Once upon a time, fairy tales featuring similar (but different) subjects and storylines circulated alongside each other. For instance, during the nineteenth century, Jeanne-Marie Leprince du Beaumont's "Beauty and the Beast" was nearly as popular as Marie-Catherine d'Aulnoy's "The Ram" and "The Green Serpent." The same is true for Charles Perrault's "Cinderella" and d'Aulnoy's "Finette-Cinders."
Today, though, only "Beauty and the Beast" and "Cinderella" remain widely known. I wonder what happened to the now unheard-of variants, which had more active female protagonists alongside deeper themes.
Could it be the nature of mass-produced movies? These tell stories by imparting images, rather than words, into the minds of audiences. Plus, images create stronger attachments than words.
Before Walt Disney
As Anne E. Duggan explained in her book The Lost Princess, "Cinderella" and "Beauty and the Beast" circulated alongside "Finette-Cinders," "The Ram," and "The Green Serpent" through the nineteenth century. The latter three even took on their own oral twists and inspired stage musicals called pantomimes. For instance, British dramatist James Planché adapted "The Green Serpent" into The Island of the Jewels.
The original oral format of fairy tales gave them multi-generational appeal. After the industrial revolution sent more people away from home and increased print culture, fairy tales moved into the nursery. It took just one more thing to end the circulation of d'Aulnoy's tales.
The Rise of Movie Tales
Multiple fairy tales hit the silver screen in its early days. One of these, a production of the Grimm Brothers' "Snow White," inspired Walt Disney to produce Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. That film immediately became a hit towards the end of the Great Depression, when many turned towards entertainment for escapism.
Over twelve years later, Cinderella produced a similar reaction among postwar audiences. Walt Disney identified with the "rags-to-riches" storyline of Perrault's tale; he did not adapt the Grimm Brothers' version because he found it "too violent."
In between, French filmmaker Jean Cocteau adapted "Beauty and the Beast" into a back-and-white film. Subsequently, Walt Disney wanted to adapt the same tale. Even though Cocteau's version qualifies as more an "art film" than a commercial blockbuster, that may have erased memories of "The Ram" and "The Green Serpent" long before the Disney animated film came into existence.
When Disney's Beauty and the Beast came out in 1991, it cemented the idea that the tale is not complete without a waltzing ballroom dance. Likewise, back in 1950, Cinderella convinced audiences that the story always needs a fairy godmother, pumpkin carriage, and a glass slipper.
Disney's Takeover
Kenneth A. Myers wrote in his book All God's Children and Blue Suede Shoes, "Up until the last decade or two, popular culture has tended to rely on high culture and folk culture for its raw material" (70). Walt Disney took inspiration from folk culture for his works. He even once said, as noted in The Official Walt Disney Quote Book, "Our motion picture productions are designed to augment [literary fairy tales], not to supplant them" (181).
However, as with much of popular culture, the Walt Disney Company eventually adopted the idea that there is nothing "higher" to adapt from. The beginning of animated sequels during the 1990s and the recent chain of live-action remakes (many of which follow a shot-for-shot format) serve as evidence.
That's not all; the ABC television series Once Upon a Time and Disney Channel's Descendants featured characters and elements from Disney fairy tales. Disney Publishing also has multiple series centering on the animated tales, including the young adult Twisted Tale series and the Meant to Be romance novel series of contemporary re-imaginings. As Emily Zemler wrote in Disney Princess: Beyond the Tiara, "... most modern audiences now recognize a Disney version of a fairy tale as the most familiar interpretation" (60).
Of course, some might consider "Cinderella" to be an exception. Besides the 1950 animated film, many people recall the Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway musical and film re-imaginings such as Ever After, Ella Enchanted, and the teen-centric A Cinderella Story. Of course, we cannot forget the 2015 reimagining of the animated film. Yet, the problem is that they all point to one succinct literary tale by Charles Perrault.
The Problem with the "One Iconic Version":
Over the past century, the visual medium of film adapted one tale from each type by appealing to the emotions. The fairy godmother and glass slipper in Cinderella and the ballroom waltz in Beauty and the Beast touched emotions so much they erased memories or even possibilities of any other version.
