Grethel in all her pin-up glory
I haven't thought of the Grimm stories in terms of the seven deadly sins, but 'Clever Grethel' just screams - rather, moans! - Lust, with a helping of Gluttony and a pinch of Vanity.
She wears her red-heeled shoes with aplomb, imbibes red wine and gets all "hot and thirsty" standing by the fire. There are mentions of her licking her fingers and bringing fingers to her lips - the color of which go without mention, but are probably red!
'Clever Grethel' intimates the sensual nature of eating, and harks back to the tasting of the forbidden fruit. The word sin comes up, but is spoken of in the most flirtatious of tones. It goes almost without saying that appetite for food invokes sexual appetite.
Reading this story is a sensuous experience in itself. I can feel the seductive smell of the food, and the warmth emanating from the fleshly licks of the fire.
Grethel's unabashed desire to relish the taste of everything indicates a worldliness that could not necessarily be had by other women in her social position. Her philosophy boils down to these words, 'she would take some of the best of whatever she was cooking, until she had had enough; - "for," said she, "a cook must know how things taste."'
In a collection full of virgin maidens and miserable witches, Grethel's unabashed joie de vivre is celebrated rather than scolded. This is one of my favorite stories in the collection. I was glad that, rather than being hit with a moral takedown, Grethel got away with her naughty, naughty ruse.
She wears her red-heeled shoes with aplomb, imbibes red wine and gets all "hot and thirsty" standing by the fire. There are mentions of her licking her fingers and bringing fingers to her lips - the color of which go without mention, but are probably red!
'Clever Grethel' intimates the sensual nature of eating, and harks back to the tasting of the forbidden fruit. The word sin comes up, but is spoken of in the most flirtatious of tones. It goes almost without saying that appetite for food invokes sexual appetite.
Reading this story is a sensuous experience in itself. I can feel the seductive smell of the food, and the warmth emanating from the fleshly licks of the fire.
Grethel's unabashed desire to relish the taste of everything indicates a worldliness that could not necessarily be had by other women in her social position. Her philosophy boils down to these words, 'she would take some of the best of whatever she was cooking, until she had had enough; - "for," said she, "a cook must know how things taste."'
In a collection full of virgin maidens and miserable witches, Grethel's unabashed joie de vivre is celebrated rather than scolded. This is one of my favorite stories in the collection. I was glad that, rather than being hit with a moral takedown, Grethel got away with her naughty, naughty ruse.
Wow, this is fantastic! Are you going to be turning this in as your essay? I am so impressed at all the details you bring to life in just a few paragraphs! These stories where cleverness triumphs really appeal to me, too - especially when it is the woman's cleverness that lets her get the better of the men around her. You did a great job of bringing out the sensuous qualities of Grethel's character - and listen, there is a version of this same story in the 1001 Nights where the story is explicitly sexual! You might enjoy reading it - I have some notes about that here: http://courserafantasy.blogspot.com/2012/07/cutting-off-ears-or-worse.html
ReplyDeleteI love that when I click on the button here it says "Publicar"... Blogger is global! :-)
I'm still halfway through the tales because in all honesty I was just getting depressed at all the evil stepmothers and unbearably beautiful doormat girls. I will definitely read this one. Thanks for this! And to Laura for posting it on the Coursera forum.
ReplyDeleteLaura tipped me off to your blog. Thanks, Laura! It is reassuring to read someone else's writing. I love your perspective of Clever Grethel. I certainly did not even think about it in the same way at all. I absolutely love the clever twist on Professor Rabkin's name and the title of the first tale. Very impressed!!! You two have inspired me to create a blog. Will let you know when I create it.
ReplyDeleteLu Sadler
Sigh...now I have to explain my other blog, which automatically popped up when I "publicar" my comments to yours. My maiden name is Maize and I have an astrology blog that I haven’t had time to pay attention to in a long while: http://amaizingjourneys.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteWow! I feel so happy with the great response my post has received. Thank you, Laura, Pause to Wonder and M.L. Maize, for your words. Maize, I hope you do create a course blog and direct us to it.
ReplyDeleteThanks Laura for exposing by newborn blog to your wider network. I am thrilled that you introduced me to Ashliman's index of folk tales (http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/folktexts.html) - it will certainly come in handy every time I read a new fairy tale.
I feel for the poor guest from 1001 nights, even if I have no idea what having (and risk losing!) testicles must feel like. I do still admire the way that, whereas the tale in 1001 nights involved premeditation on the wife's part, Grethel's ruse was a quick-witted response to the pickle she found herself in after she couldn't help herself from eating all the food!
A couple of folks in the Coursera discussion forum mentioned that the people who probably told Grethel's story to each other came from a working class background, which helps explain how Grethel is cast as a heroine and not a villain!