
Hansel and Gretel
Hard by a great forest dwelt a poor wood-cutter with his wife and his two children. The boy was called Hansel and the girl Gretel. He had little to bite and to break, and once, when great dearth fell on the land, he could no longer procure even daily bread.
Now when he thought over this by night in his bed, and tossed about in his anxiety. He groaned and said to his wife, "What is to become of us? How are we to feed our poor children, when we no longer have anything even for ourselves?"
"I'll tell you what, husband," answered the woman, "early tomorrow morning we will take the children out into the forest to where it is the thickest. There we will light a fire for them, and give each of them one more piece of bread, and then we will go to our work and leave them alone. They will not find the way home again, and we shall be rid of them."
"No, wife," said the man, "I will not do that. How can I bear to leave my children alone in the forest? The wild animals would soon come and tear them to pieces."
"Oh! you fool," said she, "then we must all four die of hunger, you may as well plane the planks for our coffins," and she left him no peace until he consented.
"But I feel very sorry for the poor children, all the same," said the man.
The two children had also not been able to sleep for hunger, and had heard what their step-mother had said to their father. Gretel wept bitter tears, and said to Hansel, "Now all is over with us."
"Be quiet, Gretel," said Hansel, "do not distress yourself, I will soon find a way to help us." And when the old folks had fallen asleep, he got up, put on his little coat, opened the door below, and crept outside.
The moon shone brightly, and the white pebbles which lay in front of the house glittered like real silver pennies. Hansel stooped and stuffed the little pocket of his coat with as many as he could get in. Then he went back and said to Gretel, "Be comforted, dear little sister, and sleep in peace, God will not forsake us," and he lay down again in his bed.
When day dawned, but before the sun had risen, the woman came and awoke the two children, saying, "Get up, you sluggards. We are going into the forest to fetch wood." She gave each a little piece of bread, and said, "There is something for your dinner, but do not eat it up before then, for you will get nothing else."
Gretel took the bread under her apron, as Hansel had the pebbles in his pocket. Then they all set out together on the way to the forest.
When they had walked a short time, Hansel stood still and peeped back at the house, and did so again and again. His father said, "Hansel, what are you looking at there and staying behind for? Pay attention, and do not forget how to use your legs."
"Ah, father," said Hansel, "I am looking at my little white cat, which is sitting up on the roof, and wants to say good-bye to me."
The wife said, "Fool, that is not your little cat, that is the morning sun which is shining on the chimneys."
Hansel, however, had not been looking back at the cat, but had been constantly throwing one of the white pebble-stones out of his pocket on the road.
When they had reached the middle of the forest, the father said, "Now, children, pile up some wood, and I will light a fire that you may not be cold."
Hansel and Gretel gathered brushwood together, as high as a little hill. The brushwood was lighted, and when the flames were burning very high, the woman said, "Now, children, lay yourselves down by the fire and rest, we will go into the forest and cut some wood. When we have done, we will come back and fetch you away."
Hansel and Gretel sat by the fire, and when noon came, each ate a little piece of bread, and as they heard the strokes of the wood-axe they believed that their father was near. It was not the axe, however, but a branch which he had fastened to a withered tree which the wind was blowing backwards and forwards. And as they had been sitting such a long time, their eyes closed with fatigue, and they fell fast asleep.
When at last they awoke, it was already dark night. Gretel began to cry and said, "How are we to get out of the forest now?"
But Hansel comforted her and said, "Just wait a little, until the moon has risen, and then we will soon find the way." And when the full moon had risen, Hansel took his little sister by the hand, and followed the pebbles which shone like newly-coined silver pieces, and showed them the way.
They walked the whole night long, and by break of day came once more to their father's house. They knocked at the door, and when the woman opened it and saw that it was Hansel and Gretel, she said, "You naughty children, why have you slept so long in the forest? We thought you were never coming back at all."
The father, however, rejoiced, for it had cut him to the heart to leave them behind alone.
Not long afterwards, there was once more great dearth throughout the land, and the children heard their mother saying at night to their father:
"Everything is eaten again, we have one half loaf left, and that is the end. The children must go, we will take them farther into the wood, so that they will not find their way out again. There is no other means of saving ourselves."
The man's heart was heavy, and he thought, "It would be better for you to share the last mouthful with your children." The woman, however, would listen to nothing that he had to say, but scolded and reproached him. He who says a must say b, likewise, and as he had yielded the first time, he had to do so a second time also.
