Performance of Children's Literature Spring 2025

Changing Reds

Little Red Riding Hood in Other Forms

Read

The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck, Beatrix Potter, 1908

Beatrix Potter is best known for the Peter Rabbit books. Potter created groundbreaking watercolor illustrations based on an intense study of nature. A scientist and conservationist, Potter was also one of the first to tie merchandise to an intellectual property with the distribution of a stuffed Peter Rabbit. (Optional – Learn more “How Beatrix Potter Invented Character Merchandising”)

The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck is one of Beatrix Potter’s 23 Tales which were each published in a small collectible volume. You can read it below as published via the Internet Archive. This site, archive.org, is a fantastic resource for books and recordings that can be accessed digitally. Many of the materials are in the Public Domain, but the site also allows borrowing of some materials for an hour at a time.

If you prefer a single page version of text you can get it via Project Gutenberg, a site that houses many Public Domain texts.

Watch

This is a Laugh-O-Gram, an early animation from Walt Disney Studios that was first shown in 1922.

The next video is “Red Hot Riding Hood” produced by Warner Brothers in 1943. It takes a very different direction.

The next videos are from “Fractured Fairy Tales,” which was a segment that was part of the Rocky and Bullwinkle Show and aired from 1959-1964. As you watch these two episodes, one from the first season and one from the third, pay attention to how the narrator, Edward Everett Horton, sets a tone and character for the pieces.

What do we need to identify something as a Little Red Riding Hood story?

What do you think is the difference between a retelling, and adaptation, and an inspiration when it comes to working with a fairy tale?

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23 responses to “Changing Reds”

  1. Denise Warren Avatar
    Denise Warren

    A red hood, goodies, a character representing little red Riding Hood and the wolf, even if that character is not a little girl or human, and a grandmother. Retelling a story means that the story might be a new version, but little is done to change the actual plot or storyline, while adaptation means that it is a new version to the same story, but the changes are dramatic. the plot, characters, and ending might be very different. In retelling or creating a new adaptation to the original story, a storyteller might draw inspiration from the original story to create their own retelling or adaptation.

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  2. Synphanie Mojica Avatar
    Synphanie Mojica

    To identify a Little Red Riding Hood story, we need something red in their attire, a wolf or another creature, a grandmother, and a basket to carry something to grandmother’s. A retelling is the same story as it was told to the storyteller, maybe done in a different genre, which can include subtle changes to the narrative. An adaptation is a change to the story that differs from the original version in some way. Lastly, an inspiration is taking an idea from a story and making something else entirely with only one or a couple of basic elements from that story.

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  3. Danielle Avatar
    Danielle

    A story is a Little Red Riding Hood tale if it has a young girl, a trip through the woods, a wolf, and a lesson about danger or being careful. The ending may be different, but the main idea stays the same. A retelling keeps most of the story but changes small details, like the setting or how the characters act. An adaptation changes bigger things, like making it a new time period or adding surprises while keeping the main idea. An inspiration takes ideas from the story but makes something very different, like a new plot or lesson.

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  4. Amy Merino Avatar
    Amy Merino

    To identify a little read riding hood variation is some sort of red attire, a young girl, a forest, a grandmother, some sort of creature she will encounter on her way to her grandmothers house.
    To me the differences between retelling, an adaption and inspiration are, retelling is basically the same exact story maybe slight changes but nothing that would be notable. An adaption is similar and you would be able to listen/ read the story but there might be differences such as in the case of little red riding hood whether or not the wolf eats them or if he stays alive. An adaption takes aspects of the original maybe just the main characters but tells us a different story entirely. For example the true story of the three little pigs takes inspiration.

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  5. Aleksandra Grala Avatar
    Aleksandra Grala

    To recognize a Little Red Riding Hood story, we need a young girl, often in red, traveling through a forest, a predator figure like a wolf, a destination like a grandma’s house, and a resolution, which depends. Red may be eaten, rescued, or outsmart the danger. Retelling stays close to the original story but can modernizes language or shift the moral emphasis. Adaptation transforms the tale into a different form or setting while keeping the core structure. Inspiration is based on the themes or motifs but is different in plot or setting.

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  6. Kajol Victoria Singh Avatar
    Kajol Victoria Singh

    To identify something as a Little Red Riding Hood story, we mostly need a villain, a nice character traveling to their grandma’s house, the color red involved in the good character’s outlook/costume, and a saving hero at the end. A retelling is the telling of the story in similar but different words. An adaptation of the story may include similar themes form the original story but with slight changes. An inspiration may have a similar storyline but different characters, maybe involving other objects that do not normally speak, or additional talking animals. Inspirations may also change the setting of the story, choosing a different location or country.

