Cinderella

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For other uses, see Cinderella (disambiguation).

Cinderella

by Anne Anderson

Folk tale

Name Cinderella

Also known as Italian: Cenerentola, French: Cendrillon. German:

Aschenputtel

Data

Aarne- AT 510 A ("the persecuted heroine")

Thompson grou

ping

Region Eurasia

Cinderella, or The Little Glass Slipper, (Italian: Cenerentola, French: Cendrillon, ou La

petite Pantoufle de Verre, German: Aschenputtel) is a folk tale embodying a myth-element
of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the
world.[1][2]The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances, that are
suddenly changed to remarkable fortune. The oldest documented version comes from
China, and the oldest European version from Italy. The most popular version was first
published by Charles Perrault in Histoires ou contes du temps pass in 1697,[3] and later by
the Brothers Grimm in their folk tale collection Grimms' Fairy Tales.
 Although the story's title and main character's name change in different languages, in
English-language folklore "Cinderella" is the archetypal name. The word "Cinderella" has,
by analogy, come to mean one whose attributes were unrecognized, or one who
unexpectedly achieves recognition or success after a period of obscurity and neglect. The
still-popular story of "Cinderella" continues to influence popular culture internationally,
lending plot elements, allusions, and tropes to a wide variety of media.
The AarneThompson system classifies Cinderella as "the persecuted heroine". The story
of Rhodopis, about a Greek slave girl who marries the king of Egypt, is considered the
earliest known variant of the "Cinderella" story (published 7 BC), and many variants are
known throughout the world.[1][2][4]

Contents
[hide]

1Ancient and international versions

o 1.1China

o 1.2Indonesia and Malaysia

o 1.3Philippines

o 1.4Vietnam

o 1.5Korea

o 1.6West and South Asia

o 1.7Britain

o 1.8The Middle East

2Early written versions

3Plot

o 3.1Cenerentola, by Basile

o 3.2Cendrillon, by Perrault

o 3.3Aschenputtel, by the Brothers Grimm

4Plot variations and alternative tellings

o 4.1Revisionist retellings

5Folkloristics

6Adaptations

o 6.1Opera and ballet

o 6.2Theatre
 o 6.3Films and television

o 6.4Songs

o 6.5Books

o 6.6Others

7Translations

8Cinderella theme

9See also

10References

11External links

Ancient and international versions[edit]

