March 13, 1990

Bruno Bettelheim (August 28, 1903 to March 13, 1990) was a child psychologist whose ideas are more forgotten than disproven. He is however cited by Lisa M. Fiander (Fairy Tales and the Fiction of Iris Murdoch, Margaret Drabble, and A.S. Byatt, 2004) where his views  are illustrated by a fairy tale with a cat reference.

The topic is of some interest: "animal/bridegroom tales". Fiander says: "Not all readers interested in ...[such stories] are impressed by psychoanalytic approaches [like Bettelheim's] that see integrated personalities emerging from the union of animal and human." 

Feminist commentators have asserted that such stories  are not about personal growth. They say that, in most of the tales, because it is a woman who changes form into a non human animal to complete a partnership, there is a sexist subtext.  They wonder why it is the woman who must change to please a man, more often than otherwise.  

If one example cited is relevant, the Grimm Brothers', "The Poor Miller's Lad and the Cat Princess," the situation is more complicated than some feminists understand. In this story, the good guy is a dimwit but, nice. And he is kind to animals, and especially kind to cats, petting them and putting out milk for any feline he encounters.  He first meets the eponymous heroine when she is in the body of a cat. You can read the story here. The conclusion is a powerful, rich, beautiful woman, who values kindness to animals over, we have to conclude,  masculine intelligence, chooses the dumber guy, to live with her. The woman holds all the cards. Even though earlier versions were doubtless darker, I'd give this round to Bettelheim.