Ever Changing Little Red Riding Hood Part 2

How does each version differ in its view/representation of Red or the main character (and, by extension, children/girls)? What lessons do the different versions offer?
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We encounter several versions of this take in our book, and I'll take each one by one to make this hopefully simple in organization at least.

...Continued from Part 1...

Tomi Ungerer paints a completely different picture of a story in his "Little Red Riding Hood." This Red Riding Hood is not wearing a cloak by choice, but by the suggestion of her mother to find the girl more easily. She's said to be a child at several points, but then also is referred to as "damsel" and "lady" at times, and considering Duke (the wolf) takes her off to marry her, I feel like she isn't as young as the other Red Riding Hoods. She's described as sensible, and it's true. She's kind in delivering food to her cruel grandmother, but she understands the woman is cruel and seems justified to the reader in her shying away from finishing that journey. When Duke approaches her, she does not immediately accept his offer, which speaks well for her. Then she doesn't even know the term "reputation", so she's obviously not supposed to be the brightest of girls. When she does give in, there's no suggestion of negative repercussions. She actually marries the wolf and lives "happily ever after" though her mean granny doesn't. So the moral here? The tale honestly feels like a shallow romp, but is by no means poorly written. The usual theme, warning against strangers is missing, as the stranger sweeps her off to a better life. Perhaps the moral here is obedience and doing for those who might not appreciate it can lead to good things in the end? I'm honestly quite iffy. This I think might be the start of fairytales being dulled down. Though Polly's story involved it as well, she was more self-aware I felt than muted. Though using familiar characters, I almost feel like this was a completely different story entirely from what we've been reading, even more so than Polly.

Tony Ross gives us another version with "Little Red Hood: A Classic Story bent Out of Shape." The style is drastically different and very dated with slang like "turkey" and bits of Yiddish even. Considering that Granny, or "Crazy Carmela," lived in Jersey, I'm thinking that Little Red Hood is out of New York, and I'm not surprised. She's sassy and strong, but she was still eaten along with Carmela. I thought it was funny that everyone got a name, mother "Linda," father "Rocky," granny was already mentioned, everyone except for Little Red Hood and the wolf. Then Little Red wasn't just for her hood, but for her father calling her a "commie" after she said she was going on strike. This is a Little Red Hood that wants to be independent, but still have that parental safety net. She's lucky for it in the end of course. The moral here harkens back to our previous stories: Don't stop to chat with strangers, and honestly, don't tickle strange dogs either.

"Ruby" by Michael Emberly I'll note wasn't officially intended to be a retelling. He said it had sounded like one so he "ended up just riding that wave to the beach" (pp 368). In this tale, Ruby, our heroine, is actually a little mouse. She doesn't want to visit her Granny, but does still as her mother asks. As most Red Riding Hoods, she disobeys direct orders by reading as she walks and talking to cats. The "wolf" who is a cat here actually rescues her from a reptile mugger. The cat is suave and Ruby tells her Granny's address, but she then calls her Granny's neighbor instead of the old woman, and the dog makes quick work of that cat when he arrives. Ruby is interesting because there's no real attention made to the red cloak, though she does wear one it's never spoken of, only shown. The contemporary feel it has with being placed in the city I think makes it appeal more to children from more modern days. This story does relate back to previous Red Riding Hoods, where the moral is about not trusting strangers, even strangers that act kindly to you and to mind your parents.

Francesa Lia Block's "Wolf" is the final spin on this tale. From the first paragraph, this is not a story for young children. It's from the first person, so again, she has no name and no physical hood. She tries to be strong for her mother who she also feels is her best friend. The "wolf" is her mother's boyfriend and he raped her regularly. She never told her mother because she was scared her mom would hate her. This to my understanding is common in this situation. She smokes, she swears, but when she describes her best dream involving a bed of puppies and kitties with a party full of balloons and so on, she's still very much a child. In the end, she takes matters into her own hands and deals with the attacker herself when she's scared he's after herself and her grandmother. She is the one that pulls the trigger and ends her pain. This story isn't about the wolves in the wild, but the ones that can enter our homes that we must watch out for. Many young girls end up like this one, maybe not killing a man, but keeping this all to themselves and not talking about their pain because they're scared. I enjoyed this story; it's a modern and sobering tale.

The Red Riding Hood stories have evolved and changed drastically over time, but many things stay the same; the girl going to grandma's encounters a wolf. How she deals with it is up to her. As Red Riding Hood has progressed though, she continues to take actions into her hands.