China[edit]
A version of the story, Ye Xian, appeared in Miscellaneous Morsels from Youyang by Duan
Chengshi around 860. Here, the hardworking and lovely girl befriends a fish, the rebirth of
her mother. The fish is later killed by her stepmother and sister. Ye Xian saves the bones,
which are magic, and they help her dress appropriately for the New Year Festival. When
she loses her slipper after being recognized by her stepfamily, the king finds her slipper and
falls in love with her (eventually rescuing her from her cruel stepmother).
Indonesia and Malaysia[edit]
The Indonesian and Malaysian story Bawang Merah Bawang Putih, are about two girls
named Bawang Putih (literally "White Onion", meaning "garlic") and Bawang Merah ("Red
Onion"). While the two country's respective versions differ in the exact relationship of the
girls and the identity of the protagonist, they have highly similar plot elements. Both have a
magical fish as the "fairy godmother" to her daughter, which the antagonist cooks. The
heroine then finds the bones and buries them, and over the grave a magical swing
appears. The protagonist sits on the swing and sings to make it sway, her song reaching
the ears of a passing Prince. The swing is akin to the slipper test, which distinguishes the
heroine from her evil sister, and the Prince weds her in the end.
In Indonesia, Bawang Putih is the kind-hearted girl, who suffers at the hands of her evil
stepmother and stepsister, Bawang Merah, who is the one that cooks the fish-mother.
When the Prince enquires after the singer on the swing, Bawang Merah lies, but is proven
false when cannot make the magical swing move. The angry prince forces Bawang Merah
and her mother to tell the truth. They then admit that there is another daughter in the
house. Bawang Putih comes out and moves the magical swing by her singing. In the end,
she and her prince marry and live happily ever after.
In the Malaysian version, it is Bawang Merah and her mother Mak Labu ("Mother Gourd")
who are good, while her half sister Bawang Putih and her mother Mak Kundur ("Mother
Wintermelon") are evil. Both mothers were the wives of a poor man, and upon his death
Mak Kundur seized control of the household and forced Mak Labu and Bawang Merah to
do all the chores around the house. One day as Mak Labu was fetching water at the well,
Mak Kundur pushed her into it, and Mak Labu turns into a gourami. In this version, Mak
Kundur killed the fish and fed it to Bawang Merah who learns of her mother's fishbones in a
dream and finds them with the aid of some ants. Bawang Merah gathers the fish bones and
buries them in a small grave underneath a tree. When she visits the grave the next day,
she is surprised to see that a beautiful swing has appeared from one of the tree's branches.
When Bawang Merah sits in the swing and sings an old lullaby, it magically swings back
and forth. In this version, Mak Kundur knows the Prince, and lies when a royal guard
enquires after the girl on the swing. Bawang Merah sings and it is she whom the Prince
marries at the end of the story.
Philippines[edit]
Another version also exists in the Philippines, probably handed by the Spaniards. Here, the
girl is either named Maria (in most versions), Peregrina or Catherine in other versions. She
is given impossible tasks but is helped by a crab in most versions, a fish in the Visayan
regions or the Virgin Mary in the Luzon variants. The cruel relatives are not only limited to
her stepfamily, but extends to her aunt and cousins, or her jealous godmother. The
Cinderella figure however, is more independent, as she shapes her future in her own
hands. She does not always have a royal marriage in the end, but rather emerges as a rich
and successful young woman overcoming all the cruelties she had suffered. However, due
to later influences, the prince or king or simply a wealthy bachelor is added to the story, as
well as the ball (or church service) and the missing shoe.[citation needed]
Vietnam[edit]
In the Vietnamese version Tam Cam, Tam is mistreated by both her father's co-wife and
half-sister. After her fishing achievements were unjustly stolen by the stepsister, she
