Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
Fairy Tale as Sexual Allegory: Intertextuality in The Bloody Chamber -…
Fairy Tale as Sexual Allegory: Intertextuality in
The Bloody Chamber
The Bloody Chamber
Describes feminine courage with triumphant ending
The chamber symbolises sexuality
May also symbolise the womb, making the castle Bluebeard's sexuality
The girl fits Bluebeard's desire for a dependent, virginal child-woman who is ripe for tragedy
Carter highlights the threat of a sadomasochistic sexual relationship
The chamber is like a wax museum and it preserves all his past wives in final moments
Clothing represents costumes which in turn represent a role
The ruby choker reflects image of innocence, vulnerability and victimisation
Watching herself being undressed makes her feel like a pornographic object
Bluebeard keeps all his robes of wealth and power whilst she is just an empty body
The ending of this story conveys a deeply feminist message unlike the other stories which simply summarise patriarchal patterns of power
The Snow Child
It is a fable of incest with a tragic ending
Story highlights struggle between masculine power and female sexuality
Unlike the original fairy tale, the Count does not have to choose between the Countess and his daughter since he can have both
The Countess is just as powerless as the child since they are both held in the tyranny of his desire
The snow child has a mother-figure who is also trying to oppress her
The story highlights the sexual consequences of absolute power
The feather left behind when the child dies highlights how she is a creature of the forest
Naked & mute she confronts the culture of the Count and Countess
The Countess is also compared to a wild animal
In their wildness and nakedness, both women are contrasted with the Count who represents a culture and also bestows cultural status on women
They are placed in pornographic contrast with the Count who is fully clothed
