Maidenhood, Motherhood & the Reproductive Body in the Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm

Maidenhood, Motherhood, & the Reproductive Body in the Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm

Andrea Meyertholen (Mid-Career Fellow, Associate Professor, Slavic Languages & Literatures)

MON NOV 16, 12:00 - 1:30 PM
Hall Center Conference Hall

Andrea Meyertholen’s current book project connects the classic tales of the Brothers Grimm with contemporary discourses of reproductive rights and political personhood. Why, despite over a century of women’s rights movements and progress, do certain patriarchally defined conceptions, preconceptions, and misconceptions of the female body not only remain engrained in our society, but seem to be regaining cultural cachet? This research examines the powerful and persistent role of Grimm fairy tales—along with their enduring legacy in everyday popular culture—in shaping and spreading patriarchal models of female sexuality, virginity, and motherhood through text and subtext. The project examines literary, artistic, cinematic, theoretical, and other engagements with the female reproductive body to challenge and change what is unquestioningly accepted and reproduced with respect to the value, identity, and autonomy of women.