Hansel and Gretel

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining Book
Review: First off, I really like the story of "Hansel and Gretel." It's one of the few fairy tales I remember reading when I was little. Recently, I wrote a paper on "Hansel and Gretel" and found that there is a lot of negativity surrounding it. Researchers object to the portrayal of women as cold-blooded killers and the father as weak and useless. In the story, the evil stepmother easily dominates her weak husband and forces him to go along with her scheme to abandon the children. It is believed that the Grimms included this in their story as a warning to men to watch out for domineering women. Another point scholars make is the fact that both the evil stepmother and wicked witch are both fatally punished for their treatment of Hansel and Gretel, but the father gets off scott free. In fact, the father is allowed to reap the benefits when his children return home with their arms filled with riches. Now, I don't fully agree with everything scholars have said about "Hansel and Gretel" because I found the story to be based somewhat on actual facts.
When the Grimms wrote this book, there had been many famines that wiped out entire villages. Also, women often died during childbirth, leaving the father to raise the kids on his own or remarry. The harsh conditions drove people to desperate measures and it was not uncommon for families to sacrifice a child or other loved one to ensure their own survival; especially stepmothers who were taking care of children that were not their own. I do agree that the story does not portray a normal, happy family but most fairy tales don't. On the other hand, I don't believe the Grimms' intention was to demean their characters, but to reveal the harsh realities of their time. In any case, "Hansel and Gretel" is still a good book, a classic fairy tale, and definitely worth a read.