Comments on Diamonds and Toads: Hey There! Or the Wolf's Real Intentions

This isn’t about the song, but rather a movie prev...

2010-11-18T19:17:39.126-08:00

This isn’t about the song, but rather a movie preview to Red Riding Hood that I just saw. I cannot wait! However, I am slightly biased because it was Leonardo DiCaprio’s idea to put a gothic twist to this tale to make it into a movie which is to be released in 2011. The basis of the story isn’t about a young girl but rather a matured beauty, who is in love with a werewolf. The werewolf is part of the community she lives in but is being hunted for the murders of innocent civilians. In my eyes, the wolf seems charming and is defiantly attractive making him even more dangerous. In the preview it is not exactly clear if the heroine knows if her boyfriend is werewolf or not, which to me makes it much more interesting. In Maria Tatars book The Annotated Classic Fairy Tales, she includes pictures of different representations of the story. In a picture by Eugene Feyen it looks as though LRRH knows what she is getting into and that there is a wolf in the bed that she is willingly getting into. Therefore I think there is a strong suggestion between the thought that LRRH is asking for trouble and knows what is getting into. There is also a dramatic scene in the preview where her beautiful red cloak is against snowy mountains. I cannot wait for more previews and reviews!

I really liked the lyrics of this song, they were ...

2010-10-30T17:49:45.316-07:00

I really liked the lyrics of this song, they were funny and smart. I always thought there was a lot more to fairy tales than meets the eye initially, but I never really thought about it extensively until taking T390. I knew there were often messages in them but this song really points out the predatory nature of the wolf well. It also makes it a lot easier to understand than the fairy tale.
I also find this song really funny because it sounds like something a lot of not so nice guys do to try to get girls to like them. They always try to come off like the nice guy who doesn't have any bad intentions, when really that is all they have. Being smart when dealing with men isn't any less relevant today than it was when Little Red Riding Hood was originally written, it is just now people are in general less uptight about sexuality and morality. However, being careful and being smart when dealing with other people and your emotions is something every parent tries emphasize to their kids even today. This is just a more fun way of examining the message of Little Red Riding Hood and what the wolf character actually represents.
Ashley S.

Looking at these lyrics and after reading differen...

2010-10-01T00:06:36.250-07:00

Looking at these lyrics and after reading different versions of Little Red Ridding Hood in class gives me a different outlook on Little Red Ridding Hood. It has been quit a long time since I have read any fairy tales especially Little Red Ridding Hood. Therefore, after reading I had never thought as the wolf in the story ever being anything else other than a wolf, but as you explained men back then and now can act and are characterized as being deceiving and misleading. After reading the "real" version in class I had never looked at the wolf ever being sexual until then. It really opened my eyes and made me want to read the real versions of all the other fairy tales I use to love when I was young. All in all I can not wait to read more of the real versions of different fairy tales in this class! Tiara J

When I read through the lyrics, never having heard...

2010-09-30T12:53:33.743-07:00

When I read through the lyrics, never having heard the song itself, I got the feeling that the wolf switched back and forth from trying to “get with” Little Red Riding Hood, and wanting her to accept him. In the fairytales about the wolf, past and current, you can understand the idea that he represents a man. He sometimes seems to be a man that wants to take LRH away into the woods to do with her whatever he pleases. This song talks more about trust than the fairytale does. Although, he does talk about having to keep his “sheep skin on”, which implies that he is trying to get her trust for ungentlemanly purposes. The sexual influence is just as prominent in the song as it is in the fairytales we have all heard. The only real difference with the song is that it comes out and states the sexual references. There is no play at “eating” her; he obviously is trying to get into bed with her. Kristy K.

I love this class because I remember almost all th...

2010-09-30T12:26:12.503-07:00

I love this class because I remember almost all these fairy tales in a totally different way. And this Little Red Riding Hood is a great example because growing up listening to this story I did not get the wolf as being a predator. Yes I thought of him as a bad wolf but I did not get a message out of the story at all. But then reading it again in this class, the first time I read it I thought, “Oh wow, that’s not right.” It was really quite creepy. This song makes perfect sense to me. And it amazes me how much different kids might see things or hear things when listening to these stories. It’s like I never comprehended them or their real reasoning/message behind them. I almost want to go back and dig out the book of fairytales I was read when I was little to see what else I missed.
Amanda F.

Unfortunately I am one of those people that have t...

