(Our instructor also asked us to include the lyrics of one song and focus upon one character's conflict in particular.)
*************************************************
(Disney’s Adaptation)
He's a very smart Prince,
He's a Prince who prepares.
Knowing this time I'd run from him,
He spread pitch on the stairs.
And I'm caught unawares.
Well it means that he cares—
This is more than just malice.
Better stop and take stock
While you're standing here stuck
On the steps of the palace.
All right, what do you want?
Have to make a decision.
Why not stay and be caught?
Should I give that a thought?
What would be his response?
But then, what if he knew
Who I am when I know
That I'm not what he thinks
That he wants?
Or, then, what if I am?
What a Prince would envision?
But then how can you know
Who you are till you know
What you want, which I don't?
So then which do you pick:
Where you're safe, out of sight,
And yourself, but where everything's wrong?
Or where everything's right
But you know that you'll never belong?
And whichever you pick,
Do it quick,
'Cause you're starting to stick
To the steps of the palace.
It's my first big decision,
The choice isn't easy to make.
To arrive at a ball
Is exciting and all
Once you're there, though, it's scary.
And it's fun to deceive
When you know you can leave,
But you have to be wary.
There's a lot that's at stake,
But I've stalled long enough,
'Cause I'm still standing stuck
In the stuff on these steps
Better run along home
And avoid the collision.
Though at home they don't care,
I'll be better off there
Where there's nothing to choose,
So there's nothing to lose.
So I'll pry up my shoes.
Wait, though, thinking it through,
Things don't have to collide,
I know what my decision is,
Which is not to decide.
I'll just leave him a clue:
For example, a shoe.
And then see what he'll do.
Now it's he and not you
Who'll be stuck with a shoe,
In a stew, in the goo,
And I've learned something, too,
Something I never knew,
On the steps of the palace.
Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods illustrates a much more realistic interpretation of significant values through presenting the intersecting paths of many popular fairy tale characters we’ve been raised to believe were either inherently good or bad. It testifies that everyone is equally capable of administering virtuous and devious acts, or even those that serve both purposes because they benefit others but still manage to particularly serve themselves or their group.
The titular Cinderella wished “to go to the festival and dance before the prince,” Jack of the beanstalk fame wished “[his] cow would give [them] some milk” and “to get the money” his mother made him venture forth to claim when it failed to produce milk, The Baker and his Wife (reminiscent of Thumbelina) wished “to lift the spell” The Witch had placed upon his family to make it barren after his father had stolen her mother’s magic beans, the titular Little Red Riding Hood greedily wished for more sweets from said baker and wife despite the amount she’d already stolen, and so on and so forth.
However, everyone required an item of the other in order to attain their aspirations, which meant that sacrifices had to be made. Initially, they accused one another of the unhappy conflicts that ensued, but eventually redirected their anger toward The Witch, who pointedly reminded them that she didn’t do anything wrong because she granted their dreams. Their reckless actions resulted in their unfavorable predicaments, and she hadn’t bent their will, but rather used persuasion.
The aforementioned heavily implies that we must possess accountability for our endeavors and associated ramifications, and Cinderella’s “On the Steps of the Palace,” as listed above, epitomizes this notion. In the midst of her second escape from the Prince’s castle, Cinderella faced a dilemma as to whether she should remain with a charming man who fancied her, or run back home to three wretched women that despised her. Due to her neglectful upbringing amongst her Wicked Stepmother and Stepsisters, she is only accustomed to rewarding others, but these fleeting moments of freedom have made her question her own needs.
Cinderella is amused at the Prince’s cleverness, and yet, concurrently cautious of his premeditation, since she recognizes it as an act of control. Regardless, she convinces herself that he executed it more out of concern than selfish intent, and writes it off as an ambitious move. After all, she declares that the greater challenge is whether he’ll be able to accept her in her genuine form – the scullery maid – and if she’s competent enough to transition into the affluent, worldly lady he has envisaged her. Lying is immoral, but false representation would yield even more disappointment.
Furthermore, she will undoubtedly endure abuse at home if she remains, but at least she’s accustomed to such living conditions. What if she is not suited for royalty, and its culture proves even more prohibitive? Perhaps she was destined for nothing more than a few rounds of make-believe to compensate for her pitiful existence. Besides, Cinderella doesn’t know for certain if the person he wants her to be matches the individual that she wants to be; she hadn’t been given the opportunity for introspection until now, and thusly, lacks an identity.
Of course, this is problematic because you cannot be faithful to yourself unless you’ve established your beliefs and personality. She outwitted him by leaving her golden slipper behind, so that he’d bear the burden of deciding instead, but this action did no one justice because it relinquished her say in the matter and reinforced his ego. Despite her flee, there were still obstacles she had to confront in the woods: avoiding one strife can multiply into innumerable scruples, but even more importantly, it won’t exonerate you from formulating resolutions altogether. In the end, she chose to marry the Prince, but he had been unfaithful to her with the Baker’s Wife, which teaches “happily ever after” isn’t without its flaws.
*************************************************
(Disney’s Adaptation)
He's a very smart Prince,
He's a Prince who prepares.
Knowing this time I'd run from him,
He spread pitch on the stairs.
And I'm caught unawares.
Well it means that he cares—
This is more than just malice.
Better stop and take stock
While you're standing here stuck
On the steps of the palace.
All right, what do you want?
Have to make a decision.
Why not stay and be caught?
Should I give that a thought?
What would be his response?
But then, what if he knew
Who I am when I know
That I'm not what he thinks
That he wants?
Or, then, what if I am?
What a Prince would envision?
