Cinderella Tag Answers from Five Lovely Ladies...

(These friends left their tag answers in the comments section of the kick-off post and I wanted to make sure to share with all of you. :))

Jessica Prescott

1. I think Cinderella's most important distinguishing characteristics (as compared to other fairy-tale heroines) are: patience, obedience, optimism, and a desire to serve others. She chooses to care for her stepmother and stepsisters (even though they're so horrid to her) because she genuinely WANTS to take care of other people. She sees it as the right thing to do, and it makes her happy. And she never gives up hope of someday finding her own happily-ever-after.

2. Hmmmmmmm. If both sisters are equally nasty, the story as a whole is painting rather a bleaker picture of human nature, if that makes sense. Whereas, versions where one is evil and one is kind are taking a more hopeful view. Also--if both sisters are awful, Cinderella's sacrifices in taking care of them are much greater (since she's getting absolutely nothing in return). But, by the same token, if both sisters are evil then that means Cinderella has no opportunities to develop/experience any kind of friendship before she meets the prince, so that makes her much more of a "loner."

3. I . . . I guess I'm somewhere in the middle? I wouldn't call myself a HUGE animal lover, but I do consider our family cat to be a good friend, so . . . :-)

4. I have not ridden a horse since I was four years old and we went to a country fair where they were offering rides. I did enjoy the experience a good deal, however :-)

5. My top favorite is definitely Lily James' blue ball gown in the 2015 movie--but I also loved Carly Rae Jepsen's ball dress in the recent Broadway version.

6. No . . . perhaps that would be fun, though ;-)

7. I think first of all, he has to be truly faithful--obvious, yes, but it bears repeating! Once he has chosen his princess, he needs to stick by her no matter what :-) Other necessary qualities are kindness, patience, and protectiveness.

8. Okay . . . this answer is going to sound pretty strange because my favorite fairy tales (for some reason) are INCREDIBLY obscure. No, actually I do know the reason--it's because I was raised on Andrew Lang's fairy books, and he was famous for picking up the nuttiest stories from the most out-of-the-way places. Given that, my top three favorites are: 1) "Lord of the Winds" (an Alaskan fairy tale that's sliiiiiiightly akin to Cinderella); 2) "Little Lasse" (a Scandinavian story about dreams); and 3) "Dapplegrim" (a tale about a special magic horse).

9. Mmmmmmmm . . . I'm not sure if I can pick five here, since I haven't actually watched too many movies in this genre. Definitely "Frozen" and "Tangled" are on the list (although I haven't yet seen Tangled all the way through, I've seen enough clips, etc. to count it as a favorite :) )

10. Mmmmmmmmmmmm . . . what a cool question! Okay, I think I'd probably set it in the Dark Ages/Early Medieval period, just for fun. And I would wear . . . gee. I don't know. Probably a blue-purple sort of robe and a long white veil and have my hair in long braids. Yes. That sounds good. Actually, do you know the story of King Clovis and St. Clotilda, from the Dark Ages? It's a true story but it's a lot like Cinderella in a good many ways :-)

11. Blue. Always blue. And silver.

Thanks so much, Heidi--that was a lot of fun!

Rosie McCann

The tag looks fun! Here's my answers:

1. In the vast array of fairytale heroines, what particular character qualities most define Cinderella? - I would say kindness, obedience, and a hopeful and loving nature.

2. What are some of the deeper, big picture differences you see between retellings where both stepsisters are nasty and others where one is nasty and one is kind? How do you think the two takes differently develop/illuminate/affect Cinderella’s character and also the overarching story itself? - When both stepsisters are mean, they contrast all the more sharply with Cinderella, showing off her good qualities, but when one of the sisters is kind, you understand more of Cinderella's desire/decision to serve these people.

