RAPUNZEL
Brothers Grimm
There were once a man
and a woman who had long, in vain, wished for a child. At length it appeared
that God was about to grant their desire.
These people had a
little window at the back of their house from which a splendid garden could be
seen, It was, however, surrounded by a high wall, and no one dared to go into
it because it belonged to an enchantress, who had great power and was dreaded
by all the world.
One day the woman was
standing by this window and looking down into the garden, when she saw a bed
which was planted with the most beautiful rampion, and it looked so fresh and
green that she longed for it. She felt very sad.
Her husband was
alarmed, and asked: 'What ails you, dear wife?'
'Ah,' she replied,
'if I can't eat some of the rampion, which is in the garden behind our house, I
shall die.'
The man, who loved
her, at twilight, he decided to clam down over the wall into the garden of the
enchantress, hastily clutched a handful of rampion, and took it to his wife.
She at once made herself a salad of it,. It tasted so good to her - so very
good, that the next day she longed for it three times as much as before.
Her husband he knew
he must once more descend into the garden. However, this time the enchantress
discovered him and she was very angry, She threatened him, but he asked for mercy to she and he explained
to enchantress who did it for his wife.
The enchantress
allowed her anger to be softened, and said to him: 'If the case be as you say,
I will allow you to take away with you as much rampion as you will, only I make
one condition, you must give me the child which your wife will bring into the
world; it shall be well treated, and I will care for it like a mother. The man
in his terror consented to everything.
When the woman was
brought to bed, the enchantress appeared at once, gave the child the name of
Rapunzel, and took it away with her.
Rapunzel grew into
the most beautiful child under the sun. When she was twelve years old, the
enchantress shut her into a tower in the middle of a forest. The tower had
neither stairs nor door, but near the top was a little window. When the
enchantress wanted to go in, she placed herself beneath it and cried:
'Rapunzel, Rapunzel,
Let down your hair to me.'
Let down your hair to me.'
Rapunzel had
magnificent long hair, fine as spun gold, and when she heard the voice of the
enchantress, she unfastened her braided tresses, and the enchantress climbed up
by it.
The enchantress was
the only one who could see Rapunzel until after one or two years a handsome
prince heard a sing´s Raponzel.
The king's son wanted
to climb up to her, and looked for the door of the tower, but none was to be
found.However, he was still going to listen raponzel sing, until that one
day he saw to enchantress and he heard
how she cried:
'Rapunzel, Rapunzel,
Let down your hair to me.'
Let down your hair to me.'
Then Rapunzel let
down the braids of her hair, and the enchantress climbed up to her.
The next day he did
the same:
'Rapunzel, Rapunzel,
Let down your hair to me.'
Let down your hair to me.'
Immediately the hair
fell down and the king's son climbed up.
At first Rapunzel was
terribly frightened when a man, such as her eyes had never yet beheld, came to
her; but the king's son began to talk to her quite like a friend and both fell
in love and he asked her to be his wife. Rapunzel agreed to go with him but she
did not know how to get down. So, She asked him to bring a skein of silk and
so, she weaves a ladder to go with he.
One day, the
enchantress realized of the visits the prince by a comment made for Rapunzel
and the enchantress angrily cut off her Rapunzel´s beatiful tresses and she was
so pitiless that she took poor Rapunzel into a desert where she had to live in
great grief and misery.
On the same day that
she cast out Rapunzel, however, the enchantress fastened the braids of hair,
which she had cut off, to the hook of the window, and when the king's son came
and she let the hair down and she wait The king's son climbed and she said:
'Aha!' she cried
mockingly, 'you would fetch your dearest, but the beautiful bird sits no longer
singing in the nest; the cat has got it, and will scratch out your eyes as
well. Rapunzel is lost to you; you will never see her again.'
The king's son was
beside himself with pain, and in his despair he leapt down from the tower. He
escaped with his life, but the thorns into which he fell pierced his eyes.
He wandered quite
blind about the forest, ate nothing but roots and berries, and did naught but
lament and weep over the loss of his dearest wife. Thus he roamed about in
misery for some years, and at length came to the desert where Rapunzel, with
the twins to which she had given birth, a boy and a girl, lived in
wretchedness. He heard a voice, and it seemed so familiar to him that he went
towards it, and when he approached, Rapunzel knew him and fell on his neck and
wept. Two of her tears wetted his eyes and they grew clear again, and he could
see with them as before. He led her to his kingdom where he was joyfully
received, and they lived for a long time afterwards, happy and contented.