My name is Rebekah Adele Canada. I was born in 1974 in California. Most of my childhood was spent there. I am the child of European American parents. I am female, autistic, asexual, and gender agnostic. I am also dyslexic. My writing skills come not from natural talent but from the unwavering push of teachers who were determined to help and my own stubbornness.
In the early months of 2022, two different conversations took place between two very different groups of my friends. In both, I found myself contemplating identity and how much of what we understand of gender as a thing apart from our sexual identity is shaped by the culture we were raised in. Much of that culture, through time, has been conveyed through tales both written and spoken. What would happen if the tales were retold? What if neither Little Red Ridding Hood nor Pollyanna were small girls? Was the Beast always an enchanted prince? Were the witches always old women?
As I thought more about it, I felt a growing need to know the answers.
A Rubric
This site is my attempt to retell the stories that touched me as a child. As I re-write each story, I am measuring each character using multiple matrices. At no time will the gender of any character be disclosed, but I will try to infuse each with their own personality, strengths, and faults.
Empathy
Empathy can be split into emotional, cognitive, and compassionate empathy. Emotional empathy is our ability and willingness to feel the pain and joy of others. Cognitive empathy is the ability to intuitively understand others’ thought processes. Compassionate empathy is the capacity to act on one’s empathy to help others.
Jungian Temperament Theory
Personally, I consider it more thinking style than either personality or temperament. I am, for the record, an INTJ. I do my best to keep all of my characters from becoming INTJs.
Big 5 Personality Types
The Big 5 test and the associated personality types are the more respected personality profiling method. They are extroversion, agreeableness, openness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism.