Using Marxist Feminist Analysis Of Little Snow White
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“When (The Queen) arrived she saw that it was Snow-White. Then they put a pair of iron shoes into the fire until they glowed, and she had to put them on and dance in them. Her feet were so terribly burned, and she could not stop until she had danced herself to death.”(Grimm). “Little Snow White.” Here we have a fairytale that nearly every child is familiar with. In the 1812 version by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm; however, the reader is corrupted with a wholly darker side of this childhood tale. Our Queen is evil, but was she always this way? Is Snow White like each of us, or a Queen in disguise herself? Who are these little dwarfs, and why do they toil so, for someone they barely know? In the story “Little Snow-White,” by the Brother’s Grimm,…show more content… Using Marxist Literary Analysis, the reader can discover the roles played by the Queen, the seven dwarfs, and Snow-White herself. More modern adaptations perpetuate the struggles between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat class, adding characters and symbolism that even more clearly defines certain characters as subservient to others. So often analyzed for the feminist overtones clearly visible, it is easy to miss the struggle between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat classes. But do not be fooled, for the struggles become evident upon reflection “through the mirror."
As you begin to read the story, you find out the Queen was beautiful, And seemingly portrayed as good. She lives in a world of beauty and privilege, looking out a window covered in ebony wood at the snow-covered landscape, secure in her position as the most beautiful woman in the entire world. We see that the queen is insecure in her beauty and righteousness, looking daily to…show more content… Our little Snow-White is poisoned by an apple and is no longer able to take breath in this world, instead of spending her days in a beautiful glass coffin suspended lifeless as the despondent dwarfs stand silent vigil. Eventually, a young prince comes along. It is here for the first time that the ruling and working class truly collide. The prince is shaken to his very core at the beautiful sight of Snow-White lying there in the glass coffin. He must have this beautiful woman for his own; he must take her with him to his beautiful kingdom where he can be with her day and night. After much bargaining and begging by the prince, the dwarfs take pity on him, and allow him to take their beautiful Snow-White to his castle. While in the Castle, the struggles between the ruling and working class are revealed once again. Servants who happily attend to his every need surround the Prince. However, once Snow-White is brought into the picture, the prince becomes despondent. Why is this? It appears that the prince is finally presented with an opportunity to have another member of his own bourgeoisie class living with him. But the fact that she is not at the present living, drives him to near madness, this in turn drives the working class servants into the same terrible pit. They rail against Snow-White, doing mean things to her lifeless body and cursing her