1812
GRIMM'S FAIRY TALES
SNOW-WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS
by Jacob Ludwig Grimm and Wilhelm Carl Grimm
Electronically Enhanced Text (c) Copyright 1996, World Library(R)
SNOW-WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS
-
IT WAS the middle of winter, and the snow-flakes were falling like
feathers from the sky, and a Queen sat at her window working, and
her embroidery-frame was of ebony. And as she worked, gazing at
times out on the snow, she pricked her finger, and there fell from
it three drops of blood on the snow. And when she saw how bright and
red it looked, she said to herself, "Oh that I had a child as white as
snow, as red as blood, and as black as the wood of the embroidery
frame!"
Not very long after she had a daughter, with a skin as white as
snow, lips as red as blood, and hair as black as ebony, and she was
named Snow-white. And when she was born the Queen died.
After a year had gone by the King took another wife, a beautiful
woman, but proud and overbearing, and she could not bear to be
surpassed in beauty by any one. She had a magic looking-glass, and she
used to stand before it, and look in it, and say,
-
"Looking-glass upon the wall,
Who is fairest of us all?"
-
And the looking-glass would answer,
-
"You are fairest of them all."
-
And she was contented, for she knew that the looking-glass spoke the
truth.
Now, Snow-white was growing prettier and prettier, and when she
was seven years old she was as beautiful as day, far more so than
the Queen herself. So one day when the Queen went to her mirror and
said,
-
"Looking-glass upon the wall,
Who is fairest of us all?"
-
it answered,
-
"Queen, you are full fair, 'tis true,
But Snow-white fairer is than you."
-
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. And envy and pride like ill weeds grew in her heart
higher every day, until she had no peace day or night. At last she
sent for a huntsman, and said, "Take the child out into the woods,
so that I may set eyes on her no more. You must put her to death,
and bring me her heart for a token."
The huntsman consented, and led her away; but when he drew his
cutlass to pierce Snow-white's innocent heart, she began to weep,
and to say, "Oh, dear huntsman, do not take my life; I will go away
into the wild wood, and never come home again."
And as she was so lovely the huntsman had pity on her, and said,
"Away with you then, poor child"; for he thought the wild animals
would be sure to devour her, and it was as if a stone had been
rolled away from his heart when he did not put her to death. Just at
that moment a young wild boar came running by, so he caught and killed
it, and taking out its heart, he brought it to the Queen for a
token. And it was salted and cooked, and the wicked woman ate it up,
thinking that there was an end of Snow-white.
Now, when the poor child found herself quite alone in the wild
woods, she felt full of terror, even of the very leaves on the
trees, and she did not know what to do for fright. Then she began to
run over the sharp stones and through the thorn bushes, and the wild
beasts after her, but they did her no harm. She ran as long as her
feet would carry her; and when the evening drew near she came to a
little house, and she went inside to rest. Everything there was very
small, but as pretty and clean as possible. There stood the little
table ready laid, and covered with a white cloth, and seven little
plates, and seven knives and forks, and drinking-cups. By the wall
stood seven little beds, side by side, covered with clean white
quilts. Snow-white, being very hungry and thirsty, ate from each plate
a little porridge and bread, and drank out of each little cup a drop
of wine, so as not to finish up one portion alone. After that she felt
so tired that she lay down on one of the beds, but it did not seem
to suit her; one was too long, another too short, but at last the
seventh was quite right; and so she lay down upon it, committed
herself to Heaven, and fell asleep.
When it was quite dark, the masters of the house came home. They
were seven dwarfs, whose occupation was to dig underground among the
mountains. When they had lighted their seven candles, and it was quite
light in the little house, they saw that some one must have been in,
as everything was not in the same order in which they left it.
The first said, "Who has been sitting in my little chair?"
The second said, "Who has been eating from my little plate?"
The third said, "Who has been taking my little loaf?"
The fourth said, "Who has been tasting my porridge?"
The fifth said, "Who has been using my little fork?"
The sixth said, "Who has been cutting with my little knife?"
The seventh said, "Who has been drinking from my little cup?"
Then the first one, looking round, saw a hollow in his bed, and
cried, "Who has been lying on my bed?" And the others came running,
and cried, "Some one has been on our beds too!"
But when the seventh looked at his bed, he saw little Snow-white
lying there asleep. Then he told the others, who came running up,
crying out in their astonishment, and holding up their seven little
candles to throw a light upon Snow-white.
