1. I CAN RESCUE MYSELF.
Anna-Maria Swiatek
a_c771@txstate.edu
Abstract
An analysis of Snow White, Prince Charming, and the Queen from their fairytale
beginnings to their fleshed out characters in the ABC drama “Once Upon a Time.”

2. 1 | P a g e
INTRODUCTION
Every little girl grows up watching the Disney Princess classics: from Snow White and the
Seven Dwarfs in 1937 to Beauty and the Beast in 1991 (I prefer to consider the princesses in this date
range the ‘classics’ as opposed to the more modernized Rapunzel of Tangled and Merida of Brave).
We grew up waiting for ‘true love’s kiss’ and the promise that a prince will come to save us,
releasing us from the monotony of life to live happily ever after in his arms. But the times have
changed, feminism is not as taboo, and young girls do have Disney princesses that represent more
than just passivity and daintiness, like the aforementioned Rapunzel and Merida.
Dawn England, of the Department of Family and Human Development at Arizona State
University, worked with some of her fellow students and conducted an independent t-test about
traditionally feminine and masculine characteristics and how they are represented by both Disney
princes and princesses. England concluded that 65.32% of Disney princesses retained traditionally
feminine characteristics (England, Descartes, & Collier-Meek, 2011). The majority of the feminine
characteristics displayed included being affectionate, being fearful, and being troublesome – the
top two masculine traits portrayed by Disney princesses included being assertive and being
athletic. England makes it a point that most of the earlier princesses were assertive to animals as
opposed to other humans. The least portrayed masculine characteristics were being a leader and
performing a rescue (England, Descartes, & Collier-Meek, 2011). With the changing of opinion on
women having to limit themselves to traditionally feminine jobs and traits, it is vital that the
characters in children’s movies and shows replicate those sentiments.
Grimm’s fairy tales have been recited and passed down for generations, and their morals
and stories are ones that have also been retold in countless forms. What I elected to analyze is how
fairy tale characters, particularly Snow White, Prince Charming, and the Queen, have changed

3. 2 | P a g e
from their earliest portrayals to their most recent incarnations in the ABC drama Once Upon a Time.
It is important to note that Disney owns ABC, so in addition to the characters of the show retaining
traits and plotlines of the original fairy tales, the show also merges with themes from the original
Disney films.
LITERARY BACKGROUND
I have selected to analyze the German and Italian versions of the Snow White anecdote. In
the German retelling, the Queen wishes for a daughter who was “as white as snow, as red as blood,
and as black as a frame.” (Ashliman, 2013). The German retelling is extremely similar to the 1937
Disney classic, complete with Magic Mirror, jealous queen, huntsman, and poisoned apple. The
most obvious differences were that the German Queen is Snow’s mother, not stepmother, and the
Prince toes the line of necrophilia. When the Prince sees Snow White laying in her glass coffin, he
is so enamored with her beauty that he decides to bring her body home with him. Everywhere he
goes, his servants are directly behind him with her casket. They eventually get annoyed with
carrying a body everywhere, so open the casket and smack Snow White upside the head, making
the poisoned apple fall out and bringing Snow White back to life. The following day, Snow White
and the Prince get married. The Queen crashes their wedding and is forced to dance herself to
death in burning shoes (Ashliman, 2013). The Italian version varies a little, mainly by using the
name Maria, but retains the jealous and wicked stepmother. In this retelling, the stepmother
forces the father to kill Maria because she is beautiful, even though she eats too much bread. After
failed attempts of killing Maria and dealing with a frustrated wife, the father abandons Maria in
the forest, where she later finds a cottage inhabited by seven burglars. Once the stepmother
realizes that Maria is still alive, she disguises herself and gives Maria a magic ring, killing her on
contact. Just like the German version, a man sees Maria’s corpse in a glass coffin (in this story a

