The woman Rapunzel thinks is her mother is, of course, the witch who kidnapped her to keep herself young through Rapunzel’s magical, anti-aging, healing hair. Those in oppressive fundamentalist groups are not necessarily evil with ulterior motives; most truly love their children, so the analogy of the witch falls short (with some exceptions). However, this does not erase the fact that overly protective rules coming from even loving parents still stifle and harm. In many of these situations, when given the choice, the parents will chose to support their system at their children’s expense.

 The witch, as Rapunzel’s mother, continually refers to the big, scary world as a means of keeping Rapunzel in her tower. She expresses love for her “daughter” but gives her mixed messages. She insults her, then states that she is only teasing (even calling the very thin Rapunzel “chubby”). She tells Rapunzel that she won’t survive out in the world, and even the mention of going outside upsets the witch. She describes the men in the world as thugs and ruffians so that Rapunzel has a heightened fear of men. Her “mother” plays manipulative mind games in order to control her daughter.

Rapunzel cannot ever cut her hair and this, ironically, also mirrors one of the rules in many of the extreme fundamentalist groups—a rule based on I Corinthians 11, when read with a “plain meaning” hermeneutic.  This echoes the magical thinking that many fundamentalist girls digest about a special protection when they do not cut their hair, or when they cover their heads. She is ultimately rescued from the witch only when the bumbling hero, Flynn Rider, cuts her hair to save her.

When Rapunzel finally comes to realize what is at stake, that she will never be able to leave the tower, she switches from being open and honest with her “mother” to hiding details and planning an escape.  When she does leave the tower she is overcome with strongly mixed emotions ranging from “I am a despicable human being” (for disobeying her mother) to “Best day ever!” These missed emotions are similar to the struggle of those who leave the Christian subcultures that entrap them. The guilt can be overwhelming. The fear matches the image of Rapunzel with her frying pan as a weapon outstretched in front of her. Eventually, there is a moment when she confesses that the witch/mother is correct about the world: it is a dangerous place filled with painful experiences.

Rapunzel finally comes to grip with her own responsibility for her life when she catches herself saying, “Mother never let me…” and switched it to “I never left.” This is a critical revelation as she moves into adulthood. She can blame her fake mother only to a degree; she must be accountable for her own captivity, even though she is young and only now recognizing her choices.

Of course, no one should expect that every experience outside of the tower will end up "happily ever after.” That truly is a fairy tale. Yet, when Rapunzel articulates to the witch: "You were wrong about the world, and you were wrong about me!” she helps clarify just how much the “world” is portrayed as evil when society is basically filled with people trying to follow their own dreams in the midst of their own problems. The fairy tale ending is not true, but neither is the safety of the tower true. There really is a big, scary world; there is also a prison within the tower.

by Rachel Ramer