THE BROTHERS GRIMM
OVERVIEW
The Brothers Grimm are best known for their collection of fairy tales, which have become an enduring part of Western culture. Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm were born in Hanau, Germany in the late 18th century and grew up in a time of political and cultural upheaval. They lived through the Napoleonic Wars and the rise of German Romanticism, both of which had a profound influence on their work.
The Brothers Grimm began collecting and publishing fairy tales in the early 19th century, at a time when many Germans were searching for a sense of national identity. They saw the fairy tales as a way to preserve and celebrate German folklore and culture. Over the course of several decades, they collected and published hundreds of fairy tales, including such famous stories as "Cinderella," "Hansel and Gretel," and "Snow White."
However, the Brothers Grimm did not simply collect and record these tales as they heard them. They also edited and revised the stories to make them more suitable for a wider audience. In particular, they removed elements that they felt were too violent or sexual. This has led some critics to argue that their versions of the stories are sanitized, compared to the darker and more complex original versions. Despite these criticisms, the Brothers Grimm's collection of fairy tales has had an enormous influence on Western culture. Their stories have been adapted countless times for film, television, and theater, and have become a part of the shared cultural heritage of many countries. They have also been a source of inspiration for writers and artists of all kinds, from J.R.R. Tolkien to the Surrealists.
Beyond their fairy tales, the Brothers Grimm were also scholars of language and literature. They were among the first to study the history of the German language, and their work in this area helped to establish the field of German philology. They also published editions of important German literary works, such as the epic poem "Nibelungenlied."
FAIRY TALES
Among their many contributions to the world of literature are some of the most famous fairy tales of all time. The Brothers Grimm helped to preserve these stories and passed them down to future generations, ensuring that their cultural significance would be recognized and appreciated for years to come. The following fairy tales are just a few examples of the many tales that the Brothers Grimm have collected and contributed to the world of literature.
CINDERELLA: "Cinderella" is a popular fairy tale and tells the story of a kind-hearted and mistreated young girl who, with the help of her fairy godmother, attends a royal ball and wins the heart of a prince. In the tale, Cinderella is forced to do menial chores for her stepmother and stepsisters, who treat her cruelly. She dreams of attending the prince's ball, but her stepmother forbids it. With the help of her fairy godmother, Cinderella is able to attend the ball and impresses the prince with her beauty and kindness. However, she must leave before midnight, losing a glass slipper in the process. The prince searches for the owner of the slipper, and when it fits Cinderella's foot, they are reunited and live happily ever after. The story of "Cinderella" has been adapted and retold in various forms of media, including literature, film, and television.
HANSEL AND GRETEL: "Hansel und Gretel" (or "Hänsel und Gretel" in German) is a popular fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm. It tells the story of two siblings, a boy named Hänsel and his sister Gretel, who get lost in the woods and encounter a witch's house made of sweets. In the tale, Hänsel and Gretel live with their father and stepmother in a time of famine. The stepmother convinces their father to abandon the children in the woods, as they cannot afford to feed them. The children are left to fend for themselves and eventually come across the witch's house. The witch lures them in with her sweets and tries to eat them, but they outsmart her and escape with her treasure.
LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD: The fairy tale that is also known as "Rotkäppchen" in German, is a classic one that has been enjoyed by children and adults for generations. The story begins with a young girl named Little Red Riding Hood who is sent by her mother to take a basket of food to her sick grandmother who lives in a cottage in the woods. Along the way, she meets a wolf who asks her where she is going. Naively, Little Red Riding Hood tells the wolf where she is headed and the wolf suggests that she takes a detour to pick some flowers for her grandmother. While Little Red Riding Hood is distracted, the wolf goes to the grandmother's cottage, eats her and disguises himself by wearing her nightgown and cap. When Little Red Riding Hood arrives, the wolf pretends to be her grandmother and eats her as well. In some versions of the story, a woodsman comes to the rescue and saves Little Red Riding Hood and her grandmother from the wolf's belly.