brought the only left fish home and fed it as a pet. However, it was killed and eaten by her
step-family, but its bones served as her protector and guardian, eventually leading her to be
the king's bride during a festival. The protagonist made a violent revenge in part two of the
story. After constantly murdered 4 times by her stepmother and stepsister, she eventually
came back from the death and boiled her stepsister alive, which indirectly caused the death
of her stepmother.
Korea[edit]
There is a Korean version named Kongjwi and Patjwi. It deals a story about a kind girl
Kongjwi who was constantly abused by her stepmother and stepsister Patjwi. The step-
family forces Kongjwi to stay at home while they attend the king's festival, by asking her to
repair a leaking jar. A toad assists with the jar, and an ox brings her clothes for the festival.
The motif is same, concerning also a king falling in love with her. But some minor details
have changed because this fictional story is taking place in Korea. That includes the
slipper's details and the usual festivals that happen in the Cinderella stories.
West and South Asia[edit]
Several different variants of the story appear in the medieval One Thousand and One
Nights, also known as the Arabian Nights, including "The Second Shaykh's Story", "The
Eldest Lady's Tale" and "Abdallah ibn Fadil and His Brothers", all dealing with the theme of
a younger sibling harassed by two jealous elders. In some of these, the siblings are female,
while in others, they are male. One of the tales, "Judar and His Brethren", departs from
the happy endings of previous variants and reworks the plot to give it a tragic ending
instead, with the younger brother being poisoned by his elder brothers. [5]
Britain[edit]
Aspects of Cinderella may be derived from the story of Cordelia in Geoffrey of
Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae. Cordelia is the youngest and most virtuous of
King Leir of Britain's three daughters, however her virtue is such that it will not allow her to
lie in flattering her father when he asks, so that he divides up the kingdom between the
elder daughters and leaves Cordelia with nothing. Cordelia marries her love, Aganippus,
King of the Franks, and flees to Gaul where she and her husband raise an army and
depose her wicked sisters who have been misusing their father. Cordelia is finally
crowned Queen of Britain. However her reign only lasts five years. The story is famously
retold in Shakespeare's King Lear, but given a tragic ending.
The Middle East[edit]
Variants from Iran and Arabian countries also exist, one titled as the Maah Pishnih which
means "The Girl With The Moon On Her Forehead". In this version the Cinderella figure is
both malovelent and benevolent, as she murders her own mother inside a vinegar vessel
so that her father could marry the Quran instructress in the neighborhood. From this cruel
act, the girl gains a cruel stepmother and an imbeciled stepsister. She befriends either a
cow (her mother's spirit/reincarnation), a fish (sent by her mother or Allah), or a 1000 year
old demoness living underground which becomes her helper. After accomplishing a series
of task for the wicked second wife she is rewarded with a moon- shaped jewel on her
forehead (and a star on her chin, or long golden hair), whilst the other sister is cursed with
ugliness. The story culminates with the Sultan/King/Emperor announcing a celebration to
which the heroine attends, with either his son or the King himself falling in love with her
after seeing her face. Out of either shame or terror (as Islamic women are supposed to be
reserved before men), the girl leaves hastily, leaving behind one of her golden shoe, which
is given to her along with clothes and transportation by her spiritual helper. The monarch in
the story asks for help from female relatives (mostly his mother the Sultana) and the female
relative try the shoe to every woman in the land. The stepfamily tries to sabotage
everything, but a rooster usually betrays them. The story ends with Maah Pishnih
becoming a royal bride, and her entire family being put to death.