3. Are you an animal lover? Would you eagerly count mice, lizards, cows, and geese as friends? Dogs and cats? - Cats, absolutely. For dogs, it depends on the dog. Most other animals I haven't had the chance to see if I'm afraid of them or if I love them. I just haven't MET lizards, mice, and so on. Sorry :)

4. After asking question #3, I realized how remarkably many of the adaptations I’ve seen have Cinderella either horseback riding or involved with horses. Have you ever ridden? If so, have you ever ridden sidesaddle or bareback? - No, I have never ridden. To my great sorrow :P

5. Your favorite Cinderella dress/s? - I love the pink dress that Cinderella means to wear to the ball in the first place (2015 Disney Cinderella) and I also LOVE her blue ball gown (same movie).

6. Do you ever think of Cinderella while doing your household chores? :) - YES. But not in the way of "poor oppressed me" - more along the lines of "whistle as you work, girl." :D

7. What major character traits do you think are essential in a faithful prince? - Honesty, loyalty, protectiveness, and a sense of humor. (For that last item, I was only half kidding . . .)

8. Your top THREE favorite fairy tales (as in the original folk tales, not adaptations). - Beauty and the Beast, The Black Thief and the Knight of the Glen, and Loup Garou.

9. Your top FIVE current favorite fairy tale/legend type films (BESIDES any Cinderella adaptations). - Frozen and Tangled, I don't know of any others I've seen that would count.

10. If you could play Cinderella and the story could be set in any region of the world and any time period, what would you pick? And what would your dream ‘ball gown’ for it be like? - Good question!! I would pick Ireland. In the 1900s I guess :) My dream ball gown would be dark green, since I don't have the good fortune to have blonde hair, and it would be pleated and good to dance reels in. And . . . yeah :P

11. And (purely for fun :))… what color/s do you immediately associate with Cinderella? - Blue. But also gold :)

Mikayla Soh

Here are my answers to the tag!

1. In the vast array of fairytale heroines, what particular character qualities most define Cinderella? I think the traits that most define her for me are patience, kindness, courage, and love

2. What are some of the deeper, big picture differences you see between retellings where both stepsisters are nasty and others where one is nasty and one is kind? How do you think the two takes differently develop/illuminate/affect Cinderella’s character and also the overarching story itself? I really liked how in Ever After, they made one sister kind. But when there are 2 ‘evil’ stepsisters, it kind of made it even harder for her to be cheerful and patient.

3. Are you an animal lover? Would you eagerly count mice, lizards, cows, and geese as friends? Dogs and cats? I do like animals :) I just hope that if I had a lizard it’s tail wouldn’t fall off because someone scared it *shudders*. I like dogs, and I used to like cats - until I found out I was allergic to them :P

4. After asking question #3, I realized how remarkably many of the adaptations I’ve seen have Cinderella either horseback riding or involved with horses. Have you ever ridden? If so, have you ever ridden sidesaddle or bareback? I have ridden a horse before, but never sidesaddle or bareback.

5. Your favorite Cinderella dress/s? My favorite cinderella dresses are the pink one (2015), the blue one (2015) and the dress Danielle wore to the ball (Ever After)

6. Do you ever think of Cinderella while doing your household chores? :) Not usually :P

7. What major character traits do you think are essential in a faithful prince? Love and devotion!

8. Your top THREE favorite fairy tales (as in the original folk tales, not adaptations). Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, and Sleeping Beauty There are probably a lot more, but I can’t think of anymore right now:P

9. Your top FIVE current favorite fairy tale/legend type films (BESIDES any Cinderella adaptations). Tangled, Princess Bride(I don’t know if that was an adaption:/), Frozen, and I can’t think of anymore:P

10. If you could play Cinderella and the story could be set in any region of the world and any time period, what would you pick? And what would your dream ‘ball gown’ for it be like? I really liked Cinderella’s first dress, the pink one. It’s not so puffy and I wouldn’t have to worry about falling over it or something like that:P

11. And (purely for fun :))… what color/s do you immediately associate with Cinderella? Blue and Gold!

Thanks for doing the tag! It was lots of fun! :D

Ekaterina

Here are my answers to the tag.

1. I think that Cinderella is set apart from the other fairy tale heroines because of her unwavering hope, loyalty, and especially kindness.

