-It is no secret that the earlier versions of fairy tales are much darker than the modern Disney movies, however, the story of Snow White is particularly grotesque.
-The Step Mother has no back story. The reader knows that she came to the castle "proud and haughty, and she could not tolerate anyone else who might rival her beauty" (pg. 196) but we don't know why. It isn't for fear that she might lose her husband's attentions, after the first page of the story he isn't mentioned again. Like Marquise de Merteuil, it is her own ego and vanity that fuels her.
-The main theme of this story is to be wary of envy and jealousy, for these feelings can drive a person to do unthinkable acts and the consequences maybe grave. In the case of the Queen, she not only tries to kill her stepdaughter four times but also wanted to eat the poor girl's liver and lungs. She wants to be the "fairest" so badly that even if "it costs [her] life" (pg. 201) she will kill Snow White. She is so blinded by jealousy that she doesn't realize with both of them dead, she will still not be the fairest in the realm.
-The consequences for her actions are just as cruel and severe as her own attempts to kill Snow White. She is forced to wear iron hot slippers and dance until she dies at Snow White's wedding. In the end, not only was Snow White the fairest but also Queen.
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