How Classic Disney Fairy Tales Were Supposed to End

As a long-time enthusiast of fairy tales and their intricate transformations over time, I find it fascinating to delve into the origins and adaptations of these beloved stories. Each tale seems to have a life of its own, evolving with each telling, much like the characters within them.

Disney animations have shaped the way many people perceive fairy tales globally, often following a pattern where a brave, compassionate heroine seeks more, faces a terrifying villain, and ultimately reunites with true love. However, it’s important to note that Disney did not create these stories; they have been around for centuries, and numerous earlier versions often veered significantly from the familiar narratives we recognize today.

In contrast to the common belief that fairy tales conclude with a joyous marriage, often within royal circles, many traditional tales carry a second phase where the antagonist seeks retribution against the hero or heroine. On rare occasions, these malevolent characters meet gruesome ends, which can be quite fitting.

In fairy tales, the main characters don’t always get a happy ending, as you might expect. Over time, these stories have evolved and changed so much that many original versions have essentially disappeared.

8 Snow White Was Rescued By Her Own Father

For those who fondly recall the classic tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, a memorable moment is when the prince awakens Snow White from an apparent death-like slumber with a kiss. Contrary to popular belief, however, the Grimm Brothers’ variations of the story do not include a magic kiss that brings her back to life. In fact, in the original text, it’s important to note that the prince does not play any role in Snow White actually waking up.

There Was No Love’s First Kiss, Either…

In this adaptation, Snow White’s parents assume more significance in the story. Here, the Queen is revealed as Snow White’s own mother, and it’s her father who discovers Snow White in the woods, lying unconscious in the glass coffin. Despite this, the king subsequently organizes a marriage for Snow White with a prince following her revival.

In certain interpretations, it’s not the prince who actively participates in Snow White’s awakening, but rather he plays a role indirectly. One such version portrays the heartbroken prince, who has his servants transport Snow White’s coffin wherever he goes. Eventually, one servant, weary of this task, loses patience and strikes the girl, which causes her to dislodge the poison apple, thus reviving her. In another rendition, the prince’s men accidentally trip while carrying the coffin, again causing the apple to be displaced.

7 Beauty and the Beast Were Cousins

The tale titled “Beauty and the Beast” unfolds with Belle lifting the curse off the prince, metamorphosed into the central character known as the Beast. Although this plotline is similar in the classic narrative, there are some variations. In Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve’s rendition, the prince’s mother expresses disgust upon discovering that Belle hails from a merchant family rather than nobility. A fairy, who had been guarding Belle, steps in to defend her.

Belle Was Sort Of a Changeling

Besides confirming that Beauty had demonstrated her worth by breaking the enchantment, she also disclosed a startling truth: the girl was, in fact, a missing princess who had been hidden within the merchant’s household for protection. This disguise replaced the merchant’s deceased infant daughter. Furthermore, it is uncovered that Beauty’s father and the Beast’s mother are sibling, thus making Beauty and the Beast blood relatives or cousins.

A significant portion of the original story was removed when Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont shortened it. However, her adaptation introduced a new twist to the ending. Specifically, in this version, Beauty’s sisters who attempted to prevent her from returning to the Beast were turned into stone statues, destined to forever observe their sister enjoying her happiness.

6 Rapunzel Gets Pregnant In the Tower

Rapunzel, who served as the basis for the animated film Tangled and its character with long hair, narrates the tale of a girl imprisoned by a sorceress. Her melodious voice captivates a prince, yet he doesn’t save her in the traditional sense. In the Grimm Brothers’ version of the narrative, the sorceress discovers Rapunzel is carrying the prince’s offspring when she becomes pregnant.

In a fit of anger, the furious sorceress exiles Rapunzel into the untamed wilderness, where she later delivers her babies. Unfortunately, the enchantress also deprives the prince of his sight. However, fortunately for them both, the blind prince eventually locates Rapunzel, and her tears miraculously heal his vision once more.

The Prince Doesn’t Always Survive the Story

In Disney’s rendition, they introduce a magical tear that allows Rapunzel to heal Flynn Rider from his fatal wound inflicted by Mother Gothel. Contrastingly, several older versions of the tale conclude with the prince dying, a common end in stories like “Parsillette,” where the heroine goes back to her godmother, resulting in the prince’s untimely demise.

5 The Little Mermaid Didn’t Marry the Prince

Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” tells the tale of Ariel, the main mermaid character, who ultimately achieves her happily ever after as her father consents to her ascension to the human world and union with her prince. The movie was followed by a sequel, introducing their daughter. However, Hans Christian Andersen’s original story presents a somewhat contrasting narrative.

Ariel’s Name Might Reference the Original Ending

In the original tale, the prince holds affection for a temple maiden whom he thinks was instrumental in his rescue. To his joy and the sorrow of the mermaid, it is later revealed that she is actually a foreign princess and is betrothed to him. The Sea Witch offers the mermaid an opportunity to revert to her human form by killing the prince, but she chooses to resist, risking transformation into sea foam instead.

Her sacrifice doesn’t go unacknowledged; instead of perishing, she metamorphoses into an “air-born maiden” and associates with her kindred spirits. Even though the prince eludes her, she finds an opportunity for eternal life in the form of a spiritual bond. It’s intriguing that many fans have pondered if the mermaid’s name in the Disney adaptation, Ariel, was a subtle reference to the “daughters of the air” from the original tale.

4 Sleeping Beauty Has a Whole Second Act

Disney concludes Sleeping Beauty by having the prince rescue the princess with a kiss, leading them to greet her parents and celebrate their upcoming union. But in Charles Perrault’s original tale, there is more to the story after this part. Firstly, there is no kiss; instead, the princess wakes up because one hundred years have passed and a prince just so happened to arrive at the castle at the opportune moment. Moreover, the princess’ parents are already deceased.

