wicked stepmother trope
Cinderella's cruel guardian
A narrative convention in fairy tales and fiction where a stepmother figure is villainous, cruel, or scheming—typically toward her stepchildren.
The trope appears in stories like Cinderella and Snow White, reflecting historical anxieties about remarriage and blended families.
It has become so familiar that wicked stepmother functions as shorthand for any jealous or abusive maternal figure: She's straight out of the wicked stepmother trope.
- once upon a timeTraditional narrative opening
- evilProfound moral wickedness
- CinderellaRags-to-riches heroine
- jealousyResentful desire for another's advantages
- mirrorReflective viewing surface
poisoned apple · poison · apple · Snow White · vanity · cruelty · fairy tale · Brothers Grimm · curse · spindle · jealous · beauty · magic mirror · spell · queen · true love's kiss · stepsisters · orphan
wicked stepmother tropefairy godmother
Magical benefactor figure
wicked, stepmother, mother, wickedly, wickedness, mothers, motherly, motherhood, tropes