AbstractsLanguage, Literature & Linguistics

Curses, Ogres and Lesbians; Förbannelser, troll och lesbiska kvinnor

by Anne Drewett




Institution: Umeå University
Department:
Year: 2016
Keywords: Beauty and the Beast; Bitter Thorns; Shrek; fairy tales; women as tradeable objects; heteronormativity; idealised beauty; Humanities; Languages and Literature; General Literature Studies; Humaniora; Språk och litteratur; Litteraturvetenskap
Posted: 02/05/2017
Record ID: 2070374
Full text PDF: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-117268


Abstract

Fairy tales as a form of social acculturation can subvert and/or perpetuate potentially harmful social norms. In this essay, Chris Anne Wolfe’s lesbian romance novel Bitter Thorns (1994) and the film Shrek (2001) are analysed as adaptations of the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, with a focus on the extent to which they challenge and/or reinforce three fairy tale norms: women as tradeable objects, heteronormativity and idealised beauty. Both these texts can be seen as subversive, Bitter Thorns in how it challenges heteronormativity and Shrek in how it challenges the norm of idealised beauty. This subversion, however, is limited, as both texts do more to perpetuate fairy tale norms than to challenge them. They both reinforce the idea of women as objects for trade, Bitter Thorns perpetuates the norm of idealised beauty, and Shrek advocates heteronormative relationships and the dominance of heterosexual masculinity.