Little Red Riding Hood
Symbolism
Folklorists, anthropologists, myth ritualist and psychoanalysts are just a few of various scholars who have researched the tale of Little Red Riding Hood. There are various theories relating to the symbolism of the red cloak, the protagonist, the pins, and the stones (Sugiyama, 2004).
Myth ritulalist, Emile Nourry, assumes the tale is an ancient rite celebrating the coming of spring. Similarly, folklorist, Arthur Lang saw the protagonist as a symbol of the “sun, the dawn, and the reoccurring spring time.” (Orenstein, 2002, p. 70).
Furthermore, Nourry explains that the protagonists red head dress was a vestigial symbol once worn by the May Queens. A May Queen was a maiden chosen by the village to represent hopes and potential for the coming year (Urban Dictionary, 2015). This could be a possibility in both Grimm’s and Perrault’s versions. In Grimm’s version Little Red Riding Hood picks flowers. Furthermore, in Perrault’s version, there are butterflies and flowers.
Psychoanalyst, Erich Fromm, believes the heroines red cap symbolises the onset of menstruation and the bottle of wine given by Mother to Red Riding Hood in Grimm’s version symbolises her virginity. Whereas, folklorist, Yvonee Verdier, suggests the path of pins in the oral folktale The Story of Grandmother is the onset of maidenhood. This could imply that Little Red Riding Hood was growing up too fast (Orenstein, 2002, p.70; Verdier, 1997).
On the other hand, Bill Delaney argues that the red cloak symbolises a fantasy world that Little Red Riding Hood lives in. He does not believe that her family could afford to dress her in such an expensive garment (Delaney, 2006, p.6).
Recommended esources for further research
Delaney, B. (2006). Perrault’s Little Red Riding Hood. The explicator, 64 (2), 70-72. doi: 10.3200/EXPL.64.2.70-72
Dundes, A. (1989). Little Red Riding Hood: A Casebook. United States: University of Wisconsin.
Orenstein, C. (2002). The Grandmothers tale: To Come of Age. In Orenstein, C (eds), Little Red Riding Hood Uncloaked; Sex, Morality, and the Evolution of a Fairy Tale (pp. 63-75). Basic Books: United States.
Zipes, J. (2993). The Trials and Tribulations of Little Red Riding Hood. Great Britain: Routledge.