Beauty And The Beast Vs Edward Scissorhands

“A tale as old as time”—that infamous saying which refers to the inevitability of the beautiful falling in love with the beast, the inescapable revelation of seeing that which is good in the grotesque. Though the elements of this tale extend all the way back to the ancient story of Cupid and Psyche, not taking on many of the contemporary and recognizable aspects of the story till the 18th Century with Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve's “La Belle et la Bete” which then was shortened and rewritten by Jean-Marie Leprince de Beaumont; the latter version becoming a much more popular and base-line text for future adaptations”(Barchilon 23). The story has been adapted countless times in literature and is most modernly well-known …show more content…
Edward Scissorhands parallels De Beaumont’s tale in more ways than one as Burton adopts the same characterization and fundamental plot elements of the fairytale genre and subgenera of “Beauty and the Beast” all set in a modern, suburban neighborhood. The Beauty character is portrayed by Kim, a beautiful, popular teenage girl who is the daughter of the woman who takes Edward in. The role of the beast, is manifested in Edward but takes on a contemporary twist as his monstrousness is characterized by his deformed hands that are made up of sharp scissor-like blades, an implementation which is more apropos for the technologically advancing 90’s as it still challenges the reader to contemplate “what we share with beasts even as we try to discover what makes us human”(Tatar xxvii). Like Beast, Edward is isolated from the …show more content…
Readers of Beauty and the Beast want to believe that they too are capable of such compassion, that they are able to see the inherent good that lies behind the outwardly grotesque. However, Edward Scissorhands assumes a much more realistic approach to exogamy as it suggests that even if one is to surpass this barrier that the coalescence of the two worlds of the beautiful and the beastly will never work and is damaging to the rest of society that can neither understand nor break through this barrier themselves. The ending to Burton’s film feels indeterminate because of the precedence that has been set, but in actuality provides a more satisfying and tangible narrative that affirms the flaws of basic human desire. While Kim’s mother tries to perform an act of selfless kindness by saving Edward from isolation, she ends up only causing intense turmoil within her close-knit