Beginning of Essay
s During the times the story was written, there was much child abuse in society. The child's welfare was often put aside because the family was more important. The unknown author of the Fairy Tale "Hansel and Gretel" used many rhetorical devices such as symbolis ....

Middle of Essay
.... and example furthers our understanding of the depths of the stepmother's cruelty in the tale. The author paints a picture of both Hansel and Gretel imprisoned in a room in the vivid imagery. The stepmother "often ill-treated the children" and "she kept on trying to persuade her husband to abandon his children…" This is a key indicator of the abuse that Hansel and Gretel suffered under their cruel stepmother. During the times the author lived in, child abuse was common in society. The anonymous author uses the character of the wicked stepmother to convey the abuse a child would suffer during those times. The wife of the woodcutter "was for ....