Cinderella Castle (Little Princess Series)

The Cinderella Castle

Cinderella, or The Little Glass Slipper, is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of 

unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the 

world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances 

that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune. The oldest documented version 

comes from China, and the oldest European version from Italy. The most popular 

version was first published by Charles Perrault in Histoires ou contes du temps 

passé in 1697, and later by the Brothers Grimm in their folk tale collection 

Grimms' Fairy Tales.

Although both the story's title and the character's name change in different 

languages, in English-language folklore "Cinderella" is the archetypal name. The 

word "cinderella" has, by analogy, come to mean one whose attributes were 

unrecognized, or one who unexpectedly achieves recognition or success after a 

period of obscurity and neglect. The still-popular story of "Cinderella" continues 

to influence popular culture internationally, lending plot elements, allusions, and 

tropes to a wide variety of media.