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The Little Red Riding Hood By Jacob And Wilhelm Grimm

Decent Essays

Charles Perrault and Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm were the authors that shaped “The Little Red Riding Hood” into what we know in modern literature. Angela Carter, on the other hand, flipped the original message made by both authors upside down. Each of the three authors uses one common theme of trusting strangers too much is dangerous. However, Carter’s version challenges that theme by showing the wolves having human moments. And these themes can be explained by the culture that was written in. However, it’s also important to understand each of the story’s messages to the audience—children or adults. Depending on the authors, the story of “Little Red Riding Hood” has the main protagonist either dying or surviving to prove the authors’ messages …show more content…

Perrault helped establish the theme that would be used whenever some author reimagines the “Little Red Riding Hood.” The concept of childhood didn’t exist back then because education was considered to be a waste of time after working to survive. Perrault makes it clear in the first paragraph where he describes the mother being “excessively fond” of her daughter while the grandmother “doted on her still more” (618). Little Red Riding Hood’s family spoiled her by being dishonest about the horrors of our world. As a result, the gullibleness of the Little Red Riding Hood led her to get eaten by the wolf because she wasn’t able to realize that the wolf was wearing the grandmother’s nightclothes. Unfortunately for Little Red Riding Hood, she fell for the charming wolf and it costed her and her grandmother’s lives. It goes well with the theme since it tells the readers that people, especially young girls and women, should never trust the “wolves” who can be “charming, quiet, polite, unassuming, complacent, and sweet” (620). And that children should always question everything even their own parents for suspicious activities before it is too late. Perrault’s theme also relates to the period, where it was published in, because it was written for women in courts so they can look out for any charming man, who

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