Almost every country has a different version of the Cinderella story. Just as each country has its own cultural values, each produces its own unique version of the Cinderella story. Cultural values are the core principles and ideals upon which the entire community exists. It may vary based on the author 's belief, community, religion, social institutions, region, and the time period. Cultural values are often represented in popular stories, such as Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister and Aschenputtel. Cinderella is known as a girl who is hounded by her stepmother and stepsisters after losing her parents, then overcomes hardship by marrying a prince with the help of a fairy godmother. Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister is a novel written by Gregory Maguire, which takes place in the Netherlands. Contrastingly, Aschenputtel is a German tale written by the Brothers Grimm after Germany recovered from the Thirty Years War. With these distinct backgrounds, the cultural values in each novel differ, but the morals the authors share have never changed. Each version provides a unique take on topics such as humility, gender roles, and the relativity of beauty, but both deliver the universal moral that pure kindness is rewarded. While Aschenputtel shows the importance of humility, this was not the case in Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister. The Brothers collected tales from all of their acquaintances. Indeed, with these multicultural influences, their stories demonstrate a plain Germanic