Adaptation Sources - Cinderella

Social History

González, M. C., & Rodríguez-Martín, M. E. (2009). Wicked Women: The Menace Lurking

            Behind Female Independence. At The Interface / Probing The Boundaries, 57199-209.

The article here suggests that fairy tales, such as Cinderella, have portrayed the main character as someone who is dependent on men and the evil characters as independent women. This source shows how patriarchal thinking and influence were still at large in 1950’s America. This is a relevant source for my social history portion of this assignment.

Nambiar, F. P. (2012). Influence that Fictional Characters in English Literature Can Have on an

            Individual Psyche. Language In India, 12(11), 269-296.

The journal article here aids as an analysis of several beloved characters, including Cinderella, across time, and hypothesizes that characters adapted or created in English literature may have an affect on the way we think and behave. The analysis of Cinderella in the 1950’s Disney movie shows that Cinderella is a symbol of hope and optimism. The paper’s authors believe Cinderella has taught us to live in the moment and realize that dreams and realities can co-exist. This may act as a source to show what we as a culture needed in the 1950’s.

Ohmer, S. (1993). 'That Rags. to Riches Stuff': Disney's Cinderella and the Cultural Space of

            Animation. Film History, 5(2), 231-249.

This journal article addresses several version of Cinderella, all leading up to Disney’s version in the 1950’s; it discusses various reasons as to why certain alterations may have been made from various cultures. The paper also focuses on the making of the animation during post-war times. This source serves as a place to get information about earlier Cinderella stories and gives possible reasons as to how the aftermath of World War II could have affected the adaptation from Disney.

Genre

Stark, J. A. (2010). Content analysis of the fairy tale Cinderella - A longitudinal single-case

            study of narrative production: “From rags to riches”. Aphasiology, 24(6-8), 709-724.

            doi:10.1080/02687030903524729

This source is actually a study; the classic tale, Cinderella, was read to patients suffering from aphasia due to a CVA and participants who had no known brain abnormality. This research looked at how aphasia may affect a story’s context and content when recited back after various periods of time. This source will be useful when showing how genre changes may be partly due to the ability of the human brain to recall, falsify, and embellish details over time. (This may work as an antithesis to how Cinderella has adapted to fit our views across cultures.)

Triska, Zoe. (November 12, 2013). The REAL Stories Behind these Disney Movies will Ruin

            Your Childhood. Huffington Post.

This article served as a review of some of the more gruesome details of the original stories that Disney left out in many of their animated films. For example, in Cinderella, the evil stepsisters cut off their toes in order to fit into Cinderella’s slippers, to be followed by their eyes getting pecked out by birds. While some could argue that these details were left out because the intended audience is children, it should be noted that many elementary school libraries carry the Grimm Brothers’ version of the story. This leads to my wondering if there is some other genre or social related reason for the adaptation.

Ziad. (2005). The Original Cinderella Story. Per Ankh. http://www.perankhgroup.com

            /cinderella.htm

This source provided what is believed to be the first Cinderella story, dating back to the first century B.C. It is about Rhodopsin, a poor girl, who ends up marrying the Egyptian prince. This is a good source to get basic facts from for the original from which the adaptation occurred.

** More sources need to be found addressing social history from earlier/the original Cinderella story. Sources addressing the newer movies A Cinderella Story and Another Cinderella stories must also be found.**