Fairest

In Fairest, Gail Carson Levine reimagines “Snow White,” a fairy tale published by the Brothers Grimm in 1812. Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm gathered hundreds of European folk tales that had been passed on for generations through oral tradition. These stories were published in German as Kinder-und Hausmärchen, which means Children’s and Household Tales, and later translated into English as Grimm’s Fairy Tales. 

Although the original title of the brothers’ compilation reveals that the stories weren’t intended exclusively for children, Levine wrote Fairest for a middle grade audience. One of the key changes that Levine makes to the story is its treatment of beauty. In the original fairy tale, the princess’s snow-white skin, blood-red lips, and ebony hair are the answer to her mother’s wish to have a daughter with those vivid and lovely features. However, Levine purposefully subverts the fairytale trope of conventionally beautiful heroines—Aza’s features share the same striking combination of white, red, and black as Snow White, but these bold hues are considered hideous in her culture. This change allows the author to examine The Impact of Beauty Standards on Self-Worth. Although

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