Once Upon a Timeline: A Cinderella Saga

Cinderella is one of the best-loved fairy tales in all the world. The story of the mistreated underdog who rises above her family has been told and retold throughout the generations. Despite more than a century of research, its precise origin is still unknown, although many scholars have suggested possibilities. Most countries have some version of the story, often stemming from an oral folkloric tradition that predates printed books. For this timeline, I am focusing on Cinderella narratives in Europe and America, and I focus both on the stories' trends and on their readership. The entries with pink tabs indicate a distinct version of Cinderella and offer a close reading. The blue tabs appear near the pink ones, and they provide a broad analysis according to particular criteria; this helps to illustrate changes over time. The green tabs are for items "Beyond the book." These are sometimes different events that changed oral culture and folklore traditions, but they are also often primary sources that demonstrate the strength and presence of Cinderella in a certain time and place. Background image retrieved from Wikimedia Commons. Author: Smejias License: Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International

1633-12-01 00:00:00

Prologue: Oral Tradition

1633 and before

1634-01-01 00:00:00

Analysis of Basile's Cinderella

1634-01-01 00:00:00

Lo Cunto de li Cunti, The Tale of Tales, by Giambattista Basile

The first published European account of the Cinderella story appeared in this fairy tale collection.

1697-01-01 00:00:00

Analysis of Perrault's Cinderella

1697-01-01 00:00:00

Perrault Publishes Fairy Tales

In 1697, Charles Perrault published Histoires ou Contes du Temps passé: Les Contes de ma Mère l’Oye, which in English is Tales and Stories of the Past With Morals: Tales of Mother Goose.

1697-05-01 00:00:00

Analysis of d'Aulnoy's Cinderella

1697-05-01 00:00:00

Madame d'Aulnoy Publishes Cinderella

Marie-Catherine d'Aulnoy publishes Les Contes des Fées, the third volume of which includes her version of Cinderella's story.

1757-01-18 00:00:00

Response to Cinderella

The Arts and Sports section of Schofield's Middlewich Journal or Cheshire Advertiser runs a poem to Cinderella.

1793-07-13 00:00:00

John Clare born

English poet John Clare is born. "Cinderella" and other fairy tales would inspire his childhood.

1800-12-01 00:00:00

First American printing

This first American printing of Cinderella is also a direct adaptation of Perrault's tale.

1800-12-01 00:00:00

Analysis of first American printing

1810-12-01 00:00:00

Cinderella Opera

French opera Cinderella

1812-12-01 00:00:00

Analysis of Grimms' first edition

1812-12-20 00:00:00

Grimms' First Edition

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm publish their first edition of Children's and Household Tales.

1814-12-01 00:00:00

Albany prints Perrault

An Albany edition of Cinderella is an exact translation of Perrault's story.

1819-12-01 00:00:00

Grimms' Second Edition

The Grimm brothers publish the second edition of their fairy tale collection.

1827-12-01 00:00:00

John Clare publishes The Shepherd's Calendar

Clare's book includes a poem about Cinderella—yet another way that people interact with the story, responding to its ideas in new artistic expressions.

1851-12-01 00:00:00

Schubert composes Cinderella

1854-07-29 00:00:00

Cinderella in Art

1857-12-01 00:00:00

Grimms' 1857 edition features more changes

1870-07-19 00:00:00

Franco-Prussian War

Franco-Prussian War between France, Prussia, and Germany.

1882-07-05 12:55:06

Cinderella in verse (The Good Old Story)

This poetic version of Cinderella is published in England.

1882-12-01 00:00:00

Analysis of the Good Old Story

1887-12-01 00:00:00

Fair, Brown, and Trembling

This tale was still being shared orally in 1887, when Jeremiah Curtin collected it from West Ireland and translated it from the Gaelic.

1887-12-01 00:00:00

Analysis of Fair, Brown, and Trembling

1889-12-01 00:00:00

Cinderella Monograph

Cinderella Monograph from McLoughlin Bros.

1889-12-01 00:00:00

Andrew Lang Uses Perrault's Story

The Blue Fairy Book, the first fairy tale collection in a series by the esteemed Andrew Lang, uses the Perrault version of the story.

1889-12-01 00:00:00

Analysis of McLouglin's monograph

1893-12-01 00:00:00

Cinderella Photograph

This 1893 photograph from the Royal Photographic Society Collection shows a model posing as Cinderella.

1897-03-25 00:00:00

Cinderella Recreation

Cinderella-themed social activities indicate how much the beloved story had beome a way of life.

1905-12-26 00:00:00

News Article: "Cinderella Hicks"

This brief news clipping from a British paper reveals quite a lot about common attitudes toward the Cinderella story.

1907-06-16 08:42:29

History's Cinderella

A Kansas newspaper from 1899 offers a brief history of a possible Cinderella origin.

1916-04-13 06:57:29

Cinderella Metaphors

Cinderella metaphors are finding their way into the newspapers and other public spheres.

1950-02-15 00:00:00

Disney Animated Film

Disney's animated feature film Cinderella

1971-12-01 00:00:00

Anne Sexton's Transformations published

The 1970s saw not just the height of second-wave feminism, but also powerful books, like this collection of poetry, explore new themes in old stories.