2026年 02月 09日
Brothers and Sisters Helping Each Other
Brothers and Sisters Helping Each Other
One of the most common themes in fairy tales is the sibling relationship, particularly the brother-sister dynamic. Of course, all sibling relationships are represented, and we can't overlook other important family relationships either. This article will focus on brothers and sisters only. Even more, it will be limited to the cases where they help each other or work as a team, without competitive rivalry.
The fairy tales used as examples will be presented in alphabetical order and supported by vintage illustrations by successful artists.
Bluebeard
The infamous fairy tale by Charles Perrault is almost forgotten today. Not only does it put a serial killer in the title role, but it also starts with a family decision to practically sell one of their daughters to a stranger of sinister reputation. Still, it's a story with several positive messages.
Apart from a reasonable warning about the importance of keeping one's word, we are witnessing the situation of brothers protecting the life of their sister (after being informed by another sister - all siblings are in the featured illustration), and an ending with a lady not only inheriting her husband's property but also dividing it among her siblings.
Brother and Sister
Two kids escape into the woods, but their wicked stepmother enchants the brooks, and the boy turns into a deer. His sister takes care of both for some time and sometime later marries a king. She takes her brother, who is still a deer, with her.
When her stepmother finds her new location, she kills the girl (who had given birth in the meantime). But the death princess manages to return to breastfeed her baby, and her actions eventually cause the death of the witch, the breaking of the spell, and the regaining of the human image of her brother.
Hansel and Gretel
This is by far the most popular fairy tale with a brother and sister in leading roles. It's also interesting for its dynamic. At the beginning, Hansel leads, comforts, and protects his sister; later, Gretel saves both from the cannibalistic witch, then Hansel takes the lead, but it's Gretel again who safely brings both home.
Hansel and Gretel are not based on a brother-sister role only. It's also important for the theme of parenting and forgiveness.
Princess Rosette
This fairy tale by Madame d'Aulnoy was popular for centuries, but lost its popularity around the First World War.
Still, it's a fine example of a loving relationship between brothers and sisters. When the princess Rosette is born, a prophecy convinces her parents to lock her in the tower to protect her brothers. But her brothers decide to free her and find her the best possible husband. To achieve this, they are willing to risk their own lives, exactly what their parents wanted to prevent.
Seven Ravens
In the example above, brothers were willing to take risks for the benefit of their sister, but this Grimms' fairy tale features a sister who risks her comfort, her life, and even mutilates herself to save her brothers from the curse of their father.
By the way, Austrian artist Erich Schutz created several series of postcards with fairy tale motifs.
Six Swans
A father remarries, and his second wife, who is a witch, wants to get rid of his seven children from his first marriage. Six brothers are turned into swans, but the only girl escapes and tries to save them.
She must keep the oath of silence for six years and sew six star-flower shirts in the while. Of course, she not only manages that but also marries a king, gives birth to three babies, and reveals the sinister plot of her evil mother-in-law just before she would be burned at the stake for false claims. As we can see, we are dealing with two evil mothers in this case, but brother-sister love wins.
Wild Swans
This Andersen's fairy tale differs from the Grimm's Six Swans above only in the number of swans (eleven instead of six) and the status of the second opponent (a bishop instead of the mother-in-law).
Andersen's fairy tale was first published in 1838, and Grimm's version was published in 1812. There's also an option that Andersen wasn't familiar with the Grimms' version because there was also a Danish fairy tale with the same plot and even more similarities. Eleven Swans was published in 1823.
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by fairyman55
| 2026-02-09 09:24
| fairy tales
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2024年 09月 25日
Dilemma
Crucial Dilemma in a Fairy Tale
One of the most important elements in every good story is a dilemma for at least one of the characters. Fairy tales are not an exception to the rule. In fact, we can say all the classic fairy tales that stood the test of time present one or more dilemmas. These can be bigger or smaller, but they all enrich the story with situations closer to real life. The dilemma is not to choose if you want something or not. It's a situation where the character is forced to choose between bad and worse, not knowing which is which.
We'll go through the clearest examples from the top fairy tales known to virtually everybody in the world. As you already know, there will be illustrations and useful links to explore the specific fairy tales even further.
Beauty and the Beast
This story presents at least three important dilemmas. The obvious one - Beauty has to decide if she wants to save her father by sacrificing herself is the least important. The next dilemmas are way better:
- Beauty's father has to choose if he will tell about his deal with the Beast. The Beast lets him go home to say goodbye and return for certain death or sends one of his daughters instead.
