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Author
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Comment
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sonia789
Registered User
(4/1/02 2:35:35 pm)
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Re: Rapunzel
Apologies for the delay in replying to your message Greg, I've had one of those life-altering weeks.
What treatment did you give the stepmother in your Bluebeard novel? Tell me more about this novel. I'm intrigued.
Sonia.
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jane yolen
Unregistered User
(4/1/02 4:34:34 pm)
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witch
Sonia--the short version (the long version is in our book MIRROR, MIRROR: 40 Folktales for Motrhers and Daughters to Share) is that she identified with the "witch" who raised a child who was given away by her mother for a pot of onions. As a single mom, she took care of the child's every need and the first boy who made eyes at the girl got her pregnant. The girl left, and refused to ever see her adoptive mom again. A tragedy, really.
Jane
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Gregor9
Registered User
(4/2/02 9:31:34 am)
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Step-mother
Sonia,
I don't want to say too much, give too much away. Suffice to say that from discussions on the board here, other readings, and a talk with Maureen McHugh, a friend and sf writer who is herself a step-mom, I reconsidered the place of the step-mother in the tale and tried to invoke more depth of character from someone who began life as a fairy tale trope.
Greg
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sonia789
Registered User
(4/2/02 11:42:07 am)
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Re: Step-mother
No probs Greg, thanks for your input anyway.
Sonia.
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sonia789
Registered User
(4/2/02 11:45:41 am)
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Re: witch
Jane, I'll reply properly to your message when I get the chance. Thanks for replying and talk to you soon.
Sonia.
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Laura
Registered User
(4/2/02 8:19:35 pm)
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No problem
You're quite welcome, Sonia. Finding new leads, networking, and sharing are some of the greatest joys of this board. I'm just glad to have been able to hook you up. :-)
Laura S.
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sonia789
Registered User
(4/8/02 12:53:24 pm)
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Re: witch
Jane, apologies for the delay in replying. That really is a tragedy, but I'm glad you you told me this because I tended to view the fairy tale one-dimensionally before.
I've just been reading your poem 'Knives' and wanted to ask you, as with Greg beforehand, what made you decide to give this treatment to the story of Cinderella? The poem is really fascinating: I read the Grimms' version of Cinderella a few months back and didn't realise that the mother made her daughters cut their feet so that they would fit into the slipper! Although I do remember watching a fairly recent adaptation of Cinderella - Cinderella 2000 - I think, where Kathleen Turner plays the mother and tells her daughters that they have to lose a toe in order to fit into the slipper. But I honestly didn't know about this detail in the fairy tale until a few months back!
Thanks in advance,
Sonia.
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Jane Yolen
Unregistered User
(4/8/02 3:36:05 pm)
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Knives
I honestly don't remember WHY I wrote "Knives", but years ago I wrote an essay about "Cinderella" variants, and the idea of the forced sacrifice of the sisters' toes--such a travesty on the idea of sacrifice inherent in ruling--always stuck with me.
Jane
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Laura
McCaffrey
Registered User
(4/9/02 5:42:15 am)
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Re. Knives
Sonia,
You'll find the version with the mutilated feet in the Grimms Brothers collections..
Laura Mc
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sonia789
Registered User
(4/9/02 12:05:50 pm)
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Re: Knives
Thanks Jane, that's interesting.
Sonia.
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sonia789
Registered User
(4/9/02 12:08:49 pm)
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Re: Re. Knives
Thanks for the tip Laura. I'm glad to say I have the Grimms' collection now and have read the version with the mutilated feet: it was a real eye-opener!
Sonia.
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