The children, however, were still awake and had heard the conversation. When the old folks were asleep, Hansel again got up, and wanted to go out and pick up pebbles as he had done before, but the woman had locked the door, and Hansel could not get out. Nevertheless he comforted his little sister, and said, "Do not cry, Gretel, go to sleep quietly, the good God will help us."
Early in the morning came the woman, and took the children out of their beds. Their piece of bread was given to them, but it was still smaller than the time before. On the way into the forest Hansel crumbled his in his pocket, and often stood still and threw a morsel on the ground.
"Hansel, why do you stop and look round?" Said the father. "Go on."
"I am looking back at my little pigeon which is sitting on the roof, and wants to say good-bye to me, answered Hansel.
"Fool." Said the woman, "That is not your little pigeon, that is the morning sun that is shining on the chimney."
Hansel, however, little by little, threw all the crumbs on the path. The woman led the children still deeper into the forest, where they had never in their lives been before.
Then a great fire was again made, and the mother said, "Just sit there, you children, and when you are tired you may sleep a little. We are going into the forest to cut wood, and in the evening when we are done, we will come and fetch you away."
When it was noon, Gretel shared her piece of bread with Hansel, who had scattered his by the way. Then they fell asleep and evening passed, but no one came to the poor children.
They did not awake until it was dark night, and Hansel comforted his little sister and said, "Just wait, Gretel, until the moon rises, and then we shall see the crumbs of bread which I have strewn about, they will show us our way home again."
When the moon came they set out, but they found no crumbs, for the many thousands of birds which fly about in the woods and fields had picked them all up. Hansel said to Gretel, "We shall soon find the way."
But they did not find it. They walked the whole night and all the next day too from morning till evening, but they did not get out of the forest, and were very hungry, for they had nothing to eat but two or three berries, which grew on the ground. And as they were so weary that their legs would carry them no longer, they lay down beneath a tree and fell asleep.
It was now three mornings since they had left their father's house. They began to walk again, but they always came deeper into the forest, and if help did not come soon, they must die of hunger and weariness. When it was mid-day, they saw a beautiful snow-white bird sitting on a bough, which sang so delightfully that they stood still and listened to it. And when its song was over, it spread its wings and flew away before them, and they followed it until they reached a little house, on the roof of which it alighted. And when they approached the little house they saw that it was built of bread and covered with cakes, but that the windows were of clear sugar.
"We will set to work on that," said Hansel, "and have a good meal. I will eat a bit of the roof, and you Gretel, can eat some of the window, it will taste sweet."
Hansel reached up above, and broke off a little of the roof to try how it tasted, and Gretel leant against the window and nibbled at the panes. Then a soft voice cried from the parlor -
"Nibble, nibble, gnaw
who is nibbling at my little house?"
The children answered -
"The wind, the wind,
the heaven-born wind,"
and went on eating without disturbing themselves. Hansel, who liked the taste of the roof, tore down a great piece of it, and Gretel pushed out the whole of one round window-pane, sat down, and enjoyed herself with it.
Suddenly the door opened, and a woman as old as the hills, who supported herself on crutches, came creeping out. Hansel and Gretel were so terribly frightened that they let fall what they had in their hands.
The old woman, however, nodded her head, and said, "Oh, you dear children, who has brought you here? Do come in, and stay with me. No harm shall happen to you."
She took them both by the hand, and led them into her little house. Then good food was set before them, milk and pancakes, with sugar, apples, and nuts. Afterwards two pretty little beds were covered with clean white linen, and Hansel and Gretel lay down in them, and thought they were in heaven.
The old woman had only pretended to be so kind. She was in reality a wicked witch, who lay in wait for children, and had only built the little house of bread in order to entice them there. When a child fell into her power, she killed it, cooked and ate it, and that was a feast day with her. Witches have red eyes, and cannot see far, but they have a keen scent like the beasts, and are aware when human beings draw near. When Hansel and Gretel came into her neighborhood, she laughed with malice, and said mockingly, "I have them, they shall not escape me again."
Early in the morning before the children were awake, she was already up, and when she saw both of them sleeping and looking so pretty, with their plump and rosy cheeks, she muttered to herself, that will be a dainty mouthful.
