The Truth About Fairy Tales

A long, long time ago

I was told a fairy tale

Of a knight with a sword

And a lady in lace

It had something do

With a witch banished in disgrace

It was a plot forged in revenge

And yet a lesson it taught

Of how vengeance is futile

And true love triumphs above all

There were dungeons and dragons

And towers encasing rickety steps

There were woods and forests

With singing birds

And talking beasts

There was a palace too

Prone to throwing balls

And many a royal feasts

But something was deeply lacking

Which no ‘moral’ could ever redeem

Comedy, tragedy, romance and felicity

It had it all in equal measure

I just wonder whatever happened to reality.

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Feminism in Fiction

A few days ago, I expressed my angst and ire at the incredibly sexist portrayal of women in fairytales. They’re shown as damsels in distress without fail. One cannot even begin to imagine how detrimental such images are to the impressionable minds of young girls growing up
to believe they need to wait for someone to come rescue them. However, I also mentioned Disney Films were changing this perspective now with their recent crop of movies. Then I went on to expound upon how the character of Princess Devasena from a South Indian movie, Bahubali, was a lesson in feminism and a breath of fresh air.
Sarah, from Written Word Worlds, has very admirably made a compilation of Feminism in Fiction and I’m sharing her work here for your benefit.

Written Word Worlds

Looking back on many of the fairytales I’ve grown up reading and loving, I’ve realised that the majority of them are incredibly sexist. They seem to indicate that women are not in control of their lives or their fate and are in constant need of saving. With awareness for feminism being the most it has ever been, it’s a wonder anyone thinks that reading these archaic, misogynistic stories to children is acceptable. Not only does it teach our girls that they have to rely on a prince to save them and that they have no say in the matter, but it teaches everyone else that women are helpless victims who will never feel fulfilled in life without a husband.

Let me stop you right there, sexist society. We don’t need saving. We’re perfectly fine on our own, thank you very much. The last thing we want is you Facebook stalking…

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