“Goldilocks and the Three Bears”

“Goldilocks and the Three Bears” Four Critical Interpretations

The End (but not the last word!)

Cautionary Tale • a tale told infolklore to warn its hearer of danger • ataboo or prohibition is stated • the narrative itself is told in which someone disregards the warning • the violator comes to an unpleasant end

Fairy Tale • a type of short story that typically features fantasycharacters and usuallyenchantments • may be distinguished from other folk narratives and purely moral • mainly used for stories with origins in European folklore, originally not simply for a child audience

Marxist: Goldilocks as capitalist oppressor • Goldilocks represents the bourgeois capital oppressing the hard-working proletariat bears • Assumes ownership of the bears’ production • Has a right to all that is “just right” for her

Marxist: Labor and Production • Bears maintain an orderly system of production that supports the capital bourgeoisie • Food = porridge • Furniture = literal support • Comfort = bed • G. claims bear production for her own sustenance and support

Marxist: Family Dynamics • The bear family represents the nuclear family espoused in the base societal values • Labor is marginalized to the woods, away from the cosmopolitan realm inhabited by the bourgeoisie

Marxist: Goldilocks’ Alienation • Goldilocks experiences alienation once she invades the workers’ realm • Violates production • Disrupts means of support • Slumbers in a bourgeois stupor

Marxist: Goldilocks’ Alienation • As a member of the capital bourgeoisie, Goldilocks represents the reification of labor for her own purposes • An outside invader, G. is exposed to her own indoctrination via the superstructure

Marxist: Change? • Conflict between capital and labor (i.e. bourgeoisie and proletariat) instigates change. • Is the case as Goldilocks leaps from the window, or does she return to her ignorant bourgeois life?

Psychoanalytic: Oedipal Complex • G. explores gender and family roles: father, mother, child • This is also a search for self and her position within the family • G. is ultimately expelled for her experimentation

Psychoanalytic: Oedipal Complex • G. is curious about what adults do “behind closed doors” • G. is tempted by the temporary absence of “parents”

Psychoanalytic: Oedipal Complex – Papa Bear • Father role does not fit G. • Intimacy with the father is “too hot!”

Psychoanalytic: Oedipal Complex – Mama Bear • Mother’s bed is “too soft” = fear of engulfment and suffocation (return to the womb) • Mother’s milk (porridge) is “too cold” and no longer satisfies

Psychoanalytic: Sibling Rivalry – Baby Bear’s POV • G. is an intruder from nowhere • G. usurps his place in the family = mother’s milk, place at the table, bed(room)

Psychoanalytic: Sibling Rivalry – Baby Bear’s POV • BB.’s shrill voice awakens the sleeping G. • BB. shrieks to drive off the newcomer • G. goes back from whence she came • The insider wins

Archetypal: Individuation– the Adolescent • G. is the adolescent at once a child yet exploring adult individuation • The tale leaves the reader dissatisfied – it offers no place for G.

Archetypal: Individuation • Being lost in the forest = quest to find oneself • G. is an outside intruder who never becomes an insider

Archetypal: Individuation • Fear of clinging to the mother = desire for individuation • Only the child position is “just right” • However, she has outgrown the child’s chair • G. is too old to regress into an infant

Archetypal: Individuation– the Adolescent • Defeated, G. runs away (back into the forest?) • Running away from a problem = unconscious denial or repression

Archetypal: Individuation – the Adolescent • G. tries to navigate her basic human position • This is a tremendous psychological battle that every human must undergo

Archetypal: Magic Threes -- Home Invasion • “looked in at the window” • “peeped in at the keyhole” • “lifted the latch”

Archetypal: Magic Threes – Family Unit • Papa Bear = male (anima) • Mama Bear = female (animus) • Baby Bear (no gender assigned)

Archetypal: Magic Threes -- Homewrecker • 3 Dishes = nourishment • 3 Chairs = support • 3 Beds = intimacy

Feminist: A Woman’s Place • G. is relegated to the domestic setting: • Kitchen = domesticity • Living Room = family center • Bedroom = intimacy

Feminist: A Woman’s Place • G.’s looks are foremost: “Goldilocks” = blond curls • Contrasts with her brazen behavior • Judged more harshly than a naturally exuberant and adventurous boy

Feminist: A Woman’s Place • G. “whines” • G. is indecisive • G. is fickle • G. is hard to please

Feminist: A Woman’s Place • G. is a threat to home/marital harmony • G. has been in Papa Bear’s bed! = home-wrecker

Feminist: A Bear’s Place • Mama bear follows Papa Bear’s lead • Baby bear patterns himself after his parents • Sees mother subordinate to father • Sees girl as a negative figure

And the big question is. . . .

Feminist: A Bear’s Place • What gender have you alwaysassumed Baby Bear is?

“Goldilocks and the Three Bears”