Early written versions[edit]

The first written European version of the story was published in Napoli (Naples), Italy,
by Giambattista Basile, in his Pentamerone (1634). The story itself was based in
the Kingdom of Naples, at that time the most important political and cultural center
of Southern Italy and among the most influential capitals in Europe, and written in
the Neapolitan dialect. It was later retold, along with other Basile tales, by Charles
Perrault in Histoires ou contes du temps pass (1697),[3] and by the Brothers Grimm in their
folk tale collection Grimms' Fairy Tales (1812).
The name "Cenerentola" comes from the Italian word "cenere" tchenere (ash cinder). It
has to do with the fact that servants and scullions were usually soiled with ash at that time,
because of their cleaning work and also because they had to live in cold basements so they
usually tried to get warm by sitting close to the fireplace.

Plot[edit]
Cenerentola, by Basile[edit]
Giambattista Basile, an Italian soldier and government official, assembled a set of oral folk
tales into a written collection titled Lo cunto de li cunti (The Story of Stories),
or Pentamerone. It included the tale of Cenerentola, which features a wicked stepmother
and evil stepsisters, magical transformations, a missing slipper, and a hunt by a monarch
for the owner of the slipper. It was published posthumously in 1634.
Plot:
A prince has a daughter, Zezolla (tonnie) (the Cinderella figure), who is tended by a
beloved governess. The governess, with Zezolla's help, persuades the prince to marry her.
The governess then brings forward six daughters of her own, who abuse Zezolla (tonnie),
and send her into the kitchen to work as a servant. The prince goes to the island of Sinia,
meets a fairy who gives presents to his daughter, and brings back for her: a golden spade,
a golden bucket, a silken napkin, and a date seedling. The girl cultivates the tree, and when
the king hosts a ball, Zezolla appears dressed richly by a fairy living in the date tree. The
king falls in love with her, but Zezolla runs away before he can find out who she is. Twice
Zezolla escapes the king and his servants. The third time, the king's servant captures one
of her slippers. The king invites all of the maidens in the land to a ball with a shoe-test,
identifies Zezolla (tonnie) after the shoe jumps from his hand to her foot, and eventually
marries her.[6]
Cendrillon, by Perrault[edit]

Oliver Herford illustrated Cinderella with the Fairy Godmother, inspired by Perrault's version.

Charles Robinson illustrated Cinderella in the kitchen (1900), from "Tales of Passed Times"
with stories by Charles Perrault.
 Writing blank entitled Cinderella or The little glass slipper, educational folder.

