Briar Rose

"Why do you always suppose every story is about you?"

I find that people most frequently associate themselves with the main or title character. Though there are the odd ones who prefer Bellatrix Lastrange to Harry Potter, the general populace seems to want the story to be about someone like them, just like Briar Rose does in this book. People seem to need to make themselves the main characters, needing to be important enough to be considered a main character. Briar Rose's desire is, however, sensible, since she has limited access to the outside world.

Briar Rose 2

"The fairy recognizes that many of her stories, even when by her lights comic, have to do with suffering, often intolerable and unassuaged suffering, probably because she truly is a wicked fairy, but also because she is at heart (or would be if she had one) a practical old thing who wants to prepare her moony charge for more than a quick kiss and a wedding party, which means she is also a good fairy, such distinctions being somewhat blurred in the world she comes from" (60).

This section of the story really made me analyze how I felt about the fairy. Are her actions and words geared toward helping Rose by preparing her for her future or is she just telling her scary stories to be spiteful. I think that the fairy is good. Throughout the book, she is the one constant character for Rose. Even her parents are shown as bad people, but the fairy appears to stop the bad things or tell stories of what could happen to her. I think that although the way she speaks may be sinisterly tinted, what she does is for Rose's benefit. The fairy is like a mother figure for Rose. She wants to protect her by teaching her that the world is not always a fairy tale and there is no real happily ever after.

Briar Rose part 2- Alex

"Once upon a time, she says with a curling smile, her wicked side as usual taking over, there was a handsome prince and a beautiful princess who lived happily ever after. But that's terrible! cries Rose." -Coover

The end of the story seems to create an infinite loop of story-lines that can occur after the supposed "Happily Ever After". The story ends how it begun, with a prince determined to fulfill his destiny by awakening Beauty in the magical tower. However, in Beauty's unstable subconscious she is the disgruntled wife, left at home, not understanding her husband's restlessness and desires to seek his name. Just as the story asks "What is desire?" it also contests what happiness truly is. Does Beauty actually want to wake up, or does she fear the possibility of her life with her prince more than she does the snares of her own mind? In the quote I picked, Briar Rose's perception of the 'correct' ending for a story has warped from her idealistic notion of 'happily ever after' to seeing the auspicious ending as something to dread or fear. Coover has flipped the notion of 'happy' into a fear of complacency, just as he flipped "Sleeping Beauty" into a story about stories.

Briar Rose 2

She never wakes up. The prince doesn't reach her. The book ends essentially at the beginning of the narrative, giving a bit more background to the prince's motives and Briar Rose's existence in eternal sleep. Somehow I feel like this is a satisfying ending, though. Normally, stories have to have some kind of conclusion that wraps up the conflict and pays off the reader's expectations. But that's really the question, isn't it? Did we, as readers, expect Rose to wake up at the end?

I personally didn't expect her to, nor was I surprised that the prince never reached the castle. Rose has had so many false awakenings that didn't turn out well and the prince has imagined just about every possible way he could interact with her once he finds her - imagination overcomes reality here. If the event ever actually happened in the narrative, we readers would invariably have been disappointed because anything we can imagine would be more exciting or romantic or lusty or frightening. With such a circular, dream-like story, the chosen ending (if that's what it can be called) is a smart choice.

Briar Rose

"Of course, dark as it is, he might not be able to see all this, though, as he imagines it, dawn is breaking and, as he pushes aside the ancient drapes (he has already, hands now at her knees, pushed them aside, they turned to dust at his touch)..."

I think this quote is interesting because this is again a variation in Coover's repetition. The idea of the Princess's thighs being spread open has been talked about previously when Coover mentions how the branches "part like thighs". The underlying idea of sex is expressed in an innocent way giving it the feeling of a fairy tale. The reader continually feels suspense thinking that the Prince has reached the sleeping beauty, but each time things fall apart. In this quote her body turns to dust at his touch and he loses her again.

Briar Rose quote

"..but that she doubts that her prince will ever come suggests she underestimates her own legendary beauty and its power to provoke desire in men."

I chose this quote because I find it original that Coover would point out deep feeling in the "princess". Usually you see this picture of a princess with no real feeling only oblivious beauty. I like the idea that the princess could doubt her fate. How could she be sure he would come? What if she wasn't pretty enough or desirable at all? I have questioned things I was told to believe my whole life and I know those tempting thoughts full of doubt.

Briar Rose

"In spite of all the fairy's promises and reprimands, when the little ninny's not bewailing her fate, she is doubting it, or if not doubting, dreading it, afraid of what she longs for."

This quote was interesting to me, especially the last bit--"afraid of what she longs for"--explaining that she is conflicted between her rationalities and her desires, trapped in a constant tug and pull of her own emotions.

I also particularly liked the beginning--"yet another inflated legend"--sort of giving it a Don Quixote feel. While I think this will be an interesting read, I can help but wonder, why all the fairy tale stories? What's it about fairy tales that makes us want to retell them again and again, and why are we reading them all in this class? I think it's very interesting how this applies to creative writing. This story, however, seems to be a wonderful refresher after Bloody Chamber, as a retelling of Sleepy Beauty seems far less common than retelling Red Riding Hood a million times.