A Critique by: me

This is a critique I did for English class. Enjoy!

“Cinderella” or “Cinder”rivalry: a critique of the article “Cinderella": a story of Sibling Rivalry and Oedipal Conflicts”

 

            In the article “’Cinderella’: A story of Sibling Rivalry and Oedipal Conflicts,” Bruno Bettelheim, a psychologist and former educator at Rockford College and the University of Chicago, explores the hidden meanings within the story “Cinderella,” and how those meanings might be undoubtedly understood as the gateway to sibling rivalry within families. Born in 1903 in Vienna, Bettelheim grew up within a society where Freudian theory represented the primary psychological ideology, and became a renowned writer, eventually moving to the United States and becoming a naturalized citizen in 1939, several years later.  Bettelheim’s concept of Freudian theory led him to delve deep into the aspects of “Cinderella” and how it relates to relationships, both good and bad, within a family.

            Bettelheim possessed many ideas about “Cinderella,” but his main argument within the article explained how “Cinderella” tells a tale of sibling rivalry. Bettelheim himself describes “Cinderella” as essentially “experienced as a story about the agonies and hopes which form the essential content of sibling rivalry; and about the degraded heroine winning out over her siblings who have abused her” (652). Bettelheim explores a few, but not all, aspects of “Cinderella” that make it such a relatable story to young children. He expands upon the story and how many children use it as a gateway to understanding their emotions, or learning how to deal with them. Children see, or read, about a young girl whose sisters and step-mother constantly taunted and abused her, and automatically relate because, at some point in life, they have been made to do something that they dislike or don’t want to do, just like Cinderella’s family forced her to. What Bettelheim doesn’t address, in detail, the fact that not all children have siblings, and not all families possess siblings from the same parents. Mixed families occurred less in the twentieth century than they do now; a child within a mixed family might relate to “Cinderella” slightly differently than a child from a generic family would because he or she might have more to be jealous of.

Another point Bettelheim brought up included the idea of “Cinderella” possessing as much appeal to boys as it possesses to girls. Bettelheim was born in a time period where men predominately ruled as a gender. This setback possibly hindered his ability to see and understand the story of “Cinderella” to the extent that a female, or male in the modern day would. In modern times, males and females co-exist and don’t possess specific jobs or roles such that those in the twentieth century did. This allows them grow up playing the same games, dressing up not just in boy clothes, but also in girl clothes. What Bettelheim failed to show was a lack of understanding for the outside forces that possibly affected the way children saw/see “Cinderella.” Advertising, for example, creates a huge effect on the minds of young children by brainwashing them into thinking that they need this, or have to have that.

Bettelheim also explored the concepts of unconscious and conscious brains while watching/reading fairy tales. He believed that the brains of children allowed for them to unconsciously pick up small details that adults often miss. One example he gave included the idea that children like Little Red Riding Hood in bed with the Wolf, but hey don’t know why. Through this method children are unconsciously picking up small details through their emotions. The children, while too young to be able to name what their feelings or emotions are, still know why they feel those emotions, and require some way to act it out, such as that of the actions shown in “Cinderella”. Children utilize the story as something relatable and act out their emotions based upon what they saw or see.

Bettelheim’s main focus throughout the article was upon the Oedipal Period of a child’s life. Bettelheim defines Oedipal as “Freud’s theory of the Oedipus complex that held that at an early stage of development a child wishes to replace the parent of the same sex in order to achieve the exclusive love of the parent of the opposite sex” (656). This theory is crudely understood as how a child sets sexual boundaries between him or herself and his or hers parents. At a young age children tend to “cozy up” to the parent of the opposite gender in an attempt to achieve the love that mommy or daddy give to each other. The key behind all of this: jealousy. Jealousy drives young children to want to be the one giving daddy kisses or sitting on mommy’s lap. This jealousy helps encourage the establishment of boundaries among young children and their parents. Children learn through this “testing” the definitions of appropriate and inappropriate behavior, and, eventually, apply those rules to society when they are older.

            The essay lacks in whether Bettelheim has had any first-hand experience of this or not. If Bettelheim had siblings it would make a huge difference in how or why he approached these topics the way he did, but, as it stands, Bettelheim does not reveal any evidence as to his own beliefs. Bettelheim also fails to explain or give examples of any personal experience he had while working as a child psychologist. Did he ever see any of these things that he claims as true? Does he stand so firm in his beliefs because he saw all of the things he claims as true? If not, then what caused him to assume these facts other than his experiences with Freudian theory growing up? Not only did Bettelheim not give these first-hand experiences, but he also neglected putting any examples within his essay at all. This failure to credit his one source as well as his failure to provide sources at all leaves the impression that he possesses no credibility as a writer throughout the duration of the essay.

            While immersed in Freudian theory, Bettelheim acquired many different views upon what effects, and to what extent, fairytales such as “Cinderella” have upon the minds of young children. However, sibling rivalry is a key concept in the story of “Cinderella” because children use “Cinderella” to deal with emotions, which may be helpful to them in the short-term, but might undoubtedly hurt them in the future by creating bad habits such as always being mean to others when they do not get what they want, or always whining when another sibling gets something that they do not. “Cinderella” can either help or hinder a child, but whatever it really does either, or is just a form of entertainment, is for you to decide.

           

           

 

 

Work Cited

Bettelheim, Bruno. “’Cinderella’: A Story of Sibling Rivalry and Oedipal Conflicts”      1975. Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum. Eleventh edition. Ed. Laurence Baurens and Leonard J. Rosen. Boston: Longman, 2011. 651-57. Print.