La bella y la bestia

Beauty and the Beast is a classic tale whose best-known version was published in 1757 by the French writer Jeanne Marie Leprince de Beaumont. However, they point out that the author drew on the story of another Frenchwoman, Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve, to create a simpler story and popularize the text as it is known today. There are also scholars who claim that records of similar stories exist hundreds of years earlier. Leprince's version of Beaumont highlights the value of Belle's kindness and honesty to set aside prejudices generated by appearance and appreciate the inner beauty of the Beast. It was adapted countless times: it inspired literary, theatrical and musical works and was made into a film and achieved worldwide popularity.