- The Beast is in a dilemma when Beauty wants to visit her father. Shall he allow her and risk losing her company forever, or deny her request and make her unhappy?
- Beauty is in a dilemma when she returns home. Should she stay for a few days more and risk the Beast's death, or return to the Beast's castle and risk not seeing her father even more?
Brother and Sister
Brother and sister escape into the woods. Their evil stepmother, who is a witch, puts a spell on the brooks, and the kids are facing an unhappy choice. To stay thirsty or to be turned into beasts?
Credit: Bruno Grimmer (1879-1936)
Golden Bird
Three princes are on a mission. The youngest is successful, and his older brothers become robbers. When he sees them under the gallows, he is warned not to save them. His dilemma is obvious. To follow the advice of his helper or to follow his heart? He makes the wrong choice. His brothers, on the other hand, don't hesitate to kill him at the first opportunity!
Credit: Max Teschemacher (1910-1950)
Goose Maid
The princess is overpowered by her treacherous servant. She is forced to promise to not tell any living soul about her royal origin. Still, her golden hair and the talking head of her horse make the king suspicious. He wants to know who she really is. She doesn't look like a goose maid! What will she do? Break her royal word, or keep the position of the goose girl? She is not able to solve this problem, but the king has an idea.
Credit: Max Teschemacher (1910-1950)
Hansel and Gretel
The most important character in the story is defined by his dilemma. It's the father. He is hungry. His wife is hungry. His kids are hungry. When his wife demands to take the kids to the woods and get rid of two hungry mouths, he needs to choose between losing his wife and losing his kids. We all know what happened next.
The dilemma of the kids at the ginger house is often overlooked. Should they eat something that does not belong to them or suffer from hunger? They make their decision, and the punishment follows.
Rumpelstiltskin
The miller's daughter has to spin a full chamber of straw into gold. She has no idea how to do it when a strange little man offers her his help. But he wants her unborn son in return. Her dilemma is horrifying. To die in the morning, or promise her son who doesn't even exist? She chooses the option of a prolonged life and hopes for the best. Yet, she will be facing another challenge.
Snow White
The hunter's dilemma is one of the strongest in the corpus of classic fairy tales. His queen orders him to take Snow White to the woods and kills her there. Otherwise, he and his family will suffer. The hunter has to choose between the lives of Snow White and his kids. He decides to spare Snow White and he is lucky not to suffer consequences for his disobedience.
Snow White faces certain dilemmas, as well. The most important is her decision to open or not open her shelter to the old lady who brings her goodies. Dwarf warned her not to open up to anybody, but she is so lonely and bored...
Dwarfs have a dilemma, too. Should they bury the Snow White's body or not? Even dead, she seems so beautiful that they decide to put her in a glass basket, one of the most impressive objects in fairy tales.
Snow White and Rose Red
Sisters in this fairy tale make their decisions fast, and they never miss. When a bear asks for shelter, they let him in. They become friends. When a dwarf is in trouble, they help him even when he proves to be unfriendly and even dangerous. They stay true to their values, and they are rewarded for that in the end.
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by fairyman55
| 2024-09-25 20:44
| fairy tales
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2024年 08月 27日
Second Chance as a Fairy Tale Theme
One important recurring fairy tale theme we often (as far as I know, always) forget is a second chance. Second and even third, fourth, etc. chances are most mentioned as repeats with more or less important effects on narrations of specific stories, Yet we completely deny the important life lessons they are bringing to the fairy tale audience. Life is full of opportunities. Many of these opportunities are missed. Still, these failures can bring the fairy tale characters important values. Life will give you second chances. You should use them. Let's see how this theme is played in some of the most popular fairy tales ever.
Cinderella
The title character has a chance to go to the ball. She is denied but finds a way to go, anyway. But the real master of second chances is the prince. He likes the mysterious princess. When he misses the opportunity to find out more about her, he throws another party (in Perrault's version, Grimms gave him two additional chances). When he fails again, he finds her slipper and eventually the love of his life.
Golden Bird
*Illustration by Max Teschemacher (1910-1950)
A king has three sons. Each one of them gets a chance to prevent stealing the golden apples. Then, each has a chance to catch the thief. The real series of second chances starts with the youngest son, who gets a chance to get the bird, the horse, and the princess without trouble, yet he blows each of the opportunities. He ignores another advice, which eventually costs him his life. Yet, he gets another chance!
