Male-female Stereotypes and the War of the Sexes in The Promises of the

All of us consider heard generalizations about the opposite sex. Most of us have give tongue to our share of them when the phone does not ring at the appointed hour or the love of our life mentions those dreaded words open relationship. Men have trouble understanding women, and women have trouble understanding men. This problem is universal, extending through different cultures and time periods. The Egyptian folktale The Promises of the Three Sisters reflects the division between the sexes, a theme which is as relevant in our modern society as it was then. In The Promises of the Three Sisters, the magnate represents the male world. In his castle, he is completely quarantined from all female elements the only companion mentioned is a male advisor. When he goes down to the village, he is confronted by the female world, as represented by the trine sisters. The sisters have a supernatural quality, which shows how mystical the female world appears to the king. The women a re weaving, a traditional female activity associated with an almost magical creativity. They are orphans, so their origin is mysterious. Also, their hut is removed from the familiar and conventional village. Each sister promises the king something if he marries her. The older two promise him physical gratification a cake that will feed him and his army and a carpet that will seat him and all his soldiers. The inclusion of his army is an appeal to the traditionally male cheer of force and power. The youngest sister promises him emotional satisfaction twins, a boy and a girl. Her approach is more typically female, since it appeals to his personal feelings and includes a daughter in the bargain. The king responds to his first contact with the fem... ...ard female sexuality. The female protagonists in the storySitt el-Husn, the old woman, and the third sisterare asexual, while the sexually potent older sisters and the long-haired Lady are all seen as dangerous. The men in the story feel that giving in to a woman sexually is allowing that woman checker over them, and they are not ready for women to be equal to them. The Promises of the Three Sisters was told in a male-dominated society, and thus it begins with negative stereotypes of women the conniving sisters, the extremely sensitive Sitt el-Husn. However, as the story progresses, Sitt el-Husn breaks the stereotype and is seen by her brother as an equal. Shattering the male-female stereotypes is necessary in order to achieve understanding between the sexes. ReferenceYolen, Jane, ed. Favorite Folktales from around the World. New York Pantheon, 1986.