Cinderella the Grimm Brothers Version Analysis

Cinderella's story as we know it now is mostly based on the simpering 1950 animated Disney film: friendly mice, a fairy godmother who doesn't question her only ward's decision to attend a strange party alone, and a heroine with extraordinarily little feet. The filmmakers are missing a trick: they should have gone back to the fairytale's original source  primarily, the Brothers Grimm  if they wanted to truly draw in theatergoers with a tale of gore, much too many lentils, and bird-armies. After all, Cinderella is portrayed as a helpless maid who is often looked down upon, but in the version of Cinderella by Brothers Grimm, she is the opposite of helpless. Cinderella isn't one to wallow in self-pity. She takes care of everything alone, and given that her practicality encompasses a magical tree, some enchanted birds, and the seeming inability to disappear, she appears to be a competent witch rather than an emotionally neglected kitchen maid. 

Cinderella didn't get lucky and have something pleasant happen to her. She took it upon herself to achieve the desired results she wanted. Along with the struggles that Cinderella has always faced, such as her stepmother and stepsisters, Cinderella grows up without a mother, which arguably shapes her more than any event in her life, including her triumph at the ball. “Studies show that prolonged absence of a mother may completely alter the emotional responses of the child irreversibly, due to changes in the brain chemicals. Children not having a mother near them grow up emotionally immature and detached.” (SB et al.) Cinderella would be expected to be rigid and vulnerable given her upbringing. Cinderella lost her mother, saw her father only occasionally, had cruel stepsisters, and an unloving stepmother. Cinderella always did as she was told, no questions asked, and she never asked for much in return. Cinderella was courageous and kind. This grew stronger as she grew older. Cinderella won all of her victories by herself. Cinderella, you'd think, would have suffered if she didn't have a mother. She never let her trauma get in the way of her goals.

Cinderella is portrayed as a helpless, neglected maid, but she appears to be a proficient witch due to her ability to vanish at any time. We see an example of how fast Cinderella can disappear on page four. "The strange girl had escaped, but I believe that she had climbed up into the pear tree." (Grimm) He sent for the tree to be chopped down but no one was in it. If Cinderella wasn't a witch how could she have disappeared so fast multiple times?  Another instance when Cinderella disappeared was the first night Cinderella met the prince. The prince wanted to take her home to see her family. Cinderella knew this couldn’t happen and snuck out into a dovecote. The prince was in search of her so he sent out an axe and pick and sent for the dovecote to be cut down. But no one was inside. When they got back to the house Cinderella was already there. Cinderella's ability to vanish in the nick of time when she needs it is baffling. Is it a supernatural cause?

Cinderella converses with enchanted trees and animals.When Cinderella wants to go to the ball, we see this. Cinderella was instructed that she would have to first clean up all of the lentils in the ashes. Cinderella sobbed and went to her garden tree, where she called out: “O tame little doves, little turtle doves, and all you little birds in the sky, come help me out. The good ones into your little pot, the bad ones into your little crop.” (Grimm) Two white doves arrived first, followed by small turtle doves. Finally, all of the small birds in the sky arrived to assist. The birds began pecking and gathered all of the nice lentils into a bowl. After only an hour, all of the lentils had been picked up and divided. Cinderella was able to clean up with the help of the birds. If it hadn't been for the birds, Cinderella, the helpless maid, would have had to endure a much longer and more difficult journey.

If Cinderella isn't magic, how do all her mystical objects disappear, and not the shoe? Robert Baum explains “"we are forced to retrace the steps of that perilous slipper, magicked into being with the rest of Cinderella’s fancy outfit. There is no honest explanation for why the slipper remains as testimony – why, if the shoe fits, it drops. moments earlier, we are told, the young woman was gaily dancing in this very shoe; surely it would have fallen off then, But after a night of aerobics indoors, the woman rushes outside and immediately loses a shoe. This mistranslation points us towards understanding the slipper as a prominent signifier, rather than towards seeing some more substantial object: “glass” operates as a red flag, leading us to a fanciful but ultimately unnecessary correction of an image. Glass breaks, it is true (although in the story it does not, at least overtly).”(71, 2000) After reading this we understand that Cinderella's shoe is the only thing that doesn't disappear. 

Cinderella takes care of everything by herself. Cinderella, rather than simply asking for help, requests that the birds send her something. By doing so, she is requesting something wonderful that will most likely help her escape her unfortunate predicament. This is an example of an intelligent and active Cinderella figure who, rather than remaining helpless, seeks to help herself. Cinderella desperately wanted to go to the ball. To do this she needed to clean two bowlfuls of lentils. After successfully doing so Cinderella was sure she would be able to go but her stepmother said she had no clothes to wear. After that, Cinderella took it upon herself to find a dress. So, Cinderella went to the hazel tree and called. “Shake your branches, little tree, toss gold and silver down to me.” (Grimm)  After that, the birds tossed down a dress of gold and silver, with slippers embroidered with silk and silver. Cinderella then began to go alone to the ball. ​​

How was Cinderella able to come completely undisturbed and flawless though she was already distraught and unprepared for the ball? William R.S. Ralston does an excellent job of describing the story. He said, “ That is to say, she is reduced to a state of degradation and squalor, and is forced to occupy a servile position, frequently connected in some way with the hearth and its ashes. From this, however, she emerges on certain festive occasions as a temporarily brilliant being, always returning to her obscure position, until at last she is recognised; after which she remains permanently brilliant, her apparently destined period of eclipse having been brought to a close by her recognition, which is accomplished by the aid of her lost shoe or slipper.” (Friedman) Cinderella was distraught, but once she was adequately equipped, she left on her own for the ball. Cinderella always manages to get away on her own. Cinderella is always in contact with wildlife and vegetation. Cinderella never asked for aid during the storyline. 

In the end, I think Cinderella is a witch because,  She handles everything on her own, and considering that her wisdom includes a magical tree, enchanted birds, and the seeming inability to vanish, she appears to be a functional witch rather than an emotionally neglected kitchen maid. Cinderella has vanished three times with little to no time left. After cleaning up two bowls of lentils in ashes that her stepmother placed out for her, we witness her prepare an entirely new attire for the ball. Finally, Cinderella completes all of these duties nearly completely on her own. Cinderella deserves more credit for the circumstances that led to her accomplishments. Cinderella had already dealt with the loss of her mother, horribly cruel sisters, and an unruly stepmother. Cinderella perseveres and accomplishes everything on her own. Cinderella went to the ball despite being told she couldn't because she didn't have the proper attire or wasn't clean enough. There was indeed nothing holding Cinderella back. Cinderella is a formidable character.

Works Cited. 

Baum, Rob. , 1 June 2011, Baum, Rob. 2000, http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.467.2767&rep=rep1&type=pdf#page=73. Accessed 5 Oct. 2021.

Friedman, Kristen. “Cinderella Tales and Their Significance.”, 2010, https://scholarsarchive.library.albany.edu/honorscollege_anthro/1/.

Grimm, Jacob and Wilhelm. “Cinderella.” , 11 June 1812, https://sites.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm021.html.

SB, Dr. Preet Pal, et al. “Psychological Effects of Growing up without a Mother.” , 25 Feb. 2021, https://womanjunction.com/growing-up-without-mother/.