The goldilocks story
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Goldilocks and the Three Bears was originally titled The Story of the Three Bears, published in the collection English Fairytales, retold by Flora Annie Steel (1922), illustrated by Arthur Rackham. We hope you think it's not too hot, not too cold, but JUST RIGHT!
This story is featured in our Favorite Fairy Tales.
Once upon a time there were three Bears, who lived together in a house of their own, in a wood. One of them was a Little Wee Bear, and one was a Middle-sized Bear, and the other was a Great Big Bear. They had each a bowl for their porridge; a little bowl for the Little Wee Bear; and a middle-sized bowl for the Middle-sized Bear; and a great bowl for the Great Big Bear. And they had each a chair to sit in; a little chair for the Little Wee Bear; and a middle-sized chair for the Middle-sized Bear; and a great chair for the Great Big Bear. And they had each a bed to sleep in; a little bed for the Little Wee Bear; and a middle-sized bed for the Middle-sized Bear; and a great bed for the Great Big Bear.
One day, after they had made the porridge for their breakfast, and poured it into their porridge-bowls, they walked out into the wood while the porridge was cooling, that they might not burn their mouths by beginning too soon, for they were polite, well-brought-up Bears. And while they were away a little girl called Goldilocks, who lived at the other side of the wood and had been sent on an errand by her mother, passed by the house, and looked in at the window. And then she peeped in at the keyhole, for she was not at all a well-brought-up little girl. Then seeing nobody in the house she lifted the latch. The door was not fastened, because the Bears were good Bears, who did nobody any harm, and never suspected that anybody would harm them. So Goldilocks opened the door and went in; and well pleased was she when she saw the porridge on the table. If she had been a well-brought-up little girl she would have waited till the Bears came home, and then, perhaps, they would have asked her to breakfast; for they were good Bears—a little rough or so, as the manner of Bears is, but for all that very good-natured and hospitable.
But she was an impudent, rude little girl, and so she set about helping herself.
First she tasted the porridge of the Great Big Bear, and that was too hot for her. Next she tasted the porridge of the Middle-sized Bear, but that was too cold for her. And then she went to the porridge of the Little Wee Bear, and tasted it, and that was neither too hot nor too cold, but just right, and she liked it so well that she ate it all up, every bit!
Then Goldilocks, who was tired, for she had been catching butterflies instead of running on her errand, sate down in the chair of the Great Big Bear, but that was too hard for her. And then she sate down in the chair of the Middle-sized Bear, and that was too soft for her. But when she sat down in the chair of the Little Wee Bear, that was neither too hard nor too soft, but just right. So she seated herself in it, and there she sate till the bottom of the chair came out, and down she came, plump upon the ground; and that made her very cross, for she was a bad-tempered little girl.
Now, being determined to rest, Goldilocks went upstairs into the bedchamber in which the Three Bears slept. And first she lay down upon the bed of the Great Big Bear, but that was too high at the head for her. And next she lay down upon the bed of the Middle-sized Bear, and that was too high at the foot for her. And then she lay down upon the bed of the Little Wee Bear, and that was neither too high at the head nor at the foot, but just right. So she covered herself up comfortably, and lay there till she fell fast asleep.
By this time the Three Bears thought their porridge would be cool enough for them to eat it properly; so they came home to breakfast. Now careless Goldilocks had left the spoon of the Great Big Bear standing in his porridge.
"SOMEBODY HAS BEEN AT MY PORRIDGE!"
said the Great Big Bear in his great, rough, gruff voice.
Then the Middle-sized Bear looked at his porridge and saw the spoon was standing in it too.
"SOMEBODY HAS BEEN AT MY PORRIDGE!"
said the Middle-sized Bear in his middle-sized voice.
Then the Little Wee Bear looked at his, and there was the spoon in the porridge-bowl, but the porridge was all gone!
"SOMEBODY HAS BEEN AT MY PORRIDGE, AND HAS EATEN IT ALL UP!"
said the Little Wee Bear in his little wee voice.
Upon this the Three Bears, seeing that some one had entered their house, and eaten up the Little Wee Bear's breakfast, began to look about them. Now the careless Goldilocks had not put the hard cushion straight when she rose from the chair of the Great Big Bear.
"SOMEBODY HAS BEEN SITTING IN MY CHAIR!"
said the Great Big Bear in his great, rough, gruff voice.