2. I think that both situations of having one or two mean sisters would affect Cinderella in the same way because she would still feel pain from being unfairly treated.

3. I would definitely count dogs my friends.

4. I have ridden twice in my life and both of them bareback.

5. I think that my favorite Cinderella dress is either the 1950's blue or white ball gown or the 1960's Lesley Ann Warren ball gown. I grew up watching both of those versions, so I had to choose both of them instead of picking one. :)

6. Once in a while I think of Cinderella while doing household chores , but most of the time no.

7. The character traits essential to a faithful prince would be honesty, loyalty, and a have a balance between his heart and mind.

8. 12 Dancing Princesses, Beauty and the Beast, and Cinderella

9. Beauty and the Beast
La Belle et La Bete (1946)
The Princess Bride
The Swan Princess
Tangled

10. I think it would be really fun to play Cinderella set in Russia during the 1800s. The dream ball gown would have a very full skirt with a train. The color would be ivory and trimmed with gold. Some jewels would also be fun to wear. :)

11. My first thought was blue and silver.

Caroline L.

I'm just going to say it again: I am SO excited about this blog party!!! Cinderella stories are one of my favorite things in the world!

1. In the vast array of fairytale heroines, what particular character qualities most define Cinderella? kindness, forgiveness, strength, perseverance, grace, compassion

2. What are some of the deeper, big picture differences you see between retellings where both stepsisters are nasty and others where one is nasty and one is kind? How do you think the two takes differently develop/illuminate/affect Cinderella’s character and also the overarching story itself? When both stepsisters are cruel and mean, Cinderella's plight is more pathetic and so her rise from rags to riches is more dramatic, the change from pain to joy is richer. However, when one of the stepsisters is "nicer" and becomes Cinderella's friend by the end (like in Ever After or the rival of R+H's Cinderella on Broadway), Cinderella's forgiving and kind nature is highlighted. Both options make for a great story, if done well.

3. Are you an animal lover? Would you eagerly count mice, lizards, cows, and geese as friends? Dogs and cats? Nope. Not an animal lover. At all. Except cats (which usually aren't favored in Cinderella adaptations... hehe).

4. After asking question #3, I realized how remarkably many of the adaptations I’ve seen have Cinderella either horseback riding or involved with horses. Have you ever ridden? If so, have you ever ridden sidesaddle or bareback? I have ridden a horse twice, but that was a long time ago... never had a chance to see if I was good at it.

5. Your favorite Cinderella dress/s? SUCH A HARD QUESTION. Thank you ever so for letting me choose more than one. ;] Danielle's "Breathe" gown is definitely up there. Any dress from the Slipper and the Rose (Any! They are all gorgeous! But her ball gown is scrumptious, of course.). Ella's blue poufy ball gown in the newest version. SO MUCH SKIRT. <3

6. Do you ever think of Cinderella while doing your household chores? :) I do. Thankfully, I don't have a cruel stepfamily abusing me into it.

7. What major character traits do you think are essential in a faithful prince? strength, kindness, humility, intelligence, leadership, blue eyes (hehehe)

8. Your top THREE favorite fairy tales (as in the original folk tales, not adaptations). East of the Sun West of the Moon, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast

9. Your top FIVE current favorite fairy tale/legend type films (BESIDES any Cinderella adaptations). Beauty and the Beast, Tangled, La Belle et La Bete 2014 (I actually haven't seen it all, and I want to find a version with English subtitles, but it looks so beautiful... the costumes, and the castle, and the scenery), Princess Bride, Disney's Robin Hood.

10. If you could play Cinderella and the story could be set in any region of the world and any time period, what would you pick? And what would your dream ‘ball gown’ for it be like? Paris, 1920s. That's the dream.

11. And (purely for fun :))… what color/s do you immediately associate with Cinderella? Silvery, sparkly white (Probably because I grew up watching my un-remastered VHS of Disney's Cinderella with its fading colors)

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Note from Heidi: Thank you all again so much!