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Sweet a talking wolf! Hang on i’ll put you on You Tube... © sandra van doorn |
It’s no secret that many tales have evolved into pretty fairy tales from far sinister and darker places; as i prepare to illustrate 3 passages from the Little Red Riding Hood (LRRH) i am re-visiting the original world of Charles Perrault’s Petit Chaperon Rouge and the Grimm Brothers’ Rotkäppchen...
Besides the overt warning about talking to strangers, there are many interpretations of the LRRH tale; Most have viewed the story as a warning against children predators;
A 17th century version of it (in King Louis XIV extravagant and outrageous court) proclaims it as a harsh morality tale warning women of the advances of men.
The tale is also seen as a life transition from girlhood into womanhood. On a more simple note, it is also suggested that the story is a genuine warning about dangerous wolfs at the time it was first written.
From country to country the ending changes and evolves over time: In one, the LRRH is eaten but freed - along with her grandmother - by a hunter who cuts open the wolf’s belly.
In another version, LRRH tricks the wolf to escape to safety by performing a striptease (and no, that was not in France!) whereas in yet another she tricks the wolf by telling him she desperately needs to use the bathroom... Luck comes to the rescue in a version where a hunter kills the wolf purely for his skin - rescuing the grandmother and the child just on time;
As time goes by, the grandma and the little girl get smarter by anticipating the wolf intentions and luring him to sausages and other food before drowning him.
And i wonder - how fun would it be if (in yet another version) The Little Red Riding Hood became the wolf’s worth nightmare? i’d love to write that one :)
With so much information, I am hoping i’ll come up with illustrations with a fresh feel...
With so much information, I am hoping i’ll come up with illustrations with a fresh feel...
If you want to know more about fairy tales and their other sides this is a great read (plus it’s packed with wonderful illustrations):
Dear Sandra,
ReplyDeleteI am fascinated by fairy tales and even more so about Charles Perrault and Louis XIV's court - my Phd thesis focuses on the performing arts at the end of the 17th century in Versailles.
Consequently I find your post very interesting indeed. You should go visit Gallica online and look at moralising treatises for women of the 17th century. The language men use to discourse with women is violent and insulting.
I like your illustration, it made me laugh. Have you ever red Women who run with the wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés? I like those stories and interpretations a lot.
ReplyDeletefairy tales. what would we do without hem? ... but the illistrated ones, where always the best ; )
ReplyDeletei adore fairtales, their origins, original meanings.
ReplyDeletei must say, never heard of the striptease version!
chuckle at your illustration and caption
funny and original!
ReplyDeletexxxx
I adore your illustration of LRRH. I have heard of sinister endings to this tale. I wonder if kids who hear this tale now feel afraid? I remember I was mesmerized by this story as a child...And fearful.
ReplyDeleteIt seems nowadays, every fairy tale or story for children has some deep, dark and disturbing meaning. Where are the stories with endings that are simply that, the end?
Excellent, I like your picture and what you say. I have learned more about Little Red Riding Hood :)
ReplyDeletethe version that told me (whwn i was a child) said that the hunter cuts the wolf's belly
byeeeeeeee good weekend :)
There is one from China called Lon Po Po (or at least thats what i think it is called) I had a beautifully illustrated book based on that story, very pretty.
ReplyDeleteThat picture is really cute!
ReplyDeleteI'm going to put you on YouTube. So cute!!
Xoxo
Sarah
MA BELLE! TU ES FRANÇAISE!!!!! Oh, Sandra, your kind comments make me feel like somebody....truth be told, I am having a bad year at work and all of YOU are making me feel so wonderful. THANK YOU for your kind comments and this ILLUSTRATION IS JUST FABULOUS!!!!!
ReplyDeleteVEEL KUSJES!!! Anita
On You Tube...too funny Sandra!
ReplyDeleteHow about this for a twist: Little Red Riding Hood promises to lead the wolf to a place where there are far more little girls to eat than just her. So he happily follows behind her licking his chops. She skips through the woods for half an hour, braids and hood bobbing up and down with him hungrily following behind until they come upon an elevator door wedged between two old old trees.
She pushes a giant red button on the tree trunk.
The elevator door opens.
