Hansel and Gretel

As we read in Tatar, Hansel and Gretel “does not so much stage a child’s fears about starvation, exposure, and abandonment as mirror the hard facts of the pre-modern era” (180). I believe the facts which are reflected in the store represent the poverty, family structures, and gender roles of that time. First, the fact that it was the mother’s idea to abandon her children in the forest shows how women were seen as evil and worse than men. Second, the family structures are portrayed by the woman of the household being a step-mother, which was common back then. Third, the poverty is seen through the inability to provide enough food for one small family of four. All these factors lead to the creation of a story like Hansel and Gretel.
To show the world that produced Hansel and Gretel, I would have the children be between eight and ten years old. This way, they are old enough to be capable of finding their way home, but young enough to still seem innocent and make the step-mother appear cruel. The step-mother and father would be in the thirty to forty year range. Finally, the witch, in keeping true to the tale would be very old, ideally around seventy. I would want to make sure that the children appeared innocent, and the step-mother appeared cruel through harsh facial characteristics.
The main problem that would feel into the story would be the famine and poverty. The parents could not provide enough food for their family, which adds tension to the family. The family, of course, is already experiencing tension due to the step-mother’s selfish and cruel ways. The father is torn between his children and his wife. And finally, the children have the problem of being abandoned and forced to survive on their own.