Brothers Grimm (Crane), Reading B
I've always been a big fan of Grimm brothers' fairy tale stories. Obviously, I think Grimm Brothers' fairy tale stories are the best of European fairy tale stories. I especially enjoyed the readings in the Part B section, so I decided to review and do the reading notes for it.
Grimm brothers' works are truly creative and fascinating. I've read several of them, but I've only watched the Disney version of Snow White. I haven't read Snow White's written version before. It was really fascinating to read about the story because it seemed slightly different from the movie.
It begins with a similar beginning as the movie. The queen, who was the mother of Snow White, dropped three drops of red blood in the snow. It was a snowy day and the queen was contemplating on how her daughter would look like. She obviously wanted a very pretty one. The queen wished that her daughter would look like a lady whose skin was fair as snow, lips were red as blood, and hair was black as the wood of the embroidery frame. When I read this line, I could literally imagine what kind of girl she was expecting in my head. Wow.. Yes indeed that kind of girl would look very unusually pretty.
The queen's wish did come true and her daughter had the features that she wanted and named her Snow White. Tragically the queen passed away soon after Snow White's birth.
The king remarried a jealous, proud, and overbearing, yet very beautiful woman. She became the new queen and stepmother of Snow White. The queen was so jealous that she couldn't stand someone prettier than her.
When Snow White turned seven, she already was a very beautiful lady and she was beautiful enough to impress the glass that only told truth: "Queen, you are full fair, 'tis true, But Snow-white fairer is than you." Indeed, it drove the new queen crazy with jealousy.
The new queen was evil-minded and mean-spirited as well: "This gave the queen a great shock, and she became yellow and green with envy, and from that hour, her heart turned against Snow-white, and she hated her."
Wow.. This is really cruel and evil: "You must put her to death and bring me her heart for a token." Murdering an innocent child I think is the cruelest act of all and this queen obviously was that kind of criminal.
The huntsman felt sympathy and spared the life of Snow White and killed and took a boar's heart to the queen instead.
The wicked queen ate the salted and cooked heart of the boar and thought it was her end.
Surprisingly the beasts and dangerous things in the forest didn't harm Snow White and she came to a little house to rest. Inside the house, everything was clean and tidy, with seven everything: seven cloth, knives, forks, and drinking-cups.
Snow White was hungry, devoured the food, found the right sized bed, and went to sleep.
Seven dwarfs who work in underground in mountains came back home and found that everything wasn't in order as they did. It sounded like an OCD that they had to have everything in tidy order.
Obviously even the dwarfs were impressed with Snow White's astounding beauty: "O goodness! O gracious!" cried they; "what beautiful child is this?"
Snow White, besides her beauty, was a good housework master: "in the evening, they came home, and their supper had to be ready for them." She cleaned, cooked, and maintained the house really well and the dwarfs were impressed.
I thought this answer would the queen a thousand times angrier than before: "Queen, thou art of beauty rare,
But Snow-white living in the glen
With the seven little men
Is a thousand times more fair."
The evil and cunning queen disguised as a old pedlar woman and attempted to murder her by choking her to death: "old woman laced so quick and tight that it took Snow-white's breath away, and she fell down as dead."
The dwarfs rescued Snow White and untightened the laces.
The truth-telling glass told the queen that Snow White still was the fairest and most beautiful. The queen realized she failed to kill Snow White.
Snow White was again deceived by the disguised queen. She bargained to buy the comb, was poisoned, and lost her consciousness.
The glass again told the queen that Snow White was alive and it made the queen determined to kill Snow White: "though it should cost me my own life!"
She made a poisonous apple and took it to Snow White. Snow White was deceived again and ate the poisoned red half of the apple and lost consciousness.
Finally the glass answered that the queen was the fairest of all. The dwarfs did all they could to revive Snow White, but they couldn't make her alive.
Nonetheless, she 'looked' alive: "she looked still as if she were living, with her beautiful blooming cheeks."
A king's son came nearby the dwarf house and fell in love with Snow White:
"I beseech you to give it me, for I cannot live without looking upon Snow-white; if you consent, I will bring you to great honour and care for you as if you were my brethren."
Snow White didn't in fact fully swallow the poisoned apple and found her consciousness when she threw it up. Snow White and the prince went to his castle and married him.
The jealous queen asked the mirror again and was told that the young bride (Snow White) was the prettiest. So she went to their wedding, but was punished to death: "For they had ready red-hot iron shoes, in which she had to dance until she fell down dead."
It was a great story to read. The story itself was kind of long with lots of plots and stories happening. I really liked it nonetheless. Snow White has always been and probably will be one of my favorite fairy tale stories.
