An Old Story Made New
Last week I talked about how Joseph Bruchac thinks that folk literature is compelling because of the way that each tale holds a variety of layers and meanings. For this week's post, I'd like to show how the subgenre of YA fairytale retellings is able to expand these layers into new stories with complications and layers of their own.
Although this re-purposing is the general definition of a retelling, some books do it better than others. Sometimes the newness in the story comes from an unexpected twist in the plot, or from a realistic explanation of the magic prevalent in fairytales. Other times, the newness comes from a change in perspective. The example I want to talk about today uses a change in perspective to create a new story out of Lewis Carroll's book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. While Carroll's story probably doesn't have the historical depth that Bruchac considers an integral part of folklore, it has still inspired countless spinoffs and retellings because it fits Bruchac's basic criteria: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland can be interpreted in a variety of ways.
Marissa Meyer certainly saw plenty of room for an interpretation when she decided to write Heartless. Marissa Meyer is no stranger to the world of YA fairytale retellings, having published the New York Times best selling series The Lunar Chronicles before writing Heartless. When retelling Lewis Carroll's story, however, she chose to create a novel centered around the Queen of Hearts.
Although it's not a new idea to tell the villain's perspective as a story in its own right, Heartless is doing something interesting with retellings because Catherine's arc propels the story in a dark direction. If Bruchac is correct in thinking that the layers in folklore drive retellings, then Heartless is an excellent example of this theory in several ways.
For example, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland has always had an ominous undertone, and Heartless thoroughly explores that undertone through Catherine's trajectory into villainy. Meyer gives her formerly sympathetic heroine hard choices, and she doesn't shy away from demonstrating the repercussions of Cath's hatred:
Another example of a major theme that Meyer expands on is the idea that not all situations make sense. Cath encounters plenty of impossible occurrences, surreal dreams, and unsolvable puzzles in her travels. In Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, these events simply happen. In Heartless, Meyer allows these events to disturb her protagonist. Cath has no qualms about confronting weirdness:
As these two examples show, Meyer isn't just regurgitating Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, nor is she ignoring the themes and structure that make the original such a classic. She's simply writing this story in a new context for new readers. By focusing on old elements in a new way, Heartless makes an old story new.
Although this re-purposing is the general definition of a retelling, some books do it better than others. Sometimes the newness in the story comes from an unexpected twist in the plot, or from a realistic explanation of the magic prevalent in fairytales. Other times, the newness comes from a change in perspective. The example I want to talk about today uses a change in perspective to create a new story out of Lewis Carroll's book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. While Carroll's story probably doesn't have the historical depth that Bruchac considers an integral part of folklore, it has still inspired countless spinoffs and retellings because it fits Bruchac's basic criteria: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland can be interpreted in a variety of ways.
Marissa Meyer certainly saw plenty of room for an interpretation when she decided to write Heartless. Marissa Meyer is no stranger to the world of YA fairytale retellings, having published the New York Times best selling series The Lunar Chronicles before writing Heartless. When retelling Lewis Carroll's story, however, she chose to create a novel centered around the Queen of Hearts.
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Although it's not a new idea to tell the villain's perspective as a story in its own right, Heartless is doing something interesting with retellings because Catherine's arc propels the story in a dark direction. If Bruchac is correct in thinking that the layers in folklore drive retellings, then Heartless is an excellent example of this theory in several ways.
For example, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland has always had an ominous undertone, and Heartless thoroughly explores that undertone through Catherine's trajectory into villainy. Meyer gives her formerly sympathetic heroine hard choices, and she doesn't shy away from demonstrating the repercussions of Cath's hatred:
"In unison, the girls drawled, 'We have brought your vengeance, and we shall have your heart in return.' Cath's attention didn't lift from Peter Peter. 'Take it. As you said, I have no use for it.' " (442)Cath goes on to murder freely because her compassion is gone along with her pain. Although the original story does have plenty of violence, Meyer brings that violence to life in Heartless by showing that it is a result of the main character's decisions.
Another example of a major theme that Meyer expands on is the idea that not all situations make sense. Cath encounters plenty of impossible occurrences, surreal dreams, and unsolvable puzzles in her travels. In Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, these events simply happen. In Heartless, Meyer allows these events to disturb her protagonist. Cath has no qualms about confronting weirdness:
" 'But your hats do change people. I've seen it with my own eyes. I've felt it. They're dangerous, Hatta. You have to stop!' " (271)Where Alice is barely even able to respond to the weirdness that surrounds her, Cath always struggles to maintain some illusion of control over these inexplicable events. In the end, it is this desire for control that fuels her spiral into monstrousness.
As these two examples show, Meyer isn't just regurgitating Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, nor is she ignoring the themes and structure that make the original such a classic. She's simply writing this story in a new context for new readers. By focusing on old elements in a new way, Heartless makes an old story new.
Works Cited:
Bruchac, Joseph. “Old Tales Forever New.” The Reading Teacher, vol. 57, no. 8, May 2004, p. 783. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/20205435.
Carroll, Lewis. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Books of Wonder, 1992.
Meyer, Marissa. Heartless. Rampion Books, 2016.Carroll, Lewis. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Books of Wonder, 1992.
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