The Secret Garden: A Fairy Tale
No one really knows the exact origin of fairy tales, in fact they seemto have originated in that timeless realm of their subjects (HarischandraPp). J.R.R. Tolkien describes the realm of fairy tales as "wide and deepand high and filled with many things: all manner of beasts and birds arefound there...beauty that is an enchantment...there it is dangerous...to ask toomany questions, lest the gate should be shut and the keys be lost" (Tolkienpp). Fairy tales generally have elements of good and evil, often portrayedby evil stepmothers and fairy godmothers, and usually a fair maiden as theprotagonist. Burnett modernized the fairy tale motif in "The SecretGarden." Rather than the female being rescued by the male, here it is the The main protagonist in Burnett's story is Mary Lennox. She has beensent to live with her uncle, Archibald Craven, at Misselthwaite Manor inYorkshire, England. Mary was said to be the most disagreeable-lookingchild ever seen, "little thin face and a little thin body, thin light hairand a sour expression...her hair was yellow and her face was yellow becauseshe had been born in India and had always been ill in one way or another"
It is ared-breasted robin that shows Mary the hidden key to the secret garden. Her parents found her too tiresome and hideous to spend timewith, so Mary was cared for by an Indian servant until her parents diedduring a cholera outbreak. Misselthwaite Manor represents the castle in Burnett's fairy tale. He even transforms Mary and Colin byintroducing them the wonders of nature. Itis large and mysterious with walls that echo of former times. Since the death ofhis wife, depression has overshadowed reason and compassion. Mary's unclecannot bear to look at his son because he reminds him of his wife, who diedshortly after Colin's birth. The fairy godmother role comes in the form of Dickon Sowerby, whoBurnett describes as a Pan looking child who even carries panpipes, andlike Pan is a charmer of animals and people. Medlock is the main obstaclethat Mary and Colin must overcome in order to enjoy the garden and theirtime with Dickon, for she has been instructed to never allow Colin outdoorsor to even allow sunlight to enter his room through opened curtains. He is able to tame wildcreatures and transform them to pets. Asmaster of the manor, his orders are obeyed to a fault. He introduces Mary to therobin and also helps the children keep the garden a secret from the rest ofthe household. Two protagonists, one female and one male, who have near identicalbackgrounds, Mary and Colin are the 'Cinderellas' of Burnett's tale. Burnett use of magic come in the form of nature.
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