Three Wishes for Cinderella is a Bohemian version of the legendary Cinderella tale. It is popularized by the 1973 Czech film adaptation bearing the same title. For some reason, this film has become a strong Christmas tradition in both Norway and the Czech Republic. Millions flock around the TV on Christmas morning to watch it, broadcasted on national television networks.
This made me wonder – why is the story of Cinderella so appealing? How does it resonate with us? There are countless folk tales that have been told and then forgotten. Why has the story of Cinderella endured over time?
Core Themes & Characters
The heart of the story is, of course, a romance. We have the strong archetype of the prince – the ideal and most sought-after bachelor in the kingdom – and the character of Cinderella, the overlooked beauty who is neglected by everyone. The concept that the prince, who represents the highest desire in society, falls in love with Cinderella, who is treated as the lowest of society, is extremely appealing. It breaks the social norms we are so accustomed to and connects the highest and the lowest in a charming harmony.
However, what makes this connection so special are the many reasons why and how it happens. The film begins with Cinderella living with her stepmother and stepsister. She is treated like a slave girl by the envious stepmother, who tyrannizes her with meaningless chores or unjustified punishments, while spoiling her stepsister with gifts and attention. The stepmother and stepsister represent the superficial, greedy, and selfish aspects of human nature - the carnal. Cinderella lives under their oppression, but what is so striking about her, is that she is not bitter or spiteful. She has a pure, hopeful heart and endures her oppression with humility.
Cinderella radiates selfless love for the people and animals around her. When a cook is in trouble, she voluntarily takes the blame to help him. She lovingly cares for her cat and horse. This creates a very special connection between her and what we can call “Nature” or “Fate”. Fate acts very clearly in the story, almost to a point where one feels that Fate is a person. Fate rewards Cinderella’s selfless love and patience with luck, help, and divine interventions. This is shown early when a flock of doves rush to assist Cinderella solve one of the pointless chores imposed on her (doves are a symbol of peace in the created world, ref. Noah and the Flood; doves are also a symbol of the Holy Spirit, hence God). Cinderella gives love and patience to the Creation around her - and Creation smiles back at her. This active relationship between Cinderella and Fate makes it immediately draw Christian parallels. It is not the powerful, rich, or vainglorious who are rewarded (as the pre-Christian pagan worldview believed), but the humble, loving, and poor. Fate’s relational role with Cinderella makes it easy to interpret it as God.
The story continues by introducing the king and queen - strong archetypes for wealth, fame, and authority. They hold all that the carnal mind desires. When the royals visit the village, the stepmother and stepsister predictably obsess over them and shower them in praise. But this is all in service of their selfishness. They want to be invited to the King’s Ball - the most prestigious event in the year - for a chance to seduce the prince and become members of the powerful royal family.
Cinderella, the pure-hearted, does not care much of the royals and decides to venture into the wilderness instead. The wilderness can be understood as a place of freedom and adventure. Here, there are no social norms, superficiality, or limitations. It is a place where potential can unfold freely, where a person’s character can truly shine - where truth is revealed. Those who want to venture into the wilderness are those who want unmediated contact with reality.
It is no coincidence why it is here, in the wilderness, that Cinderella first meets the prince. This is precisely what connects them - a desire for authenticity. The prince escapes the conceited flattery of others; Cinderella escapes the oppression. And it is only in the wilderness (a place free of social constructs) where Cinderella, a poor maidservant, and the prince could possibly meet. They engage in a playful interaction, before duties recall them back to society.
The stage is now set. We have established the stepmother and stepsister as representing evil disguised as good; and Cinderella representing good disguised as “evil”. The object of contention is the royal family, specifically the prince. He is the “target”, so to speak. The stepsister tries to win him via her own deceitful engineering, while Cinderella is simply cultivating her own virtues and letting God guide her. Now, everything will be shaken up.