2010-09-30T10:24:07.322-07:00

Unfortunately I am one of those people that have to agree with these song lyrics. I always thought even before starting to read true fairy tale beginnings that the story of Little Red Riding Hood was suspicious, to begin with. The wolf always came off to me as having some sort of sexual demeanor and Little Red Riding Hood seemed very seductive in telling him in detail where she was going and exactly what she was doing. Little girls shouldn’t be walking through the woods alone and definitely shouldn’t be talking to a Wolf or any stranger to begin with. In the fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood the wolf might not come out and seem as blunt with detail as in the lyrics of this song but from the beginning you can tell that he is up to no good when he starts heading to her grandmother’s house and waiting for her. If it was only the fact that he was hungry, and wanted to eat Little Red Riding Hood he would of ate her right there in the middle of the forest. She had already described for him in detail where her grandmother lived so it would have been easy to eat her first and then go finish off her grandmother he had no reason to sit in her grandmother’s bed and wait for Little Red Riding Hood to arrive. I believe the lyrics in this song bring it to attention just how really the Wolfs mind was not only in eating Little Red Riding Hood but all the sexual thoughts that were running through his mind.

Serene Ibrahim

It had been awhile since I had read fairy tales an...

2010-09-27T10:45:49.072-07:00

It had been awhile since I had read fairy tales and when I heard “Little Red Riding Hood” was going to be our first tale I thought I know this one. Reading it for class I started to notice things I hadn’t before such as, the wolf really isn’t just a wolf. It is funny to see how your perspective and understanding of things change as you get older. I can see how the wolf can represent a sly male, and the things he can say to convince you that he is not a wolf. Just like in the song he is trying to convince Little Red that he is a sheep and not a wolf. I like how one of the commenters said both sexes play the role of wolf. I do see both sexes portraying the wolf in real life. The ones that are the most successful are the ones that one of stories calls a tame wolf, which are the ones that you have to look out for.
Carl C

I only ever heard the hook, I can’t help but to th...

2010-09-22T18:57:46.663-07:00

I only ever heard the hook, I can’t help but to think of the them when I read the words “Little Red Riding Hood” even add the “hey” in the front and the “you sure are lookin’ good” at the end. But it wasn’t until now that I heard and read the whole song that I realize how disturbing it is. When I was a child reading “Little Read Riding Hood” what I saw in the meaning of the story was “don’t talk to strangers” it wasn’t until I was in this class reading the originals as an adult. That I now see the meaning of the story of “Little Red Riding Hood” as this song depicts. There is still the warning of “Don’t talk to strangers”, but now it has a reason he might be trying to have a one-night stand or what have you, because that is obviously what the words are saying in this song.
Silvaan C.

I also thought the wolf as a real wolf before I re...

2010-09-21T14:05:16.239-07:00

I also thought the wolf as a real wolf before I read the material for class. For current times, although it seems to be rare, could a woman be a seducer such as a man is? Are women still shown as venerable to the big bad wolf today as they were many, many years ago?
This song does enlighten me even more to how the wolf can be viewed as a metaphor as a seductive man. Seeing this as so, it seems that Grimm’s version is lacking in teaching morals, in which they try to impart to the audience, the children, reading. Little Red Riding Hood does not venture off the path, as her mother said, but still encounters the wolf. Perhaps the brothers were hinting at the fact that women cannot avoid that seductive man, that they must be prepared to meet that challenge head on? Or that a woman would have to identify when a “hungry wolf” comes across their path to Grandma’s house?

When I was younger, I grew up reading/listening to...

2010-09-20T11:06:24.918-07:00

When I was younger, I grew up reading/listening to fairy tales. However, I never understood the morals that lay deep within some of the well-known fairy tales. After discussing Little Red Riding Hood in class, I have a better understanding and appreciation for the lessons in it.
I think this song portrays the main lesson within this fairy tale. Some men will “disguise” themselves in order to look more appealing to women. They come across sweet and genuine, but later down the road eventually show their true colors. However, I don’t believe that men are the only ones to blame. In “Little Red Riding Hood,” the young girl falls for the wolf’s façade. Was it not obvious to her that the person lying in the bed was not her grandmother? I think sometimes women are blind to the actions and intentions of men. A woman’s love for her man can sometimes hinder her from seeing the reality that is staring her in the face.
-Emily C.

Listening to the song seems so much different than...

