The story of “Little Red Riding Hood” is a classic fairytale that has been around for years. Depending on the version, there are different struggles that the characters face. These stories are also often told to give the reader a life lesson. These span from staying away from strangers, to the whole “what goes around comes around,” and karma morals. At the end of the day, all versions of “Little Red Riding Hood” share the same general moral to stay away from creepy strangers.

In Charles Perrault’s version of “Little Red Riding Hood,” it is the typical old folklore. This version addresses somewhat real struggles that people face, such as being approached by scary, random people. For example, “As she was going through the wood, she met with a wolf, who had a very great mind to eat her up, but he dared not, because of some woodcutters working nearby in the forest. He asked her where she was going. The poor child, who did not know that it was dangerous to stay and talk to a wolf, said to him, ‘I am going to see my grandmother and carry her a cake and a little pot of butter from my mother.’” I think it’s obvious that the moral of this version is for girls to stay away from strangers, especially ones who look threatening.

In the “Little Red Hood,” version from Lower Lusatia, there is a twist at the end that ends on a good note. I think it’s obvious to most of us to never tell a stranger where we live, but for some reason Little Red cannot seem to get that through her head. This version adds to the end of the story, where a huntsman comes and rescues Granny and Little Red from the wolves stomach. Karma came back to get the wolf in this version, which could also be the moral behind it. “But Red Hood made haste and fetched large stones, with which they filled the wolf’s maw, and when he woke he wanted to jump up and run away, but the stones were so heavy that he fell on the ground and beat himself to death.” The wolf finally got what was coming for him in this version, which I really liked.

 

1. My name is Lauren Imelio. I am 19 years old and a sophomore here at Chico State. I was born and raised in Modesto, CA, a somewhat large city an hour and a half south of Sacramento. My family includes my mom and dad, my two older brothers, and my two dogs. Family is huge to me and I love spending as much time with my family as possible. My dad attended Chico State and lived here in Chico for 8 years through the 80s and 90s, so he was a big influence on why I eventually chose to come here. I was a very quiet child growing up, until I entered high school where I broke out of my shell and really became myself. I was a cheerleader in high school and met my best friends who I ended up coming to Chico with and still live with today. In my free time, I love to eat good food, nap, and online shop. I also really love laying in bed and watching TV with my friends, that’s probably my favorite past time. I love traveling and hope I get the chance to study abroad in a couple years. I am in Alpha Phi here at Chico State so that keeps me occupied most of the time. I love kids (in doses) and would be so thankful to be able to shape little minds and teach the next generation. Not to mention the summers off sound nice too.
2. To me, being a “reader” means you enjoy reading so much that you would choose that over something like watching TV. I really love to read outside of school. My favorite books are autobiographies and memoirs, specifically about people who suffered from some sort of substance abuse. I also enjoy stories about survivors from the Holocaust, like “Night,” by Elie Wiesel. I typically like to read out loud if I can, it really helps me get a true picture in my head of what I’m reading. I typically enjoy reading much more when I am able to choose what I am reading. I will finish a book in only a couple of days if I really like it. My reading in school somewhat connects to my reading outside of school. My sophomore year of high school, we read “Night,” and I’ve loved novels like this one ever since. Other than that, I typically categorize reading with textbooks full of boring information, not interesting novels. The article showed me that students should not be judged a “reader” or “non-reader” based on the required readings in school. Rather, they should find out what they enjoy reading, and read a lot of what they love.