And the careless Goldilocks had squatted down the soft cushion of the Middle-sized Bear.
"SOMEBODY HAS BEEN SITTING IN MY CHAIR!"
said the Middle-sized Bear in his middle-sized voice.
"SOMEBODY HAS BEEN SITTING IN MY CHAIR, AND HAS SATE THE BOTTOM THROUGH!"
said the Little Wee Bear in his little wee voice.
Then the Three Bears thought they had better make further search in case it was a burglar, so they went upstairs into their bedchamber.
Now Goldilocks had pulled the pillow of the Great Big Bear out of its place.
"SOMEBODY HAS BEEN LYING IN MY BED!"
said the Great Big Bear in his great, rough, gruff voice.
And Goldilocks had pulled the bolster of the Middle-sized Bear out of its place.
"SOMEBODY HAS BEEN LYING IN MY BED!"
said the Middle-sized Bear in his middle-sized voice.
But when the Little Wee Bear came to look at his bed, there was the bolster in its place! And the pillow was in its place upon the bolster!
And upon the pillow——?
There was Goldilocks's yellow head—which was not in its place, for she had no business there.
"SOMEBODY HAS BEEN LYING IN MY BED,—AND HERE SHE IS STILL!"
said the Little Wee Bear in his little wee voice.
Now Goldilocks had heard in her sleep the great, rough, gruff voice of the Great Big Bear; but she was so fast asleep that it was no more to her than the roaring of wind, or the rumbling of thunder. And she had heard the middle-sized voice of the Middle-sized Bear, but it was only as if she had heard some one speaking in a dream.
But when she heard the little wee voice of the Little Wee Bear, it was so sharp, and so shrill, that it awakened her at once. Up she started, and when she saw the Three Bears on one side of the bed, she tumbled herself out at the other, and ran to the window. Now the window was open, because the Bears, like good, tidy Bears, as they were, always opened their bedchamber window when they got up in the morning. So naughty, frightened little Goldilocks jumped; and whether she broke her neck in the fall, or ran into the wood and was lost there, or found her way out of the wood and got whipped for being a bad girl and playing truant, no one can say. But the Three Bears never saw anything more of her.
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Goldilocks and the Three Bears
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Picture by Bertie - a retake of the classic illustration by Walter Crane.
Duration 3:15.
Based on the Charming version by the Victorian writer Andrew Lang.
Read by Natasha.
Once upon a time there were three bears, who lived together in a house of their own in a wood. One of them was a little, small wee bear; one was a middle-sized bear, and the other was a great, huge bear.
One day, after they had made porridge for their breakfast, they walked out into the wood while the porridge was cooling. And while they were walking, a little girl came into the house. This little girl had golden curls that tumbled down her back to her waist, and everyone called her by Goldilocks.
Goldilocks went inside. First she tasted the porridge of the great, huge bear, and that was far too hot for her. And then she tasted the porridge of the middle bear, and that was too cold for her. And then she went to the porridge of the little, small wee bear, and tasted that. And that was neither too hot nor too cold, but just right; and she liked it so well, that she ate it all up.
Then Goldilocks went upstairs into the bed chamber and first she lay down upon the bed of the great, huge bear, and then she lay down upon the bed of the middle bear and finally she lay down upon the bed of the little, small wee bear, and that was just right. So she covered herself up comfortably, and lay there until she fell fast asleep.
By this time, the three bears thought their porridge would be cool enough, so they came home to breakfast.
“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN AT MY PORRIDGE!” said the great huge bear, in his great huge voice.
“Somebody has been at my porridge!” said the middle bear, in his middle voice.
Then the little, small wee bear looked at his, and there was the spoon in the porridge pot, but the porridge was all gone.
“Somebody has been at my porridge, and has eaten it all up!” said the little, small wee bear, in his little, small wee voice.
Then the three bears went upstairs into their bedroom.
“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN LYING IN MY BED!” said the great, huge bear, in his great, rough, gruff voice.
“Somebody has been lying in my bed!” said the middle bear, in his middle voice.
And when the little, small, wee bear came to look at his bed, upon the pillow there was a pool of golden curls, and the angelic face of a little girl snoring away, fast asleep.
