Cinderella Adaptation Assignment

Cinderella Adaptation Assignment

The Questions:

1. Read Charles Perrault’s version of “Cinderella” and the “Cinderella Around the World.”
   

handout and briefly consider the differences in each refined version. Which one would you want to see adapted and why? Which version would most definitely not want to see changed and why?

Cinderella is one of the most well-known fairy tales and has been told, in some form, for thousands of years.  The story includes hundreds, if not thousands of variants, and some versions are drastically different than ones most people are familiar with.  One aspect of the story that never seems to stay indeed constant is Cinderella’s activeness in the plot.  In some stories, she works very hard to get what she wants, in others, she more or less obtains her goals through luck rather than real work or perseverance. Throughout Charles Perrault’s “Cinderella: Or The Little Glass Slipper”, Cyrus Macmillan’s “The Indian Cinderella”, Joeseph Jacob’s “Cap O’ Rushes”, Aleksandr Afanas’ev’s “Vasilisa The Beautiful”, and “Yeh-hsien”, the Chinese Cinderella, the heroine’s role changes in many ways, consequently affecting the story as a whole.  Depending on Cinderella’s role in finding her prince and how active she is in it, the meaning of the tale takes on a different form when comparing its variants.

2. What might you hope your students would learn by reading or seeing various cultural versions of a famous “American” fairytale? Provide at least three goals to strengthen your answer and use examples from both plays you watched to support your answer.

Charles Perrault’s “Cinderella: Or The Little Glass Slipper” is arguably the most known version of the Cinderella story in the modern-day, especially after it was adapted and animated by Disney.  Though this one is likely the most recognised in the modern, it is one of the least progressive, as Cinderella’s role in the story is mostly passive and her happy ending is mainly brought about by other characters and not of her own accord. The moral of the story is, more or less, for girls to be polite, and “know how to behave” as Perrault puts it, and that a girl can never “get on in the world unless [she has] either a godfather or godmother to put [her charm] to work for [her]”.

3. What are the noticeable plot differences between the Perrault fairytale and the script/performances of Cinderella Eats Rice and Beans and A Korean Cinderella? Were the differences engaging for children? How and why?

Perrault makes it clear that a kind heart is really what matters most in getting what one wants, second only by getting help from others to expose those qualities.  He doesn’t say anything about one can do independently to reach their goals, and the idea of perseverance is not at all fleshed out in this story.  Cinderella simply waits for her carriage to come instead of trying to walk to her destination herself.  The entire story plays on the gender norm that girls must only look pretty and act polite to reach a happy ending.  Without her fairy godmother’s help in making her look beautiful, Cinderella could never attend the ball.  And while her stepsisters could make themselves look beautiful, what they lacked in kindness is what shattered their hopes at winning over the prince.  Only after Cinderella became beautiful could she display her kind heart, and only after the stepsisters repented for their wickedness was it “arranged for both of them to be married…to great lords”.

4. What are the noticeable plot differences between The Korean Cinderella storybook version the play you watched? How and why were the differences engaging for children? Though some plot points have stayed reasonably consistent, such as the existence of a prince figure, sometimes a magical helper, and the Cinderella figure typically being in poor conditions, there are significant variations in the vigour and perseverance that each version of the Cinderella demonstrates. While some versions of the character are entirely dependent on luck and the help of others to meet her goals, others rely almost solely on their actions to find their prince. Depending on the role that the Cinderella character plays and whether she is active or passive in it, the story’s meaning almost always reflects the part variations. For such a renowned variant in the modern-day, this tale seems to heavily rely on female gender norms leading a woman to success, and not her actions. The only part of the story where Cinderella has to do anything to reach her goals directly is when she fulfils her godmother’s trivial requests to do things like “go into the garden and pick [her] a pumpkin” and “bring [six lizards] to me”.

5. A Korean Cinderella, how did Kongji develop as a “Cinderella” character throughout the story? What made her development enjoyable in this refined version of the fairytale? And why do you think this story engages children?
   

The Cinderella figure in Kongji develops one of the most active and independent of all the variants.  What sets this story apart from the rest is the lack of any magical elements.  Cap O’ Rushes, the heroine, has no magical helper figure that assists her in finding and marrying the prince, and she also takes a multitude of steps to ensure success in her plans.  Each request is neither challenging nor dependent on Cinderella’s intellect, and yet this is where she is the most active in working to achieve her goals.

6. In Cinderella Eats Rice and Beans, how did Cenicienta develop as a “Cinderella” character throughout the story? What made her development enjoyable in this refined version of the fairytale? And why do you think this story engages children?
   

