Revisiting in Correct Ideaological Constructs: The Critique of Gender in Children Literature

Abstract

When it comes to folktales and fairytales, a woman’s role has always been considered pivotal. Women have been presented in very effective roles as queens, princesses, and maids while, on the other hand, they have been shown in very negative roles like stepmothers and witches. Different researchers and writers vividly believe that the imagery of women is a mixed portrayal of passivity, beauty, goodness, wickedness and evil. Whereas on one side, a woman is appreciated in the capacity of a loving mother or a caring wife signifying the qualities of nurturing, calmness, love and affection, the characters of cruel stepmother or witch depict darkness associated with such characters. Moreover, the feminist movement replaces the female voice from margin to center by revisiting these stereotypical tales. On one hand, the feminist scholars refuse to accept the differentiation between men and women on the basis of gender in societies and, on the other hand, they challenge the patriarchal authority that needs to be reviewed and reconsidered against the assigned role of a woman. Through (re)presentation of women in the character of a queen, a princess, a maid, a witch, a stepmother, or a godmother in women-centered tales, the feminist rewriters have transformed a woman from as an object of a story to a subject of the rewritten stories. These fairy tales help us in publicizing and implementing the publicly suitable male-female relationships. In this research, the researcher has examined the roles of women in fairytales. The present research study has been conducted on three different versions of fairytales written by Grimm, Garner and Barbara to examine how ideologies change with the passage of time. Fairclough’s understanding of intertextuality has been used as a research method to interpret and analyze the text. The present research evaluates the significance of the new perspectives, importance of revised interpretations of the fairy tales, and the impact of fairy tales on young minds. The research findings guide that fairytales change with the passage of time. In gender role, they find a set of societal norms which tells them what type of behavior is generally acceptable and appropriate for a girl or a boy. The new content in children literature gives opportunity to the readers to reanalyze their gender beliefs, break old trends and adapt new attitude towards gender. In the traditional fairy tales, women have not been equal to men and are shown as subservient to men. This thinking has changed with the passage of time, and the equality between men and women has been claimed by the feminist writers.