Wake_Up,_Little_Girl!

Watesca Sprott Professor Simmons ENC 1101 18 November 2009 Wake Up, Little Girl! The reason why I am writing about “Cinderella” is to make my thirteen year old sister realize that the Disney version is all a lie. My sister’s name is Alex, and she is an eighth grader with the imagination of a third grader. She always asks the silliest questions. Once she asked me if my MySpace page was mine. She is also hooked on Disney and loves the entire princess stories collection. She especially adores Cinderella. And although the Cinderella she thinks she knows is romantic yet tragic, I would like to tell her how the real Cinderella story goes. I would like her to know that the real “Cinderella” is completely different from the fairytale we have all come to know and love. First, let’s talk about the characters in the Disney version. Cinderella had much help from many animals. Birds, mice, dogs, and even a horse were her little helpers. Cinderella’s father was dead, thus leaving her in the hands of her evil step-mother. Also as seen in the movie, her step-sisters are hideous. Next, the glass slipper was a very important item at in the movie because the owner of that slipper would marry the prince. The king made the news public and decided that every maiden in the kingdom must try on the slipper. The duke is sent off with the slipper to find the future wife of the beloved prince. When he gets to Cinderella’s house and it was her turn to try it on, the evil step-mother makes the carrier trip, thus breaking the glass slipper. At the ending the sisters’ feet are obviously huge, and could not fit into the tiny glass slipper. They try to squeeze in with no luck. Cinderella was locked in the attic by her evil step-mother, but luckily the animals help her out and she was able to try on the slipper. Then of course Cinderella’s foot fit perfectly in the slipper, and she is taken away to marry her prince. They supposedly lived happily ever after. No knowledge about what happens with the hideous step-sister was given. Now, let’s talk about the real “Cinderella.” The characters are the complete opposite. The only animals that help Cinderella are all birds. According to “Cinderella,” “the man had taken another wife” (Grimm and Grimm). That line proves that her father is still alive. The step-sisters are not hideous, in fact “Cinderella” says, “…two daughters…who were beautiful and fair of face,…”(Grimm and Grimm). As for the slipper, it was not glass at all. Cinderella did in fact loose one, but the king made no announcement about the slipper. The prince never told his father about it either. There was no duke to go to every house with the slipper. The prince went directly to Cinderella’s house. The evil step-mother did not sabotage the slipper at all. In the ending, since the slipper does not fit either of the sisters’ huge feet the mother tells them, “…cut the toe off; …cut a bit of thy heel…” (Grimm and Grimm). The sister really had to suffer to be able to fit into the slipper, but had no success. Cinderella was not locked in the attic; in fact her father called her out to try on the slipper. Of course Cinderella’s foot fit perfectly into the slipper. She is then taken away by the prince so they can get married. The evil step sisters attend the wedding trying to be friends with Cinderella, but their eyes get pecked out by birds. In conclusion, I would like my sister to know that she cannot believe every movie that she sees made by Disney. She should also realize that every fairytale has another side to it. I hope she wakes up from dreaming about them. I also hope she starts thinking her age and stops make-believing so much. I also advise her to be nice to me, or else at my wedding I might have pigeons come and peck her eyes out as well. Works Cited Cinderella. Dir. Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, and Hamilton Luske. Walt Disney Pictures, 1950. DVD. Grimm, Jacob, and Wilhelm Grimm. “Cinderella.” National Geographic. Web. 26 Oct. 2009.