But then how can you know
Who you are till you know
What you want, which I don't?
So then which do you pick:
Where you're safe, out of sight,
And yourself, but where everything's wrong?
Or where everything's right
But you know that you'll never belong?
And whichever you pick,
Do it quick,
'Cause you're starting to stick
To the steps of the palace.
It's my first big decision,
The choice isn't easy to make.
To arrive at a ball
Is exciting and all
Once you're there, though, it's scary.
And it's fun to deceive
When you know you can leave,
But you have to be wary.
There's a lot that's at stake,
But I've stalled long enough,
'Cause I'm still standing stuck
In the stuff on these steps
Better run along home
And avoid the collision.
Though at home they don't care,
I'll be better off there
Where there's nothing to choose,
So there's nothing to lose.
So I'll pry up my shoes.
Wait, though, thinking it through,
Things don't have to collide,
I know what my decision is,
Which is not to decide.
I'll just leave him a clue:
For example, a shoe.
And then see what he'll do.
Now it's he and not you
Who'll be stuck with a shoe,
In a stew, in the goo,
And I've learned something, too,
Something I never knew,
On the steps of the palace.
Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods illustrates a much more realistic interpretation of significant values through presenting the intersecting paths of many popular fairy tale characters we’ve been raised to believe were either inherently good or bad. It testifies that everyone is equally capable of administering virtuous and devious acts, or even those that serve both purposes because they benefit others but still manage to particularly serve themselves or their group.
The titular Cinderella wished “to go to the festival and dance before the prince,” Jack of the beanstalk fame wished “[his] cow would give [them] some milk” and “to get the money” his mother made him venture forth to claim when it failed to produce milk, The Baker and his Wife (reminiscent of Thumbelina) wished “to lift the spell” The Witch had placed upon his family to make it barren after his father had stolen her mother’s magic beans, the titular Little Red Riding Hood greedily wished for more sweets from said baker and wife despite the amount she’d already stolen, and so on and so forth.
However, everyone required an item of the other in order to attain their aspirations, which meant that sacrifices had to be made. Initially, they accused one another of the unhappy conflicts that ensued, but eventually redirected their anger toward The Witch, who pointedly reminded them that she didn’t do anything wrong because she granted their dreams. Their reckless actions resulted in their unfavorable predicaments, and she hadn’t bent their will, but rather used persuasion.
The aforementioned heavily implies that we must possess accountability for our endeavors and associated ramifications, and Cinderella’s “On the Steps of the Palace,” as listed above, epitomizes this notion. In the midst of her second escape from the Prince’s castle, Cinderella faced a dilemma as to whether she should remain with a charming man who fancied her, or run back home to three wretched women that despised her. Due to her neglectful upbringing amongst her Wicked Stepmother and Stepsisters, she is only accustomed to rewarding others, but these fleeting moments of freedom have made her question her own needs.
Cinderella is amused at the Prince’s cleverness, and yet, concurrently cautious of his premeditation, since she recognizes it as an act of control. Regardless, she convinces herself that he executed it more out of concern than selfish intent, and writes it off as an ambitious move. After all, she declares that the greater challenge is whether he’ll be able to accept her in her genuine form – the scullery maid – and if she’s competent enough to transition into the affluent, worldly lady he has envisaged her. Lying is immoral, but false representation would yield even more disappointment.
Furthermore, she will undoubtedly endure abuse at home if she remains, but at least she’s accustomed to such living conditions. What if she is not suited for royalty, and its culture proves even more prohibitive? Perhaps she was destined for nothing more than a few rounds of make-believe to compensate for her pitiful existence. Besides, Cinderella doesn’t know for certain if the person he wants her to be matches the individual that she wants to be; she hadn’t been given the opportunity for introspection until now, and thusly, lacks an identity.
Of course, this is problematic because you cannot be faithful to yourself unless you’ve established your beliefs and personality. She outwitted him by leaving her golden slipper behind, so that he’d bear the burden of deciding instead, but this action did no one justice because it relinquished her say in the matter and reinforced his ego. Despite her flee, there were still obstacles she had to confront in the woods: avoiding one strife can multiply into innumerable scruples, but even more importantly, it won’t exonerate you from formulating resolutions altogether. In the end, she chose to marry the Prince, but he had been unfaithful to her with the Baker’s Wife, which teaches “happily ever after” isn’t without its flaws.
This is the part 2 of Disney Vs Disney, But this time is Alice In Wonderland Vs Peter Pan.
*Best Protagonist: Alice (Alice In Wonderland), Because She is more Kind-Hearted, Polite and Mature than Peter Pan.
*Best Antagonist: Captain James Hook (Peter Pan), Because He is Hilarious, Suave, Charismatic and He has a very Good Reason to get revenge on this Arch-Nemesis than The Queen Of Hearts.
*Best Location: Neverland (Peter Pan), Because it is a beautiful Tropical Island, and it is better than the crazy Cloudcuckooland called Wonderland.
*Best Song: The Unbirthday Song (Alice In Wonderland)
*Best Story: Peter Pan
*Best Protagonist: Alice (Alice In Wonderland), Because She is more Kind-Hearted, Polite and Mature than Peter Pan.
*Best Antagonist: Captain James Hook (Peter Pan), Because He is Hilarious, Suave, Charismatic and He has a very Good Reason to get revenge on this Arch-Nemesis than The Queen Of Hearts.
*Best Location: Neverland (Peter Pan), Because it is a beautiful Tropical Island, and it is better than the crazy Cloudcuckooland called Wonderland.
*Best Song: The Unbirthday Song (Alice In Wonderland)
*Best Story: Peter Pan