Wonderwomen and Fairy Tales

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Wonder woman
Pedagogical agenda of each tale
Fairy tales have a pedagogical significance. They teach moral lessons and, in some cases, inculcate cultural values. These moral values are mostly designed to teach the audience who are mostly children the norms of the society. These literary pieces reflect the norms of the society. However, some of these lessons, and cultural values have become outdated as they were coined in a different era. As society evolves, some their cultural values also evolve and the literature also changes. One of the issues that has continually been broken down is gender equality and the expectations of each gender. In the past, the society was more patriarchal but it has become more equitable for all genders. This has also been reflected in literature through three tales authored by Angela’s the company of wolves, Tanith Lee’s Wolfland and Grimm’s’ little red cap.
Grimm’s paints a docile picture of how women should be. First, she paints the picture that women should do the domestic work. ‘one time, she made her a present, a small, red velvet cap’ (101). Little red cap was given her red cap by her grandmother pointing at women’s work to groom and clothe their children. The story also insinuates that it is the work of the women to take care of the other ailing and weak family members. ‘take this piece of cake and bottle of wine and bring them to your grandmother. She is sick and weak, and this will strengthen her’ (101) little red cap’s mother also baked cakes for her grandmother which paints the picture that women belong to the kitchen. Her mother also explicitly tells her to mind her manners and follow her instructions promptly. Giving her daughter instructions and expecting her to be very obedient to them without asking questions is a reminder that women should be obedient to an authority around them. Responding to her instructions, little red cap says, ‘I’ll do just as you say,’ little red cap promised her mother (102). She sets out to go to her grandmother’s place but along the way she is tricked by a werewolf. When she got to her grandmother’s house, she found that the wolf had gobbled her up and promptly ate her too. Shortly after, they are rescued by a huntsman who heard the wolf snoring loudly. Since the setting of the story is designed to show men as stronger than women, the huntsman rescues the grandmother and little red cap in a very brave way, by using scissors to open up the belly of the wolf rather than shooting it. The overarching lesson is that little red cap learns her lesson that she should always be obedient. The story also paints men through the character of the huntsman as protectors, brave and intelligent than the women. Grimm’s story embodies the natural notion of a woman and what is expected of her in the society.
Carter on the other hand tries to strike a middle ground on the issue of gender equality but gravitates more on empowering women through using their sexuality as a weapon and a shield from men. Throughout the story there are instances where a woman is still treated as a man’s subject or inferior to man. First, when the ...