Wheeler 1

Taylor Wheeler
Mrs. Jurczyk
Lit 1011
10 February 2016
LRRH Essay
Allegorical Reflections
The well known fairytale Little Red Riding Hood was told many years ago for its
morals and storyline. Retold through literature, picture books, and word of mouth, the short story
was designed to educate young children about good and evil, and right and wrong. Today, the
relevance of a fairytale1 has died down, and does not give the same lessons as it used to. Charles
Perraults simple version in 1697 differs dramatically from other more updated versions of
Little Red Riding Hood. James Finn Garner turns Little Red Riding Hood into an allegorical
reflection of how society is too politically correct2 to take the simple lesson from a fairy tale.
Charles Perrault has the most concise form of Little Red Riding Hood, demonstrating moral
and consequence for children at a young age. Simply put, Red Riding Hood was to go see her
sick grandmother and bring her some snacks. On the way, she talks to strange wolf, who she tells
where she is going, and he ends up finding grandmother's house and eats both of them. The story

1 The OED defines a fairytale asA tale about fairies; a tale set in fairyland; esp. any of various short tales having
folkloric elements and featuring fantastic or magical events or characters. Also as a mass noun: such stories collectively or as a
genre. A fairytale has the significance to shape a child into a better person by teaching them small lessons, in a way that they
will understand, which is why they have been carried on for so long.
2 The definition of politically correct in the OED is adj. (a) appropriate to the prevailing political or social
circumstances (in early use not as a fixed collocation) Usually referenced to today's society, meaning the 21st century, shows
how as the reader gains more knowledge about subjects, they use that knowledge to turn simple things into complicated and
detailed topics. Fairytales is relevant to political correction because they seem to be picked apart and rewritten in more realistic
ways, but the correction takes away the significance of the piece.

Wheeler 2
is meant to to frighten young children away from talking to strangers, and being put in dangerous
situations. Perraults version is a clear and simple storyline that is easy to understand. Little Red
Riding Hood is a short fairytale that many families use to teach children lessons. A fairytale can
also foster a childs imagination and creativity. Perraults version of Little Red Riding Hood, is
a great example of the influence that fairytales used to have on humans. The only problem is,
fairytales have lost their relevance, and now people are taking the story too literally which waters
down the true meaning.
James Garner, on the other hand, writes Little Red Riding Hood with a 21st
Century twist, how the majority of the population actually views the world. Garner changes the
storyline into a very polite and objective version. Red Riding Hood is bringing goodies to her
healthy grandmother and is approached by a well-mannered wolf who warns her about the
dangerous woods. After the wolf swaps out for grandmas spot, he is insulted by Red Riding
Hoods comments and invades her personal space. When the woodman comes to help, Red
Riding Hood becomes insulted at his act of sexism, assuming she cannot handle herself. They
figure out their mutual agreement on households and in the end they live happily ever after.
Garner's politically correct version eliminates the lesson and moral to the story. It switches the
purpose of the setting and characters, and sorts out the social and political problems in the
fairytale. The relevance of morals, lessons, and meaning, has lost its significance because people
struggle to enjoy a simple fairy tale, and instead pick it apart.
Hundreds of versions of Red Riding Hood have been written and rewritten, but most do
not hold a position of relevance in todays society. Perrault and Garner's versions counteract
each other in a way that provides evidence that fairytales have lost their relevance. Perraults
story starts out with Red Riding Hoods mother saying, Go, my dear, and see how your

Wheeler 3
grandmother is doing, for I hear she has been very ill. Take her a cake, and this little pot of butter
(Perrault 1), a simple gesture for her sick grandmother. Garners story is much more specific
and direct when he writes, One day her mother asked her to take a basket of fresh fruit
and mineral water to her grandmothers housenot because this was womyns work, mind
you, but because the deed was generous and helped engender a feeling of community
(Garner 1). These two quotes exhibit the apparent difference in the mood already. The changes in
the mood replicate how Garner turns the story into a modern day replica of self sufficient people,
and heart-warming change in todays society. Furthermore, Perrault explains Red Riding Hood as
knowing that the forest was dangerous, while Garner says, Red Riding Hood, however, was
confident enough in her own budding sexuality that such obvious Freudian imagery did not
intimidate her (Garner 1). The difference here is the that the young girl has confidence going
into the forest. To make it clear that young girls are not timid and afraid, she is brave enough to
take on the journey. At the end, Red Riding Hood climbs into grandmother's bed in both tales,
but they counteract each other once again. Little Red Riding Hood took off her clothes and got
into bed. She was greatly amazed to see how her grandmother looked in her nightclothes
(Perrault 2). Charles version does not touch on Red Riding Hoods opinion on her how the wolf
looks, she only notices his features. James's story states that the Wolf, Then, unhampered by
rigid, traditionalist notions of what was masculine or feminine, he put on Grandmas
nightclothes and crawled into bed. Here, Garner points out the Wolf dresses in grandma's
clothes. In the 21st century, people find that others are looking for acceptance when cross
dressing in public. The way Garner writes his version, in contrast to Perraults, portrays Little
Red Riding Hood in the eyes of those living in todays society.

Wheeler 4
The contradiction of the two pieces of writing, show that people today cannot simply view a
fairytale as an innocent lesson, but as one more story to turn around and make politically correct.
In essence, a fairy tale is old news, the stories are not used for an educational purpose
because they are picked apart and sensitized by readers. Much like the society that surrounds
humans, change is underway and people are searching for acceptance and kindness. Nothing is
cut dry and straight to the point, their are more gray areas than ever, and that is shown just by the
change in the tell tale story Little Red Riding Hood. Perrault and Garner show a larger
difference between the time change of society. It is easy to say that as time goes on, fairytales
will no longer be used as a small lesson for children, but as an example of how the past did not
treat humans the way they wished to be treated.

Works Cited

Wheeler 5
Garner, James Finn. "Little Red Riding Hood." Politically Correct Bedtime Stories:
Modern Tales for Our Life and Times. N.p.: Macmillan, 1994. N. pag. Print.
Perrault, Charles. "Little Red Riding Hood." Pitt.edu. University of Pittsburg, 21 Sept.
2003. Web. 08 Feb. 2016.