4. 3 | P a g e
king) and brings her back to his palace. After the King’s mother discovers him crying next to
Maria’s coffin, she storms into his room and sees the ring on her finger and removes it, releasing
Maria from its disastrous spell. The King and Maria marry the next day, with her stepmother none
the wiser (Ashliman, 2013). While the stories vary a little from what we’ve come to know and love,
it is easy to see Disney movie’s inspiration for an evil mother figure and a quick and easy death.
SNOW WHITE “Good will always win.”
The first Disney Princess and star of one of the oldest fairy tales is easy to recall: she is
absolutely beautiful with pale skin, dark brown hair, and ruby red lips. In the German and Italian
versions, we see a young girl who is hated by her mother (or stepmother) for a reason as minute
as jealousy for her beauty. The reader envisions a quiet and innocent girl, one who is diligent and
peaceful. She escapes the huntsman by utilizing the traditionally feminine act of crying, begging
for her life. She doesn’t fight back or defend herself, allowing
only her beauty and tears to save her. Once she reaches the
cottage belonging to the seven dwarfs (or seven burglars),
Snow White again exemplifies traditionally feminine
characteristics. As part of her rent for staying with these men,
she must clean the house and cook dinner for all of them;
Snow White goes from a princess to a housewife (Ashliman,
2013). In the Disney film, Snow White sings “Someday My
Prince Will Come,” portraying her as a needy young woman merely waiting on a man to save her
(Hand, 1937). Literally waiting in a glass coffin for true love’s kiss solidifies Snow White as a
damsel-in-distress, willing to immediately marry the man who carried her body around for weeks.
Snow White outside of the dwarfs’ cottage
(Hand, 1937)

5. 4 | P a g e
Fast forward to 2011, when Once Upon a Time premiered on ABC and welcomed us to a world
of post-feminist fairy tales. Snow White’s character, and her alter-ego Mary Margaret in
Storybrooke, portray a revamped princess. Our new Snow White, played by Ginnifer Goodwin and
referred to as just Snow, might at times seem a damsel-in-distress, but more times than not she
has rescued herself from whatever predicament she has found herself in (Kitsis & Horowitz, 2011).
She is an active and capable leader, motivating the seven dwarfs who had offered her refuge when
she was on the run and initiating an attack on the Evil Queen’s castle. She is assertive, direct, and
physically strong – all while sporting a dress or tights and riding boots (Gonneville, 2013). Snow is
able to make her own decisions, while still listening to the opinions of others to ensure she comes
to the best decision possible. Goodwin’s portrayal of Snow retains the innocence of a princess by
being inherently good, but ensures that her character is more than just a pretty face (Kitsis &
Horowitz, 2011).
The revamped Snow now fights with
a sword and is exceptionally good at
shooting a bow and arrow, even at one point
saving her Prince Charming. As opposed to
the previous versions where the Prince finds
her body in a glass coffin, Once Upon a Time’s
Prince Charming meets Snow while she is on
the run from the Evil Queen, and they strike
up a friendship before falling for each other (Kitsis & Horowitz, 2011). This interaction and
relationship alone exponentially modernizes the character of Snow White; no longer does she fall
in love with the strange man who rescued her, for she now chooses who she loves and is strong
enough to save him when he’s the damsel-in-distress. Once Upon a Time gave its incarnation of Snow
Snow White shooting a bow and arrow
(Kitsis & Horowitz, 2011)

6. 5 | P a g e
White another major difference: she maturely and knowingly chose to eat the poisoned apple that
meant her death, as opposed to being continuously tricked by the Evil Queen in disguise. Snow
was faced with the decision of eating the apple and saving the lives of her friends, family, and
countrymen – or save her own life and everyone else’s would be taken (Kitsis & Horowitz, 2011).
Snow chooses to sacrifice herself, for everything she does is out of love or service to her peers.
She knows no boundaries to doing whatever it takes to protect the ones she loves, even if it means
her own death and unhappiness. She has given a new and welcomed edge to the once passive
persona of a fairytale princess (Gonneville, 2013).
PRINCE CHARMING “I will always find you.”
In both the fairytales and Disney versions, Snow White’s lover does not have much of a
fleshed-out role. He is portrayed as a traveling royal, merely coming across the body of Snow
White in a glass coffin. In all three retellings, the man is completely enamored by Snow White’s
beauty. In the oral stories, he pleads with the seven men to
be allowed to take Snow’s body with him, even though she is
(seemingly) deceased. He takes her body with him wherever
he goes so that he may bask in her beauty, and cries at her
deathbed every day over the loss of such art in their
despairing world (Ashliman, 2013). In all previous
incarnations, when Snow White is revived, the Prince/King
and Snow White marry the following day, and live out their lives in supposedly wedded bliss. Not
only is the carrying of a corpse decidedly creepy, the standard it sets for young women is too low.
No woman truly wants to wake up to a man kissing her or carrying her body around, only to be
married to him the next day without knowing a thing about his personality.
Prince Charming kissing Snow White to wake her up
(Hand, 1937)

