Photo Friday #75

I got this really pretty Grimm’s fairy tale book a few years ago as a birthday present. For most of this time, it served a decorative purpose. Recently, out of boredom or maybe curiosity, I started reading some of the stories inside. There were the obvious ones: Cinderella, Rumplestiltskin, Sleeping Beauty. There were also less obvious ones, with many of them featuring Hans in the title for some reason. Anyway, one thing I noticed while reading these stories was how they portrayed women. I know these were written in the 19th century for children, but I can’t help but scoff at the values they promote. In these tales, women with magic are viewed as evil, mischievous, and greedy. In order to be considered a ‘’good woman,'’ you need to be quiet, patient, and loving. I’m not going to give you a literary analysis on this Photo Friday, but it's just something to think about. Generations were raised on stories just like this. I’m glad women in fiction nowadays are not limited to the witch, wife, or virgin archetypes, but I still think society struggles seeing women in power.