Disciplines
Arts and Humanities | English Language and Literature
Abstract
The research topic I addressed regarded the idealized concept of marriage and the “happy ending” seen in a majority of fairytales, compared to the darker Bluebeard tale that focuses on what happens after the marriage, a time frame rarely addressed. This tale places emphasis on material good as a means of entering marriages, which often causes members of the marriage to have limited knowledge of their spouse and the skeletons in their closets. This can lead to grave consequences such as loss of innocence, being placed in subordinate gender roles for women, and reliance on male saviors, all impacting both male and female identities. I use close reading of mainly the Perrault version of the “Bluebeard” tale and also some of the Brothers Grimm version to support my argument. I used a variety of secondary sources as well in order to provide another perspective and also to validate my claims.
First Page
4
Last Page
11
Recommended Citation
Buell, Edward. "Happily Never After." The Review: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Research 14 (2013): 4-11. Web. [date of access]. <https://fisherpub.sjf.edu/ur/vol14/iss1/4>.