Angela Carter definetly knows how to take an innocent fairytale and turn it into someting macab. She writes more than once that the wolf is carnivore incarnate and he's as cunning as he is ferocious. But little red riding hood is not scared, because she hasn't experienced enough life to be afraid so she goes into the forest only armed with her knife.
The one that is cunning is little red riding hood, because she is teasing the wolf from the very beginning, knowing even in her innocence he wants something that she has. Her virginity.
Her fear was not of the woods and wolves and naked men, but the fear of losing her innocence. Throwing the shawl and her other clothes into the fire was symbolizing that she could not go back to the young girl that she used to be. Just as the wolf is going to devour her Carter puts a total twist on the story. She has the wolf right where she wants him.
She is talking about the blizzard will die down maybe reading between the lines Carter is saying; the incaciable lust that the wolf has for her will "die down" for now.
Reading this story had me really analyzing every aspect of the words that Carter put on the page. It was a great example of intertextual writing. This type of writing really makes you think. The ending in this story at least she survives the wolf.
Nice job, Nicky!
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