| Cinderella [
A
modern version of the story ]
|
| Versions of the Cinderella story date
back to ancient Egypt and ancient China, medieval France,
and the Eighteenth Century collection of fairy tales by
the Brothers Grimm. This story's universal appeal is
based on the way it resonates emotionally in the children
who hear it and the adults who retell it. When
interpreted as we would interpret a dream the reasons for
this resonance become clear and apparent. |
| Cinderella's unhappy life as a cinder
maid in the home of her cruel stepmother and arrogant
stepsisters reflects the humiliation of being a child, of
being ordered around, of having your opinions and
feelings treated with contempt, of seeing the needs of
the adults in the household satisfied while your own
needs go unmet. |
| The magical transformation that enables
Cinderella to attend the Prince's Ball is a metaphor for
the magical transformation of puberty that turns a girl
child into a woman. In the fairy tale a pumpkin changes
into a magnificent coach and the little mice are turned
into steeds. In real life forces almost as mysterious
turn a mousy and unappreciated little girl into an
attractive and desirable young woman. |
| At the ball Cinderella dances with the
Prince, captivating him with her charm and beauty. The
impression she leaves behind is like the glass slipper.
Then, smitten by love, he must overcome all obstacles and
find this special woman who is a "perfect fit."
When at last he finds her, he takes her away from the
unhappy household in which she grew up, they get married
and they live happily ever after. |
| Dreams and fairy tales are pictures of
feelings. In this story the sequence of feelings is:
humiliation (the picture of the unhappy cinder maid),
transformation (the picture of the magical effects),
excitement (the picture of being at the ball and dancing
with the Prince), hope (the picture of the Prince's
search), and happiness (the picture of Cinderella being
reunited with her true love and whisked away to a
wonderful life). |
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