> "Yet I rarely see them juxtaposed against their counterparts, where it is the men whose curiosity leads to failed marriages. So often, the moral is considered gendered."
Well, in the times such fairy tales were crafted, the men would be "out and about" having all manner of worldly engagements their women didn't know about, while many wives would be "homebodies." I think both sides tend to be more curious about what secrets the husbands need to keep. Maybe I can see it as "Don't ask me a question that you don't want the answer to." (and also, you don't know until you get the answer, but I know you don't really want the answer.)
Did you know C.S. Lewis' "Till We Have Faces" is a re-telling of the Cupid/Psyche myth? And with an unusual choice of focus! (He possibly would have pushed that idea for a book aside and postponed writing it indefinitely, but his wife Joy insisted he write it. He said, "Oh, nobody will get it." She said, effectively, "Don't care. It will still be the best/most-important/what-have-you book of yours, even if most people can't appreciate it. Write it anyway!" So there's yer Valentine's Day connection for ya!) It's gorgeous. Sometimes I think of Lewis' writing as the thing I'm most likely to forget how beautiful it is when I'm not in its presence.
Once again, you revel in the research and produce an educational and enjoyable story.
> "Yet I rarely see them juxtaposed against their counterparts, where it is the men whose curiosity leads to failed marriages. So often, the moral is considered gendered."
Well, in the times such fairy tales were crafted, the men would be "out and about" having all manner of worldly engagements their women didn't know about, while many wives would be "homebodies." I think both sides tend to be more curious about what secrets the husbands need to keep. Maybe I can see it as "Don't ask me a question that you don't want the answer to." (and also, you don't know until you get the answer, but I know you don't really want the answer.)
Did you know C.S. Lewis' "Till We Have Faces" is a re-telling of the Cupid/Psyche myth? And with an unusual choice of focus! (He possibly would have pushed that idea for a book aside and postponed writing it indefinitely, but his wife Joy insisted he write it. He said, "Oh, nobody will get it." She said, effectively, "Don't care. It will still be the best/most-important/what-have-you book of yours, even if most people can't appreciate it. Write it anyway!" So there's yer Valentine's Day connection for ya!) It's gorgeous. Sometimes I think of Lewis' writing as the thing I'm most likely to forget how beautiful it is when I'm not in its presence.
Thanks for the tip, I'll check it out!