The Bloody Chamber
The ending of The Bloody Chamber shows a role reversal in characters. It is down to female intuition that the protagonist is saved. The mother hears down the phone that her daughter feels unsettled, therefore acts upon it by riding right over there with a gun. The Marquis gets shot by the mother, another example of role reversal and female power, and on a metaphorical level, the gun could represent modern times; the Marquis lives in a very old castle, his weapons are medieval and his weapon of choice for killing his latest wife is a sword, therefore the gun could represent modern times conquering the old days.
We know that the story is set in retrospect; "I remember how..." so the reader understands that the ending to the story is what transforms her into a much wiser person. The marriage between her and the blind piano tuner represents unity, which before there was none regarding the marriage of the daughter and the Marquis. And their donations to charities and opening of a music school shows their good will, kindness and development - they have taken something terrible; their marriage, the deaths etc, and made it into something beautiful.
The Courtship of Mr Lyon
Role reversal is another great theme in this story, as it is in The Bloody Chamber. The ending of the story shows the woman to be the saviour. She breaks her promise to Mr Lyon and vanity takes over her life. But when she finally goes back to Mr Lyon, it is almost too late, but she does indeed save his life. Mr Lyon goes through a metamorphosis, although it is pretty ambiguous. But nevertheless he is then considered to be 'human' and they live ''happily ever after''; which fits into the fairy-tale theme which runs through the story.
The Tiger's Bride
This story is very similar to 'The Courtship of Mr Lyon' in a way that at the ending of the story, there is another transformation; but this time it is of the woman - she transforms into a beast. The fact that they are now both beasts, and both equal, shows a unity between them. It could also show that they have become humans in their most natural state, the woman has embraced her beastial side. The ending of the story also shows that the woman has learned a lesson. Before in the story she is told that ''a lamb must learn to run with the lion'', meaning that she shouldn't mock men and have the attitude towards them like she does at the start; (that they are either weak like her father or have a lust for power like the beast). She has dropped her arrogant facade (represented metaphorically by the crumbling of the building) and has learned to ''run with the lion''. She can now be empowered. The diamond earrings return back to their natural state which symbolises forgiveness, and also ties in with the idea that everything has returned to its natural state- even the house has crumbled down so they can live in the outdoors; in nature. In a way, the ending of this story is a bit like the Romantic ideals; that everything to do with nature and naturalness is sacred.