One of the most popular versions of Cinderella was written in French by Charles
Perrault in 1697, under the name Cendrillon. The popularity of his tale was due to his
additions to the story, including the pumpkin, the fairy-godmother and the introduction
of "glass" slippers.[7]
Plot:
Once upon a time, there was a wealthy widower who married a proud and haughty woman
as his second wife. She had two daughters, who were equally vain and selfish. The
gentleman had a beautiful young daughter, a girl of unparalleled kindness and sweet
temper. The man's daughter is forced into servitude, where she was made to work day and
night doing menial chores. After the girl's chores were done for the day, she would curl up
near the fireplace in an effort to stay warm. She would often arise covered in cinders, giving
rise to the mocking nickname "Cinderella" by her stepsisters. Cinderella bore the abuse
patiently and dared not tell her father, who would have scolded her.
One day, the Prince invited all the young ladies in the land to a royal ball, planning to
choose a wife. The two stepsisters gleefully planned their wardrobes for the ball, and
taunted Cinderella by telling her that maids were not invited to the ball.
As the sisters departed to the ball, Cinderella cried in despair. Her Fairy
Godmother magically appeared and immediately began to transform Cinderella from house
servant to the young lady she was by birth, all in the effort to get Cinderella to the ball. She
turned a pumpkin into a golden carriage, mice into horses, a rat into a coachman,
and lizards into footmen. She then turned Cinderella's rags into a beautiful jeweled gown,
complete with a delicate pair of glass slippers. The Godmother told her to enjoy the ball, but
warned that she had to return before midnight, when the spells would be broken.
At the ball, the entire court was entranced by Cinderella, especially the Prince. At this first
ball, Cinderella remembers to leave before midnight. Back home, Cinderella graciously
thanked her Godmother. She then greeted the stepsisters, who had not recognized her
earlier and talked of nothing but the beautiful girl at the ball.
Another ball was held the next evening, and Cinderella again attended with her
Godmother's help. The Prince had become even more infatuated, and Cinderella in turn
became so enchanted by him she lost track of time and left only at the final stroke of
midnight, losing one of her glass slippers on the steps of the palace in her haste. The
Prince chased her, but outside the palace, the guards saw only a simple country girl leave.
The Prince pocketed the slipper and vowed to find and marry the girl to whom it belonged.
Meanwhile, Cinderella kept the other slipper, which did not disappear when the spell was
broken.
The Prince tried the slipper on all the women in the kingdom. When the Prince arrives at
Cinderella's home, the stepsisters tried in vain to win over the prince. Cinderella asked if
she might try, while the stepsisters taunted her. Naturally, the slipper fit perfectly, and
Cinderella produced the other slipper for good measure. Cinderella's stepfamily pleaded for
forgiveness, and Cinderella agreed.
Cinderella married the Prince as her stepsisters are married to two handsome gentlemen of
the royal court.
The first moral of the story is that beauty is a treasure, but graciousness is priceless.
Without it, nothing is possible; with it, one can do anything.[8]
However, the second moral of the story mitigates the first one and reveals the criticism that
Perrault is aiming at: That "without doubt it is a great advantage to have intelligence,
courage, good breeding, and common sense. These, and similar talents come only from
heaven, and it is good to have them. However, even these may fail to bring you success,
without the blessing of a godfather or a godmother." [8]
Aschenputtel, by the Brothers Grimm[edit]

Alexander Zick illustrated Cinderella with the doves, inspired

by the Grimms' version.