2010-09-16T17:45:34.451-07:00

Listening to the song seems so much different than actually reading the lyrics. Maybe it’s in the singer’s ability to scandalize his phrasing into sexual connotations, but regardless of that the lyrics read pretty tame in my opinion. It almost seems as if the wolf is pretending to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing, yet he is not really a “wolf” to begin with. In fact the wolf sounds more like a protector in this sense. After acknowledging Little Red’s big eyes and their ability to lure other wolves the wolf asserts: “I think I ought to walk with you for a ways”. The wolf in this context understands who the real wolves are- the ones that will chase her. One can see his motives as a kind of chase, although they seem a bit milder than so often assumed. The wolf is even hesitant in what Little Red thinks of him: “Until I'm sure that you've been shown. That I can be trusted walking with you alone”. If we look at wolves and men as analogous, the perception of the two is clear. The wolf does not want to be associated with other wolves. Likening it to the notion that “all men are pigs”, the wolf wants to steer clear of hasty ill thought advances in an effort to separate him from the rest.

I grew up hearing fairy tales throughout my childh...

2010-09-15T15:42:33.099-07:00

I grew up hearing fairy tales throughout my childhood and enjoyed them. But, I never understood the morals of the fairy tales growing up. Discussing, "Little Red Riding Hood" in class helped me understand the different perspectives and meanings about fairy tales. I have learned throughout class, that fairy tales are not only viewed as an entertainment source for young children, but rather lessons that must be taught at a very young age.

In hearing the song, it reminded me that these types of situations are not only seen in fairy tales, but also in reality. In the real world, men disguise themselves in order to satisfy their own pleasures. For example, as seen in the fairy tale of "Little Red Riding Hood" in which the “wolf” not only fools the young girl, but also manages to portray a nice and innocent man. I believe the moral of this story is that men are always going to deceive the opposite gender, as a way, of predominantly showing power. I disagree with this concept, that one gender is intellectually smarter than the other. I believe "Little Red Riding Hood" plays a major role in all humanity because it focuses on the different levels of obstacles that children and adults face today.
Mary Cruz A.

I find the song particularly funny, but also very ...

2010-09-13T19:43:13.575-07:00

I find the song particularly funny, but also very interesting now that I have realized the true fairy tale of Little Red Riding Hood. It is obvious that what this “wolf” is saying is nothing more than seductive lines. Also that this song is not dedicated to “Little Red Riding Hood”, but to any Little Red Riding Hood who will fall in tramp of the wolf. The lyrics are funny, I think it would be interesting to hear a version of the 2000’s since this one is from 1966; I think would be interesting to see the difference in the lyrics.
Guadalupe G.

BrittaniH. I was one of the people in class that s...

2010-09-09T08:41:09.673-07:00

BrittaniH. I was one of the people in class that said, "Ohh, I get it". I had never thought before that the wolf was a symbol for a man, nor had I heard a man referred to as a wolf. I originally thought the tale meant listen to your parents, stay on the path, don't talk to strangers, or you will be eaten! Now it all makes sense on another level as well. I think all of us, men too, can take some knowledge away from this fairy tale to apply in everyday life. Not only can both sexes be wolves, but I think there can be wolves in all aspects of our lives, not just love. Most of us have been in a situation where a person seems very nice and helpful on the outside, but has ulterier motives. We all need to be careful for the wolves out there!

In class we discussed how Little Red Riding Hood a...

2010-09-08T13:45:36.203-07:00

In class we discussed how Little Red Riding Hood along with other fairy tales were told not only for entertainment but to warn or teach people lessons. In Little Riding Hood we discussed how the big bad wolf represented a male predator of sorts. The moral of the story is that women especially young women should stay away from strange "wolf" like men that may be after devouring them. This idea of men being predators and going after women I believe continues to today's world. Stronger male types taking advantage of women in many ways are always heard about no matter where you live.
Later after leaving class I remember a statistics book I read once that illustrated statistics in the media, how they can be manipulated and how people who may have not had lots of education in statistics may over look what a study or numbers really mean. I then made a connection between an example the book gave about a common statistic about rape and college age women. The statistic was that 1 in 4 women are raped on a college campus. This number seems very high and shocking. It definitely cause women to think about being more cautious and be more on guard of "big bad wolves". However, it turns out that this statistic may be more of a tale than an entire truth. After closure examination it is pointed out that the women who wrote and conducted the survey asked vague questions and interpreted the answers in ways that the women taking the survey may not of considered herself a victim but her answer was interpreted in such a way that she was. One question the survey asked was similar to Have you ever regretted having sex with a man? So any women who has had a one night stand, drunk or otherwise was considered forced to do it. And though the survey created a great story of young women being taken advantaged of by wolfish men, that creates awareness about a subject that all women should be aware of, it is slightly more of an unfortunate fairy tale than hard fact.