MOTHER HULDA: "Mother Hulda", also known as "Frau Holle," is another German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm in their collection of folk tales. The story revolves around a young girl named Goldilocks, who is sent by her stepmother to fetch water from a well. While doing so, Goldilocks accidentally drops the spindle she is spinning with into the well and jumps in after it. She falls into a magical world where she meets an old woman, who is Frau Holle. Frau Holle gives Goldilocks shelter and employment in exchange for her help with housework. Goldilocks performs her tasks dutifully and is rewarded with a shower of gold when she leaves. Upon returning home, Goldilocks' stepmother becomes jealous and sends her own daughter to the well, hoping to receive the same reward. However, the stepsister is lazy and does not perform her duties to Frau Holle's satisfaction, and so she is showered with pitch instead of gold upon her return. The fairy tale is often interpreted as a tale about the rewards of hard work and the consequences of laziness. It also features themes of transformation, with Goldilocks being transformed through her experiences in the magical world, and of justice, with the stepsister receiving her just deserts for her laziness.
RAPUNZEL: The Brothers Grimm adapted the tale and their version has become the most famous and widely adapted. The story has been retold in various forms of media, including literature, film, and animation. The story follows the life of a young girl with long, golden hair who is locked away in a tower by an evil witch. According to the tale, a couple desperately wants a child, and the wife becomes pregnant. She desires some rapunzel (a type of herb) from the garden of an evil witch, but is caught. The witch agrees to let her go in exchange for the child, whom she names Rapunzel. The witch locks Rapunzel in a tower with no stairs or doors, but only a window at the top. As Rapunzel grows older, a prince happens upon her tower and they fall in love. With Rapunzel's help, the prince is able to visit her in secret by climbing up her long hair. However, the witch eventually discovers their secret and banishes Rapunzel to a remote location while the prince is blinded. In the end, Rapunzel and the prince are reunited, and Rapunzel's tears restore the prince's sight.
SLEEPING BEAUTY: The story follows a princess who is cursed to sleep for 100 years until a prince awakens her with a kiss. The tale begins with a king and queen who desperately wanted a child. When their wish is granted, they hold a great feast to celebrate the birth of their daughter. They invite all the fairies in the land to bless the child with gifts, but they forget to invite one wicked fairy. Angered by this oversight, the fairy curses the princess to die when she pricks her finger on a spindle. One kind fairy intervenes and alters the curse to make the princess sleep for 100 years instead of dying. The king and queen take every precaution to prevent the curse from happening, but the princess still manages to prick her finger and falls into a deep sleep. The king orders that every spindle in the kingdom be destroyed, but one wicked fairy hides a spindle and lures the princess to prick her finger. The princess falls into a deep sleep, and the entire castle falls asleep with her. After 100 years, a prince comes upon the castle and awakens the princess with a kiss. The princess and the prince fall in love and get married, and they live happily ever after.
SNOW WHITE: "Snow White" is a well-known fairy tale and tells the story of a beautiful young girl with fair skin and dark hair, who is persecuted by her evil stepmother and finds refuge with seven dwarfs in the forest. In the tale, Snow White's stepmother, a vain and wicked queen, becomes jealous of her stepdaughter's beauty. The evil queen consults a magical mirror to reassure herself that she is the fairest in the land. The mirror responds to her question, telling her that she is the fairest until Snow White becomes more beautiful than her. This drives the queen to try to kill Snow White in order to maintain her own beauty and power. She orders her huntsman to kill her. The huntsman, however, takes pity on Snow White and spares her life, telling her to flee into the forest. There, Snow White meets seven dwarfs who take her in and care for her. The queen discovers that Snow White is still alive and attempts to kill her using various disguises, ultimately leading to her own downfall.
THE VALIANT LITTLE TAILOR: The tale tells the story of a humble tailor who outwits giants and earns the respect of a kingdom. It begins with a poor tailor who is mocked by the townspeople for his small stature. Determined to prove his worth, the tailor boasts of having killed seven flies with one blow, and embroiders a belt with the words "Seven at One Blow." The townspeople misunderstand the tailor's boast, assuming he has killed seven men, and spread the news throughout the kingdom. The news reaches the ears of the king, who sees the tailor's feat as a sign of great strength and invites him to his court. The tailor, flattered by the attention, sets out on a series of adventures to prove his worth. He outwits two giants by pretending that he can squeeze water out of a rock, and by filling a bag with cheese and jam to make the giants believe that he has turned them into stone. The tailor also tricks a unicorn and captures it by sewing a rope while it sleeps. Finally, the king assigns the tailor to kill a wild boar that has been terrorizing the countryside. The tailor sets a trap and captures the boar, presenting it to the king as his own catch. The king is impressed and offers the tailor the hand of his daughter in marriage, along with half his kingdom. The tailor agrees, and becomes a respected member of the court. The tale of the Valiant Little Tailor teaches us that bravery and intelligence can overcome even the greatest challenges.