"O goodness! O gracious!" cried they, "what beautiful child is
this?" and were so full of joy to see her that they did not wake
her, but let her sleep on. And the seventh dwarf slept with his
comrades, an hour at a time with each, until the night had passed.
When it was morning, and Snow-white awoke and saw the seven
dwarfs, she was very frightened; but they seemed quite friendly, and
asked her what her name was, and she told them; and then they asked
how she came to be in their house. And she related to them how her
step-mother had wished her to be put to death, and how the huntsman
had spared her life, and how she had run the whole day long, until
at last she had found their little house.
Then the dwarfs said, "If you will keep our house for us, and
cook, and wash, and make the beds, and sew and knit, and keep
everything tidy and clean, you may stay with us, and you shall lack
nothing."
"With all my heart," said Snow-white; and so she stayed, and kept
the house in good order. In the morning the dwarfs went to the
mountain to dig for gold; in the evening they came home, and their
supper had to be ready for them. All the day long the maiden was
left alone, and the good little dwarfs warned her, saying, "Beware
of your step-mother, she will soon know you are here. Let no one
into the house."
Now the Queen, having eaten Snow-white's heart, as she supposed,
felt quite sure that now she was the first and fairest, and so she
came to her mirror, and said,
-
"Looking-glass upon the wall,
Who is fairest of us all?"
-
And the glass answered,
-
"Queen, thou art of beauty rare,
But Snow-white living in the glen
With the seven little men
Is a thousand times more fair."
-
Then she was very angry, for the glass always spoke the truth, and
she knew that the huntsman must have deceived her, and that Snow-white
must still be living. And she thought and thought how she could manage
to make an end of her, for as long as she was not the fairest in the
land, envy left her no rest. At last she thought of a plan; she
painted her face and dressed herself like an old peddler woman, so
that no one would have known her. In this disguise she went across the
seven mountains, until she came to the house of the seven little
dwarfs, and she knocked at the door and cried, "Fine wares to sell!
fine wares to sell!"
Snow-white peeped out of the window and cried, "Good-day, good
woman, what have you to sell?"
"Good wares, fine wares," answered she, "laces of all colors"; and
she held up a piece that was woven of variegated silk.
"I need not be afraid of letting in this good woman," thought
Snow-white, and she unbarred the door and bought the pretty lace.
"What a figure you are, child!" said the old woman, "come and let me
lace you properly for once."
Snow-white, suspecting nothing, stood up before her, and let her
lace her with the new lace; but the old woman laced so quickly and
tightly that it took Snow-white's breath away, and she fell down as
dead.
"Now you have done with being the fairest," said the old woman as
she hastened away.
Not long after that, towards evening, the seven dwarfs came home,
and were terrified to see their dear Snow-white lying on the ground,
without life or motion; they raised her up, and when they saw how
tightly she was laced they cut the lace in two; then she began to draw
breath, and little by little she returned to life. When the dwarfs
heard what had happened they said, "The old peddler woman was no other
than the wicked Queen; you must beware of letting any one in when we
are not here!"
And when the wicked woman got home she went to her glass and said,
-
"Looking-glass against the wall,
Who is fairest of us all?"
-
And it answered as 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."
-
When she heard that she was so struck with surprise that all the
blood left her heart, for she knew that Snow-white must still be
living.
"But now," said she, "I will think of something that will be her
ruin." And by witchcraft she made a poisoned comb. Then she dressed
herself up to look like another different sort of old woman. So she
went across the seven mountains and came to the house of the seven
dwarfs, and knocked at the door and cried, "Good wares to sell! good
wares to sell!"
Snow-white looked out and said, "Go away, I must not let anybody
in."
"But you are not forbidden to look," said the old woman, taking
out the poisoned comb and holding it up. It pleased the poor child
so much that she was tempted to open the door; and when the bargain
was made the old woman said, "Now, for once, your hair shall be
properly combed."
Poor Snow-white, thinking no harm, let the old woman do as she
would, but no sooner was the comb put in her hair than the poison
began to work, and the poor girl fell down senseless.
"Now, you paragon of beauty," said the wicked woman, "this is the
end of you," and went off. By good luck it was now near evening, and
the seven little dwarfs came home. When they saw Snow-white lying on
the ground as dead, they thought directly that it was the
step-mother's doing, and looked about, found the poisoned comb, and no
sooner had they drawn it out of her hair than Snow-white came to
herself, and related all that had passed. Then they warned her once
more to be on her guard, and never again to let any one in at the
door.
And the Queen went home and stood before the looking-glass and said,
-
"Looking-glass against the wall,
Who is fairest of us all?"
