THE GINGERBREAD HOUSE

Robert Coover

Notes for a Teacher:

The same fairy tale ‘Hansel and Gretel’ is adopted by Robert Coover with the title ‘The Gingerbread House’. The story consists of forty-two numbered paragraphs which shows the parts of the story and it is an adoption (of Hansel and Gretel). He used the device of exaggeration (making to seem more important than it really is) to parody (Humorous or satirical mimicry) the form of the original. In order to do so, he eliminated the first part of the story that is exposition of the crisis and the last part such as complication (complexity) and denouement (the outcome of a complex sequence of events). In other words, the important events and the sequence between one and the other event are not included in the story. In place of the events, he furnished the story with such as the physical attributes (construct whereby objects or individuals can be distinguished) of the characters and the forest. Every detail was exaggerated to such an extent that the action and the movement of the story become slow and sluggish (dull/moving slowly). Besides the addition, he modified the characters, Hansel and Gretel by describing their frequent quarrels and reconciliation. Even the old father who was kind in the original story appears irritant now and then. At one occasion he strikes the boy without any reason. Similarly the witch is presented as outrageous (causing horror) lunatic (पागल) shredding (tear into shreds) her own clothes, clawing (चिथोर्ने) cruelly at her face and throat, crackling, screeching and tearing doves. Because of such modification, addition and elimination of different aspects of the story, one finds the events beating about the bush (misleading/be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in order to mislead or withhold information).

Summary of the Text:

In the mid afternoon, an old man leads two children to the pine forest. The boy is dropping the pieces of bread and the girl is singing nursery songs and carrying a basket of flowers. The old man seems poor and miserable who wears the torn clothes is very weak and thin. The children are also wearing torn clothes and walking with bare feet. The eyes of the old man are blue and his face is wrinkled. He is looking for the chance to leave the children in the thick forest. He feels guilty. Though he loves his children, he has no food to feed them. As they are walking, they encounter terrible witch who has worn black clothes. Her face is pale, her body is thin and twisted and her eyes are like burning coals. She cries madly and stretches her hand in the empty space. She catches a white dove and tears its red heart out.

When they are on their way to their journey, they reach into thme “Gingerbread House”. The house can be reached walking on the biscuits through the garden of sugared fruits. The house is made of sweets, chocolates and sugar. There is sticky garden of sweets. The door of the house is heart shaped and red. It is shining like a ruby (crimson). The door is half-open. The place is sunny and beautiful. The air is fresh. There is river of honey and lollipops grow like daisies (flowers). The old man and the children spend the night in the forest. The next day, the old man tries to return back home silently but the children see and follow him. He pushes the girl and strikes the boy. The children weep but the old man returns home leaving the children in the dense forest. The boy looks back and finds that the breadcrumbs (very small quantity of breads) that he drops are eaten up by the white birds. He is sad as his plan to return back home fails.

There are several obstacles in the story that are faced by the children.  Numerous problems and difficulties in the forest are common for them. However, they don’t lose their heart. They come to the gingerbread house. They fall on the sticky garden of sweets. They lick (चाट्ने) each other clean and are happy. The boy climbs up the roof of chocolate. They enjoy eating bread and sweets. Beyond the door of the house, there is the terrible sound of the witch flapping her black rags.

Sexual Interpretation in the Story: 

The text is sexual interpretation of the story of Hansel and Gretel. It describes the sexual encounters between the various characters. However it has been claimed that this story is not sexual in nature because there are no direct reference to sex and sexual words are not, themselves used. This point of view claims that the story is simple description of two children, their father, a fairy and a witch in a fantasy land. This view is, however, entirely without foundation since the story has neither meaning nor viable (workable/practicable) structure unless it is a sexual rewriting of Hansel and Gretel. In some places the sexual references are clear. For example the ruby tipped breasts and dangling legs of the good fairy are described in paragraph 38. However, most of the time Coover uses symbols when describing sexual scenes. A dove which is frequently referred to, and which is killed by the boy in paragraph 20, “Oh what a house! And the best thing of all the door”, and paragraph 34,”But the door! The door is shaped like a heart and is a red as a Cherry, always half open, whether lit by the sun or moon, is sweeter than a sugarplum, more enchanting than a peppermint stick. It is red as a poppy, red as an apple, red as strawberry, red as a bloodstone, red as a rose. Oh what a thing is the door of that house”. 

Finally, and doubts that the story is sexual are dispelled by the final paragraph where the red and white striped chimney that the boy holds up for the girl is clearly his sexual organ, and the door is again described: "But the door: here they pause the catch their breath. It is heart shaped and bloodstone red, is burnished surface gleaming inthe sunlight. Oh what a thing is that door! Shining like a ruby, like hard cherry candy, and pulsing softly,radiantly. Yes marvelous! Delicious! Insuperable! But beyond: what is that sound of black rags flapping”. Once the images of the door, the dove, the gingerbread house, the witch and the good fairy are accepted as being sexual, then the plot of the story becomes simple to explain: it is about the loss of innocence, desire and about the first sexual encounters of a boy and a girl.