Letting Down Her Hair: Learning Gender through Fairy Tales

Fairy tales are often dismissed as entertainment for children, however, they also serve as educational tools that illustrate both appropriate and inappropriate ways of behaving within a given society. The cultural values expressed in these stories, and the transformation of these values and stories over time, can be examined using the example of the fairy tale Rapunzel. This study compares the gender ideals expressed in three different versions of this tale: the original story published by the Grimm brothers, a version published in 1966, and its most recent adaptation in Disney’s animated movie Tangled. Changes over time are explained by examining the historical and cultural context in which each version was produced