An Analysis of The Brothers Grimm The Devil with the Three Golden Hairs The dynamic German brotherly duo; Jacob Ludwig and Wilhelm Carl Grimm, are most known for their contributions in literature. Together they joined forces to collaborate on a written book that focuses on German culture and folklore (Nordhessen). Much of their stories come from older oral and written sources that originally told the tales of wars, plagues, and famine (Smith). In December 1812, they published Children’s and Household Tales, also referred to as Grimm’s Fairy Tales. It contains a combined total of 86 stories. Sales of the book did not immediately skyrocket, but the brothers continued to publish additional books as part of a larger collection (Ashliman). While It tells the tale of a young boy who is born lucky and marries the king’s daughter against his wishes. In the fairytale, the boy is anonymous and has no name. Seal points out that “many fairy tale heroes do not even have a proper name and generally play out their pre-plotted roles automatically and often without much grasp of what is going on or at what is at stake”(474). The boy has no identity other than being the child who was born in caul. A caul birth is when they child is born with the thin, translucent amniotic sac still intact. According to “The Social History of the Caul”, many countries around the world believe that being born in caul brings fame and fortune (495). When the king goes undercover and hears news of a baby boy who is prophesized to marry his daughter, he become immediately upset. The superstition behind the caul is that it brings good health, success, and safety (Forbes, 503), which is why he is determined to get rid of the boy once and for The king puts him in a box and disposes of it in running water while saying, “‘From this unwelcome suitor have I saved my daughter’” (Grimm). Like Bettelheim says, “it is characterically of fairy tales to state an existential dilemma briefly and pointedly.” (8). The king will go above and beyond to destroy the boy and prevent him from marrying his daughter. He never clearly states as to why he is opposed to the idea of the princess getting married. The king’s subconscious, or the id, is secretly romantically in love with his daughter which is why he detests the young boy. “To understand this would mean he must accept the fact that his own emotions may so overpower him that he does not have control over them - a very scary thought” (Bettelheim, 30). Rather than allow the baby boy grow into a young man, the king prefers to kill him now before he matures. If he grows up, the boy could defend himself and have a real chance at marrying the
Can you imagine yourself locked up in a room with no doors? Similar to a room with no doors, there is no way out of hell if it was one's destiny. In the short story "The Devil & Tom Walker" by Washington Irving, the main character's fate is hell because of his wrong decisions in life, accepting a deal with the devil for earthly benefits. Irving reinforces his message about not making decisions that may damn your soul with the use of literary elements and figurative language. Wisely, Irving combines characterization, mood and point of view to perpetuate the theme of the story in the reader's mind.
The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson contains extremely detailed information of the happenings during the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893 between two men whom had never met. This #1 National Bestseller includes the years of building before and during the Fair and the challenges that came with the famous architect, Daniel H. Burnham. The pages also contain disturbing information about the urban serial killer, Dr. H. H. Holmes, who brutally murdered at least nine individuals throughout the years while construction went on before and during the Chicago World’s Fair. Those who are interested in murder trials and history of the United States would enjoy this book.
Grimm, Jacob, and Wilhelm Grimm. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. 1812. Pinkmonkey. Online. 6 Apr. 2014. .
In one, a specimen-creating brute robs a pelican child’s life and her guardian trying to bring her back to life. In the other, a prince learns the value of his frog-turned-princess and sets out on a quest to find her. Joy Williams’s Baba Iaga and the Pelican Child and Alexander Afanasev’s The Frog Princess are both critical facets of the fairy tale genre. While initially it may seem that Williams preserved no elements from Afanasev’s tale, upon a closer glance, it is evident that the two tales’ similarities outnumber their differences. By incorporating a generous portion of the original story into his, Williams’s version brings forth an innovative arrangement of classic and new. As a result, William’s tale introduces features to the tale that mirror everyday life lessons while simultaneously maintaining qualities that are reflective of the definitional aspects of the fairy tale genre.
Before going into what they influenced, it will be easier to see what motivated the Brothers Grimm to write all of these tales. Jacob and Wilhelm were the oldest of six children born unto Dorothea, the daughter of a councilman in Kassel, and Philipp Wilhelm Grimm, and ambitious lawyer and later a district judge in Steinau. (Zipes, my book) Growing up they were part of the wealthier middle-class who lived in a large home with a few servants.(zipes, my book) This made them familiar with the social requirements within that class that would late...
When the King's wife dies it becomes imperative that he was to marry again. However, he would not settle on any woman unless she was as beautiful as his late wife was. Ironically, the only woman in the kingdom that possesses the beauty of his wife is his daughter, with whom he becomes obsessed. In the tale it is said that, "…In every respect she was like his dead wife…" suggesting the projection of an anima ideal. This leaves no room for the princess to be different from her mother (Jewett, 20). She is the bloodline of the wife and is just as beautiful. The King plans on having an incestuous relationship with her. This is not the sign of a good parent. This type of relationship is symbolic of the faults of parents in 19th century Germany. Not all parents knew how to act the right way and Brothers Grimm account of monstrous parents brought a social light to this.