Often thought of as the original version of the tale, “Yeh-hsien”, or the Chinese Cinderella dates back to the 9^th century.  While Yeh-hsien, the heroine, still has a somewhat passive role in the story, she is a bit more active than the heroine in Charles Perrault’s variant of the tale.  In this variant, the magical helper figure is not a fairy godmother, but a fish that Yeh-hsien raised herself.  The fish depended on her to survive as long as it did, and so after Yeh-hsien’s vicious stepmother killed the fish, it returned the favour, and its bones provided Yeh-hsien with anything she wished for.  Unlike in Perrault’s Cinderella, this heroine had to earn her magical helper figure, and was reasonably active in doing so, even giving her food to feed the fish.  Yeh-hsien didn’t also have to be polite to receive her wishes.

7. How did suddenlies used in the performances represent Kongji and Cenicienta’s character development? Did you think the suddenlies were effective? How and why?

Suddenlies was a bit greedy with them.  It was selflessness and mutual dependence that allowed Yeh-hsien her wishes to come true, and this brings a somewhat different meaning to the story when compared to Perrault’s version.  In “Yeh-hsien”, the moral of the story seems to express that if one does good deeds for the sake of others, they might just return the favour.  This presents a more progressive theme than that of Perrault’s, even though the story was recorded the better part of a thousand years before Perrault’s variant.

Cyrus Macmillan’s “The Indian Cinderella”, differs significantly from many of the other variants in the fact that it doesn’t include a magical helper figure that helps the unnamed heroine find her prince. In the case, the prince figure is a great Indian warrior known as Strong Wind.  Strong Wind, unlike the other princes, does not care for the heroine to show up with riches or beauty, and wanted only to “test the truthfulness of all who sought to win him”.

8. Consider the terms presented in the lecture. What is engaging about The Korean Cinderella in the telling mode (storybook)? What is engaging about A Korean Cinderella in the showing mode (performance)? How about the opposite, what was disengaging? For this and the next question, demonstrate your understanding of the terms presented in the lecture.

Aleksandr Afanas’ev’s “Vasilisa The Beautiful” is a variant that is quite a bit similar to “Yeh-hsien”, what many consider the oldest Cinderella tale.  It also includes a mutual dependence from the Cinderella figure, Vasilisa, to the magical helper, her doll whom her mother blessed.  Vasilisa makes sure the doll is well-fed, and in return, it gives her advice and helps her with her troubles, just like the fish helped Yeh-hsien in her tale.  Vasilisa is very active in her pursuit of happiness compared to variations of the Cinderella character.  Just like in other variations of the story, the main obstacle Vasilisa has to face is her two stepsisters and stepmother.  Rather than just avoiding them, which is what generally happens in many of the variations of the story, Vasilisa faces the obstacle first before proceeding to find her prince.  While she doesn’t necessarily mean to do it, her actions lead to her bringing home a light that would burn her step-family, and “by morning they were all burned to ashes; only Vasilisa remained untouched by the fire”.  Once that obstacle was out of the way, all that was left to do was to get the prince figure, the Tsar, in this case, to notice her.  And this too, she did of her own accord.  Her doll did help a little bit, but it was Vasilisa’s unmatched skill in making linens and cloth is what made the Tsar notice her, which eventually led him to propose, and led Vasilisa to her happy ending.  The meaning of this story sets a different tone from that of the others.  It comprises of getting what you want through perseverance more than just straight luck and expresses a similar moral to that of “Yeh-hsien” which shows that when you help or please others, they will likely reciprocate that kindness.

9. Consider the terms presented in the lecture again for Cinderella Eats Rice and Beans. What is engaging about the play as you read it? What is engaging about the performance in the showing mode? What might have been disengaging?

The Indian Cinderella, like most versions of the character, faced torment by her sisters yet was still “patient and kept her gentle heart and went gladly about her work”.   When the opportunity arose, The Indian Cinderella “with her rags and her burnt face resolved to seek Strong Wind” by herself, without the aid of a magical helper.  And when she approached him, even without beauty, she showed her honesty and good nature, which was enough to win Strong Wind over. Also though the only action she took was taking the trek to seek Strong Wind, what sets her apart from the rest of the stories is that she finds her prince and wins him over independently, which also changes the meaning of the story.  This story shows that if you’re a good-natured person who pushes herself to reach her goals than you just might succeed in meeting them.  The Indian Cinderella still has to depend on Strong Wind to accept her. Always, at least she takes steps to put her in a position to be approved by him, a role that not many other variations of the character fulfil alone.

References

Perrault, Charles. “Cinderella.” 1697. Sleeping Beauty and Other Favourite Tales. Trans. Angela Carter. London: Gollancz, 1982. Rpt. in Folk and Fairy Tales. Ed. Martin Hallett and Barbara Karasek. 4th Ed. Toronto: Broadview Press, 2008. 97-101. Print.

Shih-yüan, Li. “Yeh-hsien.” 850. The Classic Fairy Tales. Ed. Maria Tatar. New York: W.W. Norton, 1999. 107-8. Print. Rpt. of “The Chinese Cinderella Story.” Trans. Arthur Waley. Folk-lore 58 London: The Folklore Society, 1947. 18-20.