Why Cinderella?

Recently, I have been very interested in the concept of the "Cinderella theme" throughout telenovelas.  In class, we discussed the popularity of not only the traditional Cinderella story in telenovelas, but also the inverse Cinderella that breaks the stereotype. We went over dozens of examples that were all drastically different from one another, but all had some similar aspect of the Cinderella story. This obsession with rising from rags to riches got me thinking: what is it about the telenovela culture that thrives upon this theme?

After asking myself this question, I did some research about Latin American culture and found that because the countries in Latin America are so incredibly different from one another, it was difficult to find similarities across the board. It is because of this great difference, however, that led me to believe that Latin America is a country with stark contrasts, and this invokes curiosity into the life on the "other side". The poor, lower class community is often enthralled with the lives of the wealthy, and watching a Cinderella story where someone like them rises from poor to rich is something that they can relate to. In the same way, the rich, upper class community is also interested in this idea, mystified by a commoner's ability to rise to the top.

I believe that it is this curiosity that keeps people longing for a Cinderella theme in telenovelas. As humans, we love to root for the underdog, to watch someone make something of themselves, to observe life on the other side of the spectrum we ourselves live on.

While researching this theme I stumbled across a blog written by our professor, Dr. A. She pointed out how this theme and cultural interest towards Cinderella is more prominent in Latin America than it is in our American television. Do you agree?

 http://telenovelas-carolina.blogspot.com/2008/03/beyond-cinderella.html