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Blake Rickard
Foundations of Writing
Dr. Delsandro
2/18/2013
More than just a pretty face
Once upon a time there was a queen, who was without child. She sat outside one winter
morning admiring the snow and wished to herself that she could have a daughter as beautiful and
fair as the snow. Soon after she found out she was pregnant, but was unable to survive child
birth. The king named his new beautiful daughter snow white. The king did not want to raise his
daughter alone so he remarried. The new queen was beautiful but only skin deep. She was rude
and selfish and these characteristics tended to rub off on Snow White.
The queen was known all around as the most beautiful woman in the land, a title that she
held very dear. To test this she consulted with a magical mirror that could tell her only the truth.
Though she was beautiful, the queen was growing older and at the same time Snow White was
becoming more of a woman. One day the queen asked her typical question to the mirror but
received a startling reply. The mirror told her that though she was beautiful Snow White was the
most beautiful in the land. This filled the queen with rage and envy. She called for a huntsman
and told him to take the child far away, kill her, and return with her lungs and liver as proof.
The huntsman follows the queen’s orders and takes her to the forest but along the way Snow
White's attitude makes her hard to be around. The hunter becomes so annoyed that he cannot go
on any farther and leaves Snow White alone in the woods. On his way back the hunter realizes
he does not have the organs the queen requested him to bring so he kills a pig from his farm and
brings its organs to her instead.
Wandering lost in the Forrest; Snow White comes upon a small house. She knocks on the
door but no one answers so she decides to let herself in. Inside she finds that everything is little,
little chairs, little tables, and little beds. Also she notices that there is seven of everything. After
being lost for so long she finds herself extremely hungry so she helps herself to all the food she
can eat. After eating her fill and leaving a mess she walks into a bedroom and goes to sleep.
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Later that night the owners of the house came home to find their house a mess and their food
missing. Seven dwarves lived together in the small house and worked in the mountains close by
mining for minerals. They suspected a bear to be the culprit until the one dwarf stumbled upon
the girl sleeping in his bed.
The dwarves were very unhappy so they immediately woke up the stranger. On being
awoken so suddenly she was not happy and began arguing with the dwarves. The dwarves then
left the room to talk about what they should do with the girl. Most of them wanted to kick her
out, but the oldest dwarf suggested that they allow her to work with them in the mines in
exchange for the food she ate and the mess she made. She was at first against it, but seeing as she
had no other place to stay she accepted.
Back at the castle all was well. The queen believed the deed had been done, but she
wanted to hear for herself that Snow White was no more. So she asked her magic mirror once
again who the most beautiful woman in the land was. The mirror responded once again telling
her that Snow White was the most beautiful woman in the land and that she now lived with the
seven dwarves.
The queen couldn't live happily knowing she was the second most beautiful woman in the
land so she knew she had to do something about it. This time she knew she had to take it into her
own hands. She then went into a secret chamber that no one else knew about and began
formulating a plan. She decided poison would be the most efficient way to kill the girl, so she put
a spell on an apple. The spell was so powerful it only required one bite to be lethal. She then
dressed up to look like an innocent old woman to trick the princess.
She had to travel a far distance to make it to the mountain where the dwarves lived. When
she reached the house she could hear dwarves mining up the hill. She then approached the mine
and saw Snow White taking a break from her work. The queen could tell she was exhausted so
she knew now was her best bet. Just as she had hoped, Snow White did not recognize her as she
approached. "You look awfully tired dear, why don't you take a break. I've got some fresh apples
to help you relax." She said as sweetly as she could muster. Seeing no harm in taking a break,
Snow White accepted the offer and sank her teeth into the apple. Just as she did she collapsed to
the ground, breathless.
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The dwarves became irritated when they started to realize Snow White wasn't doing her
job. They went to find her only to come upon her body motionless on the ground. They searched
all around for the cause to her end but came up with nothing. They put her body in a coffin and
mourned her death for three days. One the third day her beauty remained untouched, it almost
seemed as if she were still alive. They realized they could not bury her, so instead they created a
glass cover for the top. They then carried her to the top of the mountain they worked on and took
turns keeping watch over her.
One day a prince came upon the casket and spoke to the dwarf on duty, exclaiming that
she was so beautiful that he must buy her from the. The dwarves talked it over but were reluctant
to sell her. The prince would not take no for an answer though and continued to beg. The
dwarves felt sorry for the man, and decided that maybe it was for the best for the prince to have
her. While carrying the coffin away one of the servants stumbles and drops his end. This sudden
jolt lunges the princess forward expelling the apple from her throat and bringing her back to life.
The prince is filled with joy seeing her beauty come to life. He rushes to her side and introduces
himself, but she takes little notice to what he says. He goes on to explain how he could not
escape her beauty even when she was dead. Her response is one of little surprise, as if it was
something expected. The more the prince talks to her the more he realizes her beauty is only skin
deep and that her personality doesn't match. Counting his losses the prince says his goodbyes to
the dwarves and princess and returns to his journey, searching for love elsewhere.
