Since the beginning of literature, women have been depicted as devious individuals. As a result, women put use to this stereotype to get what they want. This is proven, especially in medieval literature. Examples of this are shown in works like “Macbeth,” * Sir Gawain and the Green Knight,” and “The Canterbury Tales”.
Cinderella Stereotypes If you have read the Grimm version of Cinderella, you may have noticed that there are a couple of stereotypes in it. According to Dictionary.com, a stereotype is, "a simplified and standardized conception or image invested with special meaning and held in common by members of a group". For example, in the Grimm version book of Cinderella, it says, "'No, Cinderella, thou hast no clothes and thou canst not dance; thou wouldst only be laughed at.'
"Little Briar Rose," a famous fairy tale collected by the Grimm brothers, can be reconstructed through the lens of feminist literary theory to investigate and challenge established gender roles and expectations. This analysis looks at how femininity is portrayed in the story, the function of agency and power in the story, and the possibility of subversion and empowerment for female characters. Gender stereotypes that get developed in typical fairy tales should be questioned and challenged, according to feminist literary theory. In the beginning, "Little Briar Rose" portrays Briar Rose as a weak female character who suffers from the curse of sleep. She represents the stereotype of a defenceless princess in need of rescue with no visible effort.
The symbols in Golding’s book “Lord of the Flies” represent savagery. He uses the symbols to show different ways the boys act like savages. Another way he uses symbolism is to foreshadow what will happen in the book. The first symbol in the book “Lord of the Flies” is the blood that the boys put on their faces to represent that they are a part of the tribe.
Throughout the course of human history, literary works of various styles and genres across multiple cultures have had varying depictions of both genders. A literary work’s depiction of gender, particularly females, is generally dependent on the culture and/or society its author hail from as well as other factors such as regional and political ones. Despite such differences, literary works can share similarities in the depiction of genders. Antigone and The Canterbury Tales are prime examples of such types of literary works. Despite that nearly two millennia past between the publication of the two-respective works, the two have similar as well as contrasting portrayals of women.
Supernatural is a TV show that flies under the radar, but still manages to get by due to great character and story development. We could say that it was a cult show if it wasn’t for Netflix. I started watching Supernatural back in August of 2016 and I was impressed how good it was for a low budget TV show. Although, after every season I began to realize that this show has a bunch of hidden or exposed stereotypes. The first stereotype is that Supernatural is gender bias.
These stereotypes have always existed but have been passed down to us, precisely, by these stories. They target the most impressionable part of society, children. The purpose of these tales is to teach children how to behave and in which social norms they must fit into. “Fairy tales are a child's world of imagination and pleasure, but
In most literature works, the stereotypical views of men and women have always been clear to the audience; especially on the occasions where the events of the certain time period played a drastic role in the tale, book or play. Epic is a genre of literature that consumes readers with a warrior, contending the enemy while that particular hero unites the multiple stories within the poem. Beowulf is a tale possessing three diverse adventures based on many stereotypical masculine qualities, such as violence, revenge, feats of power and execution of mercy; this story is a male driven plot. This epic demonstrates the stereotypical view of women as helpless and insecure beings under the dominance of men. Warrior culture is one of the main themes
Like our culture, stereotypes played a major role in this fairy tale. We see this comparison throughout the film as the characters undergo transformations, just as we do throughout life. For instance, Mrs. Potts is heartening, reassuring, and warm just like a good cup of tea should be. However sometimes in life going through these changes within our culture is a bad thing and it takes time for us to see that just like the countdown pertaining to the enchanted rose in the tale. There is also outside complications that can influence our views on stereotypes as well.
It treats women poorly to cause them to comply with gender expectations. Not only do women have to face pressures of conformity in real life, but they also face intimidation in fairytales. Grimm’s Snow White and Cinderella perpetuate society’s notion that a woman is the inferior being whose value lies not only in her beauty but also in her abilities to perform domestic work and satisfy men. Grimm uses the characters of Cinderella and Snow White to perpetuate the idea that women should lead quietly domestic lives. In Cinderella, Cinderella spent most of her time in a kitchen.
Currently in the United States less than one percent of domestic abuse is reported to police. Nevertheless, about thirty five percent of the American population will endure such cruelties. There is often a separation between public and private matters pertaining to relationships for fear of judgment. Gender stereotypes have the ability to inflict tremendous pressure upon a person’s reaction to mistreatment for there is emotional, physical, sexual and financial abuse. Currently in the media a relevant discussion about sexual abuse in the workplace has surged a mass discussion.
Furthermore, another aspect worth considering is the impact the depiction of such hostile behavior in fairy tales has on female readers. Girls most certainly notice (whether they do it consciously or subconsciously) that fairy tales glorify and reward beauty (Lieberman 385). When they identify with the beauties, girls tend to become suspicious of their less beautiful peers; and in case they identify with the plainer characters,
Beowulf is an excellent piece with a lot for the readers to desire and relate to while reading. This analysis explores different escapades while examining the role of women in the literature. One thing to point out is that female characters have always received very thin attention in different pieces of literature, something that has always made many people think that their role is meager. Every piece of literature has an important message to pass across to its intended audiences. Indeed, this study seeks to demystify the male-centric mindset to promote the visibility of women in the contemporary interpretation of literary works demonstrating that women play a greater role in the literature despite the proximity given to male protagonist.
Numerous schools of criticisms have attempted to find the meaning behind most of our favorite childhood stories. From Marxist who pursue the idea of social classes portrayed in literary works, to Psychoanalysts who depict the sexual tensions and desires that are subconsciously embedded behind characters’ motives and actions, to Historicists who try to show the preservation of tradition in stories, many different concepts exist for each fairy tale. The Feminist school of criticism greatly focuses on unveiling the patriarchal system and sexist roles that are displayed in stories, and more specifically, fairytales. Four versions of the well-known fairytale of The Little Mermaid will be compared and discussed while focusing on many distinctive
“Beauty and the Beast” is an original fairy tale and over time have incorporated social, religious and cultural themes. An analysis of the Disney version of “Beauty and the Beast” exemplifies the stereotypes of the more subtle forms of social manipulation that fairytales undergo to employ. The question of whether these stories are made for entertainment or send a much larger picture, depicting to children their gender roles within a society. In this paper gender roles will be represented showing the typical female and male character within a society. Historian Sylvia D. Hoffert defines a gender ideal as “the cluster of characteristics, behavior patterns, and values that members of a group think a man or a woman should have, a set of cultural expectations.”
