Reflection on the 4 Levels of Meaning and Little Red Robin Hood

According to William Irwin Thompson, there are, especially in regards to fairy tales, four levels of meaning and understanding that are contained within a story.  He identifies these four levels as: literal, structural, anthropological, and cosmological.  The literal level is exactly what is written on the page, the immediate meanings of the present words, according to the context of the words as a whole group.  In his article he uses the example of the story of Rapunzel.  The structural level gathers patterns between the present words, matching themes and lines, looking for things that repeat or might be related, while still on the literal level.  Here he points out the repeating image of the window, the wall, and the many differing pairs of characters.  The anthropological level is the process of organizing these seeming patterns into a coherent whole, the exploration of alternate story lines contained within the literal words of the story.  Here he analyzes the possible meanings behind the purpose of the name Rapunzel, the significance of the witch, and the importance of the way it is translated from German, where it is closer to "sorceress," as well as the significance behind the different pairs, and how it points to the old matrilineal world in the figure of the sorceress, and the power she has over the different men, as well as the newborn babe.  The cosmological level further expands the possibility of interpretation to the very construction of a world view, pertaining to the relationships between sexes, planets, and different forms of life.  Here he continues his examination of the Rapunzel plant, pointing out that it has the capability of reproducing with solely itself, just as the maiden does in the story.  He goes on to discuss how this could relate to the issues of pregnancy, and then takes Rapunzel as an allegory of the movements of various celestial bodies through the night sky, as seen by those who originally told the story, through their geo-centric orientation.

In regards to the story of Little Red Riding Hood, I'm not sure there is as much to say, of course I never would have guessed there was so much to say about the story Rapunzel.  It was really awesome and impressive actually.

As with most fairy tales, there are multiple versions, as well as translations available, and obviously, many different meanings and understandings can be derived from the stroy simply by which version one chooses.  If one were to take the Brothers Grimm version the discussion might follow as such:

Literal: link to Brother's Grimm Little Red Riding Hood

Structural: I would point out the recurring image of the cap, the one that the girl wears, and the one that the grandmother, and then the wolf wears.  The recurring image of the path as a place of safety and assuredness, straying from the path will bring dire consequences, even if you get flowers first.  Like in Rapunzel, there are several pairs: the mother and daughter, the girl and the wolf, the wolf and the grandmother, the girl and the grandmother, the wolf and the hunter. 

Anthropological: The case of the cap is difficult, because the color of the grandmother's cap is never specified.  However, the red cap of the maiden could very well signify a coming of age, the beginnings of menstruation and the reaching of womanhood.  As this tale was being told in pre-Renaissance Europe, the path could have easily resembled the way of Jesus, or more specifically, the way advocated by the Church, that being purity and avoidance of evil; what that evil is, or was, is another discussion.  The flowers signify the temptations that can lead one farther and farther off the path, from the way.  And this falling away will hurt not only you but those you love.  

Cosmological: Just as the red cap could signify the beginning of womanhood, so does the popping from the wolf's stomach, that was so dark and scary.  And not only does this signify a coming of age, but it implies a new birth, the spring or the dawn.  This makes allusions to the Norse myth of where the sun is swallowed at the end of this age (Ragnarök), to begin the world anew.  In connection with Thompson's analysis of Rapunzel, present here is the triad of the maid, the mother, and the old woman, supporting the matrilineal perspective of the sexual awakening and growth of the woman, as represented in the caps.  In terms of the relationship between the girl and the wolf, it may be interpreted, also from the matrilineal perspective that males are the interlopers, that the wolf is symbolic of a man, predatory man taking advantage of young maids.  In the Grimm's translation the wolf is referred to as an "old sinner" and "greybeard."