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Chapter 20
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Cinderella is Dead, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Sexism and Feminism
Love
Oppression and Control
Coming of Age
Revolution, Solidarity, and Teamwork
Summary
Analysis
An elderly woman emerges from the house and invites them inside. The interior is filled with herbs, candles, and tinctures. The girls realize the woman is the fairy godmother, and she recognizes Constance as a descendent of Gabrielle. The fairy godmother is surprised that her guests are in search of information about Cinderella rather than magic. She is unsympathetic to their plight, but she softens when Sophia asks her name. The fairy godmother introduces herself as Amina. Amina doubts a man like Manford can be stopped, but she agrees to help the girls try. She carries great guilt for the evil she has done, and she warns Sophia and Constance that her story will upset them.
The story of Cinderella casts Amina as a virtuous fairy godmother, but in reality, in the novel, she is a witch burdened with guilt and living as a hermit away from society. The contrast between the real Amina and the story’s version of her is highlights how the official version of the Cinderella story flattens women into two-dimensional caricatures who are either entirely good and dutiful (like Cinderella and Amina) or entirely evil and selfish (like the stepsisters).
Active
Themes
