Cinderella.
In 1950 Disney brought its animated version of Cinderella to the screen.. For his film he was inspired by the version of the French author Charles Perrault. However, what is surprising, when you do some research on the background of the story, is that Cinderella It dates from the Egyptians, at least. This fairy tale is typical of the Eurasian continent. As just noted, Disney chose the version of Charles Perrault for his innocence over the version of the Germans Grimm.
For the Egyptians it was the story of Rhodope, or Rhodopis, for the Romans it was the tale of the woman with the little foot, an element that is repeated and maintained in most versions. And so many other cultures of Eurasia have passed the history of Cinderella word of mouth. Perrault's and the brothers grimm they were printed in children's story books, so these versions became "the official ones."
Cinderella of Perrault and the Brothers Grimm
Same beginnings
The differences between the two versions are quite macabre. In both stories, she is a girl orphaned by a mother and left at the mercy of her father's new wife and the daughters she brings with her. The party that the prince throws lasts 3 days, so she is blessed by the godmother or by a bird that speaks during these three days.
The condition is always the same, at midnight the charm ends. The first two nights she manages to flee, but the prince orders to put glue on the stairs, in this way Cinderella's little shoe stays on the stairs.
Very different endings and macabre variants with mutilations
When looking for the owner of the little shoe and arriving at Cinderella's house, only the stepsisters come out. Here the French ending and the Disney ending are similar, but the Grimm ending is starting to turn dark.
Charles Perrault.
When the foot of the first daughter does not enter, her mother tells her to cut her fingers, convincing her that when she is queen she will not have to walk. The prince sees her with the shoe and begins to leave the compound with his future wife, but some pigeons tell him that the shoe is not hers.
Noticing the blood on the shoe, he returns and decides to try the other sister. Again the little glass shoe does not fit on the second daughter's foot, the mother then convinces her to cut her heel with the same excuse that made the first one cut his fingers. Once again the pigeons warn the prince that this is not the right girl either.
Then Cinderella appears, whose shoe fits perfectly. Both the stepmother and the stepsisters are invited to the wedding, but some crows gouge their eyes, leaving them blind.
Greek cinderella
Something very interesting is that Cinderella is always blonde with green eyes and fair skin. This is because in the Greek version Cinderella came to Egypt as a slave. The man who buys it is very nice, but the other women in the place annoy her for being so different from them, the nickname was Pink Cheeks. It's not sisters who make life miserable for the Greek Cinderella, but the general plot is quite similar.
The Brothers Grimm.
A common and repetitive argument
Cinderella shows us that the argument of the beautiful, abused and denigrated young woman is as old as the human being. The golden dream of going from extreme poverty to luxury and comfort by a simple stroke of luck has accompanied us since ancient times.
Disney knew what it was doing by turning classic stories and novels into animated films. The stories had already permeated popular memory, which ensures that they are always a hit on the big screen.