“Somebody has been lying in my bed, and here she is!” Said the little, small wee bear, in his little, small wee voice.
Goldilocks jumped off the bed and ran downstairs, out of the door and down the garden path. She ran and she ran until she reached the house of her grandmama. When she told her grandmama about the house of the three bears who lived in the wood, her granny said: “My my, what a wild imagination you have, child!”
(Updated with shorter version September, 13, 2016).
Goldilocks Fairy Tale read online
Czech Tales
In one country - I forgot its name - there was a king, an evil and grumpy old man. Once a merchant came to his palace, brought fresh fish in a basket and said:
- Buy this fish from me, king.
You won't regret. The king glanced at the fish:
- I have never seen such a fish in my kingdom. Poisonous, right?
- What are you! - the merchant was frightened. - Order this fish to be fried, eat it - and you will immediately begin to understand the conversation of all animals, fish and birds. Even the smallest bug will squeak something, and you will already know what he wants. You will become the smartest king on earth.
The King liked it. He bought fish from a merchant and, although he was stingy and greedy, he did not even bargain and paid what she asked for. “Now,” the king thought and rubbed his bony hands, “I will be the smartest in the world and conquer the whole world. It's like drinking! Now my enemies will cry."
The king called his servant, young Irzhik, and ordered him to fry the fish for dinner.
- But only without cheating! - said the king to Irzhik. - If you eat at least one piece of this fish, I will cut off your head.
Irzhik brought the fish to the kitchen, looked at it and was even more surprised: he had never seen such a fish.
Each fish scale glowed with multi-colored fire, like a rainbow. It was a pity to clean and fry such a fish. But you will not go against the royal order.
Irzhik fries fish and can't figure out if it's ready or not. The fish does not blush, does not become covered with a crust, but becomes transparent.
"Who knows if it's fried or not," thought Irzhik. "We must try."
Took a piece, chewed and swallowed - as if ready. Chews and hears thin, squeaky voices:
- And we have a piece! And we have a piece! W-w-fried fish! Irzhik looked around. There is not anyone. Only flies fly over the
fish dish.
— Aha! — said Irzhik. — Now I'm beginning to understand something about this fish.
He took a dish with fish and put it on the window, in a through wind, so that the fish would cool down. And outside the window, geese go through the yard and quietly cackle. Irzhik listened and heard one goose asking:
- Where are we going? Where shall we go? And the other answers:
- To the miller in the barley field! To the miller in the barley field!
- Yup! - Irzhik said again and grinned: - Now I understand what kind of fish it is.
Perhaps one piece is not enough for me.
Irzhik ate the second piece of fish, then beautifully arranged the fish on a silver platter, sprinkled with parsley and dill, and carried the dish to the king.
Since then, Irzhik began to understand everything that the animals were talking about with each other. He learned that the life of animals is not as easy as people think - animals have both grief and worries. Since that time, Irzhik began to feel sorry for the animals and tried to help every smallest animal if it got into trouble.
After dinner, the king ordered two saddle horses to be brought in and went for a walk with Irzhik.
The king rode ahead, and Irzhik followed him. The hot horse Irzhik kept rushing forward. Irzhik restrained him with difficulty. The horse neighed, and Irzhik immediately understood his words.
- Yoke! - the horse neighed. - Come on, brother, let's ride and be transported in one fell swoop over this mountain.
- It would be nice, - the king's horse answered him, - but this old fool sits on me.
He'll fall off and break his neck. It will turn out badly - after all, but still the king.
- Well, let him break his neck, - said Irzhik's horse. - Then you will carry the young king, and not this ruin.
Irzhik laughed softly. But the king also understood the conversation of the horses, looked back at Irzhik, poked his horse in the side with his boot and asked Irzhik:0005 - What are you laughing at, impudent?
- I remembered, your royal grace, how today in the kitchen two cooks dragged each other by whirlwinds.
- Look at me! the king said threateningly.
He, of course, did not believe Irzhik, angrily turned his horse around and galloped off to his palace. In the palace, he ordered Irzhik to pour himself a glass of wine.
- But look, if you don't fill it up or overfill it, I'll order you to cut off your head!
Irzhik took the jug of wine and began to carefully pour the wine into a heavy glass. At that moment, two sparrows flew in through the open window.
They fly around the room and fight on the fly. One sparrow holds three golden hairs in its beak, and the other tries to take them away.