This reference comes from It Ain't Necessarily So: How Media Make and Unmake The Scientific Picture Of Reality by David Murray.

Sara J

I feel so silly for being so naive to this fairy t...

2010-09-08T09:08:52.158-07:00

I feel so silly for being so naive to this fairy tale and the implications of it. I honestly have never ever been a fan of cartoons, even in childhood, and even though I am aware that all these fairy tales existed long before animation, I still never read any either. In reading, and movies, I pretty much limit myself to good romantic comedies and an occasional psychological thriller. With that said, I feel somewhat traumatized by reading all the versions of this story. I truly had no clue that the wolf ate the grandmother or Little Red Riding hood (in some of the stories). I cannot recall this story having been read to me with the truth being exposed. I am assuming that my mother sugar coated the story to protect what she assumed was my innocence. So even as an adult, I didn’t assume the wolf was used as a representation for a deceiving man until the obvious was pointed out to me.
Vanessa R.

Kelsea T I think that the Little Red Riding Hood ...

2010-09-07T10:41:30.194-07:00

Kelsea T
I think that the Little Red Riding Hood song is pretty awesome. I like the way that the wolf is saying a variation of the things that Red normally says to grandma. He is trying to be sly by dressing up like a harmless sheep, which could relate to lamb, which is directly associated with Jesus, innocent and loving. The fact that he tells her that he will stay with her just to be sure that she is safe is even more sly, because his real intentions are anything but harmful. He thinks that when she trusts him then he will be able to take his disguise off to let her see the real creature that he is. He wants her to think that she knows him as the sheep and it shouldn’t change anything once he exposes the wolf on the inside. But he is a predator, he keeps commenting on her beauty and how dangerous it is for her to be alone with a wolf. He is the only predator that she is facing in those woods.

I agree that prior to reading “Little Red Riding H...

2010-09-06T20:58:37.407-07:00

I agree that prior to reading “Little Red Riding Hood” for this class I did not understand the true meaning of fairy-tales. I was very unaware that they were originally intended for adults and realize how much they were changed to be told to children. In reading Perrault’s “Little Red Riding Hood” and the Grimms’ “Little Red Cap,” I finally realized the different symbols and roles that characters play in fairy-tales. Less than two weeks ago, if someone would have asked me what the wolf portrayed in “Little Red Riding Hood,” I would have given them a puzzled look. Now, I understand that the wolf is actually a predator and may symbolize someone who is promiscuous. When someone says “the big, bad wolf” a totally different image will come to mind. Instead of picturing an actual wolf, I will think of a man that preys on women with bad intentions. Now that I have a better understanding of fairy-tales and their true intentions, I am curious to read and find out more from various tales! Kayla W.

I must admit that i don't know very much about...

2010-09-06T12:53:27.722-07:00

I must admit that i don't know very much about fairy tales because my mother never introduced me to any when i was younger. but, i do remember the story of Little Red Riding Hood from when i was in elementary school. i never actually took the time to analyze the story or to try to figure out the meaning or lesson of the story. i always thought fairy tales were only children s bedtime stories and it was foolish to read them if you weren't a child. after having the discussion in class and listening to this song i realize that they are far more then bedtime stories, i better understand that Little Red Rididng Hood is a warning to young women to be aware of all the sexes wolfs that try to trap them for God knows what.
Yesenia C

Before discussing this in class, I thought the mor...

2010-02-07T19:27:50.991-08:00

Before discussing this in class, I thought the moral of “Little Red Riding Hood” was simply not to talk to strangers. The last time I probably heard the tale was when I was younger, being older helps me to see the extended connotations of the “wolf” and his role in the story.

What I find interesting about fairy tales is how society has changed so much over the hundreds of years between their publication and now, yet some morals and situations still prevail unchanged. When I was a child, adults placed a heavy importance on “don’t talk to strangers” programs. This same sort of education must have also been important in 1697, when Charles Perrault published one of the earliest versions of the above tale. Other stories such as “Beauty and the Beast” and “The Little Mermaid” also have relevance to the present day. The surrounding world may transform over time, but the innate qualities of humans and the stories about them appear to remain unchanged throughout the ages.

