The original Snow White story had cannibalism, cruelty and a bizarre twist of torture that would send shock waves through modern society. Sure, the story told by Disney was a great one. It was a little dark and disturbing, but in reality it was a relatively lighthearted take on a sinister classic tale. It was tamer for obvious reasons too. Animated or not, a 1930’s viewing public would have been outraged if the original version was ever released.
The tale of Snow White is one that almost everyone knows. It was the first full length feature film by Disney, and it stays pretty close to the version we all know. In the sanitized version, the evil Queen sends the huntsman out to kill Snow White and return her heart as proof that he had killed her. Her assassination was ordered because the magic mirror had said that Snow White, not the Queen, is the “fairest in all of the land”. Of course the Huntsman can’t bring himself to do this, so he brings the heart of a boar to the Queen in stead. Smart guy really. Unless the queen was an expert in anatomy she wouldn’t have been able to tell the difference.
The cruel original Snow White story
Now the original Snow White story isn’t really all that different from the version that Disney presented us. Where there is a difference is that the Queen actually asked for Snow Whites lungs and liver to be served for dinner that night, not her heart to be brought to her. So yeah, she was going to chow down on a little offal, courtesy of Snow White. Cannibalism anyone?
Also in the original Snow White story, she isn’t woken by the prince stumbling on tree roots. She is actually woken when she is jostled by the princes horse as her limp body is being carried by horse back to his castle. That’s hardly as romantic as the story told by Disney. In one final difference, and this is a rather sick and twisted one, the Queen, for her punishment for the attempted murders, is forced to dance to her death in red hot iron shoes. Like come on. How on Earth is anyone going to die from red hot iron shoes? Surely it’s a death that would take a very long time to conclude. I doubt that it could even bring about an instant death, with the likely scenario being an agonizingly painful death from infection caused by the wounds.
I dare you to tell your kids this version of the tale.