Another well-known version was recorded by the German brothers Jacob and Wilhelm
Grimm in the 19th century. The tale is called "Aschenputtel" ("Cinderella" in English
translations). This version is much more intense than that of Perrault and Disney, in that
Cinderella's father did not die and the step sisters cut off their own toes to fit in the golden
slipper. In addition, there is no fairy godmother, but rather help comes from a wishing tree
that she planted on her mother's grave.
Plot:
A plague infests a village, and a wealthy gentleman's wife lies on her deathbed. She calls
for her only daughter, and tells her to remain good and kind, as God would protect her. She
then dies and is buried. The child visits her mother's grave everyday to grieve and a year
goes by. The gentleman marries another woman with two older daughters from a previous
marriage. They have beautiful faces and fair skin, but their hearts are cruel and wicked. The
stepsisters steal the girl's fine clothes and jewels and force her to wear rags. They banish
her into the kitchen, and give her the nickname "Aschenputtel" ("Ashfool"). She is forced to
do all kinds of hard work from dawn to dusk. The cruel sisters will do nothing but mock her
and make her chores harder by creating messes. However, despite all of it, the girl remains
good and kind, and will always go to her mother's grave to cry and pray to God that she will
see her circumstances improve.
One day the gentleman visits a fair, promising his stepdaughters gifts of luxury. The eldest
asks for beautiful dresses, while the younger for pearls and diamonds. His own daughter
merely begs for the first twig to knock his hat off on the way. The gentleman goes on his
way, and acquires presents for his stepdaughters. While passing a forest he gets a hazel
twig, and gives it to his daughter. She plants the twig over her mother's grave, waters it with
her tears and over the years, it grows into a glowing hazel tree. The girl prays under it three
times a day, and a white bird will always comes to her. She will tell her wishes to the bird,
and every time the bird will throw down to her what she has wished for.
The king decides to ordain a festival that will last for three days and invites all the beautiful
maidens in the land to attend so that the prince can select one of them for his bride. The
two sisters are also invited, but when Aschenputtel begs them to allow her to go with them
into the celebration, the stepmother refuses because she has no decent dress nor shoes to
wear. When the girl insists, the woman throws a dish of lentils into the ashes for her to pick
up, guaranteeing her permission to attend the festival, if she can clean up the lentils in two
hours. When the girl accomplishes the task in less than an hour with the help of a flock of
white doves that came when she sings a certain chant, the stepmother only redoubles the
task and throws down even a greater quantity of lentils. When Aschenputtel is able to
accomplish it in a greater speed, not wanting to spoil her daughters' chances, the
stepmother hastens away with her husband and daughters to the celebration and leaves
the crying stepdaughter behind.
The girl retreats to the graveyard and asks to be clothed in silver and gold. The white bird
drops a gold and silver gown and silk shoes. She goes to the feast. The prince dances with
her all the time, and when sunset comes she asks to leave. The prince escorts her home,
but she eludes him and jumps inside the pigeon coop. The father has come home ahead of
time and the prince asks him to chop the pigeon coop down, but Aschenputtel has already
escaped. The next day, the girl appears in grander apparel. The prince falls in love with her
and dances with her for the whole day, and when sunset comes, the prince tries to
accompany her home again. However, she climbs a pear tree to escape him. The Prince
calls her father who chops down the tree, wondering if it could be Aschenputtel, but
Aschenputtel has disappeared. The third day, she appears dressed in the grandest with
slippers of gold. Now the prince is determined to keep her, and has the entire stairway
smeared with pitch. Aschenputtel loses track of time, and when she runs away one of her
golden slippers sticks on that pitch. The prince proclaims that he will marry the maiden
whose foot fits the golden slipper.
The next morning, the prince goes to Aschenputtel's house and tries the slipper on the
eldest stepsister. The sister was advised by her mother to cut off her toes in order to fit the
slipper. While riding with the stepsister, the two doves from Heaven tell the Prince that
blood drips from her foot. Appalled by her treachery, he goes back again and tries the
slipper on the other stepsister. She cuts off part of her heel in order to get her foot in the
slipper, and again the prince is fooled. While riding with her to the king's castle, the doves
alert him again about the blood on her foot. He comes back to inquire about another girl.
The gentleman tells him that they keep a kitchen-maid in the house omitting to mention
that she is his own daughter and the prince asks him to let her try on the slipper.
Aschenputtel appears after washing herself, and when she puts on the slipper, the prince
recognizes her as the stranger with whom he has danced at the ball.
In the end, during Aschenputtel's wedding, as she walks down the aisle with her stepsisters
as her bridesmaids, (they had hoped to worm their way into her favour), the doves fly down
and strike the two stepsisters' eyes, one in the left and the other in the right. When the
wedding comes to an end, and Aschenputtel and her prince march out of the church, the
doves fly again, striking the remaining eyes of the two evil sisters blind, a punishment they
had to endure for the rest of their lives.[9]
Aschenputtel's relationship with her father in this version is ambiguous; Perrault's version
states that the absent father is dominated by his second wife, explaining why he does not
prevent the abuse of his daughter. However, the father in this tale plays an active role in
several scenes, and it is not explained why he tolerates the mistreatment of his child. He
also describes Aschenputtel as his "first wife's child" and not his own.
Plot variations and alternative tellings[edit]
Villains: In some versions, her father plays an active role in the humiliation of his daughter;
in others, he is secondary to his new wife, Cinderella's stepmother; in some versions,
