Revising Strong Heroines, Essay Example

Fairy tales are often told to entertain children and provide them with a sense of enchantment.  However, their deeper meaning is brought into question.  The heroines of the fairy tales are often portrayed as passive and vulnerable.  They fall into a terrible plight, usually due to their divine beauty, and are only rescued by a handsome prince.  This message is disturbing because it teaches young girls that they are not able to care for themselves.  In Carter’s revisions, the heroines still have to endure difficult situations, but they take an active role and are usually able to save themselves.

In classic fairy tales, the heroines were pure and virginal.  Carter’s stories have a twist.  The heroines are more aggressive and sexual; she makes Sleeping Beauty into a vampire.  In the retelling of the Erl-King, Carter’s heroine plays an active role, where she pursues the villain, falls in love, and subsequently kills him.  In Carter’s revision of Beauty and the Beast, her Beauty makes the conscious choice to return to the Beast and the two fall in love.  However, in her revision, Beauty strips off her clothes and turns into a beast herself.

Sex and violence seem to go “hand-in-hand” in Carter’s revisions.  She is honest about the fact that sex can be potentially scary for women, and that it has historically been used as a punishment or means of ownership.  However, the women in Carter’s stories are victorious, and not afraid to fight.  Carter’s heroines are in many ways more positive role models for young girls; instead of being the classic “object of affection,” it shows young women that they can be self-sufficient in the face of adversity.