A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words: How Illustrations Affect the Readers of Fairy Tales

by Christy Hartigan

 

Throughout the years, there have been quite a number of different "Cinderella" stories. It seems as though every culture has its own versions. Besides having many different adaptations of the stories, people have varying ideas about what Cinderella herself should look like, or about how the story should be illustrated. Each of these illustrations show the story in a particular light, and they can greatly affect the mood of the story and the audience who might appreciate it. Some prefer to look at it in a darker way, and some choose to focus on the "happy ending". Some concentrate on Cinderella's rough life, and others focus on her beauty. This website will explore some of these different illustrations and how aspects such as colors, shapes, and subject matters can change the mood and give the story different meanings.