The Wonderful Birch
Encyclopedia
The Wonderful Birch is a Russian fairy tale
.
A variant on Cinderella
, it is Aarne-Thompson folktale type 510A, the persecuted heroine. It makes use of shapeshifting
motifs.
Andrew Lang
included it in The Red Fairy Book
.
her if she does something; she does not do it, but the witch turns her into a sheep anyway, and herself into an image of the peasant woman. She brings the sheep back and tells the woman's husband they must slaughter it before it runs away. He agrees, but her daughter hears and runs to the sheep, lamenting. Her mother tells her not to eat anything made from her body but bury the bones. She does so, and a birch tree grows on the grave.
The witch came along with her own, two daughters, and ill-treats her stepdaughter. The king gives a festival, inviting everyone, and the witch sends off the husband with her elder daughters, throws a potful of barleycorns in the hearth, and tells the youngest that if she does not pick barleycorns from ashes, it will be worse for her. The birch tells her to strike the hearth with one of her branches, which sorts them, and then magically bathes and dresses her. Then it told her to go to the fields and whistle, for a horse, partly gold, partly silver, and the third partly something more precious will appear to take her to the castle. The girl then goes into the festival.
The king's son falls in love with her, and has her sit beside him, but one of the the witch's daughters gnaws bones under the table, and the king's son, thinking she was a dog, gave her such a kick to keep her away that her arm was broken. He had the door latch smear with tar, and when the stepdaughter left, her copper ring was caught in it. When the witch returned home, she told the stepdaughter that the king's son had fallen in love with her daughter and carried her about, only he had dropped her and broken her arm.
The king holds another festival. The witch tries to keep her stepdaughter busy by throwing hempseed on the hearth, but the stepdaughter, with the birch's aid, goes to the festival as before. This time, the king's son breaks the other witch's daughter's leg, and has the doorpost smeared with tar, so that her silver circlet is caught.
The king holds a third festival. The witch tries to keep her stepdaughter busy by throwing milk on the hearth, but the stepdaughter, with the birch's aid, goes to the festival as before. This time, the king's son kicks out the witch's eye, and has the threshold smeared with tar, so that one of her golden slippers is caught.
The king's son then sets out to discover who the maiden was, with the circlet, ring, and the slipper. When he is about to try them on the stepdaughter, the witch intervenes and gets them on her elder daughter. The stepdaughter whispers to the prince, who recognizes her. He takes both the daughter and the stepdaughter, and when they came to a river, he throws the witch's daughter over it to serve as a bridge. He and the stepdaughter cross, and takes her for his bride. Then they went to the magical birch tree and got treasures and gifts. The tree vanished soon after.
The witch's daughter wishes that a golden hemlock would spring out of her body so that her mother would know her, and it does. The stepdaughter gave birth to a son, and the witch, believing the wife was her own daughter, set out to give them a gift. She reaches the bridge and decides to take the golden hemlock, but her daughter speaks to her, and she learns what happened.
Reaching the castle, she threatens the daughter as she did her mother, and though the daughter does not do what she prohibits, she turns her into a reindeer and smuggles her own daughter
into her place. But the child grows restless. A widow tells the prince what happened to his true wife, and he lets her take the son to the woods. The reindeer turns into a woman to nurse her child, but tells the widow she can do it only for three days before the herd goes on. The widow tells the prince to burn the reindeer skin. When he does, the woman complains she has nothing to wear and changes form, but the prince goes on destroying them. She gives up and complains that the witch will kill her.
In fact, when the witch sees them returning, she flees with her daughters around the world and still is to this day
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
.
A variant on Cinderella
Cinderella
"Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper" is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune...
, it is Aarne-Thompson folktale type 510A, the persecuted heroine. It makes use of shapeshifting
Shapeshifting
Shapeshifting is a common theme in mythology, folklore, and fairy tales. It is also found in epic poems, science fiction literature, fantasy literature, children's literature, Shakespearean comedy, ballet, film, television, comics, and video games...
motifs.
Andrew Lang
Andrew Lang
Andrew Lang was a Scots poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectures at the University of St Andrews are named after him.- Biography :Lang was born in Selkirk...
included it in The Red Fairy Book
Andrew Lang's Fairy Books
Andrew Lang's Fairy Books — also known as Andrew Lang's "Coloured" Fairy Books or Andrew Lang's Fairy Books of Many Colors — are a series of twelve collections of fairy tales, published between 1889 and 1910...
.
Synopsis
A peasant woman meets a witch, who threatens to transformShapeshifting
Shapeshifting is a common theme in mythology, folklore, and fairy tales. It is also found in epic poems, science fiction literature, fantasy literature, children's literature, Shakespearean comedy, ballet, film, television, comics, and video games...
her if she does something; she does not do it, but the witch turns her into a sheep anyway, and herself into an image of the peasant woman. She brings the sheep back and tells the woman's husband they must slaughter it before it runs away. He agrees, but her daughter hears and runs to the sheep, lamenting. Her mother tells her not to eat anything made from her body but bury the bones. She does so, and a birch tree grows on the grave.
The witch came along with her own, two daughters, and ill-treats her stepdaughter. The king gives a festival, inviting everyone, and the witch sends off the husband with her elder daughters, throws a potful of barleycorns in the hearth, and tells the youngest that if she does not pick barleycorns from ashes, it will be worse for her. The birch tells her to strike the hearth with one of her branches, which sorts them, and then magically bathes and dresses her. Then it told her to go to the fields and whistle, for a horse, partly gold, partly silver, and the third partly something more precious will appear to take her to the castle. The girl then goes into the festival.
