Last updated by Simone | 27 June 2018
The Disney fairytales we know and love are all sweet, with chirping birds, cleaning woodland critters and happily ever after. But the original tales the films are based on are actually pretty dark and twisted. Let’s take a look at the stories behind your favourite fairytales and how two versions of the same story can be so different.
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Cinderella
The Disney version
In the 1950 Disney movie, Cinderella is tormented by her stepmother and stepsisters after her father passes away. With the help of her fairy godmother, Cinderella goes to the ball and meets the prince, but as soon as the clock strikes midnight she runs away and loses her glass slipper. After searching every house in the village in search of the girl from the ball, the prince finally finds Cinderella, the shoe fits, and they live happily ever after.
The original version
In the original tale by Charles Perrault things don’t end so well for Cinderella’s stepsisters. Cinderella’s stepmother cuts off her daughters’ toes in order for the glass slipper to fit one of them. Of course her evil plan fails miserably and Cinderella still marries the prince in the end. However, this is not the last of their punishment. During Cinderella’s wedding, pigeons fly down from the sky and peck her stepsisters’ eyes out.
The Little Mermaid
The Disney version
In Disney’s interpretation of this tale, Ariel makes a deal with Ursula, the sea witch, to give up her voice in exchange for human legs and steps onto the shore in search of love. She falls in love with prince Eric, they defeat the evil witch together and live happily ever after.
The original version
The original tale by Hans Christian Andersen is filled with misery. To begin with, Ariel doesn’t just lose her voice in exchange for have legs. In her contract with the sea witch, it’s determined that each step Ariel takes will cause her unimaginable pain, as if she is walking on sharp knives, because in the original tale it is said that mermaids have no souls and therefore cannot go to heaven. The only way for Ariel to have an afterlife is to get the prince to kiss her, but he is about to marry another woman. On the day of his wedding, she throws herself into the sea and turns into foam.
Beauty and the Beast
The Disney version
In this story Belle ends up in the Beast’s castle, after her father is captured by the Beast when trying to find shelter during a storm in the woods. Belle offers to take her father’s place as prisoner. As Belle and the Beast live together, they slowly start to like each other and eventually fall in love. This breaks the spell that an enchantress cast on the Beast when he was still a cold-hearted prince. The love between Belle and the Beast turns the prince back into his human form.
The original version
In the traditional tale of 'Beauty and the Beast', ‘Beauty’ has two wicked sisters, and the Beast allows Belle to visit her family for a week. During the visits, Belle’s sisters become jealous of her luxurious life in the castle with the Beast and try to convince her to stay with them longer, so that when she returns to the castle the Beast would be furious and kill her. But their plan doesn’t work out; she returns a day late and finds the Beast half-dead of heartbreak. When she says she loves him, he turns back into a prince.
Pinocchio
The Disney version
In Disney’s movie, Geppetto, who always wanted a son, makes a wooden puppet: Pinocchio. A blue fairy then brings the puppet to life, tells him he can become a real boy if he proves himself to be brave, truthful and unselfish and assigns a cricket called Jiminy to be his conscience. After a series of troubles and misfortunes, Pinocchio saves Geppetto from the whale and the Blue Fairy turns him into a real boy.
The original version
Although the Disney version is pretty wacky on its own, the original story by Carlo Collodi is ever crazier. In this story, Pinocchio is not a good boy. In the real story he throws a hammer at the cricket (not named in this story) and accidentally kills it in the first act. Pinocchio also sells his school book, which Geppetto bought him by selling his only coat, in order to buy theatre tickets. Pinocchio’s mischiefs get worse and worse, making it hard for the reader to sympathise with him when Pinocchio dies a gruesome death.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
The Disney version
Disney’s version tells the story of Quasimodo, a man born with a physical defect, living in the Notre Dame, hidden by society and never allowed to go out. He falls for Esmeralda, a young and beautiful gypsy, and helps her escape her execution by the church.
The original version
The original story written by Victor Hugo does not end pleasantly for any of the characters. Quasimodo fails to save Esmeralda who is hanged by Frollo. Quasimodo then kills him and mourns for Esmeralda by starving himself to death.
Snow White
The Disney version
The evil queen, Snow White’s stepmother, orders the huntsman to kill Snow White after she discovers that Snow White is the most beautiful girl in the land. Snow White flees to the forest and meets the seven dwarfs, but the queen, disguised as an old hag, finds her and hands her a poisoned apple. Snow White faints and is presumed dead, until a handsome prince kisses her and she wakes up. Together, they run off to his castle and the evil queen falls off a cliff and dies.
The original version
In the original tale by the Grimm Brothers, Snow White’s fate is more or less the same. However, this cannot be said about the evil queen. Instead of falling off a cliff, she has a slightly more original death: the evil queen is invited to Snow White’s wedding, where she is given hot iron shoes and forced to dance in them to her death.
Sleeping Beauty
The Disney version
The princess is tricked by Maleficent into pricking herself on a cursed spinning wheel spindle, resulting in her falling into eternal sleep. The curse is eventually broken by a prince, who kisses her...and you can guess the rest.
The original version
The original story by Giambattista Basile is called ‘Sun, Moon and Talia’ and is far from Disney’s interpretation of the tale. The prince is not in fact a prince, but a king, and instead of breaking the curse by a kiss, he rapes Talia. Months later she wakes up by giving birth to twins - Sun and Moon. She and her children find their way to the king’s castle, where his wife tries to make him eat his children from Talia. And the worst part? He throws his wife in the fire and marries Talia.
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