While Cinderella is washing clothes in an icy river, the village merchant passes by and sees her. He has been instructed to go to town and buy the most expensive fabrics, hats, and clothes for the stepmother and stepsister to wear at the royal ball. They have given him a long and exhausting list of all they insist on getting - threatening severe repercussions if he forgets even the slightest thing (showing their unhinged egotism). Notice that while the stepmother and stepsister spend lavishly on new clothes, Cinderella is washing clothes. This is also symbolic: the former chase newness and glamor, while the latter preserves and renews the old. The merchant, seeing Cinderella alone by the river, pities her, and asks her what she would like. Cinderella playfully answers “whatever falls on your nose!” - in other words, a cheerful version of “nothing at all.” She is freezing, bullied, and poor, yet acts with humility, gratitude, and uplifting cheer. Little does she know that this very little reply will be used by God to save her from tyranny.
Later, while the merchant drives his cart on, the prince pranks him by shooting a birds nest from a branch above him so that it falls on his head. The startled merchant examines the nest that fell on his nose, and finds three hazelnuts. The number three is no coincidence. It is a symbolic number used often in classical literature. Biblical scripture, as well as other traditions around the world, use the number in association with harmony and new life. Of course, God is a Trinity in Christianity, sanctifying the number as a symbol of wholeness and joy. All things come together in the number 3. It is the “perfect multiple”, so to speak.
When the merchant returns to the village, he gives the hazelnuts to Cinderella, who is grateful even for this little gesture. But when showing the hazelnuts to her pet owl, they are revealed to be magical. Each nut contains a gift that, when used by Cinderella only, brings her closer to royalty (the prince). An owl, it serves to be said, is an ancient symbol of wisdom and foresight. Owl’s see in the dark. They observe what men don’t - in this case, Cinderella’s pious and pure soul. Additionally, these gifts must be used and worn by Cinderella in order to serve their purpose. Cinderella is not given “results”, but tools. She must cooperate with God. She must act on the gifts she is given, not just passively receive them. The first gift is a hunting attire that enables her to join the prince’s hunting party and impress them with her skills. The second is a dress for the royal ball. Cinderella is overjoyed - she will attend the ball!
Meanwhile, the royal ball goes as the prince feared - all the women lack character or authenticity, competing fiercely against each other over who can seduce the prince first. The prince, despairing over the vanities and empty flattery, finally decides to exit the ball. But just as he is about to leave, he passes by Cinderella, wearing the dress gifted to her by the second hazelnut. She is veiled and mysterious, making the prince curious about her. He begins dancing with her, and after a few swings, wants to marry immediately.
What makes Cinderella so instantly appealing? Well, she is veiled, which stimulates the prince’s sense of adventure, but also commands respect as it suggests Cinderella is not intending to attract him by her looks, but by her wit and character. She is authentic - even quipping a few feisty lines at the prince. She respects the prince, but also respects herself, and will never corrupt her own integrity for fame. This is diametrically the opposite of the other women - and the prince falls passionately in love. When he proposes for marriage, she even has the gall to make it conditional: only if he solves the riddle of her identity, can he have her in marriage. She then storms off.
This scene is the entire point of the film: everything is turned upside down. Suddenly, it is Cinderella who is at the center of the entire ball. When she first arrived, all the guards turned after her. The music and dancing stopped as she entered the hall. This symbolizes that the presence of someone as authentic, humble, and pure as Cinderella disrupts the waltz of the superficial, transient, and proud. While they chase after self-gain on false premises and compete fiercely with each other, Cinderella is simply herself – genuine, loving, and pure. This makes everyone else look "ugly" because true beauty is now present and has raised the standard in the entire ballroom. Suddenly, it is Cinderella – the servant girl – who is the most precious and beautiful in the kingdom.