Hansel and Gretel
The kids have two chances to replace their dysfunctional home. In both cases, they want to return. The winning situation is presented in disguise - they have to defend a cannibalistic witch to solve their main problem - poverty. Their father is a true champion of additional chances. He fails twice to protect his kids from family and from his wife. Yet, they come back with loads of cash, and they can finally become a family.
Iron John
This fairy tale is full of second chances in different forms on different levels. Let's focus on one only. The prince has to take care of the magical well. He fails. He gets another chance and fails again. When he fails for the third time, he has to leave. This decision (not his, but by the Itron John) provided to be beneficial. The prince learns how to take responsibility and grows up.
King of the Golden Mountain
*Illustration by Max Teschemacher (1910-1950)
The merchant gets into trouble. He unknownly trades his son for a fortune. When the time to give his son to the black dwarf comes, he gets another chance. His boy can avoid the black dwarf if he leaves his father as well. Not much later, the boy is tested. He has to keep up with hard beating three times in a row. This means his opponents had three chances to break his character, yet they didn't succeed. He proved strong enough to become a king. Later, he breaks his promise to the queen and loses her and their kid. Still, he gets another chance to get them back.
King Thrushbeard
Illustration by Emil Eugen Sachsse (1828-1887)
There is a princess who mocks her suits. One of them is not happy with the rejection and finds a way to get another chance. He succeeds and uses the opportunity to teach her a lesson or two about real life. When she is almost broken, she gets another chance to become a better person.
Little Brother and Little Sister
*Illustration by Max Teschemacher (1910-1950)
Two kids are on the run. Their evil stepmother wants to transform into animals by enchanting the brooks in the forest. The girl is able to resist, but the boy has a weak character and turns into a deer. Their stepmother is still trying to destroy them and finds the girl later when she is already a queen and has a son. The witch kills her, yet the ghost of the deceived queen returns every night. This is her chance to return if the king sees her. The witch takes care of him by giving him a sleep potion, and he sleeps through the whole night several times in a row. Still, he uses his last chance to stay awake and eventually defeats the evil spell.
Rumpelstiltskin
The king tests the miller's girl. Is she really able to spin straw into gold? She succeeds, and he wants more. Three times in a row, she gets a chance to prove herself, and she pays a very high price for that. A strange little helper wants her son. But he gives her three chances to guess his name and keep the little prince. She uses her chances, and he misses his.
Queen Bee
Illustration by Arthur Rackham (1867-1939)
In this fairy tale, chances are represented by three princes who are not enemies. Still, the youngest is nicer than the older ones and gets important allies in animals who help him with impossible tasks. Each of the tasks (there are three, and the last offers a marriage with a princess, of course) is sold by one of the youngest brothers' magical helpers, which leads to a happy ending for everybody.
Snow White
We are all familiar with this story, of course. The evil queen wants to get rid of her beautiful stepdaughter. She orders the hunter to kill her, but he doesn't follow the order. She gets another chance when she finds out about her hideout at seven dwarfs. She kills her, but that's not enough. The evil queen gets another chance and then one more. We all know she didn't succeed, right? Or, can we say that Snow White got even more chances to survive?
Snow White and Rose Red
In this case, we have a bit different angle on second chances. If we are looking from the point of view of the title characters who constantly save the dwarf out of trouble just to be cursed and threatened, They are getting chances to learn a lesson - don't help the ungrateful little man. By helping him anyway, they prove their spotless characters. From his point of view, he should learn to behave better. He doesn't, so he has to die.
Three Feathers
Illustration by Anne Anderson (1874-1952)
Here we go again. A king has three sons. The youngest wins the test, but the older ones demand a second chance. And a third. And a fourth! After that, being already defeated four times in a row, they admit their losses. The youngest boy becomes the next king. None of his competitors used their second chances.
Three Little Pigs
Illustration by Leonard Leslie Brooke (1862-1940)
Three Little Pigs has elements of fables and fairy tales. Symbolically speaking, it's a fairy tale. Three little pigs are representations of the same personality on three different levels of maturity. The first pig is a kid. He is all about playing. He doesn't really care about his home. He doesn't think about safety. He is eaten. The second pig is in an advanced stage of growing up. He is an adolescent. He understands the importance of a safe shelter. Unfortunately, he is unable to build it. The second pig is eaten as well. Only the third pig is already grown up. He is able to take responsibility and build a safe house. He not only builds it but defeats his home against the predator as well.