It's Darth Vader.
Lovely! Are you super busy ? You've been doing a lot of work for class right? I can't wait to see your other illustrations :-)
ReplyDeleteLittle red is my favourite of all fairy tales, I loved painting the 2 that I did a couple of weeks ago and am still itching to do more, I would love to see/read a story where little red is a hunter of wolves, that would be awesome :)
ReplyDeleteX
Sinister indeed - i like the modern day twist - you tube - facebook predictors - dressed in sheeps clothing or grandmas in this case - ready to pounce of the unsuspecting - mmmm.....
ReplyDeleteI adore fairtales, don't stop dreaming;-)
ReplyDeleteThis is so cute.....
Enjoy your weekend!
Hugs
It is so true that many 'classic' fairy tales have a dark side and I think we tend to forget about it because kids are used to read shorter versions or the Walt Disney movies (which of course I love!). I'm curious to see your take on Red Riding Hood...
ReplyDeleteSandra, thank you so much for the nice note! I'm always glad to read your comments and I perfectly understand you when you say that you need more hours...I feel teh same! Have a nice w-e!
I never get tired of fairy tales and own a few books of them. One has my favourite illustrator, Arthur Rackham. The story I grew up with is the woodcutter chopping the stomach of the wolf open and they jumped out. I used to wonder why they weren't covered in blood from the wolf's insides! I like the expression on your wolf's face, he looks very worried!
ReplyDeleteJess xx
Hello lovely Sandra,
ReplyDeleteI am well :)Nice drawing.
Now . . .the stripetease is what got me, ha. Really? I never knew it was SO many different illustrations for LRRH--that were not predictable and very much humourously intriguing as the other. Perhaps, you could write your version of LRRH being in the form of Shakespear's "Romeo & Juliet" where the twist is wolf is inlove with the LRRH and wants to keep her so he say he'll let her live if she drinks the few-hour-posion--once she awakes she'll be inlove with him back . . . that all I have haha.
It might sound a bit choppy . . .but maybe something like that :)
Very cute picture and funny idea for a story :)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful illustration Sandra! I would love to read your ending to LRRH! Have a lovely weekend! xo
ReplyDeleteHow interesting to learn so much about this famous tale! And your illustration is so funny, I really love it!
ReplyDeleteEverything is fine over here (thanks for asking), but I am quite busy so that there is not so much time for writing new blog posts and even reading my favourite blogs...
Love to you
Bea
Chère Sandra,
ReplyDeleteYour support and wonderful comment today really struck an important reality for me....I am currently "reevaluating" my job and not until I see what kind of response I will get this year from Etsy will I do what YOU so courageously did. But I really thank you for giving me the REALITY that we really do only have one precious life...and it is time for me to do it. So, I have to practice my faith. Faith is when you can't see, hear, be sure or KNOW. I will take the responsible path by not rushing into quitting, but to SEE how things go. I wish you consistent success with your WONDERFUL ART! GROSSES BISES MON AMIE! Anita
Hehe, cute illo and thanks for the info. I'd love to look into it. Sounds interesting.
ReplyDeleteHehe, this made me giggle :)
ReplyDeleteHalf the things I watch on YouTube makes me think 'dear god why?'. And that is not a good thing!
Hugs and a happy Sunday to you!
Signe
What is it with all of us that we seem to have been mad busy in the past month?! Perhaps the start to the last quarter of the year?!
ReplyDeleteAnyways! Funny that you mention this post, because just the other day I watched The Little Mermaid (I'm a fan of the Disney classics!) and I couldn't stop thinking of the original ending to the tale where Ariel turns into foam... It does seem that the original tales were much more productive in teaching lessons rather than making little girls believe in the 'happy for ever after' ending...
What can I say, I always enjoy your posts so much. A really nice break to the day!
I love Fairy-tales....and your drawing is adorable.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing...happy day
aww, I remember the Brothers Grimm stories, my dad read me these fairy tales when I was a child. They were a little scary, but I remember it very well:) On your drawing looks like Little Red Riding Hood is not at all afraid of the wolf:) Very cute and charming picture!!! Ideal to illustrate a book about Little Red Riding Hood:) xoxo
ReplyDelete