Julie Huang

Lynda Haas
Writing 39B
24 January 2016
Rhetorical Analysis of Bearskin
The many different tales of Bearskin varies respectfully to the differences in the cultures
they come from. Two such examples would be the Ashliman translated version from Germany,
Bearskin, in 1843 and a Filipino version, The Reward of Kindness, from a collection
published in 1921 by Dean Fansler. The difference in context between the two tales are a good
explanation for their variance. The Grimms originally recorded their stories in a way in hopes of
capturing them with the same flavor they had when told orally. However, much of the readers
turned out to be from Christian middle-class households looking for entertainment. Literary
critics called for the stories to be made more accessible to a general public and more considerate
of children as readers and listeners of the stories (Zipes 13). The original intended audience was
the scholarly and well-educated, but this shift in audience presented a need for adapting the
conventions and motifs of the stories to correspond appropriately. On the other hand, the Filipino
version is indubitably derived from from the European ones, but it alters the story so that it fits
the new cultural norms. The Philippines has it own fairy tale conventions and personal and
family values, so these are quite apparent in the edits made. For example, the formula of a
childless couple promising in despair to let their child serve even the Devil if they are granted
offspring.. is a favorite in Filipino Marchen (Fansler 210).
The initial situation in a fairy tale consists of how the conditions of the main characters
current situation came about. It gives some background information of what kind of character he

or she is and what their current issues or tasks are. In the case of Bearskin, the main character is
was a soldier who was left without a job after the war ended. As a result, he desperately looked
for a job to make ends meets, and thats when a strange man proposes a suspicious offer of
money and property as long as he keeps the promise to not wash himself for seven years. This
storyline seems reflective of the conditions that the Grimms were living in. They too were
plagued by money problems, and this was only further aggravated by the rampant Napoleonic
Wars (Zipes 5). After the wars, it was quite common to see struggling soldiers looking for a
living. The Backstory of the Filipino version follows the popular Filipino theme where a couple
is hoping for a child and, during a spell of desperation, states that they would let their child serve
the devil as long as they got to conceive a child at all. Eventually the devil appears to fulfill the
promise, and the parents can only oblige. This beginning is a recurring one in many other
Filipino folk tales even within the same collection, Filipino Popular Tales. For example in the
story that directly follows this one in the collection, Pedro and Satan, the couple was once
again desperate for a child and resolves to rely upon Satan after God continually lets them
down (Fansler 211). The initial situations in each of the versions are reflective of what is familiar
to each of audiences.
The interdiction is another major element between the two stories that varies according to
what is its social context. The conditions of Germany at the time the Grimms version is being
recorded consists of post war famine and poverty. The common people were desperate for money
in order to sustain themselves and a mysterious man offering them unlimited money would be
their dreams-come-true. It was likely common to find folks unable to keeps themselves
substantially clean or that they were in such desperate conditions that it was not a concern for
them. However in the Filipino version, the Devil does not require the boy to be unwashed.

Rather, the only conditions are to spend the money given to him only doing good. This stems
from the cultural norm that Filipino natives take great pride in their hair and are scrupulously
clean. Living within layers of filth are conditions wholly foreign to Filipino conception
(Fansler 210). Elements in each version of the story have been edited to match the what is
acceptable in each culture.