 |
| Neb English Support |
Gretel by Garrison Keillor
MAIN SUMMARY
Gretel by Garrison Keillor
Garrison Keillor's text "Gretel" is a transforming text of the fairy tale "Hansel and Gretel." Garrison Keillor has transformed this text from a feminist point of view. He has presented Gretel as his main character, who is a radical feminist, in this text. Here in this text, Gretel has explored her various feelings related to her brother, father, mother, and the witch of the gingerbread house. Here, we can find Gretel raising her voice against patriarchal society. She seems to be a modern feminist who wants to make all women aware of the injustice and inequality done by men in patriarchal society. She mainly blames her brother and father in this text. According to her, both of the males are betrayers and cheaters. Both of the males had deceived her in their contract. According to Gretel, there was an understanding between all of them to sell their story to the Grim Brothers. They had even signed a contract to share fifty-fifty percent of the profit. But her brother Hansel deceptively took her signature on a new contract paper, according to which she only got a little money. Behind all those cheats, Hansel, his father, and their lawyer played a very vital role. With the help of the lawyer, Hansel even distorted the whole story. Gretel found the story published the other day totally in a different order. Gretel has become quite angry with the male characters in the text. She has evaluated that the males are very cruel. The story of Hansel and Gretel, which Hansel distorted, has depicted Gretel as a cowardly girl and Hansel as a brave boy. Gretel claims that her brother was a coward in reality. Hansel used to cry time and again. He used to be so nervous when he saw the birds eating his bread crumbs. Gretel used to slap him to make him walk. She used to carry Hansel on her back many times. Hansel himself was a burden for her in the jungle. According to Gretel, the portrayal of her father and mother has also been distorted. The story has presented her father as a kind-hearted person, whereas her stepmother is a wicked woman. She says that her father wasn't a kind-hearted person. Her father was a drunkard who liked to watch but was fighting and killing. Her mother wasn't cruel in any sense. She adds that her father planned to leave them in the jungle, but not her stepmother's plan. Her stepmother couldn't do anything without her husband's permission. She says that leaving children in the forest was a usual activity during those days. During that time, parents would leave the kids in the forest in the hope that their kids would be well cared for by animals, birds, hermits, etc. She wasn't worried about her patents' jungle's deserting plan. Staying there was quite a hard experience for her, but not a single child suffered permanently. Due to that experience in the jungle, she became tolerable, talented, and brave. She says that Hansel is still stupid. According to her, Hansel lived comfortably with his father in a luxurious building, but she and her mother had to live in a small attic room of an inn. At last, she repents for killing the witch. The witch wasn't after her, but she wanted to kill Hansel.
IMPORTANT QUESTIONS
Gretel by Garrison Keillor
Why does Gretel blame her father and brother?
Answer:
Gretel blames her father and brother for deceiving her. Gretel says that there was an understanding between her, her father, and her brother to sell their story to the Grimm brothers. They had signed a contract with an agreement to share fifty-fifty percent of the profit. But unexpectedly, her brother and father deceptively made her sign a new contract according to which she would get a little money. With the help of a lawyer, Hansel changed everything in the story. Gretel found the story published the other day totally in a different order.
Do you think Gretel represent a modern feminist woman? Give your opinion briefly.
Answer:
Yes, I think Gretel represents the modern feminist woman. Gretel doesn’t like the domination of women. She criticises all the injustice and discrimination done by men. She thinks that women should get the same rights and opportunities as men. She tries to make all the women aware of the injustice. She wants to get an equal share of profit and equal property. She supports women all the time. She has deep sympathy for the witch. She loves her mother, too. She becomes angry with the males and concludes that the males are very cruel.
How was Garrison Keillor’s Gretel? Sketch the character of Gretel in short.
Answer:
Garrison Keillor’s Gretel was a radical feminist and wanted to raise her voice against patriarchal society. She wants to make women aware and raise her voice against injustice and inequality. She blames her father and brother for deceiving her. She becomes so angry with her father's and brother’s acts. She objects to her father and brother for not giving an equal share of money, as well as changing everything in the story. She has deep sympathy for the witch. She loves her mother, whereas she hates her father. She reveals that she was not a coward; instead, her brother was a coward who wept from time to time. She used to carry her brother from time to time on the way.
What does Gretel say about her father and mother?
Answer:
Gretel says that the portrayal of her father and mother is also distorted in the story. Father was not so kind-hearted. He was a drunkard. He wanted to leave them in the forest. He liked to watch bullfights. Her stepmother was not cruel in any sense. She could not do anything without the permission of her father. She never planned to leave the children in the forest. It was the wicked plan of her father because he was not able to feed the children properly.
Why is Gretel not satisfied with what Hansel and his father did?
Answer:
Both father and son deceived Gretel; that’s why Gretel is not satisfied with them. There was an understanding between her and her father and brother to sell their story to the Grimm brothers. They had signed a contract with an agreement to share fifty-fifty percent of the profit. But unexpectedly, her brother and father deceptively made her sign a new contract according to which she would get a little money. With the help of a lawyer, Hansel changed everything in the story. Gretel found the story published the other day totally in a different order.
CLICK HERE 👇 TO READ
Important Questions and Answers for Exam 2078
CLICK HERE 👇 TO READ
Previous Chapter: The Gingerbread House by Robert Coover Summary and Solution
CLICK HERE 👇 TO READ
Next Chapter: The Boarding House by James Joyce Summary and Solution
Thanks for Visiting my Website: Suraj Bhatt
Post a Comment