So, why is it that women are identified in relationship to the men folk??? I GUARANTEE these women not only did the same job that the husbands did, they also did the laundry AND the meals AND the gardening (because agriculture is a women's purview).
This seems to be especially true in fairy tales, be it from Grimm or from Hans Christian Andersen.
For example:
The Shoemaker's wife ("The Elves and the Shoemaker"- Grimm)
The farmer's wife (Rapunzel- Grimm)
The Marsh King's Daughter (Andersen)
The miller's daughter (Rumpelstiltskin- Grimm)
The woodcutter's wife (Hansel & Gretl- Grimm)
The carpenter's wife (Canterbury Tales)
The fisherman and His Wife (Grimm story)
While this is just the top few, you have to wonder why women don't get any credit. Why couldn't it be "the Millers' daughter" or the "farmer's husband"? It seems to be that the reason why women aren't treated as equals in today's world is because we are still identified by what our dads and husbands do, and until we get credit as positive characters in parables and fables, we'll never be considered more.
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