7. 6 | P a g e
Prince David, as he is referred to in Once Upon a Time, is a much more likable character. He
meets Snow while taking a carriage through the forest with the woman he was arranged to marry.
Snow, on the run from the Evil Queen, has become a highway robber, attacking rich carriages that
ride through her part of the forest. When the Prince chases her down and demands for his riches
to be returned, Snow jokingly refers to him as ‘Prince Charming’ because of his seemingly spoiled
manner (Kitsis & Horowitz, 2011). The viewer soon learns that David (portrayed by Josh Dallas)
was not born a prince; he was actually born the son of a poor farmer and had to feign being the
prince because the king’s lookalike son had died. Of all the riches that were stolen, the Prince only
wants a ring with a simple emerald, for it was the one thing he had to remind him of his true
family. As Snow puts on the ring, the Prince sees her for more than just a thief, and decides then
that this woman is the one he truly loves (Kitsis & Horowitz, 2011).
This pivotal point in the characters’
relationship is where Once Upon a Time has
changed the narrative and created a likable,
relatable, and realistic couple. Throughout
their courting, into their marriage, and even in
the land without magic, David and Snow are a
team of equals. They fight alongside each other,
they listen to and appreciate each other’s opinions, and they are respectful and endearing. David
understands and respects the fact that he fell in love with an opinionated and independent
woman, and he is a better man because of it. They have both been damsels-in-distress and they
have both played the role of rescuer. Their relationship is filled with goodness, understanding,
respect, and courage, making their relationship one of the best in the series (Kitsis & Horowitz,
2011). It is also important to note that while David and Snow have a harmonious and feminist
Mary Margaret (Snow White) and David Nolan (Prince Charming)
enjoying a dance together
(Kitsis & Horowitz, 2011)

8. 7 | P a g e
relationship on the show, they are also married with children off the screen. This fact seems to
only accentuate the purity of their onscreen romance.
THE EVIL QUEEN “Evil is not born, it is made.”
The mother/stepmother from the tale of Snow White
is perhaps one of the most evil villains in all the worlds of
fairytales and Disney movies because of her lack of motive.
She hates, and seeks to kill her daughter/stepdaughter for
no reason other than jealousy. As mere mortals listening to
this story or watching it play out on a silver screen, the idea
of a maternal figure actively pursuing death for her child is
hard to fathom; it seems to go beyond human nature. In the
fairy tale and Disney versions, we have no backstory for the Queen; we only know that she
possesses magical powers and she hates her daughter out of pure jealousy. In the German and
Disney retellings, the Queen meets her demise at the hands of the ‘good guys.’ In the Italian
version, the Queen is unaware of Snow White’s revival. These concepts are all that the viewers are
privy to, and the inhuman nature of the Evil Queen is begging for her story to be told.
In Once Upon a Time, the viewers are rewarded with that backstory. We learn that the Evil
Queen (whose alter-ego is named Regina) loathes Snow White because of her dishonesty: when
she was a child, Snow revealed the Queen’s secret, which resulted in the death of the Queen’s true
love. After that betrayal, hatred and vengeance bred in the Queen’s heart. She murdered Snow’s
father, and named Snow an outlaw of the kingdom and commanded that she be killed. Her
vengeance blinded her, and she rode across the lands, torturing and slaughtering all who stood in
The Evil Queen holding the Snow White’s “heart”
(Hand, 1937)

