The Little Glass Slipper
Cinderella, or The Little Glass Slipper (French: Cendrillon ou La Petite Pantoufle de verre, Italian: Cenerentola, German: Aschenputtel, Russian Золушка, Zolushka), is a European folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression. Written versions were published by Giambattista Basile in his Pentamerone (1634), by Charles Perrault in Histoires ou contes du temps passé (1697),[1] and by the Brothers Grimm in their folk tale collection Grimms' Fairy Tales (1812). Although the story's title and main 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. The Aarne–Thompson system classifies Cinderella as "the persecuted heroine". The story of Rhodopis about a Greek slave girl who marries the king of Egypt is considered the earliest known variant of the "Cinderella" story (published 7 BC), and many variants are known throughout the world.[2][3][4]