Dealing with Dragons

From the very beginning, Wrede sets a wry narrative tone that challenges the conventions of fairy tales and high fantasy alike, as the decisive protagonist, Princess Cimorene, remains sure of herself, her interests, and her convictions even in the face of restrictive cultural expectations and parental disapproval. Her very nature is dedicated to Challenging the Status Quo, and she therefore does not deign to act like a stereotypical princess or enjoy the pursuits that others expect her to take up. Instead, she engages in stereotypically masculine, “prince-like” interests such as fencing, or stereotypically feminine, “lower-class” interests such as cooking. In this way, her activities challenge social conventions, literary tropes, and class boundaries alike, and although Cimorene never doubts herself and remains a relatively static character, her bold, unorthodox methods drive both the momentum and the humor of the plot.

Although Cimorene remains the same, her environment changes dramatically as the characters around her interact react to her unconventional behavior. As the protagonist ventures out into the world, Wrede uses the princess’s unique outlook to engage in oblique forms of world-building, for the dominant cultural climate of Cimorene’s home kingdom of Linderwall is soon revealed in its subjects’ myriad reactions to her unorthodox interests. Objectively, Linderwall is described as a well-off kingdom “where philosophers were highly respected and the number five was fashionable” (1). This quotation juxtaposes Linderwall’s cultural inclinations with Cimorene’s own values; although Linderwallians respect “philosophers”—those educated individuals who are commonly thought to be wise about matters of the world—Cimorene repeatedly finds conventional wisdom to be tiresome at best, and her every action is a sound rejection of her upbringing. The kingdom’s dominant ideas are also portrayed as being inherently questionable; for example, that the number five is “fashionable” shows that the citizens bow to mainstream trends without deciding what they like for themselves. Similarly, knights keep their armor polished “mainly for show” (1) and do not physically defend Linderwall, indicating that the position of “knight” is more of a status symbol than a military responsibility. As a result, Linderwall emerges as a place that is concerned with perpetuating false wisdom and foolish fashions. 

Linderwall’s commitment to trying to follow what is deemed “proper” is also reflected in the behavior of those close to Cimorene, for they try to mold her into a person who reflects society’s misplaced values. Ironically, Cimorene’s initial response to this pressure also falls under the category of an expected stereotype; when she finds the demands upon her to be unbearable, she calls on her fairy godmother for help, proving that she has not yet fully broken free from the fairy tale mold. In a story like the Disney version of the Grimm brothers’ fairy tale, Cinderella, the fairy godmother helps the heroine to transform herself and to achieve her greatest wish. However, Wrede uses this moment to satirize yet another fairy tale trope, for when Cimorene tells her fairy godmother that she must deal with a matter “of utmost importance to [Cimorene’s] life and future happiness,” the fairy godmother replies, “Tell me about him” (4). The fairy godmother’s comment indicates that she cannot conceive Cimorene of being concerned with any other aspect of life than falling in love with a man. This attitude shows the true limitations of the Linderwallians, who remain bound by their adherence to stereotypical fairy tale tropes and roles. Rather than helping Cimorene once she understands that the problem isn’t about love, the fairy godmother tells her that her concerns are merely a “stage” that she will “outgrow,” and this dismissive response fails to appreciate that Cimorene is struggling to find a place that accepts her and allows her to pursue her interests and identity without judgement. 

Faced with this incontrovertible proof that the Linderwallians expect very little of women—and more specifically, princesses—Cimorene’s only option for Challenging the Status Quo is to leave entirely and take the wider world by storm, using her Cleverness and Wit as Sources of Power. Notably, once she arrives at the dragon’s caves, for example, she further defies fantasy stereotypes by asking the dragons to take her in as a captive, and Kazul, who values the princess’s “improper” pursuits, promptly puts Cimorene to work cleaning, organizing Latin books, and performing a range of other unconventional tasks. Once again, the primary narrative tension in the novel’s comes from other, more conventional characters who impose their fairy tale expectations upon Cimorene’s attempts to create a newer, freer space for herself. Almost every human that Cimorene meets misinterprets her situation, and knights arrive in great numbers “to rescue [her] from the dragon” (25), automatically assuming that she is being held against her will like a stereotypical princess would be. Not only are the Linderwallians incapable of breaking out of the status quo, but they also cannot imagine that anyone would want to.

The incredulity of the other human characters at Cimorene’s choices is expressed in superlative tones as they make absolutist statements that attempt to limit the scope of her prospects. For example, the first knight tells Cimorene that “princess always—” (25), but she cuts him off and corrects him before he can even finish his sentence, showing her assertive nature and steadfast principles. Likewise, when Keredwel later says, “No one volunteers to be a dragon’s princess” (65), the italicization of these words speaks volumes about the human characters’ unquestioning belief in a limited set of prescribed actions and paradigms. The only contrast to this pattern is Alianora, who does not make assumptions about Cimorene’s actions or fit into these tropes herself. As the two unconventional women bond over the similar audacity of their life choices, their new rapport demonstrates The Positive Impact of Friendship and Loyalty. Additionally, because Cimorene gains an ally in her strategic defiance of social norms, Wrede implies that the narrative world contains a larger contingent of people who want to free themselves from such expectations.