Product Description

A young scholar goes to Grandmother's house--and beyond--to uncover the surprisingly complex and contradictory morals we've learned from this seemingly simple folk tale. In Little Red Riding Hood Uncloaked Catherine Orenstein reveals for the first time the intricate sexual politics, moral ambiguities, and philosophical underpinnings of Red Riding Hood's epic journey to her grandmother's house--and how, from the nursery on, fairy tales influence our view of the world. Beginning with its first publication as a cautionary tale on the perils of seduction, written in reaction to the licentiousness of the court of Louis XIV, Orenstein traces the many lives the tale has lived since then, from its appearance in modern advertisements for cosmetics and automobiles, the inspiration it brought to poets such as Anne Sexton, and its starring role in pornographic films. In Little Red Riding Hood Uncloaked , Red appears as seductress, hapless victim, riot grrrrl, femme fatale, and even she-wolf, as Orenstein shows how through centuries of different guises, the story has served as a barometer of social and sexual mores pertaining to women. Full of fascinating history, generous wit, and intelligent analysis, Little Red Riding Hood Uncloaked proves that the story of one young girl's trip through the woods continues to be one of our most compelling modern myths.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #115426 in Books
• Published on: 2008-05-11
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

Customer Reviews

Red Hot
This is a really interesting exploration of the popular fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood. It follows the evolution of the tale from Perrault's Little Red Riding Hood, to Carter's Company of Wolves and the film Freeway starring Reese Witherspoon. It shows just how much of an impact this one tale has had on our society and is entertaining and easy to read. It is a good starting point for anyone wishing to study the origins and development of Red Riding Hood or just someone wanting to learn more about it.

A truly remarkable review of the history of red riding hood
Catherine Orenstein gives a truly remarkable review of the history of red riding hood. Starting with the version of Perault, she moves on to the brothers Grimm, only to go back to the oral history before Perault. Then she evaluates the function of the story in different settings and times, giving original and eye-opening opinions.

What do you think of her vision of the various Prince Charmings: necrophilic pedophiles. Pointing out that the prince of Snowwhite falls in love with her after she died and wants to share his life with a corpse, and the prince of Sleeping Beauty falls in love with her comatose body lying in a death-like state. Both ladies underaged.

An other interesting vision is her disagrement with feministes that red riding hood was raped. Yes in our perspective she is. The wolf is a sexual active male as Perault point out and Orenstein confirms with several examples. But rape didn't exist in the days of Perault. It was the father of the girl who was robbed of the chance to arrange a marriage for his daughter and make some fortune out of it.

The book is written with great insight and also humor. Highly recommended!