Then she seized Hansel with her shrivelled hand, carried him into a little stable, and locked him in behind a grated door. Scream as he might, it would not help him. Then she went to Gretel, shook her till she awoke, and cried, "Get up, lazy thing, fetch some water, and cook something good for your brother, he is in the stable outside, and is to be made fat. When he is fat, I will eat him."
Gretel began to weep bitterly, but it was all in vain, for she was forced to do what the wicked witch commanded. And now the best food was cooked for poor Hansel, but Gretel got nothing but crab-shells. Every morning the woman crept to the little stable, and cried, "Hansel, stretch out your finger that I may feel if you will soon be fat."
Hansel, however, stretched out a little bone to her, and the old woman, who had dim eyes, could not see it, and thought it was Hansel's finger, and was astonished that there was no way of fattening him.
When four weeks had gone by, and Hansel still remained thin, she was seized with impatience and would not wait any longer.
"Now, then, Gretel," she cried to the girl, "stir yourself, and bring some water. Let Hansel be fat or lean, to-morrow I will kill him, and cook him."
Ah, how the poor little sister did lament when she had to fetch the water, and how her tears did flow down her cheeks. "Dear God, do help us," she cried. "If the wild beasts in the forest had but devoured us, we should at any rate have died together."
"Just keep your noise to yourself," said the old woman, "it won't help you at all."
Early in the morning, Gretel had to go out and hang up the cauldron with the water, and light the fire.
"We will bake first," said the old woman, "I have already heated the oven, and kneaded the dough." She pushed poor Gretel out to the oven, from which flames of fire were already darting. "Creep in," said the witch, "and see if it properly heated, so that we can put the bread in." And once Gretel was inside, she intended to shut the oven and let her bake in it, and then she would eat her, too.
But Gretel saw what she had in mind, and said, "I do not know how I am to do it. How do I get in?"
"Silly goose," said the old woman, "the door is big enough. Just look, I can get in myself." And she crept up and thrust her head into the oven.
Then Gretel gave her a push that drove her far into it, and shut the iron door, and fastened the bolt. Oh. Then she began to howl quite horribly, but Gretel ran away, and the godless witch was miserably burnt to death. Gretel, however, ran like lightning to Hansel, opened his little stable, and cried, "Hansel, we are saved. The old witch is dead."
Then Hansel sprang like a bird from its cage when the door is opened. How they did rejoice and embrace each other, and dance about and kiss each other. And as they had no longer any need to fear her, they went into the witch's house, and in every corner there stood chests full of pearls and jewels.
"These are far better than pebbles." Said Hansel, and thrust into his pockets whatever could be got in.
And Gretel said, "I, too, will take something home with me," and filled her pinafore full.
"But now we must be off," said Hansel, "that we may get out of the witch's forest."
When they had walked for two hours, they came to a great stretch of water.
"We cannot cross," said Hansel, "I see no foot-plank, and no bridge.
"And there is also no ferry," answered Gretel, "but a white duck is swimming there. If I ask her, she will help us over." Then she cried -
"Little duck, little duck, dost thou see,
Hansel and Gretel are waiting for thee.
There's never a plank, or bridge in sight,
take us across on thy back so white."
The duck came to them, and Hansel seated himself on its back, and told his sister to sit by him.
"No," replied Gretel, "that will be too heavy for the little duck. She shall take us across, one after the other."
The good little duck did so, and when they were once safely across and had walked for a short time, the forest seemed to be more and more familiar to them, and at length they saw from afar their father's house. Then they began to run, rushed into the parlor, and threw themselves round their father's neck. The man had not known one happy hour since he had left the children in the forest. The woman, however, was dead. Gretel emptied her pinafore until pearls and precious stones ran about the room, and Hansel threw one handful after another out of his pocket to add to them. Then all anxiety was at an end, and they lived together in perfect happiness.
My tale is done, there runs a mouse, whosoever catches it, may make himself a big fur cap out of it.
Comments
The story was pretty good and the author is amazing.This is..
The story was pretty good and the author is amazing.This is one of the best stories I have ever read.
brilliant and nice story. keep it up!
brilliant and nice story. keep it up!
super violent/morbid - love it! (^_^)
super violent/morbid - love it! (^_^)
this is a fantastic story for children Really enjoyed reading
this is a fantastic story for children
Really enjoyed reading
nice story i looOoOoVe It
nice story i looOoOoVe It
I like it,this is a good story.thanks.Hevi
I like it,this is a good story.thanks.Hevi
yeah buddy..its an intresting story
yeah buddy..its an intresting story
I loved this great story!!:)
I loved this great story!!:)
love itt hahaxxxxx
love itt hahaxxxxx
LoOvE ITTTTT
LoOvE ITTTTT
I luv it its a great story I luvvvvvv it sooooo much
I luv it its a great story I luvvvvvv it sooooo much
So cute :)
So cute :)
this is a good story
this is a good story
Is a good and entertaining story.I know this story because..
