GENDER ROLE CHANGES By: Lily Deng

THESIS  In the original 19 th century stories of Cinderella, Snow White and Rapunzel, the princesses were portrayed as weak and helpless individuals, while in the 21 st century adaptations, Ella Enchanted, Snow White and the Huntsmen and Tangled represented ambitious and independent women that seek to have a better life without a prince rescuing them from their misery.

TRADITIONAL GENDER ROLES OF WOMEN  Job was to maintain the house and take care of children  Purpose was to give birth  Property of men and was not allowed to own their own properties  Known as domestic and emotional  Unable to do hard labor  Was the weaker sex

CINDERELLA  Had a miserable life, working as a slave for her stepmother and stepsisters.  Did not stand up for herself  Took care of household duties  In the end saved by a prince in order to have a better and wealthier life

ELLA ENCHANTED  Movie released in 2004  Book written by Gail Carson Levine  Adaptation of Cinderella  Ella was cursed with a spell ever since she was born to be obedient to whatever she was told to do. Her stepsisters and stepmother makes her do house chores and she can’t refuse.  Ella wanted to go change her future and went to find the witch that casted the spell on her  Throughout her journey, she fights ogres etc.  Very ambitious and brave and isn't afraid to speak her mind

SNOW WHITE  Her duties were to maintain the house while the seven little dwarfs went to work  Innocent and young – ate a poisonous apple and died  Needed a prince to save her life by giving her a kiss  “Lived happily ever after”

SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMEN  Extremely independent because she was living on her own when her parents were killed  Fighting back the evil queen and was not afraid  Goes into battle wearing armor along side with the men  Not the typical princess that is girly and dainty  Brave like the men

RAPUNZEL  Obeys to whatever the sorceress told her to do  Weaves a ladder in the story – domestic  Needed a prince to save her from the tower  Runs away with him and lives happily ever after

TANGLED  Was able to escape the tower because she was devoted to find out what her true identity was  Adventurous and outspoken  Was able to confront the witch and ask about her past  Has magical powers and heals Flynn’s wounds with her hair  Saves him from dying with her tear drops  She has greater power in this movie because she is able to heal with her long golden locks

POSSIBLE SOURCES  Dawn Elizabeth England, Lara Descartes, Melissa A. Collier Meek, “Gender Role Portrayal and the Disney Princesses” Sex Roles, 64, , Web, April 2011  Rowe, Karen E “Feminism and Fairy Tales”, Women Studies, 6, , Web, 1979  Hannon, Carole J ‘Aging with Disney: Depiction of gender and age in seven Disney animated fairy tales” 1997  Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

SYNTHESIS  Background information about traditional gender roles of women  Background information about Disney’s Snow White, Cinderella, and Grimm’s Rapunzel  Compare the older versions to the new adaptations  Explain how the roles of princesses were changed

QUESTIONS  How does the new adaptations of fairy tales portray different gender roles of women than traditional gender roles?  How are the older version princesses different than the new adaptation princesses?  What ideals of women were portrayed in the older versions?  What ideals of women were portrayed in the newer adaptations?