The Fairy's Gifts

Main Characters and Their Development

• In Charles Perrault's tale «The Fairy's Gifts», the main characters are two sisters. The first sister is kind and polite, helping an old woman at a well, for which she receives a gift: with every word she speaks, jewels and flowers fall from her mouth. The second sister, on the other hand, is rude and arrogant. She tries to obtain the same gift but, due to her behavior, receives a curse: with every word she speaks, snakes and toads emerge from her mouth. These characters embody opposing qualities—kindness and politeness versus rudeness and arrogance—which determine their development and fate in the tale.