Is a good and entertaining story.I know this story because I have the film.I like the author because there are very stories that he has and his stories are good.I want that you read this story.To you like.
I LIKE THE STORY.A GOOD STORY. I LOVE BECAUSE IT HAS ..
I LIKE THE STORY.A GOOD STORY.
I LOVE BECAUSE IT HAS ADVENTURES.
HANSEL AND GRETEL ARE SOME GOOD CHILDREN.
I thought it was mean what the witch and the stepmother..
I thought it was mean what the witch and the stepmother did. And now theyre dead. How did the stepmother die? Hansel was smart to leave the pebbles. Gretel was smart to take the jewels and not sink the duck. They are so cute!
:3)
NM This is a very touching story. I thought Hansel and..
NM
This is a very touching story. I thought Hansel and Gretel would be lost forever but it turned out to be a happy ending. My favourite part was when they were reunited with their father.
K.A. This story is about a family of four Father, Mother,..
K.A.
This story is about a family of four Father, Mother, Hansel, Greta. This family has not alot of money so their parents go out and make bread for them to eat but, they start to run out so the kids Hansel and Greta get sent out to the woods over and over Hansel drops bread then they cant find their way home they then run into an evil witches house full of lollies and Hansel eats a lolly and the witch wakes up and trys to kill them but they work together and kill her instead.
I liked this story because it explains detail by detail and makes you feel like your standing there in their shoes it feels so realistic they also have very good descriptive language.
I would reccomend this to age 7 and up because they have a good imagination i also think younger kids may get bored of reading and may get a little bit scared of the whole violence scene or paragraph.
I think the wicth and the step-mother is the same person.Do..
I think the wicth and the step-mother is the same person.Do someone agree with me?
#Jerry
Two questions: 1) Was the stepmother the witch? 2) Why do..
Two questions: 1) Was the stepmother the witch? 2) Why do kids like this story so much?
I thought there were some interesting similarities between the stepmother and the witch. For example, the step-mother persuades the father (against his better self) to abandon his kids where they may be eaten by wild animals--
just as the witch forces Gretel to aid in her brothers death by fetching the water and helping to fatten him up.
Both the witch and the stepmother get up early to carry out their plan, offer the kids their last meal, and pretend to be nice as part of their deception. We also know that Gretel kills the witch, and that the stepmother is dead by the time the kids arrive home, but we dont know how the stepmother died.
All of these similarities and coincidences suggest that the stepmother and the the witch are somehow linked together. One could say that the witch is a more heartless,
more deceptive, and more evil version of the stepmother.
It is as if, when Gretel fell asleep in the forest, she had a nightmare that was even worse than their current situation. In reality, their stepmother gave them a little bread, and the father built a big fire to keep them warm before they were abandoned for
the second time. In the dream, they are deceived by an old women who is similar to their "stepmother"--but there is no beloved father; the bread becomes a candy house used to fatten them up; the deceptive kindness ("and when you are tired you may sleep a little") becomes "two pretty little beds ..covered with clean white linen", and the fire for warmth becomes an oven for cooking them.
In the dream world, one can often become more creative and courageous in controlling what happens. The "stepmother" of the dream (the witch) is imagined with weaknesses that are the opposite of their actual stepmothers strengths. The stepmother
was strong enough for a long walk into the forest and aware enough to lock the door the night before their second trip to the forest. Perhaps she had some suspicion about how the kids found their way back the first time. She also had good vision to see from some distance that there were no animals on the roof. By contrast, the witch
was near-sighted and dumb enough to stick her head in her own oven while on crutches.
In reality, the kids cannot confront their stepmother on their own, and the father passively accepts his wifes plan to abandon his kids in spite of telling himself that "it would be better for you to share the last mouthful with your children".
Gretel shares her fathers moral outlook ("If the wild beasts in the forest had but devoured us, we should at any rate have died together"), but she does not passively accept her fate.