-Andrew S.

I grew up knowing Little Red Riding Hood as being ...

2010-02-04T19:05:56.631-08:00

I grew up knowing Little Red Riding Hood as being that little girl that had a basket of goodies for her old grandmother. I also knew the game Little Red Riding Hood. If you think about the true story about Little Red and the game, the game kind of symbolizes something. We have two long lines holding each other by the hands and we have one person in the center running to one side trying to get through. Well Little Red Riding hood was trapping herself in the woods and straying down the wrong paths. I'm not totally positive if she ever went with the wolf but by going down with a man that thought this little girl was attractive was obliviously leading her to temptation. I'm not sure if the game and the story are supposed to interact with each other but they seem to be very similar to the real story. This girl was had a curious mind that lead her to the seducers and lustful wolfes.
KM

I’ve always known that the term “wolf” was used wh...

2009-12-12T00:53:02.641-08:00

I’ve always known that the term “wolf” was used when a person was referring to a male with a healthy sexual appetite. Believe it or not, I had always heard it being used by my great-grandparents on my mother’s side. It was just never clear to me whether this definition also encompassed rapists or other sexual predators. The in-class discussion on the male seducer and their role in fairy tales quickly cleared that up for me, though. Also, like many other individuals I’ve talked to, I had never made the mental connection between these “wolves” and those that are in the “Little Red Riding Hood” tales. This made me feel foolish and intrigued at the same time. I now had a reason to take a more in-depth look at a tale that I had never really been fond of and research a new and interesting topic. While reading all of the various versions of the tales, I also started thinking about the Duran Duran song “Hungry Like the Wolf” and how it related so well to this topic. Holly G.

When I read this story I immediatley thought of th...

2009-12-11T07:56:55.634-08:00

When I read this story I immediatley thought of the wolf as a molester of young girls as opposed to a seducer of women. The wolf is referred to as "neighbor wolf" in the Perrault version of the tale. I think calling him a neighbor represents that fact that he is someone that Little Red is familiar with. Someone who seems friendly and trustworthy, as far as it goes for children. Most children are molested not by strangers, but by someone that was supposed to be a family friend, or even suposeed to be IN the family. The wolf proceeds to make Little Red feel safe by challenging her to a race and making a fun game out of them both heading to her grandmother's house. Since it is a game Little Red is comforatable and doesn't feel the need to be frightened about the fact that the wolf is going where she is going.I feel that this tale tells mothers and fathers alike to be aware of what your children are doing and forewarn them about actions that they should not entertain.
Sherry B.

We don’t have to stretch to see that the wolf is a...

2009-12-11T07:53:57.010-08:00

We don’t have to stretch to see that the wolf is a predator. Even Charles Perrault in his version had an after note that told young girls to be aware because the tame wolves are often more cunning. In other original tales the girl is told to strip down and sleep with “grandma”. First of all why would a child want to sleep naked with their grandmother? I can tell you I’ve never done such a thing. It sickens me. In some tales the girl tries to escape by asking to relieve herself. It is even more symbolic barbarian-like for the wolf to respond for her to relieve herself in bed. We read our children fairy tales that were originally meant for adults, just cleaned up a little bit. I would never read an original of Red Riding Hood to my children but instead a censored version. Ever wonder why there’s no child version of Bluebeard?

Big, bad…WOLF… Nice name for anyone, if you want t...

2009-12-10T06:41:43.608-08:00

Big, bad…WOLF… Nice name for anyone, if you want to be labeled as a little weird. Actually, wolf might have been used before as a comment for someone who’s looking for a quick way to… well let’s not go there.
Song is just awesome. If you plug it into a story it works out perfectly because it pretty much goes hand in hand with it. Even though the wolf never says anything but we can read it as a thinking subtitles, or maybe if it was a comic book, we would be seeing those small cloud balloons where the wolf is thinking instead of saying.
But in real life, wolves grow up, they change and become something more important and more caring. Wolf from Little Red Riding Hood grows up to marry Cinderella and become a father to his children. He becomes faithful, caring and lovable, with a little hint of sassy. And no, he’s not dead because no one ever dies in fairy tale, they just change they appearance and come back again… But that’s for some other discussion.