I feel that these two stories very nicely represent Allison Lurie's views of fairy tales. I feel this way because Lurie stated that fairy tales are "stories of magic and transformation". Such transformations are included in both versions, but in the French story in particular. For example, the magic of the fairy godmother is used in the story to transform a pumpkin into a coach, mice into men, rags into beautiful clothing, and a rat into a man with an elegant mustachio.

After demandingly reading each of the two versions of "Cinderella," I feel that there are several differences between them. The first difference has to do with Cinderella's fairy godmother. In the French version, Cinderella has a fairy godmother who looks after her throughout the story. In the Grimm version of this story, however, there is no fairy godmother. Second, in the French version Cinderella had to be home by midnight. I feel that the entire outcome of the story was based on this. If she had not been in a hurry to get home by midnight, she would not have left her slipper behind, and the story would not have ended the way it did.

The two versions are similar in many ways. Both stories have a great amount of magic represented in them. I feel that most of this magic was in the form of transformation. For example, the dead mother of Cinderella in the Grimm story was buried under a tree. Then when Cinderella needed some fancy clothes for the ball, it was the birds from that tree that gave her the dress. It can be inferred that the birds symbolize the dead mother trying to give to her daughter. It is magical that the birds understand what Cinderella says, and they give her what she wants. Another similarity is that both stories use a slipper left behind to force the prince to find Cinderella.

Another interesting point in both versions of this story again deals with magic. However, this magic is related more to the personification of animals. There is another fine example of magic. This example, as said by Jack Zipes,

Two scholars have made some interesting points about the meaning of fairy tales in society. Bruno Bettelheim stated that the corruption of society is based upon the negative influences introduced into the society through such things as fairy tales. Similarly, Andrea Dworkin believes that fairy tales imprint images of good and evil on our mind when we are very young. These images make us who we are as adults and therefore help form our society.

"...Folk tales are 'monstrous, irrational, and unnatural,' both as to the elements of which they are composed, and as to the plots that unify these elements..."

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Approximate Word count = 1161
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)