Snow White through Grimm and Disney - A Comparative Study

This essay attempts to discern the differences regarding six Swedish versions of the fairy-tale Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs over a period of 150 years. Focus is placed on structural transformations through time and media according to the analytical theories of Vladimir Propp. Attention is also given to former research done on the impact of the fairy-tale on the child from a psychological and social point of view. Of interest is the historical background of the tale, commencing with oral tradition, and how this was dealt with by the Grimm brothers. Three of the versions used for this comparative study are variants of the Grimm tale, and three belong to Walt Disney productions, i.e. the film and its picture stories. The aim of the comparison is to clarify how and why this tale is retained to the present.