Basile’s Version Is Even Darker

After Sleeping Beauty gets married to the prince, he departs for war, leaving behind his wife and their two kids in the care of his mother. Unbeknownst to them, she is revealed to be a ravenous ogress. The queen demands her servants to slowly murder and prepare the princess and her offspring as food, but the servants secretly protect them instead.

In another version of events, it is revealed that the queen learns something, but just as the prince arrives back, preventing a tragic outcome. Instead, the queen becomes hysterical and jumps into a pit filled with venomous snakes. Presumably, Sleeping Beauty lives blissfully thereafter, unless the prince develops a fondness for dangerous reptiles similar to his mother.

Remarkably, an older Italian tale titled “Sun, Moon, and Talia,” penned by Giambattista Basile, took a more ominous turn in its second act. In this version, rather than a prince, a married king discovers the slumbering maiden, Talia, and violates her, leading to the birth of his children, Sun and Moon. Much like Perrault’s telling, a queen seeks to eliminate the heroine and her offspring, but in this case, it is the king’s wife who plots against them instead of his mother.

3 The Princess Nearly Kills the Frog

In the animated film The Princess and the Frog, the classic tale of The Frog Prince serves as a foundation, but it isn’t a direct retelling. Instead, within the story itself, the original fairy tale is acknowledged to exist in the same world, as seen when Tiana’s mother Eudora tells the story to her and Charlotte, hinting at future events. However, even the version depicted in the film varies somewhat from the Grimm Brothers’ original version.

It’s Not Easy Bein’ Green

In well-known tales, it’s often depicted that a prince is rescued by a kiss from a princess. This idea has led to the familiar saying, “You need to kiss many unattractive frogs before you find your prince.” Contrary to this, in the Grimms’ version of the story, there is no enchanting kiss. Instead, a princess consents to be friends with a frog if he retrieves her golden ball. However, she becomes increasingly frustrated with him and flings him against a wall. It was this harsh action that actually broke the spell, yet eventually, they fell in love.

In several initial renditions, the frog character meets its demise in various ways to shatter the enchantment, like the heroine cutting off the frog’s life. Notably, Tiana squashing Naveen under a book might be an echo of the brutal endings the frog prince often faces in similar tales.

2 Pinocchio Just Dreamed Being a Real Boy

In essence, while often categorized as a fairy tale due to its magical elements and transformation theme featuring a wooden puppet who turns into a real boy, Pinocchio is actually a children’s novel written by Carlo Collodi rather than a traditional fairy tale. Despite this, characters from Disney’s adaptation of Pinocchio frequently appear alongside other Disney fairy tale characters in stories and crossovers. Interestingly, while the story does conclude with Pinocchio becoming real, it was not initially intended to have such an ending.

The Puppet Was Also Going to Die Early On

Initially, Collodi planned for Pinocchio’s tale to conclude with his unfortunate hanging at the hands of the Fox and Cat. However, it is said that due to the intervention of Collodi’s editor, additional chapters were included where Pinocchio was saved by a Fairy with Turquoise Hair, an earlier version of the Blue Fairy we know from the final story. This marked the beginning of Pinocchio’s continued journey, culminating in his transformation from wood to living flesh and blood.

It has been suggested that Collodi was planning a follow-up to his tale prior to his demise. Of particular interest is the notion that Pinocchio’s transformation into a real boy may have turned out to be nothing more than a dream. However, it’s plausible that the puppet would have become human despite this, as the story might have taken another course in the end. Remarkably, fragments of the manuscript hint at Pinocchio eventually becoming a king.

1 Cinderella Turns Into a Ghost Story

Regarding the tale of Cinderella, there’s a common belief that the gruesome details like cutting off toes to fit the glass slipper and getting their eyes pecked out by birds are present in the original Grimm Brothers story. However, this is not accurate. The Disney adaptation omits these elements due to it being more influenced by the version written by Charles Perrault, which was published before the darker Grimm tale. In Perrault’s version, Cinderella shows mercy to her cruel stepsisters and even helps them find husbands.

Revenge Beyond the Grave & Murder Most Foul

In various ancient Asian tales like the Vietnamese story ‘Tam and Cam’, it’s not uncommon for the character resembling Cinderella to be murdered by her wicked stepmother once she marries the prince, so that he would remarry her own daughter instead. However, in these stories, the deceased heroine comes back from the dead to reveal the truth. For instance, in ‘Tam and Cam’, the protagonist transforms into different animals and objects which are systematically destroyed by her stepmother until she is restored to human form once more.

In most cases, Cinderella’s tale concludes joyfully as she revives and reconnects with her prince. However, there is an alternate version where Cinderella seeks vengeance against her cruel stepmother. In this twist, she often punishes her stepmother by causing the death of one or both of her stepsisters, sending their remains back home. Upon discovering the grisly truth, usually after confusing the gruesome gift for food, the stepmother meets an untimely end from a broken heart.

It’s worth mentioning that even the Grimm Brothers found variations of Cinderella’s story don’t always conclude with her marriage. In some cases they examined, the tale appears to merge with the one about Bluebeard. After Cinderella marries a king, he warns her not to open a hidden room containing a pool of blood. Curiosity gets the better of her sister, who pushes her in and takes her place. However, soldiers arrive upon hearing Cinderella’s cries for help and save her from danger. This raises the intriguing question as to why Prince Charming would have such a room with a well full of blood in the first place.

2024-09-07 03:02