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A s a girl I spent copious amounts of time dreaming about the day Prince Charming on his blue unicorn would gallop across a field of sunflowers to save me. I've always had a rather inventive imagination and yet, being a good lile girl, I never veered far off script. e rules of life were clearly defined for me in fairy tales, which I dutifully followed. By Jules Lewis Gibson Visit GravitasMag.com for an audio narrative of this article. e stories of my childhood established first and foremost that a girl must be beautiful, and not just run-of-the-mill pre y, but stunningly aractive with golden hair, preferably, that spark les like spun gold and piercing blue eyes the color of the summer sky. She must also be thin, of course, with a waist smaller than her head according to Disney's illustrations. Like Sleeping Beauty, she ex ists in a state of suspended animation until the day a courageous, rich and powerful prince awakens her with a k iss, a declaration of his undying love. en, and only then, can a girl 's " happily ever aer" begin. e stories of our childhood provided a blueprint of the world w ith our experiences eventually coloring in the details. We identif y w ith characters and cra our sense of self around them. e male and female roles that fair y tales prescribe form the basic structure from which children develop their ow n identity and sense of purpose. Our parents never intended to entrap their daughters in a glass cage; most of us were raised by well-intended parents who simply passed on the traditions of their own childhood. e misog ynistic stories lining the shelves of the children's section of the librar y aside, the entertainment industr y thrives on perpetuating violence, sexual objectification and the damsel-in-distress characterization. It's no wonder that while women today have more freedom and opportunities than ever, the majority of us quietly suffer intense self-doubt under the façade of success. ank fully the tide is turning with the phenomenal success of the "Frozen" sisters, and we will undoubtedly be flooded with more heroine-driven animations in the future. In 100 years, girls may truly be raised in total equality, but at the moment, they are being raised by us: the daughters of misinformation and messed-up fair y tales. ose of us indoctrinated with Cinderella and Snow White deser ve a rewrite. Photo credits: Fotolia Subscribe at GravitasMag.com | 43

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