Patriarchal Attitudes in Beauty and the Beast: A Cultural Study

This essay critically examines "Beauty and the Beast" through a feminist lens, arguing that the fairy tale reinforces patriarchal attitudes and norms. It highlights the story's celebration of male dominance, the stereotypical portrayal of female characters, and the negative depiction of assertive women. The essay discusses the narrative's key events, from the merchant's misfortune to Beauty's sacrifice and eventual marriage to the Beast-turned-Prince, to support its thesis. It concludes that the story perpetuates the idea of female submission and reinforces traditional gender roles, offering a perspective that challenges the seemingly romantic surface of the tale. Desklib provides access to more solved assignments and resources for students.

Running head: THE BEAUTY AND THE BEAST – A DISCUSSION
THE BEAUTY AND THE BEAST – A DISCUSSION
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Author Note

1THE BEAUTY AND THE BEAST – A DISCUSSION
The following essay attempts to argue on the fact that the fairy tale in discussion, The
Beauty and The Beast promotes the various patriarchal attitudes and the norms that are prevalent
in the present-day society. According to my opinions, the underlying story of the fairy tale
presents the dominance and the power of the male characters presented in the story over their
female counterparts. The tale presents the female characters of the story in ways that are
stereotypically feminine and pillorizes those women who tend to be assertive and aggressive in
nature.
The story opens with the depiction of a merchant who is a father to three sons and three
daughters. The eldest daughter was very beautiful to look at and was often referred to as “the
little beauty”. The beauty of the elder daughter has earned her the jealousy of her sisters. The
family faced a loss in their fortune which led the admirers astray and left them with just a
midnight sheep to play with. The readers feel sorry for the misfortune of the beautiful girl who
has a lot of suitors due to her nature but does not want to desert her father at the times of
misfortune that has befallen on the family. The sisters, on the other hand, depict an attitude that
is hugely different from that of the elder daughter. The story concludes on a happy note that
states that the merchant had received a letter stating that his ship had reached the shore safely
and this enflamed the hope of the merchant regarding the financial conditions that the family had
been facing. The beautiful little girl on hearing this, had demanded nothing from her father
except a rose.
The merchant on hearing the request had embarked on a journey through the woods
wherein he chanced upon a beautiful palace that had been lit up very beautifully. He thanked the
Heavens for offering him with this help and the time spent at the palace wherein he had been
offered several royal treatments. He thanked the madam fairy for this and had been passing from

2THE BEAUTY AND THE BEAST – A DISCUSSION
under a bower of roses when he remembered the demand of his eldest daughter. He had plucked
one of the flowers when he chanced upon a huge beast advancing in his direction. The beast
threatened to take away his life as a price for the rose that he had plucked from the bower. The
merchant was so baffled that he gave out the fact that the flower was intended for his daughter.
On hearing this, the beast asked the merchant to send one of his daughters to the beast. The
merchant returned to his abode and shared the incident with the children. The eldest daughter of
the merchant agreed to abide by the demands of the monster and was ready to give away her life
in place of her father.
The merchant accompanied the girl to the palace and had to leave her there with the beast
as per instructions. The girl had felt that the beast was kind enough despite his looks. During the
evening the beast proposed marriage to the girl which she politely rejected. The girl, after
somedays expressed her desire to be with her father for 8 days. The daughter faced huge amounts
of jealousy from her sisters who had already planned to dominate her during her stay. However,
on the eight day the girl woke up to a bad dream wherein she had dreamt of the beast on the
verge of death. The girl was very sad at this an d returned to the beast on the very next day. The
beast did not appear at the usual place in the evening which got the beautiful girl worried and she
decided to go into the canal wherein the beast resided. On reaching she stumbled upon the
lifeless body of the beast and broke down into tears over the carcass. The beast then slowly
opened his eyes and declared that he had not forgotten his promise. The beautiful girl, on hearing
this, agreed to marry the beast with tears of happiness in her eyes. This declaration turned the
beast into a prince and the couple got married in the presence of the merchant and his entire
family.

3THE BEAUTY AND THE BEAST – A DISCUSSION
Thus, from the above discussion I would like to conclude that the eldest daughter of the
merchant was really a beauty both physically and mentally. She had all the abilities that could
help her to essay all the roles in her life in a very beautiful manner. Thus, in conclusion to the
above discussion web might point out that women are superior to their male counterparts and this
fairy tale proves it in the best possible manner.