The king's son falls in love with her, and has her sit beside him, but one of the the witch's daughters gnaws bones under the table, and the king's son, thinking she was a dog, gave her such a kick to keep her away that her arm was broken. He had the door latch smear with tar, and when the stepdaughter left, her copper ring was caught in it. When the witch returned home, she told the stepdaughter that the king's son had fallen in love with her daughter and carried her about, only he had dropped her and broken her arm.
The king holds another festival. The witch tries to keep her stepdaughter busy by throwing hempseed on the hearth, but the stepdaughter, with the birch's aid, goes to the festival as before. This time, the king's son breaks the other witch's daughter's leg, and has the doorpost smeared with tar, so that her silver circlet is caught.
The king holds a third festival. The witch tries to keep her stepdaughter busy by throwing milk on the hearth, but the stepdaughter, with the birch's aid, goes to the festival as before. This time, the king's son kicks out the witch's eye, and has the threshold smeared with tar, so that one of her golden slippers is caught.
The king's son then sets out to discover who the maiden was, with the circlet, ring, and the slipper. When he is about to try them on the stepdaughter, the witch intervenes and gets them on her elder daughter. The stepdaughter whispers to the prince, who recognizes her. He takes both the daughter and the stepdaughter, and when they came to a river, he throws the witch's daughter over it to serve as a bridge. He and the stepdaughter cross, and takes her for his bride. Then they went to the magical birch tree and got treasures and gifts. The tree vanished soon after.
The witch's daughter wishes that a golden hemlock would spring out of her body so that her mother would know her, and it does. The stepdaughter gave birth to a son, and the witch, believing the wife was her own daughter, set out to give them a gift. She reaches the bridge and decides to take the golden hemlock, but her daughter speaks to her, and she learns what happened.
Reaching the castle, she threatens the daughter as she did her mother, and though the daughter does not do what she prohibits, she turns her into a reindeer and smuggles her own daughter
False hero
The false hero is a stock character in fairy tales, and sometimes also in ballads. The character appears near the end of a story in order to claim to be the hero or heroine and is, therefore, always of the same sex as the hero or heroine. The false hero presents some claim to the position. By...
into her place. But the child grows restless. A widow tells the prince what happened to his true wife, and he lets her take the son to the woods. The reindeer turns into a woman to nurse her child, but tells the widow she can do it only for three days before the herd goes on. The widow tells the prince to burn the reindeer skin. When he does, the woman complains she has nothing to wear and changes form, but the prince goes on destroying them. She gives up and complains that the witch will kill her.
In fact, when the witch sees them returning, she flees with her daughters around the world and still is to this day
See also
- Finette CendronFinette CendronFinette Cendron is a French literary fairy tale written by Madame d'Aulnoy.It is Aarne-Thompson type 510A...
- Bawang Putih Bawang MerahBawang Putih Bawang MerahBawang Putih Bawang Merah is one of the more famous of old Malay archipelago folktales, passed down orally through the generations. Like most Malay folktales, the story is laden with lessons regarding familial values, patience in the face of adversity, and that ultimately good will be rewarded and...
- The Golden SlipperThe Golden SlipperThe Golden Slipper is a Russian fairy tale collected by Alexander Afanasyev in Narodnye russkie skazki.It is Aarne-Thompson type 510A, the persecuted heroine.-Synopsis:...
- Brother and SisterBrother and SisterBrother and Sister is a well-known European fairy tale which was, among others, written down by the Brothers Grimm in their collection of Children's and Household Tales ...
- CinderellaCinderella"Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper" is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune...
- Fair, Brown and TremblingFair, Brown and TremblingFair, Brown and Trembling is an Irish fairy tale collected by Jeremiah Curtin in Myths and Folk-lore of Ireland and Joseph Jacobs in his Celtic Fairy Tales.It is Aarne-Thompson type 510A...
- The Child who came from an EggThe Child who came from an EggThe Child who came from an Egg or The Egg-Born Princess is an Estonian fairy tale, collected by Dr. Friedrich Kreutzwald in Eestirahwa Ennemuistesed jutud. W. F...
- The Three Little Men in the WoodThe Three Little Men in the WoodThe Three Little Men in the Wood or The Three Dwarfs is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, number 13. Andrew Lang included it in The Red Fairy Book, and a version of the tale appears in A Book of Dwarfs by Ruth Manning-Sanders.It is Aarne-Thompson type 403B, the black and the...
- The Witch in the Stone BoatThe Witch in the Stone BoatThe Witch in the Stone Boat is an Icelandic fairy tale. Andrew Lang included it in The Yellow Fairy Book.-Synopsis:A king told his son, Sigurd, to marry and recommended the daughter of another king. Sigurd went there and asked to marry her...
- Bushy BrideBushy BrideBushy Bride is a Norwegian fairy tale collected by Asbjørnsen and Moe. It is Aarne-Thompson type 403, the black and the white bride.-Synopsis:...
- The White and the Black BrideThe White and the Black BrideThe White Bride and the Black One is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, tale number 135. It is Aarne-Thompson type 403A. Other tales of this type include The Three Little Men in the Wood, Brother and Sister, Bushy Bride, and The Enchanted Wreath.-Synopsis:A woman, her daughter,...