White Red Black

It is not always in fairytales that we are given visual cues to a character's appearance. White, red and black are the colours that represent Snow White and, I strongly argue, are the most fundemental aspect of the tale. Although there is an undoubtible link with the fairy gifts, I believe it is this symbology that really separates the Snow White from the other Sleeping Beauty variants.

Lets first look at what is commonly associated with the colors according to western culture:

WHITE	RED	BLACK
snow	blood	ebony
milk	passion	coal
daisy	rose	ink
absence	fruit & berries	death
light		dark
new		old
innocence		seriousness
opposite of black		opposite of white

You see, even the order each feature is mentioned is important. Always it is white, red and black.

"Oh that I had a child as white as snow, as red as blood, and as black as the wood of the embroidery frame!"

In Snow White, white represents youth and innocence, red maturity and black experience with old age.

In other words the traditional stages of life: childhood, adulthood, old age. Maid, maiden, crone. And if you read analysis of the tale, such a in Bruno Bettelheim's 'Uses of Enchantment', you're likely to find this interpretation.

Looked at it this way, several things begin to make sense, like the items the Step-mother choose. Corset laces and the hair comb could be interpreted as symbols of the temptation of vanity but they are also more important in the life of a young woman, especially in preparation for marriage.

Which just so happens to be the finale of the fairytale.