Abstract

The paper discusses some retellings of the “Sleeping Beauty” tale type ranging from the 14th to the 21st century: a chivalric romance, literary fairy tales, and films, both animated and live-action. The analysis focuses on the portrayals of the male rescuer figure. His heroization and idealization seem to be a relatively new addition to the “Sleeping Beauty” myth and constitute a strategy that allows to mitigate the savior-aggressor ambivalence of the character and the violence implicit in the tale.