Bibliography:
Household Stories by the Brothers Grimm, translated by Lucy Crane and illustrated by Walter Crane (1886).
Grimm brothers' works are truly creative and fascinating. I've read several of them, but I've only watched the Disney version of Snow White. I haven't read Snow White's written version before. It was really fascinating to read about the story because it seemed slightly different from the movie.
It begins with a similar beginning as the movie. The queen, who was the mother of Snow White, dropped three drops of red blood in the snow. It was a snowy day and the queen was contemplating on how her daughter would look like. She obviously wanted a very pretty one. The queen wished that her daughter would look like a lady whose skin was fair as snow, lips were red as blood, and hair was black as the wood of the embroidery frame. When I read this line, I could literally imagine what kind of girl she was expecting in my head. Wow.. Yes indeed that kind of girl would look very unusually pretty.
The queen's wish did come true and her daughter had the features that she wanted and named her Snow White. Tragically the queen passed away soon after Snow White's birth.
The king remarried a jealous, proud, and overbearing, yet very beautiful woman. She became the new queen and stepmother of Snow White. The queen was so jealous that she couldn't stand someone prettier than her.
When Snow White turned seven, she already was a very beautiful lady and she was beautiful enough to impress the glass that only told truth: "Queen, you are full fair, 'tis true, But Snow-white fairer is than you." Indeed, it drove the new queen crazy with jealousy.
The new queen was evil-minded and mean-spirited as well: "This gave the queen a great shock, and she became yellow and green with envy, and from that hour, her heart turned against Snow-white, and she hated her."
Wow.. This is really cruel and evil: "You must put her to death and bring me her heart for a token." Murdering an innocent child I think is the cruelest act of all and this queen obviously was that kind of criminal.
The huntsman felt sympathy and spared the life of Snow White and killed and took a boar's heart to the queen instead.
The wicked queen ate the salted and cooked heart of the boar and thought it was her end.
Surprisingly the beasts and dangerous things in the forest didn't harm Snow White and she came to a little house to rest. Inside the house, everything was clean and tidy, with seven everything: seven cloth, knives, forks, and drinking-cups.
Snow White was hungry, devoured the food, found the right sized bed, and went to sleep.
Seven dwarfs who work in underground in mountains came back home and found that everything wasn't in order as they did. It sounded like an OCD that they had to have everything in tidy order.
Obviously even the dwarfs were impressed with Snow White's astounding beauty: "O goodness! O gracious!" cried they; "what beautiful child is this?"
Snow White, besides her beauty, was a good housework master: "in the evening, they came home, and their supper had to be ready for them." She cleaned, cooked, and maintained the house really well and the dwarfs were impressed.
I thought this answer would the queen a thousand times angrier than before: "Queen, thou art of beauty rare,
But Snow-white living in the glen
With the seven little men
Is a thousand times more fair."
The evil and cunning queen disguised as a old pedlar woman and attempted to murder her by choking her to death: "old woman laced so quick and tight that it took Snow-white's breath away, and she fell down as dead."
The dwarfs rescued Snow White and untightened the laces.
The truth-telling glass told the queen that Snow White still was the fairest and most beautiful. The queen realized she failed to kill Snow White.
Snow White was again deceived by the disguised queen. She bargained to buy the comb, was poisoned, and lost her consciousness.
The glass again told the queen that Snow White was alive and it made the queen determined to kill Snow White: "though it should cost me my own life!"
She made a poisonous apple and took it to Snow White. Snow White was deceived again and ate the poisoned red half of the apple and lost consciousness.
Finally the glass answered that the queen was the fairest of all. The dwarfs did all they could to revive Snow White, but they couldn't make her alive.
Nonetheless, she 'looked' alive: "she looked still as if she were living, with her beautiful blooming cheeks."
A king's son came nearby the dwarf house and fell in love with Snow White:
"I beseech you to give it me, for I cannot live without looking upon Snow-white; if you consent, I will bring you to great honour and care for you as if you were my brethren."
Snow White didn't in fact fully swallow the poisoned apple and found her consciousness when she threw it up. Snow White and the prince went to his castle and married him.
The jealous queen asked the mirror again and was told that the young bride (Snow White) was the prettiest. So she went to their wedding, but was punished to death: "For they had ready red-hot iron shoes, in which she had to dance until she fell down dead."
It was a great story to read. The story itself was kind of long with lots of plots and stories happening. I really liked it nonetheless. Snow White has always been and probably will be one of my favorite fairy tale stories.
Snow White. Source: Disney Version of Snow White
Bibliography:
Household Stories by the Brothers Grimm, translated by Lucy Crane and illustrated by Walter Crane (1886).
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