The tale of Bluebeard's Wife--the story of a young woman who
discovers that her mysterious blue-bearded husband has murdered his
former spouses--no longer squares with what most parents consider
good bedtime reading for their children. But the story has remained
alive for adults, allowing it to lead a rich subterranean existence
in novels ranging from "Jane Eyre" to "Lolita" and in films as
diverse as Hitchcock's "Notorious" and Jane Campion's "The
Piano."
In this fascinating work, Maria Tatar analyzes the many forms
the tale of Bluebeard's Wife has taken over time, particularly in
Anglo-European popular culture. It documents the fortunes of
Bluebeard, his wife, and their marriage in folklore, fiction, film,
and opera, showing how others took the Bluebeard theme and revived
it with their own signature twists.
In some tales the wife is a deceiver; in others she is a clever
investigator. Earlier ages denounced Bluebeard's wife for her
"reckless curiosity" and for her "uncontrolled appetite"; our own
times have turned her into something of a heroine, a woman who
rescues herself--and often her marriage--through her detective work
and psychological finesse. And as for Bluebeard? Once considered a
one-dimensional brute, he has found renewed cultural energy both as
a master criminal who kills in order to create a higher moral order
and as an artist figure who must shield himself against intimacy to
foster his creative powers. A brilliant account of how one classic
fairy tale has been continually reincarnated, "Secrets beyond the
Door" will appeal to both literary scholars and general
readers.
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