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13. Great forest: The dark and mysterious forest is often a place of exile where psychological growth occurs. It symbolizes the unconscious, the realm of the psyche. It is often a threshold through which the soul encounters the perils of the unknown and survives as a wiser person. IR
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14. Seven: The number seven is the number of completeness and totality - it is the sum of three (the number of the heavens - the triple goddess, the trinity) and four (the number of the earth which has four corners, four elements, four winds, four seasons, etc). Seven is a manifestatin of the cosmic order, a symbol of perfection and fullness, and also of introspection, meditation and understanding.
Thus we have for example:
7 days of creation
7 planets
7 colours of the rainbow
7 notes in a scale
p; 7 days in a week
7chakras
7 deadly sins
7 ages of man
IR
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15. None of them suited her: Snow White's eating of the food, testing of the beds, and discovery by the dwarfs is similar to Goldilocks' trespassing upon the Three Bears, albeit with different results. HAH
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16. Dwarfs: Dwarfs in symbology represent the underdeveloped and the unformed. They are pre-adolescent and not developed sexually. They live an immature and pre-individualistic form of existence that Snow White must transcend. (In the original story they are not individualised and Walt Disney by giving them names and personalities has destroyed their meaning in the story.) The dwarfs are also close to the earth (they mine for gold which is the incorruptible metal) and they represent the unconscious and amoral forces of nature. IR
In some traditionalversions of the story, the men who rescue Snow White are robbers, not dwarves (Philip 1997). Also note that the dwarfs are sexually unthreatening to Snow White thanks to their "underdeveloped" appearance. In contrast, their devotion heightens her apparent beauty for the listener/reader. HAH
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17. She stayed with them: The period of time Snow White spends with the dwarfs is a period of latency and repressed desire. Snow white learns about the work ethic and is socialised into woman's domestic role, but the question of her womanhood, her sexualdesirability as a woman, which was raised by her mother's mirror, has been put aside for a time. IR
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18. She had at last thought of something to do: The three temptations of Snow White are symbols of life beyond the cottage and they appeal to Snow White's vanity and narcissism, her need to look sexually desirable, her awareness of how she looks in a mirror. Three is sacred to the Goddess of Love and Desire, Aphrodite who is Queen of the Three Worlds. IR
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19. Yellow, red, and blue silk: Yellow (gold) represents the soul, red (the colour of blood) represents the body and blue represents the intellect. IR
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20. I may let the worthy old woman in: Many fairy tales involve the breaking of a command or a taboo. There can be no psychological growth until the old rules are broken and the new order can flourish. IR
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21. Lost her breath and fell down as if dead: The first temptation relates to Snow White's body, but the bodice laces bind her too tight and she cannot breath - breath is a symbol of the spirit. IR
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22. Poisonous comb: The second temptation relates to Snow White's head and her hair. Combs were an attribute of Aphrodite, the Sirens and mermaids all symbols of female desirability. Hair is a symbol of fertility and virility, but the comb tames its wildness and its poison nearly kills her. IR
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23. Apple: The apple was sacred to Aphrodite and represented knowledge, especially sexual knowledge, fertility and love. IR
In times past, offering an apple was a symbol of love and affection (Philip 1997). HAH
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24. Hardly had she a bit of it in her mouth than she fell down dead: The apple is lodged in Snow White's throat - her organ of speech is blocked and she cannot articulate her needs or her individuality. IR
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25. She breathed no longer and was dead: Snow White must die to the pre-pubescent world of the dwarfs in order to be eventually reborn into the adult world as a sexually active women. IR
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26. Coffin of glass: Snow White in the glass coffin is like a butterfly in the chrysalis stage, awaiting to emerge as an adult. The coffin is glass so her body is on display and continues to be an object of male desire. IR
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27. King's son: In many fairy stories the sleeping heroine is woken by the kiss of a man (eg 'Briar Rose'/'Sleeping Beauty'). In this case it is his love and devotion that (indirectly) cause her awakening. In either case this symbolises the fact that a girl must be awakened to womanhood by a man. IR
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28. Stumbled over a tree-stump: "Beginning with the edition of 1819, the poisoned apple is dislodged when a servant accidentally stumbles while carrying the coffin to the prince's castle" (Ashliman 2002). IR
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29. Iron: Iron was the only metal not sacred to the goddess so it is used to punish the evil mother who represents vengeful female energy. IR
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30. Slippers: Shoes are a symbol of female sexuality (cf 'Cinderella'), hence the custom of tying shoes to the back of a wedding car. IR
Footwear is important in many popular fairy tales, such as Cinderella's slipper, the boots in Puss in Boots, and the worn-out shoes in The Twelve Dancing Princesses. HAH
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31. Dance until she dropped down: The theme of footwear that makes you dance until you die was later used by Hans Christian Anderson in 'The Red Shoes'. IR
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32. Dead: Bruno Bettelheim interprets the story as a classic mother/daughter conflict in which children receive cathartic pleasure in seeing the mother/stepmother endure a horrible punishment for her crimes against innocent youth (Bettelheim 1975). HAH
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The first said, "Who has been sitting on my c