-
And the looking-glass answered as 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."
-
When she heard the looking-glass speak thus she trembled and shook
with anger. "Snow-white shall die," cried she, "though it should
cost me my own life!"
And then she went to a secret lonely chamber, where no one was
likely to come, and there she made a poisonous apple. It was beautiful
to look upon, being white with red cheeks, so that any one who
should see it must long for it, but whoever ate even a little bit of
it must die. When the apple was ready she painted her face and clothed
herself like a peasant woman, and went across the seven mountains to
where the seven dwarfs lived. And when she knocked at the door
Snow-white put her head out of the window and said, "I dare not let
anybody in; the seven dwarfs told me not to."
"All right," answered the woman; "I can easily get rid of my
apples elsewhere. There, I will give you one."
"No," answered Snow-white, "I dare not take anything."
"Are you afraid of poison?" said the woman, "look here, I will cut
the apple in two pieces; you shall have the red side, I will have
the white one."
For the apple was so cunningly made, that all the poison was in
the rosy half of it. Snow-white longed for the beautiful apple, and as
she saw the peasant woman eating a piece of it she could no longer
refrain, but stretched out her hand and took the poisoned half. But no
sooner had she taken a morsel of it into her mouth than she fell to
the earth as dead. And the Queen, casting on her a terrible glance,
laughed aloud and cried, "As white as snow, as red as blood, as
black as ebony! This time the dwarfs will not be able to bring you
to life again."
And when she went home and asked the looking-glass,
-
"Looking-glass against the wall,
Who is fairest of us all?"
-
at last it answered, "You are the fairest now of all."
Then her envious heart had peace, as much as an envious heart can
have.
The dwarfs, when they came home in the evening, found Snow-white
lying on the ground, and there came no breath out of her mouth, and
she was dead. They lifted her up, sought if anything poisonous was
to be found, cut her laces, combed her hair, washed her with water and
wine, but all was of no avail, the poor child was dead, and remained
dead. Then they laid her on a bier, and sat all seven of them round
it, and wept and lamented three whole days. And then they would have
buried her, but that she looked still as if she were living, with
her beautiful blooming cheeks.
So they said, "We cannot hide her away in the black ground." And
they had made a coffin of clear glass, so as to be looked into from
all sides, and they laid her in it, and wrote in golden letters upon
it her name, and that she was a King's daughter. Then they set the
coffin out upon the mountain, and one of them always remained by it to
watch. And the birds came too, and mourned for Snow-white, first an
owl, then a raven, and lastly, a dove.
Now, for a long while Snow-white lay in the coffin and never
changed, but looked as if she were asleep, for she was still as
white as snow, as red as blood, and her hair was as black as ebony.
It happened, however, that one day a King's son rode through the
wood and up to the dwarfs' house, which was near it. He saw on the
mountain the coffin, and beautiful Snow-white within it, and he read
what was written in golden letters upon it. Then he said to the
dwarfs, "Let me have the coffin, and I will give you whatever you like
to ask for it."
But the dwarfs told him that they could not part with it for all the
gold in the world. But he said, "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 honor, and care for you as if you were my
brethren."
When he so spoke the good little dwarfs had pity upon him and gave
him the coffin, and the King's son called his servants and bid them
carry it away on their shoulders. Now it happened that as they were
going along they stumbled over a bush, and with the shaking the bit of
poisoned apple flew out of her throat. It was not long before she
opened her eyes, threw up the cover of the coffin, and sat up, alive
and well.
"Oh dear! where am I?" cried she. The King's son answered, full of
joy, "You are near me," and, relating all that had happened, he
said, "I would rather have you than anything in the world; come with
me to my father's castle and you shall be my bride."
And Snow-white was kind, and went with him, and their wedding was
held with pomp and great splendor.
But Snow-white's wicked step-mother was also bidden to the feast,
and when she had dressed herself in beautiful clothes she went to
her looking-glass and said,
-
"Looking-glass upon the wall,
Who is fairest of us all?"
-
The looking-glass answered,
-
"O Queen, although you are of beauty rare,
The young bride is a thousand times more fair."
-
Then she railed and cursed, and was beside herself with
disappointment and anger. First she thought she would not go to the
wedding; but then she felt she should have no peace until she went and
saw the bride. And when she saw her she knew her for Snow-white, and
could not stir from the place for anger and terror. For they had ready
red-hot iron shoes, in which she had to dance until she fell down
dead.
-
-
THE END
|
