We are pleased to participate in the A to Z Blog Challenge (http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/). The Story Crossroads theme for this year is “Fantastic Females in Folk & Fairy Tales.”
About Women Disguising as “Pretend Men”:
Women have to plan carefully when wanting to pretend and pass as a man. Breasts must be flattened and gain more angular features. A woman usually uses a binder or in combination with layers of clothes. For safely binding, it cannot las more then 6-8 hours. On top of that, more layers means the woman is in danger of overheating and must consider the consequences. Many women in history have disguised themselves as men to be spies and warriors.
50-word-or-less summary
Widow with son dressed as man. Joined two hunters. Chased old woman who stole food. Ran down hole. Hunters too scared. Widow descended. Rescued three princesses. King of underworld attempted to regain princesses. Chopped ear. Betrayal! Hunters claimed victory. Discovered! Widow proves with ear. Widow’s son marries youngest princess.
Finding the Story:
Book – “The Brave Widow” in Folktales of Mexico: Horse Hooves and Chicken Feet – Traditional Mexican Stories – here
Finding the “Fantastic”:
A young woman, especially a widow, would have a hard time surviving with a son. She had her Grandmother care for her son and proceeded to dress as a man to make some kind of living. This “living” happened to be joining two hunters who turned out to be traitors. Yet, this even in the midst of betrayal, the woman-dressed-as-a-man continued to do the right thing and rescued three princesses from the King of the Underworld.
While the two older princesses ended up marrying the two hunters, this woman could have demanded justice and had the two hunters killed when the truth was revealed to the King of the Land. The woman knew that, despite the flawed natures of these two hunters, the two princesses did love those hunters. It would be punishment to the princesses more so than the hunters with a sentence of death.
The King of the Land, seeing the ear of the King of the Underworld (who was Judas the Traitor, by the way), offered the youngest princess to the pretend-man for marriage. Instead, the now-revealed-woman asked that the young princess and her son marry.
Imagine the shock of the King of the Land that three princesses (his daughters) was rescued by a woman! What a fantastic twist and a learning moment for that King and everyone else in the land!
Recommended Article:
Women have disguised as men to help win wars and rescue people (directly and indirectly). Ready this article entitled “Female Spies and Gender-Bending Soldiers Changed the Course of the Civil War” written by Lisa Hix.
Thoughts?
Please share thoughts in the comments. While you enjoy this blog, Story Crossroads has year-round offerings. See our popular links and upcoming events at our One-Stop.
As for our past A to Z Challenges…
Story Crossroads celebrates the hybrid Summit & Festival on May 13-16, 2024 – yes, in-person and virtual – and would be honored for you to join us. Explore the schedule and register here: http://www.storycrossroads.org/Festival
Thanks to funding from National Endowment for the Arts; National Endowment for the Humanities; Western States Arts Federation; Utah Division of Arts and Museums/Utah Legislature; Utah Humanities; City of Murray; Zoo, Arts & Parks (ZAP) of Salt Lake County; Salt Lake City Arts Council; and people like you.