The Tales of Little Red Riding Hood

Little Red Riding Hood is one of the most beloved fairy tales of all time. It's survived for generations. However, the passing down of the story also means that the story has changed as time has gone on. Currently, there are sixteen verified versions of the tale, and most of them are given some local flavor, relevant to the countries in which they are being told.

Almost all versions revolve around a girl going to visit her grandmother. Along the way, she meets a wolf who is intent on eating her. The wolf sneaks into the grandmother's house and impersonates her, but before the wolf can devour the girl, a hunter saves her and her grandmother.

The first version of Little Red Riding Hood was written by Charles Perrault. Oral versions were told by French peasants in the 14^th century. In Perrault's version, a girl is tricked by the wolf into giving away information about her grandmother. The wolf eats the grandmother, lays a trap for the girl, and devours her as well.

The next version, told in the 19^th century by the Brothers Grimm, modified the ending of the original story so that the grandmother and girl were saved by a huntsman who killed the wolf for his pelt. The brothers kept revising the story until the 1857 edition, which is much tamer than the older versions. However, the Brothers Grimm's Little Riding Hood is considered to be one of the darkest adaptations today.

After the Grimm version reached popularity, the story was further altered. Andrew Lang's The History of Little Goldenhood featured the girl being saved not by a hunter but by the golden hood she wore. When the wolf tried to devour her, the hood burned its mouth. James N. Barker adapted it into a 1000 word story as well. The 20^th century saw many other variations crop up as well, mostly in other countries. The Afrikaans version is called Little Red Cap, and in Korea, the story is called Red Hat. In French, it's called The Little Red Hood.

• Little Red Riding Hood Project

• Perrault's Version of Little Red Riding Hood

• Roald Dalh Poem

• Lon Po Po: Chinese Version

• Little Red Riding Hood Versions

• Little Red Riding Hood Story Analysis

• The True History of the Little Golden Hood

• Little Red-Cap

• Layla and the Wolf

• Red Riding Hood

• Little Red Riding Hood

• The Mystery of Little Red Riding Hood

• Little Red Riding Hood  A Politically Correct Fairy Tale

• Little Red Riding Hood Uncloaked

• Visualising Little Red Riding Hood

• Little Red Riding Hood Costumes

No matter how many versions of the story there are, most core elements remain the same: it's the story of a trusting girl who ends up in danger of being killed because of a big bad wolf. Sometimes, the tale has a happy ending and sometimes it doesn't, but the story of Little Red Riding Hood remains one of the most familiar fairy tales of all time.