in the beginning, the queen seems traditionally submissive to her king, saying, “He asked for the best I had, a king’s right” (Gaiman 325), – a traditional way of behavior, she becomes quite independent and capable of fighting for their own hand, in a feminist way. In means of domesticity, the queen also describes herself as a thrifty homemaker, who understands household, makes preserves, and dries apples and garlic in her room for winter, and who eventually manages to rule the kingdom in the fair and caring way. Perhaps, she is a woman that is independent and self-sufficient, while she has longed for a strong man (a king would do) to support and protect her. In means of gender stereotypes, the queen also seems rather feminist in her opinion. She mentions that people have called her a witch because of her ability to foretell the future, but this is something “they said” (Gaiman 325). Neither has she ever cared for people saying that the king has not been her only man, “no matter what they say” (Gaiman 341). Therefore, she seems independent of people’s opinions, and believes in her truth, in her right, which is also a feminist position. In total, the queen is rather a feminist character, while she sometimes resorts to traditional female tricks when she needs to get what she wants (as in the episode with the seduction of the king).
Snow White, on the contrary, appears a character, evil, wicked and antagonistic in Neil Gaiman’s story. When the author considers her from the perspective of gender, sexuality and domesticity, she is a character that at times seems traditional. For most of her actions, the author can view from the prism of Mary Wollstonecraft’s criticism. Wollstonecraft believes that women of the 18th century have been taught to value only their beauty, which is their source of power over men (Chapter 4), and that women have learned to use their sexuality to subdue men and to gain power not through their knowledge, character, abilities, equality, but through sex and beauty (Chapter 6) (Wollstonecraft). This exactly what the princess does in Snow, Glass, Apples. She implements her beauty and sex appeal to subdue the prince and to receive her throne back, to become princess again, to get back her heart, and to get rid of her stepmother. Moreover, in the episode with a monk travelling through the forest, the princess also uses her sexual attraction to seduce the monk and feed on his flesh, literally. This is what Wollstonecraft calls manipulation, which women may use to gain power over men. Sexuality is not a natural and valued aspect of a female’s character and nature, but a tool used to obtain the desired. On the other hand, it is impossible to say that Snow White is a traditional princess, as in the Grimms’ fairy-tale. She is strong and always pursues her own desires and strivings, for instance, she is always capable of stating her thirst for blood through subduing everyone she finds ‘comestible’. She manages to survive in the forest, in a company of dwarves and rogues, and she does not look like the one who would take care of their household; she could successfully keep them in fear and underfoot. Moreover, her sexuality is her weapon. Her perspective of the story is unknown, but the conclusions can be drawn that she is independent and self-fulfilling, too, same as the queen. On the other part, there seem to be traces of traditional upbringing and (or) her perception of her beauty and sexual appeal as a tool for getting what she needs, which Wollstonecraft (Chapter 4) has criticized in her work (Chapter 4). She is a parasite, incapable of existing without a supportive hand – either her father, or the prince, or the dwarves subdued by her evil powers (Prescott and Drucker 182).
Works Cited:
“Fairytales and Feminism: ‘I don’t Wanna Be Like Cinderella’.” The Article, http://the-artifice.com/fairytales-feminism/. Accessed 31 January 2017.
Gaiman, Neil. “Snow, Glass, Apples.” Smoke and Mirrors, pp.325-345. Avon, 2005.
Golden, Joanne M., and Donna Canan. “«Mirror, Mirror on the Wall»: Readers' Reflections on Literature through Literary Theories.” English Journal, vol. 93, no. 5, 2004., pp. 42-46.
Grimm, Jacob, and Wilhelm Grimm. “Little Snow White.” http://germanstories.vcu.edu/grimm/schneeeng.html. Accessed 31 January 2017.
Klapcsik, Sándor. "Neil Gaiman's Irony, Liminal Fantasies, and Fairy Tale Adaptations." HJEAS : Hungarian Journal of English and American Studies, vol. 14, no. 2, 2008., pp. 317-334,455,459-460.
Prescott, Tara, and Aaron Drucker. Feminism in the Worlds of Neil Gaiman: Essays on the Comics, Poetry and Prose. McFarland, 2012.
Wollstonecraft, Mary. “A Vindication of the Rights of Woman.” http://www.bartleby.com/144/. Accessed 31 January 2017.
