Fairy Tales
You will be focusing on fairy tales and what messages they
send to both children and adults about gender-appropriate
behaviors or natures. You may assume that your peers have read
and completed the journal assignment on this subject that is due
for this class. Some questions or approaches to get you started:
What is the nature of fantasy? Is it a harmless escape form reality, a reflection of reality, or an entity that shapes reality? Why have fairy tales lasted for so many generations? Are fairy tales a subject for anthropology, psychology, literature., or some other discipline? Do a bit of research in these various fields? How do their approaches to fairy tales vary?
You might compare your favorite tale to Lieberman’s ideas about them? How does your tale support or contradict her thesis? Can you come up with any traditional tales that depict women as strong but not wicked? How do the latest generation Disney tales relate to Lieberman’s thesis? You might bring in examples of the old ones (Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella) and compare them to the newer ones (The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, etc.).
Can you find instances in adult life where these fairy tale motifs (the pattern of the male rescuer, the reward of beauty, the happiness of marriage, etc.) are reinforced? What are the motifs of Harlequin romances, action films, soap operas, women’s and men’s magazines? You might bring in ads or articles from the magazines that demonstrate these motifs.
You might explain Bernikow’s phrase about "the common is what keeps us apart." Can you find examples of that in everyday life? How might their being "kept apart" work against their recognizing society’s limitations on their roles? Both Bernikow and Maitland deal with mothers as influences on their daughters. How do mothers perpetuate society’s oppression of women? Is there a "perfect" mother? How does that perfection change depending on who is defining it?
Is Brownmiller correct? Does society train women to be victims? How so? How does this relate to blaming the victim, and what does that mean? You might ask the class to write their own fairy tale to instruct both little girls and little boys in proper behavior? Would those "perfect" qualities be different or the same for boys and girls? What happens to the story line when both or neither girls or boys are the understood victims?