The "one iconic version" has been made possible by mass-produced film. According to Kenneth A. Myers, such visual mediums "establish feelings of resonance. Images remind us of things. They involve recognition more than cognition" (164). Stated differently, mass-produced fairy tale films barely give viewers any time to think or reflect on other versions.
When fairy tales were dominantly oral and in print, forms that encourage reflection, there was more room for several similar tales to co-exist. Allowing co-circulation of similar stories gives readers access to a variety of story structures and role models, rather than brainwashing them with the one path of "get saved by a prince, marry, and live happily ever after."
Popular culture, with its demand for substantial formulas, brought in the repetitive marriage endings at the end of most of Disney's "princess" films. Even if getting married is not seen as a "remedy" in the overall film, the visual endings have ingrained the idea of life ending after marriage into many girls' minds.
Disney princesses may pass on unrealistic expectations to young girls, but the problem is not the modeling alone, but the visual medium. Charles Perrault's "Cinderella" features a protagonist as passive as Disney's version, but at least the literary format gives more room for thought. Hence, first introducing the child to Perrault's literary version, alongside versions with more active protagonists, is healthier for their mind.
Benefits of Different Versions:
When a child is excessively exposed to one version of a certain fairy tale, it gives them the mindset that stories can only be told in one way. Such a fixed mindset creates unrealistic expectations for their adult life. Exposing children to different versions of a tale type sends the message that there are different ways to tell a story, as there are different lives they can lead. It encourages creative thinking.
I'm not saying this for sure, but this might be a problem underlying the lack of creativity of modern Disney. Many of today's young adults grew up watching VHS tapes of Disney films on repeat, eroding the traditional idea that there are many fairy tales under a similar type or that fairy tales can be told without the "Disney ingredients."
Yes, Disney is retelling their stories via various book series and live-action remakes, but these (if not supplemented by non-Disney versions) reinforce the idea that the "Disney way" of telling these tales is the only right way. Besides, many Disney and/or animation fans critique the minor changes they made as "missing the point."
I am not saying that there's anything inherently wrong with liking Disney fairy tales. Perhaps I am a fan of these stories myself, with the animated Beauty and the Beast being one of my favorites. What I am saying is that, as with anything in popular culture, these stories need to be supplemented with works of higher culture, particularly the written tales with a greater variety of endings. These, of course, include some of the Grimm Brothers' and Hans Christian Andersen tales that inspired the Disney takes.
To counteract the denigrating effects of the "one iconic version," I encourage you to check out different versions of the tales that inspired Disney. A few examples include the Grimm Brothers' Cinderella with the tree and white birds and the Nordic Beauty and the Beast-type tale: East of the Sun, West of the Moon. I also encourage you to read the non-Disney fairy tales, including the Grimms' Snow White and Rose Red with its sisterly themes. Finally, find opportunities to share these tales with the children in your life.
Conclusion:
As the apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 10:23, "'All things are lawful,' but not all things are helpful. 'All things are lawful,' but not all things build up" (Holy Bible, English Standard Version). This easily applies to Disney fairy tales; it is not the most cognitively healthy to watch them too many times. It is much healthier to read a written fairy tale repeatedly. I would rather have my child request a certain picture book on repeat than an over-stimulating movie.
Countering the "one iconic version" mindset, as implied above, will take frequent exposure to non-Disney fairy tales and then passing them to our children. No child (or adult) should only take in Disney tales; instead, they should develop their creative thinking. It will help them write their own fairy tales in a God-honoring way. If this happens, multiple similar tales can circulate alongside each other once again.
Works Referenced:
Duggan, Anne E. The Lost Princess. Reaktion Books, 2023.
Holy Bible. English Standard Version, Crossway, 2016.
Myers, Kenneth A. All God's Children and Blue Suede Shoes. Crossway, 1989, pgs. 68, 70, 164.
The Official Walt Disney Quote Book. Disney Editions, 2023, pg. 181.
Zemler, Emily. Disney Princess: Beyond the Tiara. Disney Enterprises, 2022, pg. 60.
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