In the dream world, Hansel deceives the witch by presenting a bone instead of his finger to show that he is not ready for eating, while Gretel pretends
not to understand how to get into the oven, and then pushes the witch to her death.
While the details of the story seem morbid, cruel, and disturbing, why is it emotionally satisfying to a child? As Bruno Bettelheim explained in "The Uses of Enchantment", this story helps a child to confront conflicting emotions toward the mom--who was traditionally the disciplining parent. While children are often pampered with loving kindness at an early age,
as they grow older they are expected to take on more responsibilities and disciplined for disobedience. The contrast between moms two sides (sometimes so nice that she makes them pancakes for breakfast and sometimes so mean that she expects them to do chores) is exaggerated in the story where the witch pretends to be nice only to be evil. The story also
acknowledges feelings of resentment a child may have for the sway the "evil" parent has over the "good" one.
The story is obviously satisfying on an emotional level in that both kids are able to overcome their fears and be rid of the "evil stepmother" forever. Without taking the deaths literally, from a childs perspective it is empowering to see Hansel and Gretel outsmart the "evil stepmother" (the witch) and use their cleverness to
find their way home.
nice story but i cant understand the reason for hansels..
nice story but i cant understand the reason for hansels frequent peeping at the house before leaving
i do not like the story at all.
i do not like the story at all.
It was a good story. But not suitable for yonger viewers.
It was a good story. But not suitable for yonger viewers.
It‘s so nice story
It‘s so nice story
It is the best story I had ever read. i just love this..
It is the best story I had ever read. i just love this story.Brothers grimm are such a fantastic writers
I like this Grimms version.
I like this Grimms version.
AMAZING!!!!
AMAZING!!!!
a very good tale with a dim view of women as was..
a very good tale with a dim view of women as was characteristic of 19th century literature.note that witches were always females of sinister traits. what did women authors of the same age try to do was to supplant this established view with an alternative opinion-by giving older women the role of a savior without whose presence men were most likely to fail.
it was ok
it was ok
it is nice book i read this story and act
it is nice book i read this story and act
I loved it
I loved it
its not vary touching really :|
its not vary touching really :|
it is so nice.i like it. Two thumbs up. This is so nice.
it is so nice.i like it. Two thumbs up. This is so nice.
Hansel and Gretel is one of my all time favorite stories,..
Hansel and Gretel is one of my all time favorite stories,
hands down.
It shows how people, even young children, can be
brave and prevail in the face of adversity, and be
courageous when ones life literally depends on it.
In the four weeks and little over 3 days it took Hansel..
In the four weeks and little over 3 days it took Hansel and Gretel to get back home, their stepmother had died?
I wonder how long it took before their father lost his mind with grief and did her in...
this story is scARY . put the witch in jail or even out of..
this story is scARY . put the witch in jail or even out of the hole story or i will never read it again....
tarlori hofer
ps. my poor lovley loretta creid all night!!!
awsome
awsome
I like it
I like it
Gave me the shivers!
Gave me the shivers!
Not bad
Not bad
I used to like this story when I was a kid and when I read..
I used to like this story when I was a kid and when I read this hard cover book by Brothers Grimm. I dont like it any more because I think its not fair. Its not fair to women.
I am a woman. And in my family I am treated as not only inferior, but also a sinister species of the mankind. And being treated like that, I feel that this story is just not fair to all good women who mean well in their lives.
When I read this book as a child, I had no idea that it was so chauvinistic.
I love this, I just dont get the mouse part :/
I love this, I just dont get the mouse part :/
Awsom
Awsom
awsome
awsome
I did not recall Hansel mentioning God and how He would not..
I did not recall Hansel mentioning God and how He would not forsake them,that made me smile though.It was a nice touch in a pretty dark fairytale.
I remember this story! Its still a great one!
I remember this story! Its still a great one!
Just because the wife in the story was mean does not mean..
Just because the wife in the story was mean does not mean the Grimm brothers think all women are mean.
SUPERB,EXCELLENT WELL
SUPERB,EXCELLENT WELL
WHATS UP FOR STORIES OF GRIMM BROTHERS JUST THUMBS UP
WHATS UP
FOR STORIES OF GRIMM BROTHERS
JUST THUMBS UP
How did their step-Mom die???? So weird,it put in my..
How did their step-Mom die????
So weird,it put in my head what if they ate her???
I liked it though.
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