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  7. Aliviya Iskhakova Avatar
    Aliviya Iskhakova

    To identify something as a Little Red Riding Hood story, we need the main elements of the story to be there to make it recognizable. A play or a similar version of a character in some type of head accessory is needed and some iteration of an evil wolf and a grandma will make the story recognizable to anyone who knows any version of the story.
    A retelling mostly sticks to the source material and hits the most important story beats. When I think of an adaptation, I think of a story being remade into a different format. For instance, there are a lot of popular book to movie adaptations as well as video games to TV show adaptations. Lastly, an inspiration is what we saw in most of these different versions of Little Red Riding Hood. An inspiration sticks to the main points of a story but tells it in their own unique way. For instance, Red’s Riding Hood takes inspiration from the original story, like most of the characters are kept consistent and the concept of the end goal being grandma’s house is kept in. However, the creator switches the roles of the helpless little girl and the scary evil wolf and changes it to fit their own individual version of the story they want to tell.

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  8. Calista Spezio Avatar
    Calista Spezio

    To identify something as a little Red Riding Hood story, we need a young girl wearing something red, some type of journey in the woods, an encounter with a wolf or other creature, and maybe a grandmother as well. I believe the difference between retelling, adaptation, and inspiration when it comes to fairytales is that retelling stays very close to the original structure of the story. Adaption changes important elements in the story to fit a different style. Lastly, inspiration is a story inspired by a fairytale, taking only certain themes and ideas from it.

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  9. D'Ella Brown Avatar
    D’Ella Brown

    To identify a little red riding hood story the title has to be similar to the original.

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    1. D'Ella Brown Avatar
      D’Ella Brown

      For example the last story we read titled “Little Golden Cap”. The title is similar enough that you can deduce it’s a variation. Also in terms of plot the protagonist has to be a child or helpless in some way, there has to be a wolf or dangerous animal that is trying to trick the protagonist. A retelling is quite similar to the original maybe a little more modern but the main plot points will appear in the retelling. I think an adaptation is the original story told in a different way, like as a tv show or movie. An inspiration is probably the least similar to the original and only takes a few ideas from the original story.

      Reply
  10. Jada Williams Avatar
    Jada Williams

    The main aspects that we need to identify in the Little red riding hood story is the main character going on a mission to carry something to grandma. We also need a predator who wants them( Eating/sexually) to distract them and rush to the destination. A basket is key in carrying the goods. We also need someone to either help the main character or the character gets eaten. In addition, there is also something “red” that is essential and that main character is known by people in the town. I believe retelling a story is simply reading or saying the story the way it is written with a few minor details missing or changed. The person will share a story that they are most familiar with. Most cases someone may retell a story in a way it was shared to them. Adaptation I believe will be similar to the original plot but with character differences, details in items and endings. Inspiration can be simply a similar name but with different character scheme, different location, change in ending and even the moral of the story. For example “ Little Fred Riding Hood” was an inspiration story as there was no bad intentions with the witches and there was no one getting eaten. Although Fred could not speak, his family benefited from the riches of the gold coins.

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  11. Layla Ettu Avatar
    Layla Ettu

    To identify a Little Red Riding Hood story you would need, A wolf, a character portraying a little red riding hood, Red hood, basket with goodies and a grandmother. The difference between a retelling, an adaptation and an inspiration is retelling is almost identical to the original but with a few updates. An adaptation incorporating changes to fit a new storyline while still having parts that mimic the original version. Inspiration uses elements from the original take, but changes the majority of the story.

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  12. Sophia Awad Avatar
    Sophia Awad

    To identify a Little Red Riding Hood story, it would be helpful to have a main character that is a little girl going on a journey in a forest and, along the way, comes into contact with some sort of creature that attempts to eat/kill the girl and her grandma. The difference between a retelling, an adaptation, and an immersion when it comes to working with a fairy tale often lies in what aspects are repeated and what are new. For example, retelling a story assentially keeps the same plot but may change smaller details like the setting. However, an adaptation works to change the story overall to be more accustomed to a different audience or to serve a different purpose. Lastly, inspiration is the process of taking some key components, like symbols, themes, settings, etc., and creating a new story incorporating those aspects.

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  13. Salma Avatar
    Salma

    A Little Red Riding Hood story usually has a girl in red, a walk through the woods, a grandmother, and a sneaky wolf or danger. A retelling sticks pretty close to the original story but might change small details. An adaptation changes things up more, like setting or characters, but keeps the main idea. An inspiration just takes bits and pieces of the original and turns it into something new.

