She was surprised to find the cottage-door standing open, and when she went into the room, she had such a strange feeling that she said to herself: "Oh dear! how uneasy I feel today, and at other times I like being with grandmother so much." She called out: "Good morning," but received no answer; so she went to the bed and drew back the curtains. There lay her grandmother with her cap pulled far over her face, and looking very strange.

"Oh! grandmother," she said, "what big ears you have!"

"All the better to hear you with, my child," was the reply.

"But, grandmother, what big eyes you have!" she said.

"All the better to see you with, my dear."

"But, grandmother, what large hands you have!"

"All the better to hug you with."

"Oh! but, grandmother, what a terrible big mouth you have!"

"All the better to eat you with!"

And scarcely had the wolf said this, than with one bound he was out of bed and swallowed up Red Riding Hood.

In this excerpt, Little Red Riding Hood doesn't realize that the wolf isn't actually her grandmother. He's just pretending to be…so he can eat her.

Picture this: your grandmother suddenly grows gigantic ears, eyes, and teeth. You'd get a little suspicious, right? But Little Red Riding Hood just stands there and comments on the changes, instead of, you know, running away screaming.

That's innocence at its best—er…worst?

Notice the repetition? We can see a lot of repetition in this passage. Repetition, remember, is one of the structuring elements in children's literature. It helps us remember, which is why, to this day, we all remember the line "all the better to eat you with!"