Little Red Riding Hood

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Little Red Riding Hood with the wolf
Little Red Riding Hood with the wolf

Little Red Riding Hood is a famous fairy tale. It is a story about a young girl and a wolf. There are many different versions of this story. The most well known version is by the Brothers Grimm. Their version of the story was written during the 19th century. The first known printed version is found in the 1697 book, Tales and Stories of the Past with Morals. Tales of Mother Goose. Earlier versions can be found in Italy in the 14th century and as far back as stories dealing with Thor in Norse mythology.

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[edit] Versions of the story

There are different versions of the story. The most common version is the one told by the Brothers Grimm.

Spoiler warning: The text below is about parts of the story or how it ends.

A girl walks in the woods. She is taking food to her grandmother. At this time, the wolf is watching and wishing to eat the girl. The wolf asks the girl where she is going. The girl answers. The wolf tells the girl to pick some flowers. While she does this the wolf goes to grandmother's house and eats her, then disguises himself as the grandmother. When the girl goes into grandmother's house the wolf eats the girl too. A lumberjack later comes and opens the wolf's body. He saves the grandmother and the girl who are still alive. Then, stones are put in the wolf's body to kill the wolf.

[edit] Meanings

As with many fairy tales, messages about morality and other things can be found in Little Red Riding Hood. The message most easily seen is that it is dangerous to talk to strangers. Many messages about sexuality can also be found in the story. Some people think the story seems to be describing rape. Susan Brownmiller wrote a book about it, called Against Our Will. Erich Fromm only takes the versions the Brothers Grimm wrote. He sees the red cap of Little Red Riding Hood as a symbol for menstruation. Little Red Riding Hood is saved by a (male) hunter. She herself does not do much in the story: other people do things to her. Many people (especially women) have criticised this story, saying it is against women. Some people also see a warning in the story against being raped . Little Red Riding Hood is told she should stay on the path, and trust no one.

[edit] Adaptations

The story has been adapted to various media. Tex Avery made a cartoon out of it, Red Hot Riding Hood. He adapted the story to be more appealing to adults. Little Red Riding Hood works at a striptease club. The wolf is styled very much, in a suit he goes after the stripper (a stripper is a person who takes off his or her clothes in public).

François Adrien Boieldieu (1775 - 1834) made an opera from the story. The opera is called Le petit chaperon rouge. Its first performance was in Paris, in the year 1818.

Roald Dahl made a very funny poem about Little Red Riding Hood. It is in his collection Revolting Rhymes.

[edit] External links

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