especially the popular Disney film, Cinderella's father has died and Cinderella's mother has
died also.
Although many variants of Cinderella feature the wicked stepmother, the defining trait of
type 510A is a female persecutor: in Fair, Brown and Trembling and Finette Cendron, the
stepmother does not appear at all, and it is the older sisters who confine her to the kitchen.
In other fairy tales featuring the ball, she was driven from home by the persecutions of her
father, usually because he wished to marry her. Of this type (510B) are Cap O'
Rushes, Catskin, All-Kinds-of-Fur, and Allerleirauh, and she slaves in the kitchen because
she found a job there.[10] In Katie Woodencloak, the stepmother drives her from home, and
she likewise finds such a job.
In La Cenerentola, Gioachino Rossini inverted the sex roles: Cenerentola is oppressed by
her stepfather. (This makes the opera Aarne-Thompson type 510B.) He also made the
economic basis for such hostility unusually clear, in that Don Magnifico wishes to make his
own daughters' dowries larger, to attract a grander match, which is impossible if he must
provide a third dowry. Folklorists often interpret the hostility between the stepmother and
stepdaughter as just such a competition for resources, but seldom does the tale make it
clear.[11]
Ball, Ballgown, and Curfew: The number of balls varies, sometimes one, sometimes two,
and sometimes three. The fairy godmother is Perrault's own addition to the tale.[12] The
person who aided Cinderella (Aschenputtel) in the Grimms's version is her dead mother.
Aschenputtel requests her aid by praying at her grave, on which a tree is growing. Helpful
doves roosting in the tree shake down the clothing she needs for the ball. This motif is
found in other variants of the tale as well, such as The Cinder Maid, collected by Joseph
Jacobs, and the Finnish The Wonderful Birch. Playwright James Lapine incorporated this
motif into the Cinderella plotline of the musical Into the Woods. Giambattista
Basile's Cenerentola combined them; the Cinderella figure, Zezolla, asks her father to
commend her to the Dove of Fairies and ask her to send her something, and she receives
a tree that will provide her clothing. Other variants have her helped by talking animals, as
in Katie Woodencloak, Rushen Coatie, Bawang Putih Bawang Merah, The Story of Tam
and Cam, or The Sharp Grey Sheepthese animals often having some connection with
her dead mother; in The Golden Slipper, a fish aids her after she puts it in water. In "The
Anklet", it's a magical alabaster pot the girl purchased with her own money that brings her
the gowns and the anklets she wears to the ball. Gioachino Rossini, having agreed to do an
opera based on Cinderella if he could omit all magical elements, wrote La Cenerentola, in
which she was aided by Alidoro, a philosopher and formerly the Prince's tutor.
The midnight curfew is also absent in many versions; Cinderella leaves the ball to get home
before her stepmother and stepsisters, or she is simply tired. In the Grimms' version,
Aschenputtel slips away when she is tired, hiding on her father's estate in a tree, and then
the pigeon coop, to elude her pursuers; her father tries to catch her by chopping them
down, but she escapes.[13]
Furthermore, the gathering need not be a ball; several variants on Cinderella, such
as Katie Woodencloak and The Golden Slipper have her attend church.
In the three-ball version, Cinderella keeps a close watch on the time the first two nights and
is able to leave without difficulty. However, on the third (or only) night, she loses track of the
time and must flee the castle before her disguise vanishes. In her haste, she loses a glass
slipper which the prince findsor else the prince has carefully had her exit tarred, so as to
catch her, and the slipper is caught in it.
The identifying item: The glass slipper is unique to Charles Perrault's version and its
derivatives; in other versions of the tale it may be made of other materials (in the version
recorded by the Brothers Grimm, German: Aschenbroedel and Aschenputtel, for instance, it
is gold) and in still other tellings, it is not a slipper but an anklet, a ring, or a bracelet that
gives the prince the key to Cinderella's identity. In Rossini's opera "La Cenerentola"
("Cinderella"), the slipper is replaced by twin bracelets to prove her identity. In the Finnish
variant The Wonderful Birch the prince uses tar to gain something every ball, and so has a
ring, a circlet, and a pair of slippers. Interpreters unaware of the value attached to glass in
17th century France and perhaps troubled by sartorial impracticalities, have suggested that
Perrault's "glass slipper" (pantoufle de verre) had been a "squirrel fur slipper" (pantoufle de
vair) in some unidentified earlier version of the tale, and that Perrault or one of his sources
confused the words; however, most scholars believe the glass slipper was a deliberate
piece of poetic invention on Perrault's part.[14] The 1950 Disney adaptation takes advantage
of the slipper being made of glass to add a twist whereby the slipper is shattered just before
Cinderella has the chance to try it on, leaving her with only the matching slipper with which
to prove her identity.
Another interpretation of verre/vair (glass/fur) suggested a sexual elementthe Prince was
'trying on' the 'fur slipper' (vagina) of the maidens in the kingdom, as a 'Droit du seigneur'
right of sexual possession of his subjects. The disguised Cinderella's 'fur slipper' was of
unique appeal to the Prince who sought her thereafter through sexual congress (a variety
of sources including Joan Gould).
The translation of the story into cultures with different standards of beauty has left the
significance of Cinderella's shoe size unclear, and resulted in the implausibility of
Cinderella's feet being of a unique size for no particular reason. Humorous retellings of the
story sometimes use the twist of having the shoes turn out to also fit somebody completely
unsuitable, such as an amorous old crone. In Terry Pratchett's Witches Abroad, the witches
accuse another witch of manipulating the events because it was a common shoe size, and
she could only ensure that the right woman put it on if she already knew where she was
and went straight to her. In "When the Clock Strikes" (from Red As Blood), Tanith Lee had
the sorcerous shoe alter shape whenever a woman tried to put it on, so it would not fit.

