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Hansel and Gretel by Bruno Bettelheim
MAIN SUMMARY
Hansel and Gretel by Bruno Battelheim
This interpreting text, "Hansel and Gretel," has been written by Bruno Bettelheim. Here, the writer has interpreted the fairy tale of Hansel and Gretel, showing various social and cultural meanings. This text has presented the bitter reality that poverty, scarcity, and hardships lead people towards selfishness, cruelty, and bad deeds in society.
Hansel and Gretel had fear in their minds that their parents would abandon them in the jungle due to the lack of food. Their stepmother was such a cruel and selfish woman. Though their father loved them so much, he couldn't go against his wife's will. He felt guilty himself, and his heart became heavy when he left his children in the dense forest. The children came back home, though their parents were selfish.
SOCIAL MEANINGS
In most societies, stepmothers are seen as cruel, selfish, and jealous. They usually hate their stepchildren and force their husbands to do whatever they want. We have learned a serious lesson from our society: hardships and suffering make anyone bold and mature. Facing a lot of hardships and suffering, the children become bold and mature in the story. The next societal meaning is that greed always invites risks in our lives. Here in this story too, the children are trapped due to their greedy nature. The witch also gets killed due to her greedy intentions. It means greed leads to destruction. The children learn that to be greedy is to invite risks. The next societal rule is that without taking risks, we can achieve nothing. Here in this story, facing dangers and taking risks, both kids bring a lot of jewellery from the witch's house. Both of them realise that we must bear the pain to gain. We also know from our society that everything can easily be done through cooperation. In times of danger, we should use our mind instead of our passion.
Both kids kill the witch and release themselves from the witch's trap by cooperating. They make perfect use of their minds in times of danger.
CULTURAL MEANINGS
The gingerbread house that the kids find in the jungle is a great relief for them. During times of hunger, the house provides them food and shelter. Therefore, the house is the cultural symbol of a mother who feeds her children. Though the birds in the story bring both danger and relief for the children, the birds are symbols of peace and kindness. The birds' kindness can be seen in the story. The white bird leads them to the gingerbread house, whereas the white duck takes them across the river. Crossing an expanse of water is a symbol of maturity. After crossing the river, the children reach a higher stage of development. The white duck takes them across the river. They become economically strong. They are no longer the burden of the family. They become independent, wise, mature, and happy.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Hansel and Gretel by Bruno Battelheim
Do you think greed leads to destruction?
Answer:
Yes, I think greed leads to destruction. Greed makes everything corrupt. It leads everyone to disaster. In this story of Hansel and Gretel, greed becomes the main cause behind the witch’s death. She traps the children because of her greedy nature. She wants to eat them. She shows her ill-treatment to the children. All her greedy acts have become the main cause of her deadly end. Greed only invites a dark future, not a bright one.
Compare and contrast Hansel and Gretel by Bruno Bettelheim and Jack Zipes.
Answer:
Jack Zipes interprets this story from a Marxist point of view, whereas Bruno Bettelheim interprets the folktale “Hansel and Gretel,” showing various social and cultural meanings.
In the story of Jack Zipes, there are two classes: a higher class and a lower class. Jack describes the children and their parents as lower class and the witch as upper class. The story reveals Marxist examples, such as how poverty makes people do bad things in society. E.g., Hansel and Gretel were left in the dense forest. Due to their bad economic status, the woodcutter and his wife compel them to leave their children. This shows the compulsions of lower-class people. On the other hand, the witch’s act shows higher-class people's status. Rich people are greedy and bad. They oppress lower-class people for their own benefit. For example, she shows her greedy nature as well as bad behaviour towards the children. Her prosperity can easily be examined through her house, which is made out of sweets and jewels inside. She entices the children for her profit. She shows her bad nature by imprisoning Hansel and Gretel. The revolt of the lower class can easily be noticed through Gretel’s clever act of killing witches. They take lots of jewels from the witch’s house to change their bad status.
Bruno’s story reveals the bitter truth that poverty, scarcity, and hardships lead people towards selfishness, cruelty, and bad deeds (bad works). The stepmother is cruel and selfish. Though the father loves the children, he can’t go against his wife. He feels guilty, and his heart becomes heavy when he leaves the children in the dense forest. The children come back to the house, though their parents are selfish. In our society as well, stepmothers are generally selfish, cruel, and jealous. They usually hate their stepchildren and force their husbands to do whatever they want. However, the suffering and hardships make the children bold and mature. Facing many difficulties, they reach the house of the witch. They are tempted by the bread and sugar in the house. When they are welcomed by the witch, they become happy. But when the witch plans to kill them, they realise the dangers of greed and temptation. They learn that to be greedy is to invite risk. When the children kill the witch and return with jewels and pearls, they realise that one must bear the pain to have a gain. They learn the fact that without facing danger and without taking risks, they can achieve nothing. The treasure is the reward for the danger, pain, hardships, etc. faced by the children.
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