The Grimm’s stories have strict criteria for good and evil. Good women are not the hero, they do not plan, nor do they get themselves out of bad situations; they are obtuse and wait until a Prince saves them. These qualities doom the female protagonists (and readers) to pursue the only destiny women have, and that is to be a wife and mother (Rowe, 1978). Cinderella is the heroine and the ideal good girl. She is unambiguously beautiful, kind, and compassionate. She does not complain or get angry. This is foreseen early in the Grimm’s Cinderella story:
Wilhelm married a woman named Dortchen Wild. They had a baby in 1826, who died (Hettinga pg.68 + 108). They had a second child in 1828, and in 1832, Dortchen had a baby girl (Hettinga pg.118). Meanwhile, Jacob applied for the head librarian’s job, after the man had died in 1829 (Hettinga pg.109). Dortchen got very sick when she was helping her friend Lotte, who was very ill (Hettinga pg.118). Wilhelm died at 3 pm on December 15, 1859 (Hettinga pg.146). Jacob died on September 20, 1863 at 10 pm (Hettinga pg.149).
Originating in Germany, the Brothers Grimm, also known as Jacob and Wilhelm, took an interest in folktales. This interest truly sparked when a man at school told them of a library filled with old books. From both books and folktales that were often told to them by women, the brothers began collecting their own group of stories. After graduating from the University of Marburg, the brothers moved to Gottingen, where they held positions as librarians and professors (Grimm). They eventually began working on their own tales, which were originally not aimed toward children. The brothers “viewed themselves as patriotic folklorists, not as entertainers of children.” Jacob and Wilhelm intended to “save the endangered oral tradition of Germany” with their works (O’Neill).
The. Tatar, Maria. " Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, ‘Little Red Riding Hood’" The Annotated Classic Fairy Tales. New York: W. W. Norton, 2002.
Hopkinson uses the narrator to spread a moral similar to Perrault's three hundreds year ago. Girls, especially when young and inexperienced, need to be careful when encountering nice and charming men due to its risk to ends in a completely undesirable situation. This is when the grandmother intervenes, she tries to complete her granddaughter's education by notifying her on that special affair and which will provides her advices to avoid the same experience. Indeed, fairy tale has an educational mission in addition of its entertainment. Hopkinson provides a moral to the reader through a modern and revisited tale, maybe more adapted to nowadays reader but without weakening its quintessence.
...of timelessness which is so essential to the fairy-tale genre of the Grimm Brothers, the fairy tale is able to relate to everyday life, not just the lives of the peasants in the 1800's. Today, we are still enchanted by the stories and so will generations to come.
The Brothers Grimm and Charles Perrault are both very well-known authors of fairytales. Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm are usually the most recognized in our society, but Perrault has his own version of many of the same tales. These authors have very different methods and styles of writing, as well as differences in morals of their stories. Here I will assess some of the differences between certain tales, as well as provide some background behind the authors.
The stepmother poisons an apple, Snow White eats it and then dies. After this, Gaiman’s version strays significantly from the fairy tale happy ending. As did the Queen’s and Snow White’s character change, so did the Prince’s. In Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the prince kisses the princess and breaks the curse. In the Grimm brothers version, which is more like Gaiman’s, the piece of poisoned apple is dislodged from her throat and she comes back to life. In “Snow, Glass, Apples”, the prince’s true motives are uncovered. “He bade me remove my shift, and made me stand in front of the opened window, far from the fire, until my skin was chilled stone-cold. Then he asked me to lie upon my back, with my hands folded across my breasts, my eyes wide open – but staring only at the beams above. He told me not to move, and to breathe as little as possible. He implored me to say nothing”(Gaiman 342). The prince’s requests are strange and uncommon but the Queen complys. The prince is trying to make the Queen seem dead. This reveals the prince to be a necrophiliac, which is why he shows great interest when he first discovers Snow White’s body. He is willing to give the dwarfs anything in turn for Snow White’s corpse. They give it to him and while he is having his way with it, the piece of apple that is lodged in her throat becomes loosened and she comes back to life. Snow White stayed cold and always looked as if death was upon her, so the prince’s desire for her was not diminished when she awakened. The prince is not the valiant savior he is thought to be, but a lust driven necrophiliac in search of
How did the cultural and socioeconomic status of the Grimm brothers as well as the conditions in 1800 Germany influence the theme of poverty and wealth in “Cinderella” and “Hansel and Gretel”