Fairy Tale: "Beauty and the Beast"

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that the leitmotif of the husban- beast in Madame Du Beaumont's classical version of the fairy tale "Beauty and the Beast" reoccurs in many stories. The paper points out that, in this version of the famous fairytale, the attraction between the sublimely beautiful and the monstrously ugly may hide a fetishist desire at the core of the culture. The paper stresses that the union between a beast and a human being, which forms the plot of the fairytale, obviously hints at the beast-like, sexual desires, which lurk in the human subconscious.

From the Paper:

"Another erotic element in the story is the dream Beauty has of the Beast after having delayed her return because of her sisters' wickedness. Thus, Beauty dreams of the dying Beast, longing for her presence and reproaching her for breaking her promise: The tenth night she spent at her father's, she dreamed she was in the palace garden, and that she saw Beast extended on the grass-plot, who seemed just expiring, and, in a dying voice, reproached her with her ingratitude. It is at this point that Beauty actually realizes she has strong feelings for the Beast."

Sample of Sources Used:

• "Beauty and the Beast". http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/beauty.html
• Carter, Angela. The Bloody Chamber. London: Virago Press, 1982
• Foucault, Michel. The History of Sexuality: An Introduction. New York: Vintage, 1990.

More papers on Fairy Tale: "Beauty and the Beast":

• Analytical Essay # 46456 : "Beauty and the Beast"
• Analytical Essay # 125176 : "Beauty and the Beast"
• Film Review # 27661 : "Beauty and the Beast"

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