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by fairyman55
| 2024-08-27 06:49
2024年 07月 23日
Responsibility
Theme of Responsibility and Irresponsibility in Fairy Tales
Responsibility and responsibility are important them in classic fairy tales. After all, they are essentially stories about growing up, and a grown-up person should inevitably be responsible. Responsibility is about power and control. It's about understanding actions and reactions. A fairy tale character makes mistakes just like everybody else (without making a mistake, a story would be boring), and these mistakes bear consequences. The trick is not to avoid them but to learn from them.
While we can find examples of responsible behavior in virtually every story (not just in fairy tales), many of them are present with side characters or antagonists. A good number of these examples are already covered (or are planned to be) in thems like Broken promises Or incompetent fathers. In this post, we'll focus on the responsibility/irresponsibility of major characters only.
Use the examples to their best potential!
Aladdin
We learn about Aladdin as an irresponsible boy from the very beginning. He had no interest in learning the profession from his father and when his father dies, he leaves the whole burden of learning to his mom. Such character is a perfect material for the plans of a wicked African magician and the setting of the fairy tale.
Aladdin is not so naive as his false uncle believes, and keeps the precious lamp for himself. He eventually learns to use it but is still so responsible to leave it unprotected, so the magic can steal it, (together with Aladdin's wife and castle). Luckily for Aladdin, the magician is not very smart either. Aladdin beats him twice with the help of a magic ring, given by the magician himself.
Golden Bird
The story starts with the mysterious disappearance of golden apples from the king's garden. His sons guard the apps each night, one by one. While the older ones fell sleep During their duty, the youngest spots the thief - the golden bird.
During the question for the golden bird (and a horse, and a princess) the youngest prince provides his responsibility from one incident to another. He gets great advice from the wolf (or fox, depending on the version) which he promptly ignores. He makes a cardinal mistake at underestimating sibling rivalry. Luckily his magic helper patiently perseveres with him until he safely returns home.
Goldilocks
Goldilocks (and Three Bears) racks an essential element of being defined as a fairy tale. There is no transformation of the character and there is no magic intervention either. We can still use the story as a fine example of responsibility.
Of course, the bears are responsible to leave their home unlocked and unprotected. Goldilocks is also irresponsible. She crashes into an unknown house, eats other's food, breaks their furniture, and even sleeps in their beds. When she escapes, she doesn't show any sign of growing up and becoming more responsible. On the other hand, we at least presume the bears learn something valuable from their experience.
Goose Girl
The princess gets two special presents from her mother: a handkerchief with three drops of blood and a talking horse. She loses both together with her royal status. Obviously, she is responsible and incapable of royal duty.
The princess works as a goose girl for some time and her golden hair makes the king suspicious of her true origin. However, she can't break her word given to a treacherous servant. While her promise was forced, she still respects it which provides her responsibility. Eventually, her status is restored and the servant is Brutally punished.
Jack and the Beanstalk
At the beginning of the fairy tale, Jack is given a task. He has to sell the cow to provide resources for himself and his mother. Instead, he trades the cow for a few beans. Jack's decision is responsible, yet it gives him (and his mom) an opportunity.
After several trips into the giant's land where Jack steals different treasures, he is almost caught. If he were responsible, he would stop way before. When the giant follows him down the beanstalk, Jack decides to cut it. This not only saves his life but also makes him responsible for taking care of his future from then on. Jack symbolically grows up.
Red Cap
There are several versions of this popular fairy tale. All of them start with the girl leaving home to help her grandmother. Such a task demands responsibility. The majority of the hundreds of known versions can be condensed into two messages: "Don't stray from the path." and "Don't talk to strangers." She fails both. She even helps the wolf to find her ill granny and eats her. Little Red Cap is responsible.
In Perrault's version accountability is punished by death. There is no savior. Only the audience can learn a lesson from the girl's responsibility. But in the most known variations, she and her grandmother are saved by the hunter (or woodcutter) which implies she gets another chance. Brothers Grimm in their first edition of Children's and Household Tales even added another version of Red Cap, where she later meets another wolf and acts correspondingly - she runs to her granny's house and they kill the wolf together.
Seven Ravens
A family has seven sons. When a daughter is born, the father sends his sons to the well so the daughter can be baptized. On the way back, they spill the water - they are responsible. Father curses them and they are transformed into ravens. His act is irresistible too.
