fairy tales and popular fiction

Hansel and Gretel: Females in Fairy Tales And they lived happily ever after! This is the classic ending to the majority of fairy tales that children listen to growing up. For those that heard these tales, few can deny that their visions of the future and reality were not, at least in part, influenced by fairy tales. Young boys dream of when they will slay their first dragon or monster, while young girls envision the …

…with harsh features . . . and poor eyesight" that she must be a witch (Jones 39). They are initially leery of her, though her maternal gestures appease them. In this story it is true that "she was really a wicked witch on the lookout for children" (Tatar 196), but why must she be old to be considered a witch? It is easier to classify the elderly as suspicious because they often live in isolated conditions and have little contact