9. 8 | P a g e
the way of her revenge. These actions are inherently more evil, eventually earning her the
moniker ‘The Evil Queen.’ At one point while out terrorizing her citizens, she cries out, “Once
Snow White is dead, you will see my kindness!” (Kitsis & Horowitz, 2011). Lana Parilla, who
portrays the Evil Queen in Once Upon a Time, creates a character far more evil than any other
incarnation because of her complete lack of empathy, her unwavering excitement over wreaking
havoc across her kingdom, her absolute heartbreak that sends her off the edge, and her total
desire to annihilate Snow White and all that she loves dear (Lombari, 2015). Perhaps her most
truly evil moment was when she offered Snow the poisoned apple, and explicitly stated what the
consequences of either indulging in or refusing the apple would be for Snow and her friends and
family. She knows Snow, and fully understands that Snow will choose to sacrifice herself and save
her loved ones, and it pleases the Evil Queen to know that she will at last have her victory. After
Prince Charming saved Snow from the sleeping spell, the Evil Queen knew she’d have to do
something more drastic than kill Snow: she’d have to take away Snow’s happy ending as well. As
part of her most heinous act, the Evil Queen casts a spell that sends all of her kingdom to a land
without magic – and to a land without happy endings for anyone but herself (Kitsis & Horowitz,
2011).
But in a twist of strange events,
Once Upon a Time has created such a
developed character for Regina that she is
not wholly evil, and she has the capacity
to change herself. In Storybrooke, a town
in Maine in the land without magic,
Regina adopts a baby boy to fill the hole in
her heart (who is actually the grandson of
Mary Margaret (Snow White) and Regina Mills (The Evil Queen) being heroes
together
(Kitsis & Horowitz, 2011)

10. 9 | P a g e
Snow White and Prince Charming, but to delve into that we’d have to discuss the entire plot of the
show). Her love for her son Henry, and his love for her, has completely changed the Evil Queen.
Once the curse is broken and all the fairytale characters are able to be reunited with their loved
ones, Snow and the Queen learn to forgive, but not necessarily forget. There has been a trend
throughout the past few years where newer adaptations of stories revel in the evolution of and
sympathy for villains, for their stories are vital to understanding the relevance of fairytales
(Lombari, 2015). Throughout the course of the five seasons of Once Upon a Time, the Evil
Queen/Regina has morphed from the primary antagonist to a redeemed antihero; she is willing to
sacrifice herself for others, just as Snow did all those years before. At a later point in the series
when Regina is in a position where she can kill the Wicked Witch of the West (portrayed by
Rebecca Mader), she chooses to give the witch a second chance. Her reasoning? “Heroes do not
kill,” (Kitsis & Horowitz, 2011).
CONCLUSION
Fairytales have been passed down from generation to generation for centuries, and they
continue to enrapture us and capture our imaginations – with no chance of stopping anytime soon.
In a world full of Avengers, wizards, elves, and a myriad of other stories being told, Once Upon a
Time allows us to relive the fantastical days of our childhoods (Gonneville, 2013). The remixed
stories present in this show portray better and more moral stories for today’s youth, an outlet
where they can see themselves in the characters. The world has changed, which means that our
stories and media must change as well. It’s time to bring the ideas of Once Upon a Time off the small
screen and merge it with all of our shows and films: that the princess can be her own rescuer and
can be a leader, that the prince can display his emotions and can be unafraid of an independent
woman, and that villains should be forgiven so that they can be redeemed.

11. 10 | P a g e
Bibliography
Ashliman, D. (2013, June 8). Snow-White. Retrieved June 22, 2016, from pitt.edu:
http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/type0709.html
England, D., Descartes, L., & Collier-Meek, M. (2011). Gender Role Portrayal and the Disney
Princesses. Arizone State University.
Gonneville, H. (2013). Is Snow White Still the Fairest of Them All? How Once Upon A Time
Reinvents the Image of the Disney Princess. Salve Regina University. Retrieved June 22,
2016
Hand, D. (Director). (1937). Snow Whtie and the Seven Dwarfs [Motion Picture].
Kitsis, E., & Horowitz, A. (Directors). (2011). Once Upon a Time [TV Show].
Lombari, F. (2015). Long Live the Evil Queen: Once Upon a Time's Evolved Villain. Salve Regina
University. Retrieved June 22, 2016