The dwarves were in shock when they saw Snow White move and speak as if nothing had
happened. They were so overwhelmed with joy that they decided to forgive Snow Whites dept
and let her leave. She was very thankful but declined the offer. Snow White had been working
with the dwarves for long enough that she began to become very close with each of them. She
was also very proud of the work she had been accomplishing with them. It caused her a sense of
pride that she was not used to back at the kingdom. So things continued as they were before, and
Snow White found herself to be very happy in the mountains with her new friends. She worked
hard each day and then returned to her home content and exhausted each night. This sense of
achievement gave her more pleasure than she ever received from fancy dresses, handsome men,
or the riches she was accustomed to. To this day she's still working with those seven dwarves, on
that same mountain, living happily ever after.
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Blake Rickard
Foundations of Writing
Dr. Delsandro
2/25/2013
What's the Difference Anyways?
Though a handsome prince, a damsel in distress, and a happy ending may seem like three
concepts that are the start to a common fairy tale, is it possible that they aren't as innocent as they
seem? These associations we commonly make towards characters in fairy tales often lead to
subconscious following of different social scripts. What if the princess saved the prince, or if
marriage didn't always lead to a "happily ever after"? Changes such as these bring a whole new
light on fairy tales; some might even have trouble recognizing them as such afterwards. For these
reasons I have chosen to adapt Snow White in a way that breaks the usual gender roles.
In a typical fairy tale what is a princess if she is not beautiful? Her beauty is a symbol for
her youth, purity, and good nature. Likewise if a character is evil they are often seen as
unattractive. This is not the case in my remake of Snow White. Snow White may be beautiful but
her attitude is far from it. This change in personality has a dramatic effect on the chain of events
to follow.
In the original Snow White it was her beauty that convinced the hunter to set her free.
This is an expectable result to a fairy tale, once again beauty saves the day above all else. On the
other hand, in my remake it is her rudeness that drives the hunter to desert her in the woods
instead of killing her. Though it has the same result, Snow White being trapped in the woods, it
stems from a completely different quality she possessed.
Snow White’s bad attitude comes into play again shortly after when she comes upon a
house in the middle of nowhere. In the original she entered the house and was careful in taking
too much from each plate she ate from, a decision one would expect based on her qualities. A
princess is expected to be dainty and not eat much, but the Snow White in my story eats all of the
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food she can find, makes a huge mess, and then leaves it all for the owners to find when they
return.
When the dwarves arrive home they find Snow White asleep in one of their beds. In the
original her beauty keeps them from waking her, an action that is weird considering she is a
stranger. They're reaction is quite different when they come home to a wrecked house in my
retelling. She is instantly woken and some of the dwarves want to kick her out.
House chores such as cooking and cleaning are often given to the female characters in
fairy tales, which is also the case in Snow White. In return for living with the dwarves all she has
to do is cook and clean the house. My story takes a different path when the dwarves ask her to
work in their mines instead. This breaks traditional gender roles because she isn’t being
discriminated against for being a woman. She is seen as being able to do the same work as a
man.
We all know how fairy takes end, the prince and princess get married and they live
happily ever after. Though we all know the story do we really know what this is saying?
Basically what this means is that fairy tales consider the man’s mission is to save the princess,
without him she is trapped. Likewise the woman's job is simply to be saved and get
married.(DuPlessis, 6) She doesn't fall in love with a man; she just waits for whoever completes
some arduous task. Nor does the man fall in love with the princess because of her personality, it
is almost always because if her beauty.
So what happens when the prince saves the princess and then realizes he doesn't actually
love her? This is the case in my story. When the prince first sees Snow White he falls in love
based on her beauty. After a lucky chain of events she is resuscitated and the prince gets to
actually meet the woman he loves. Normally at this point in the story they run off and get
married, but in this story the prince sees more than just beauty. Snow White's attitude over
shadows her beauty and it becomes apparent that she is not what the prince expected. For once
the prince has too much depth to marry a princess based solely on beauty.
Since marriage wasn't her way of reaching happiness Snow White is forced to find
another route. Going against what is traditional; Snow White finds happiness in doing her job
instead of in marriage. The sense of fulfillment she gets in doing her job completes her just as a
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husband would typically in a fairy tale. She proves that not only is she independent but also that
she isn't a stereotypical frail princess.
Is the conclusion too much for this story to still be considered a fairy tale? Are the morals
any less relevant when the story doesn't end as usual? I believe not. If anything the morals are
more beneficial to children because of the lack of bias. A prince who cares about the personality
of a woman is a much better role model than one in search of solely beauty. In the same respect,
a princess who finds happiness in hard labor and dedication shows young women that there are
no boundaries between themselves and men.
So a prince can think with his heart instead of his eyes, a princess can find happiness
alone, and beauty is only skin deep. It is simple changes like these that make us realize the
second side to fairy tales. Though they teach children morals they also instill ideas of what they
are supposed to do. Many of which are not accurate anymore. That is why I believe the changes I
have made lead the story to be more beneficial to readers. It breaks the boundaries between men
and women and promotes a more equal view.
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Works Cited
Grimm, Brothers. Snow White. Tartar, Maria, ed. The Classic Fairy Tales. New York, W. W
Norton & Company Inc., 1999.
DuPlessis, Rachel Blau. "Endings and Contradictions." Writing beyond the Ending: Narrative
Strategies of Twentieth-century Women Writers. Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1985. 1-19.
Print.