Fairy tales are fictional pieces of literature designed to paint a picture of an idealized life, but is that the only form a fairy tale can take? A Secret Sorrow by Karen van der Zee and “A Sorrowful Woman” by Gail Godwin are both fairy tales in their own unique manner, but they represent a very different way of portraying these fictional tales. A Secret Sorrow represents the typical fairy tale format known so well by the modern world, the ideal ending, while “A Sorrowful Woman” is a fairy tale gone awry. These stories are different in the way they portray fairy tales, how the female protagonist depicted and how partner in each story reacts to the main conflict. A Secret Sorrow and “A Sorrowful Woman” are both fairy tales, but their approach …show more content…
Kai, in A Secret Sorrow has the characteristic of a typical prince, handsome, dominant, and chivalrous. Faye means everything to him and he is not afraid to express himself in that way and that can be seen from his confession to her, “”You’re part of me, Faye. Part of my life”” (van der Zee 32). When Faye falls into the depression of finding out she is unable to bear children on her own, he brings her out of it with his commanding nature. He lets her know that they will be able to deal with this together and even Faye thought that he would hate her for her inability to bear his children she still knew that, “...Kai would find her, no matter what” (van der Zee 33). The husband in “A Sorrowful Woman” is similar to Kai in one way, in the way he loves his wife. When he was trying to make her feel better and take her out on a data he compliment her, “”You look...like a cloistered queen,” he said once, his voice breaking curiously” (Godwin 40). The husband obviously loves his wife then though what he said is not usually said in everyday dialogue, the sincerity of his thoughts and feelings are shown. It is true love, and a love that runs deep. However, the husband in “A Sorrowful Woman” did not have the dominance strong enough to pull his beloved from depression like Kai did in A Secret Sorrow. The husband in “A Sorrowful Woman” could only be described as “understanding” (Godwin 40). He always replies with “”Let me think. I’ll think of something,”” and he “With great care rearranged his life” (Godwin 40). Instead of sweeping his beloved out of her depression like Kai did in A Secret Sorrow the husband in “A Sorrowful Woman” only helped his wife mask her pain and gave her space to get better which only made her pain and depression deeper. It gave the wife time to wallow in her sickness rather than really making her any better. Although both Kai and