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  14. Crystal Ebanks Avatar
    Crystal Ebanks

    For a tale to be considered Little Red Riding Hood, it must contain a young girl dressed in red or wearing some type of red head covering. She should be well-liked to the people around her, an older maternal figure or grandmother, the setting should be based in a forest-like setting and then again in the maternal figure’s house, and the danger would be a wolf, some type of dangerous animal/creature, or someone with ill intentions. A re-telling is the story being told with very little details while an inspiration takes different things from the original story to develop their own. An adaptation is the main story line being kept while other parts of the story changes.

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  15. Jacklyn Serrano Avatar
    Jacklyn Serrano

    To identify with a Little Red Riding Hood Story, there must be a girl wearing red, her mother sending her with something from her grandmother, and a wolf.

    I think the difference between a retelling, an adaptation, and an inspiration when it comes to a fairy tale is slight changes. A retelling is very similar to the original with minor words being changed. An adaptation is a similar plot, but there might be changes to the characters or setting. An inspiration might take some elements of a fairytale, but the story is an original.

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  16. cindy ambrosio Avatar
    cindy ambrosio

    To identify a little red riding hood story, we need to see a girl being depicted with something on her head whether this is a cap or a hood, who is heading to her grandmother’s house across the woods. We also need to see a character that represents the evil person that has an interaction with the girl, which also wants to harm her.

    I think when you retell the story, you are telling the story based on the things that you remembered that happened. This means that some details can be changed or not depicted because it’s based on what you remember. An adaptation of a story is taking the story and changing either the beginning, the middle or the end, but the overall the story remains about the same. An example of an adaptation are the different versions of little red Riding hood that have been created. They all include the girl, the grandma and the evil character, but some stories depict the evil character as an ogre and not a wolf. We also see that some stories adapt the ending, and the girl is saved. Meanwhile, other stories show that the wolf eats the girl and the grandmother. I think an inspiration is when you read a story and create another story with similar pieces but change the plots or have different morals. I think an inspiration is also when you take and use the same character, but change the storyline.

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  17. Shania Smith Avatar
    Shania Smith

    We need to have a beautiful young girl who is on her way to her sick grandmother to give her goods.
    I believe all versions of the story contained the main parts as previously mentioned but some were more gruesome. The ending may be different but still have some of the same message.

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  18. Leslie Talavera Avatar
    Leslie Talavera

    The way we identify the little red riding hood, the first thing people usually try to see or visualize while reading the story is the girl in a red hood that is send by her mother to give her sick grandmother food. Although, many of the versions are change we notice the similarities of the story such as her always encountering the wolf and him trying to, or ends up eating her, while dressed as her grandmother. whichever way people read it, it’ll always end up similar to the original story.

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  19. Chadeary Avatar
    Chadeary

    To recognize a Little Red Riding Hood story, we usually look for key elements like a girl in red, a journey through the woods, a wolf or predator, and a grandmother figure. These core parts can appear in different ways, but if they’re there, it’s likely based on the original tale.

    A retelling sticks closely to the original story but may change details like setting or character style. An adaptation changes more, possibly updating the story for a different audience or time period. An inspiration just uses ideas or themes from the original and builds something new from it, sometimes barely resembling the original fairy tale.

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  20. Malissa Solon Avatar
    Malissa Solon

    The things needed to identify Little Red Riding Hood are a wolf, red cap, the woods,a little girl and the mother, and the sick grandmother. The difference between retelling and adaptation a story is that when you retell a story, you keep the same characters. When you adapt a story you keep the same storyline and moral but may change the characters.

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  21. Zoe Davis Avatar
    Zoe Davis

    Readers can identify Little Red Riding Hood by the color red or the hood she is wearing.

    As for the difference between an adaptation, a retelling, and simply being inspired. I think an adaptation sticks to much of the original, a retelling changes things up, and inspiration takes some elements from a story.

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  22. Jairy Arana Avatar
    Jairy Arana

    To recognize a “Little Red Riding Hood” story, there’s usually a young girl, a special piece of clothing (like a red hood), a journey, and some kind of danger or trickery, often from a wolf. Even if the setting or characters change, the core idea of innocence meeting danger usually stays. A retelling keeps the story mostly the same but might update the language or setting. An adaptation changes bigger parts, like characters, plot, or time period, while still keeping the main idea. Inspiration uses just the theme or concept and turns it into something totally new.

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