Hansel and Gretel by the Grimm Brothers Analysis Essay

Hansel and Gretel is a classic short story that has been rewritten over hundreds of years. Although there are many different versions, all of the classic ones include children being lost or abandoned in the woods. After wandering around, they find a house in the woods made of sweets. While it’s well-known children are attracted to sweets, what awaited them would be anything other than sweet. The cannibalistic witch living inside of this sweet house fattens the children up and prepares to throw them in the oven. Gretel outsmarts the witch and throws her in the oven, burning the witch alive. Hansel and Gretel search the house, finding gold and jewelry. The siblings return home to their father and they live “happily ever after.” 

While the point may come across quite clearly, Hansel and Gretel was made to teach children to not trust everyone, because when things get bad, they will leave. During the time it was written, abandonment due to poverty was extremely popular, therefore inspiring the tragic backstory of Hansel and Gretel. Mothers were known to eat their children during this time, around 14th-century Europe. Although it’s debatable whether or not the story worked, it surely kept children out of strange homes in the woods. 

The point is made in a way that it’s easy to understand, but it’s only the tip of the iceberg. Children’s stories have been used to bring forth deeper issues for many years. For example, the well-known and loved Christmas tale “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” by Dr. Suess happens to be a direct aim at the materialism in our world. Hansel and Gretel gives the idea that our world that looks so sweet, happens to hold some of the biggest turpitude we know. 

In spite of the fact that they are just children, their parents leave them out in the woods assuming they can provide for themselves. In “Hansel and Gretel” by Jacob and Willhelm Grimm (pp. 79-87) the woodcutter’s wife states “They will not find their way back home, and we will be rid of them." While they were supposed to care for their children, when things became unbearable, they left them. Furthermore proving that the story shows that when times get tough, no one will hesitate to leave. 

Although the children’s real mother is dead, they have their stepmother who isn’t very nurturing or caring towards the children. It’s no surprise that when things got dreadful she attempted to get rid of them, seeing as she never cared for them in the first place. Their father did not happen to have such an easy decision to leave his children. In Hansel and Gretel by Jacob and Willhelm Grimm (pp. 79-87) their father states “No, woman," said the man. "I will not do that. How could I bring myself to abandon my own children alone in the woods? Wild animals would soon come and tear them to pieces." 

Despite the fact that it may have taken more convincing for their father to leave them, their father still discarded them in a matter of days. A hard decision or not, the wrong choice was made. It did not matter that those children were his own flesh and blood, he still left them. The children became distraught, not entirely piecing together what was happening. In Hansel and Gretel by Jacob and Willhelm Grimm (pp. 79-87) the authors state “When they finally awoke, it was dark at night. Gretel began to cry and said, "How will we get out of the woods?" The children had not ever been put into a situation resembling this, leaving them exasperated. 

Their parents were fully aware that they may have an extensive chance of being eaten by animals. “Wild animals would soon come and tear them to pieces." (Grimm 79-87) Their parents did not care for them, expressing that anyone can leave you, no matter the circumstances.