Today, known primarily from heavily truncated versions, children’s reading books or fairy tales, they used to sound completely different. Many of the still popular fairy tales were not originally intended for the youngest at all, in addition, threads considered today as brutal were received in a slightly different way. Hence the often bloody scenes or motifs in these stories, which today arouse anxiety in adults. Disney wasn’t the only one who heavily censored and modified some details. Versions published in collections were also subject to modifications. What did they sound like in the original?
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“Rapunzel”: pregnancy, exile and a bloody end
In the version of the fairy tale written by the Brothers Grimm, Rapunzel does not have magical golden hair, and the whole story unfolds in a slightly different way. The witch who imprisoned the girl in the tower finds out about the prince’s visit by chance. In the first edition of the collection, Rapunzel admits that her dress is getting tighter and she has to tighten her corset more and more. The reason is twin pregnancy. The witch cuts off her long golden hair and drives the girl straight into the wild forest. However, this is not the end. Unaware of anything, the prince visits his beloved every night, but instead of her, the Witch drops the braid from the tower. He throws out the prince, whose life is saved by the bushes growing under the building, but the thorns take away his sight. They both wander around dangerous forests for years.
“Snow White”: a heart on a plate and a dance in iron boots
In current versions of the story, the Evil Stepmother tells the hunter to bring Snow White’s heart as proof that the girl is dead. In the original, the Stepmother demands a heart to eat and thus gain immortality. The story continues basically the same. However, Snow White is awakened not by the prince’s kiss, but by one of the dwarfs’ tripping, causing a piece of poisoned apple to fall out of her throat. At Snow White and the prince’s wedding, the Stepmother is forced to dance in red-hot iron slippers. He finally dies.
“Little Red Riding Hood”: Grandma’s stew and no happy ending
about Little Red Riding Hood exists in many different versions. In some, the wolf does not devour anyone, in others things are a bit more brutal. Charles Perrault in his interpretation did not try to have a happy ending. The wolf eats both Grandma and Little Red Riding Hood, and that’s the end of the story, summed up with the moral of never trusting strangers. In another version, the wolf does not devour the grandmother whole, instead serving her body in a stew to Little Red Riding Hood, who, unaware, eats her relative.
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
