The phrase “treat someone like a redheaded stepchild” refers to unfair treatment, possibly due to prejudices against redheads and illegitimate children. Red hair has historically been associated with negative qualities, and the concept of a red-haired stepson may have originated from the association of red hair with sinful conception. The motif of stepchildren or illegitimate children as a threat to hereditary lines is also present in literature and history. Queen Elizabeth I of England, a famous redheaded stepchild, overcame ostracism to become a great monarch.
The phrase “treat someone like a redheaded stepchild” is often used to mean the unfair ostracism or abuse of a person. The origin of the phrase seems lost to history, but it may have something to do with long-standing cultural prejudices against both redheads and illegitimate children. “A redheaded stepson” is often used contextually to describe a person who is seen as an embarrassment or liability, or to describe a person or thing who is treated cruelly for reasons beyond his or her control.
Red hair has long been associated with a fiery disposition, but that’s far from the only negative quality historically attributed to redheads. Some ancient cultures, including ancient Greece, associated red hair with vampirism. Unsurprisingly, red hair is often associated with blood; Medieval Europeans believed that being born with red hair resulted from being conceived while a woman was menstruating, which was considered sinful and impure.
The association of illicit sex with resulting red hair may be responsible for the literary concept of the red-haired stepson. In modern usage, “stepchild” usually refers to the relationship between a new spouse and his or her partner’s children from a previous marriage. It is possible, however, that the term may have once included a broader definition of offspring, such as children born out of wedlock or those conceived through relationships. The idea of a stepson may therefore be linked to the illicit implications of red hair, possibly creating the impetus for the ostracization and abuse associated with the term ‘redheaded stepson’.
Beyond the possibility of a sinful conception, the red-haired stepson motif may also draw its story from a long literary and historical tradition linking stepchildren or illegitimate children with a threat to the hereditary lines. Particularly in noble circles, the presence of a stepson or illegitimate child posed a serious threat to those who inherited property, money, or even thrones. William Shakespeare made extensive use of the image of the deceitful illegitimate child in many of his plays, including the character of Edmund the Bastard in King Lear and John the Bastard in Much Ado About Nothing. Fairy tales featuring characters such as Snow White and Cinderella also highlight the potential conflict between stepparents and stepchildren, exploiting the fear that children from a previous marriage will prevent heirs from a second marriage from inheriting.
Perhaps the most famous red-headed stepson in history is the flaming-haired Queen Elizabeth I of England. Conceived shortly before the marriage of King Henry VIII and his lover Anne Boleyn, the future Queen Elizabeth as a child suffered the distrust of her people, many of whom despised her mother. After Anne Boleyn’s execution, King Henry went so far as to declare Elizabeth her illegitimate, removing her from the line of succession for many years. Elizabeth spent much of her youth completely ostracized from the English court, even being thrown into prison by her half-sister Queen Mary, who feared that she Elizabeth would try to steal her throne. It is a measure of pride for many modern redheads that Elizabeth survived her many trials to become one of England’s greatest monarchs.
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