The Humbling of Cinderella and the Prince
The prince is challenged (which, in a romantic setting, is one of the great sources of attraction). He hunts after her, and finds her shoe by the palace steps. The symbolism of Cinderella leaving her shoe there (accidentally), can have many interpretations - but I see it as God humbling her. She just became the hottest attraction in the kingdom, with the prince running after her in a rather embarrassing fashion. It is easy for her to become prideful, but by clumsily losing her shoe on the way out, it is clear that she does not have everything in control as she thinks. It is not she who really calls the shots. This is proven true again when the furious stepmother and stepsister rush home and arrest her. They lock her up in a cell and steal her dress. The stepsister then wears the dress to fool the prince into proposing to her thinking he proposed to Cinderella (ref. the Old Testament story of Jacob and Laban). At this point, Cinderella has lost at her own game and is completely helpless.
It is, though, interesting that the stepmother and stepsister choose to make a gamble in this way. Their goal was to become a part of the royal family and gain power and wealth - and Cinderella’s potential marriage to the prince would technically bestow that to them. All they ever wanted is in their grasp - there is only one obstacle: their egos. They are so madly driven by their pride that they cannot accept seeing Cinderella “win” and be happy, even if it also leads to their gain. It is not enough for them to get what they want - their egos make them insist on getting it in their way.
Meanwhile, the prince gets humbled, too. The second effect of Cinderella’s lost shoe is that the prince gets a tangible, physical clue instead of the riddle she gave him. When he searches for Cinderella in the village, he resorts solely to the tangible clue and ignores the riddle, proclaiming that he would marry whomever the shoe fits (luckily, the shoe fits no one, a sign of Cinderella’s uniqueness). This is an excellent device to humble the prince, too. He appears as a fool, and is taunted by the villagers for his silly proclamation. He seems grossly shortsighted and vain, looking only at the external materials. These are the exact traits he was supposed to not have - yet here he is. Predictably, when he sees the stepsister wearing Cinderella’s dress, he immediately rushes after her. The exterior is all he sees.
Cinderella is helpless. The prince is clueless. And the stepsister is about to win it all. Everything seems lost - but, again, God saves. Having rushed into the wilderness (remember, the wilderness is where truth is revealed and social pretenses disappear), the stepsister falls into an icy lake while the prince pursues her, and the waters stain the dress and tears off the veil, exposing her true face. In other words - it is futile to dress up in pseudo-purity or fake piety. Good character cannot be faked in the long-run. A bad character will always leave stains.
The prince, furious for being fooled, throws her back into the icy lake. He then finally comes to his senses. The owl (wisdom) appears and guides him back to the village. The humbled prince finally has the ability and humility to follow Wisdom (the owl). Wisdom leads him back to the village, where the true Cinderella is waiting.
Cinderella, likewise, had a miraculous escape from her cell. She then picks up the third hazelnut and when opening it finds a white wedding dress. She appears in the village wearing the white wedding dress - now, unveiled. White symbolizes purity and newness. Cinderella finally shows her true self to the prince. The prince then solves the riddle, meaning he has made himself fully known of Cinderella’s character, not merely her beauty or popularity. He recognizes her full identity - the ashy maidservant, the hunter, and the ball attendant without a fancy title. This ensure that there are no social constructs blurring his view of her - he sees her as she is, and loves her for it. Additionally, by loving her as an ashy maidservant as well as a princess, he proves his love as genuine. Thus, he give her back her shoe, which obviously fits perfectly. Their identities are now fully disclosed and intimately known. Only on this basis - in the absence of vain social pretenses - does Cinderella marry the prince.
The shadow of Christ in every story
The iconic story of Cinderella is a classic underdog story. But if we look one layer deeper, we can better describe it as a story of a hidden beauty. Indeed, we love a story of the hidden greatness. That which at first endures ridicule and persecution with patience, only to be later revealed as the true hero, to the shock of the people and shame of the persecutors - is overwhelmingly satisfactory. At the heart of such a story is the struggle against injustice and pain, and the redemption of virtue. The promise that, with faith, all things are possible. Those who resort to faithless greed, impatience, and pride, try to force their will upon the fabric of reality, but will ultimately fall terribly. Those who resort to faithful hope, patience, and humility, will be transformed into the brightest beauty of the land. Life is full of struggle and opposition, making it very relatable to all of us. The promise of faith is therefore one that we all wish to believe.