The daughter finds out about their brothers and decides to rescue them. She is persistent and sacrificial. She acts responsibly and after some time saves her brothers.
Wishing Table
In the beginning, all three sons are falsely accused of responsibility. Their father only later finds out the truth. He was responsible because he believed the goat.
When the sons leave their homes, they find different jobs and get into possession of different magic objects. The older two brothers act independently disclosing to the inn-keeping how precious gifts they got. Only the youngest is smart (and responsible) enough to protect his magic object and manage to acquire the objects given to his brothers.
Wolf and Seven Kids
This fairy tale is quite similar to the already presented Red Cap. Mother goat leaves home and tells her kids not to open anybody but her. They are responsible and don't follow their orders or the warnings by the youngest kid.
Only the youngest kid survives the wolf's attack. Together with his mother they find a sleeping wolf and cut his stomach. Such an operation definitively demands responsibility which, in this case, is shown by the mother goat.
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by fairyman55
| 2024-07-23 00:49
| Fairy tales
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2024年 06月 08日
Sibling Rivalry
Sibling Rivalry as a Fairy Tale Theme
Fairy tales are notorious for rivalry among siblings (including stepbrothers and stepsisters), often ending in blood. Sibling rivalry is a part of everyday life, always was, and always will be, in most cases, caused by poorly qualified, absent, or incompetent parents. By the way, you can also check the Theme of incompetent fathers.
In some cases, mostly depending on the versions, instead of brothers and sisters, stepbrothers and sisters act as opponents to the main character, but the message is the same. Your biggest enemies are often (sadly too often) the ones who are closest to you. Physically and emotionally. Such situations faithfully mirror real-life situations.
Ali Baba and 40 Thieves
Ali Baba is a poor woodcutter, and Cassim is his older brother, who is a rich merchant. Cassim inherited their father's business and married a wealthy woman, but when he finds out that Ali Baba somehow got some gold, he wants it as well. He greed not only costs him his life but puts in jeopardy his younger brother and his family. Fortunately, Morgiana, a slave girl, saves Ali Baba and his household from the revengeful thieves.
Max Slevogt (1868-1932)
Beauty and the Beast
A merchant makes a deal with the Beast to trade his life for his youngest daughter, who is called Beauty. Against expectations, Beauty becomes fond of the Beast. He is nice and immensely rich. When she visits her home, her older sisters hear about her happiness and try to destroy it by delaying her return. They are well aware that will likely kill the Beast. But love wins, and the jealous sisters are punished. They are turned into statues, made of stone.
Cinderella
We know two main versions of this popular fairy tale. In both versions, the stepsisters exploit, humiliate, and mock Cinderella (even her name is a direct result of their actions). When Cinderella gets an opportunity for a better life, they try to prevent it and compete for her position on the court. They deny her existence to the prince's delegation and try to replace her by themselves. In Perrault's version, Cinderella forgives them and even arranges marriages with noble grooms for each of them. Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm ended their version differently. The wicked stepsisters are cruelly punished by mutilating and blinding.
Golden Bird
A king has three sons. The older two are losers, and the youngest is a goodhearted and courageous, although reckless boy. He has a friend, a talking wolf, who warns him against several actions, but the young prince doesn't listen to his advice. He saves his brothers' lives only to be killed by them. Luckily, the talking wolf helps him again, and the evil brothers are punished by death.
Mother Holle
Here, we have sisters or stepsisters, depending on the version, who don't compete directly. One is diligent and industrious, the other lazy and proud (a consequence of her mother's attitude). When the first girl earns a fortune through her good deeds and dedicated work, the other tries to make a fortune as well. But her character is not up to challenges, and her reward is hardly called a reward.
One Eye, Two Eyes, Three Eyes
In this little-known fairy tale by the Grimm Brothers, a mother has three daughters. Each has a different number of eyes. The one with two eyes is considered boring and has a role very similar to Cinderella. When she gets in possession of a magical goat, the other sisters (and mother) kill the animal, which results in a magical tree with golden apples. These can be seen by everybody but picked by the Two Eyes only. Golden apples give her a chance for a better life with a prince, and in the end, she forgives her sisters so all can live happily ever after.
Otto Ubbelohde (1867-1922)
That's all for this post but one day we might expand it.
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by fairyman55
| 2024-06-08 08:16
| fairy tales
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