Fairy Tales Example Assignment

Each of you will be assigned a specific fairy tale for this assignment. Please see the next blog post in order to see which specific fairy tale you have been assigned.

For this assignment, you are required to bring in a CONTEMPORARY (past twenty years) example of your assigned fairy tale. Bring in a 1-2 page analysis (see description below) as well as a visual example. Double-sided printing is fine.

The day you should bring in your example is the day that fairy tale is to be discussed in class. For example, if you are assigned Little Red Riding Hood, you will bring in your example on the day we discuss LRRH.

The example you bring must be an example OTHER than the ones in the book that you were assigned to read.

You must also select a version other than the Disney version, simply because those examples are too easy to find. You can, however, use Disney-inspired and subverted works--provided that Disney themselves did not make or manufacture them. 

So, a little mermaid figurine you found at the dollar store would be a NO GO, since Disney manufactured it. 

An Ursula-inspired drag queen works, though--provided she's not working for Disney! Make sure to double-check. 

Here's where things get interesting: you can, if you like, select a non-film or a non-book version of the story. A sculpture, a painting, a performance art piece, a comic, a children's toy (again, can't be Disney)--these are all options. You could even bring in a cereal box! 

Make sure that the example you pick is ripe for analysis.

Be prepared to discuss what it tells us about the culture it is from: who is the intended audience (adults or children), what sorts of messages does the object or story send, what cultural values does it demonstrate? How does it differ from the other versions of the story that you read for class? How is it similar? What is critically significant about these differences? In other words, does your version demonstrate that cultural values have changed in some specific way since earlier versions of the tale?

EX: If you were to bring in a contemporary example of Cinderella, you could choose Pretty Woman (the film starring Julia Roberts). Your analysis could discuss how Pretty Woman focuses on class mobility, a key part of all Cinderella stories, but in a particularly contemporary American way. In Pretty Woman, Cinderella is a prostitute, and she marries a wealthy businessman--instead of being a domestic servant who marries a prince. The idea of being "rescued" by a prince based on your inner goodness, which is a common aspect of many contemporary US Cinderella stories is also strongly present in Pretty Woman, unlike older versions of the tale which focus more on Cinderella's animal helpers and personal cunning.

The 1-2 page analysis should be typed, double-spaced, and should follow MLA formatting. You are strongly encouraged to use your class notes on fairy tales in the analysis as well. 

As for your visual example, it can be printed out from the computer. Make sure you take a few notes on the context of the work--I will ask you where it came from, who made it, when they made it, why they made it, what it's about, etc. Please make sure it's printed neatly and is large enough for the class to see.

Lastly, make sure not to spend more than one-third of the page summarizing your example. This is an analysis project, not a summary assignment.