This is a uniquely Christian theme. Granted, the desire to overcome the hardship of life is a universally human experience - but the notion that it is only truly overcome through humility, faith, and love, as supposed to power and ambition, stems solely from Christianity. Pre-Christian literature was obsessed with power struggles, preferably among the royalty or divine figures. No concern was made for slaves, servants, the poor or destitute. It was totally uninteresting, because the presumption was that only through the exercise of earthly power can one triumph over the hardships of life. Pre-Christian storytellers would have found it ludicrous to make a poor maidservant into a heroine (unless the story was intended as a ridiculous comedy).
With the advent of Christianity - everything was turned upside down. The Word of God was incarnate as a babe in a cave, not a palace. He was a carpenter, not a governor. He was mocked, abused, and crucified by his own kin, not hailed and paraded. All the while, He beamed perfect love, humility, and patience. He was totally unique, transcending all social constructs. And on the third day after His death, he rose in glory, revealed as truly the Son of God and the Redeemer of all mankind, who ushers forth the Kingdom of Heaven. The story of Jesus Christ is arguably the most iconic, impactful, transformative story ever told. It is the heart of all that it means to be human, and it unveils the mystery of what true greatness is. It is not in pomp or pride, but in humility and love. That is what shakes us to tears. That is what provokes our repentance.
Given its potency, the story of Christ is “imitated” in many of our most famous stories and literary characters. Christ is the blueprint of true heroism, at such a deep level that it touches all our hearts, universally. And Cinderella is a great example. Cinderella is a noble soul clothed in rags and dirty aprons and disguised as a poor maidservant (the Good disguised as poor), who endures bullying, mockery, and oppression by, one can say, the village nobles (her nearest of kin) - but who, after breaking free from imprisonment, is revealed as the true Beauty in the land, and establishes the kingdom of matrimony with the royal prince.
Of course, one should be careful not to read a wanted narrative into the text - but the general themes at play here: pride vs. humility, force vs. faith, pretense vs. authenticity, rich vs. poor, only became relevant in the post-Christ world. They are only found interesting and enjoyable in cultures shaped by the Gospel, precisely of how culturally influenced we have been by the story of Christ.
The Bride & the Bridegroom
There is a prevailing sense that our lives, and the world, is “moving” somewhere. But at some point, things happen that shake everything up. Where will we stand when that moment comes? What will be our disposition? Christian Scripture uses the image of the Bride and the Bridegroom, where the Bride is the Church and the Bridegroom is God. You do not know the Hour when God will come - but you better be ready for it. The Horologion (the Christian Prayer Book of the Hours) gives a striking warning in one of the prayers of the Midnight Office:
"Behold, the Bridegroom cometh at midnight, and blessed is that servant whom He shall find watching; but unworthy is he whom He shall find heedless. Beware, therefore, O my soul, lest thou be weighed down with sleep; lest thou be given up to death, and be shut out from the kingdom. But rouse thyself and cry: Holy, Holy, Holy art Thou, O God, through the Theotokos have mercy on us."
What turns it all upside down is God, who sees what humans do not. God reveals the truth of what is truly valuable and beautiful, and what is not. Cinderella was found watching. The stepmother and stepsister were found heedless.
All this is captured in the final scene of the film: the prince and Cinderella ride towards the snowy horizon in white attire, with the upper half of the image consisting of the sky's clouds (heaven) and the lower half consisting of white snow (the earth). The sky represents the ideal and eternal. The earth represents the carnal and transient. The link between these is, according to the Gospels, Jesus Christ (as both God and man). It is therefore not a coincidence why the prince and Cinderella, both in white (symbolizing purity), ride towards the midpoint of the horizon – in love with the harmony and balance between these dimensions.
"Do not worry and say, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well!" Matthew 6:31-33.
"So the last will be first, and the first will be last. For many are called, but few are chosen." Matthew 20:16.
"When you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." Matthew 6:2-4.
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6:19-21.
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