Cinderella tries on the slipper

The Revelation: Cinderella's stepmother and stepsisters (in some versions just the
stepsisters and, in some other versions, a stepfather and stepsisters) conspire to win the
prince's hand for one of them. In the German telling, the first stepsister fits into the slipper
by cutting off a toe, but the doves in the hazel tree alert the prince to the blood dripping
from the slipper, and he returns the false bride to her mother. The second stepsister fits into
the slipper by cutting off her heel, but the same doves give her away.
In many variants of the tale, the prince is told that Cinderella can not possibly be the one,
as she is too dirty and ragged. Often, this is said by the stepmother or stepsisters. In the
Grimms' version, both the stepmother and the father urge it. [15] The prince nevertheless
insists on her trying. Cinderella arrives and proves her identity by fitting into the slipper or
other item (in some cases she has kept the other).
The Conclusion: In the German version of the story, the evil stepsisters are punished for
their deception by having their eyes pecked out by birds. In other versions, they are
forgiven, and made ladies-in-waiting with marriages to lesser lords.
In The Thousand Nights and A Night, in a tale called "The Anklet",[16] the stepsisters make a
comeback by using twelve magical hairpins to turn the bride into a dove on her wedding
night. In The Wonderful Birch, the stepmother, a witch, manages to substitute her daughter
for the true bride after she has given birth. Such tales continue the fairy tale into what is in
effect a second episode.
In an episode of Jim Henson's The Storyteller, writer Anthony Minghella merged the old folk
tale Donkeyskin (also written by Perrault) with Cinderella to tell the tale of Sapsorrow, a girl
both cursed and blessed by destiny.
Many popular new works based on the story feature one step-sister who is not as cruel to
Cinderella as the other. Examples are the film Ever After, Cinderella 3 and the Broadway
revival.
Revisionist retellings[edit]
Ever After (known in promotional material as Ever After: A Cinderella Story) is a 1998
American romantic comedy-drama film inspired by the fairy tale Cinderella, directed by
Andy Tennant and starring Drew Barrymore, Anjelica Huston, and Dougray Scott. The usual
pantomime and comic/supernatural elements are removed and the story is instead treated
as historical fiction, set in Renaissance-era France. It is often seen as a modern, post-
feminism interpretation of the Cinderella myth.
There is also Gregory Maguire's novel Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, which gives the
classic story from the view of one of the ugly stepsisters. In this version, the Cinderella
character is unusually beautiful, but also a shy enigma. Her stepsister, though plain, is
charming and intelligent. The novel has themes much more adult than the traditional story.
Likewise there is a Marissa Meyer novel Cinder, which is set in a futuristic Beijing. The
Cinderella character, named Cinder, is a cyborg mechanic, who meets Prince Kaito.
Gail Carson Levine wrote Ella Enchanted, a story about how "Ella" is under a fairy curse of
obedience (she does whatever someone tells her to). A movie also has been made based
on this book.
In 1982, Roald Dahl rewrote the story in a more modern and gruesome way in his
book Revolting Rhymes.
In his book Dr. Gardner's Fairy Tales for Today's Children, Dr. Richard A. Gardener's story
"Cinderelma" has the heroine Cinderelma and the prince re-unite, then mutually decide to
separate. Cinderelma then gets a job as a seamstress, later opens her own dress shop,
and marries a young printer who owns the shop next door to hers.
In 1995, Richard Conlon's play Anastasia and Drizella was produced at Chicago's
Temporary Theatre. In it, Cinderella's step sister Anastasia gets a master's degree in
finance, and her step sister Drizella gets a master's degree in chemical engineering. When
the prince tries to have Cinderella's step family beheaded, Anastasia buys the kingdom.
The prince and Cinderella get married, and spend the rest of their lives working as servants
for Cinderella's step family, while the step sisters live happily ever after.[17]
In the 2005 picture book Ella's Big Chance by Shirley Hughes, Ella is a dressmaker in her
father's shop, and when the stepsisters arrive they appoint themselves as models. Ella
eventually chooses to marry Buttons, an employee in the shop, instead of the prince.
In Emily Short's 2006 interactive fiction short story Glass, it is Cinderella herself who has
magical powers, and neither her stepmother nor her stepsisters are malicious. The royal
ambitions of the stepmother plays a small part in their attempt to deceive the prince, but
more importantly they are trying to protect Cinderella from the law of the land, under which
practicing magic is punishable by death.[18][19]
In 2014, Bad Wolf Press published a musical version called Cinderella: A Modern
Makeover, a fractured interpretation of the story featuring a more positive "blended family"
home life as well as a heroine trying to get her dream job at the palace instead of a
marriage proposal.
Also in 2014, Rae D. Magdon published an unusual retelling of the story in a novel
titled The Second Sister, in which the protagonist, Ellie, is somewhat forced into stopping
one of her step-sisters from enchanting the Prince and take over the entire Kingdom. In
order to do this, she receives the help of a shy maid, a friendly cook, a talking cat, and her
mysterious second sister.[20]
Anne Sexton wrote an adaptation as a poem called "Cinderella" in her
collection Transformations (1971), a book in which she re-envisions sixteen of the Grimm's
Fairy tales.[21]
The Throne of Glass series, written by Sarah J. Maas, is inspired by the story of Cinderella.
Bridget Hodder has written The Rat Prince, a middle grade novel telling the Cinderella story
from the point of view of one of Cinderella's rodent friends. FSG/MacMillan is publishing the
book August 23, 2016.[22]