- Give it back! Give it back! They are mine! Thief!
- I won't give it! I picked them up when the beauty was combing her golden braids. No one else in the world has hair like this. I'm not giving it! Whom she marries will be the happiest.
- Give it back! Beat the thief!
Sparrows ruffled and, grabbing, flew out the window. But one golden hair fell out of its beak, fell on the stone floor and rang like a bell. Irzhik looked around and… spilled the wine.
- Yup! the king shouted. “Now say goodbye to life, Irzhik!”
The king was glad that Irzhik had spilled the wine and it would be possible to get rid of him. The king alone wanted to be the smartest in the world. Who knows, maybe this young and cheerful servant managed to taste fried fish. Then he will be a dangerous opponent for the king. But then the king came up with a good idea.
He picked up a golden hair from the floor, handed it to Irzhik and said:0005 - So be it. Perhaps I will have mercy on you if you find the girl who lost this golden hair and bring her to me as a wife. Take this hair and go. Search!
What was Irzhik to do? He took the hair, equipped himself for the journey, and rode out of the city. And where to go, he does not know. He let go of the reins, and the horse trudged along the most deserted road. It's all overgrown with grass. It looks like it hasn't been driven in a long time. The road reached a high dark forest. Irzhik sees: a fire is burning at the edge, a dry bush is burning. The shepherds threw the fire, did not fill it, did not trample, and the bush caught fire from the fire. And under the bush is an anthill. Ants run, fuss, drag their good from the anthill - ant eggs, dry bugs, caterpillars and various tasty grains. Irzhik hears how the ants shout to him:
- Help, Irzhik! Save! We are burning!
Irzhik jumped off his horse, cut down a bush and put out the flame.
The ants surrounded him in a ring, moving their antennae, bowing and thanking him:
- Thank you, Irzhik. We will never forget your kindness! And if you need help, rely on us - We will repay the good.
Irzhik drove into the dark forest. He hears: someone squeaks plaintively. He looked around and saw: under a tall spruce two crows are lying - they fell out of the nest - and they squeak:
- Help, Irzhik! Feed us! We are dying of hunger! Mother and father flew away, but we still don’t know how to fly.
The king deliberately gave Irzhik an old, sick horse - a real horse. The horse is standing, the horse's legs are shaking, and it is clear that this trip for him is one torment.
Irzhik jumped off his horse, thought, stabbed him to death and left the horse carcass for the crows - let them feed.
- Kar-r, Ir-rzhik! Ka-r-r! the crows shouted merrily. “We will help you for this!”
Irzhik went further on foot. For a long time I walked through a dense forest, then the forest began to make more and more noise, more and more loudly, the wind already bent the tops of the trees.
And then the splash of waves was added to the noise of the peaks, and Irzhik went out to the sea. Two fishermen were arguing on the sandy shore. One caught a golden fish in the net, and the other demanded this fish for himself.
“My net,” one fisherman shouted, “my and the fish!”
- Whose boat is it? answered another fisherman. “Without my boat you would not have cast your net!”
The fishermen shouted louder and louder, then rolled up their sleeves, and the matter would have ended in a fight if Irzhik had not intervened.
- Stop making noise! he said to the fishermen. "Sell me this fish, and divide the money among yourselves." And deal with the end.
Irzhik gave the fishermen all the money that he received from the king for the road, took the golden fish and threw it into the sea. The fish wagged its tail, stuck its head out of the water and said:
- Quid for a favor. When you need my help, call me. I will sail.
Irzhik sat down on the shore to rest. The fishermen ask him:
— Where are you going, good man?
- I'm looking for a bride for my old king.
He ordered to get him a beautiful woman with golden hair as his wife. Where can you find her?
The fishermen looked at each other, sat down on the sand next to Irzhik.
- Well, - they say - you reconciled us, but we remember well. Let's help you. There is only one beauty with golden hair in the whole world. This is our king's daughter. You see an island in the sea, and on the island - a crystal palace? That's where she lives, in this palace. Every day at dawn she combs her hair. Then such a golden dawn breaks over the sea that we wake up from it in our hut and know that it's time for us to go fishing. We will take you to the island. Only to recognize the beauty is almost impossible.
- Why is that? Irik asks.
- But because the king has twelve daughters, and the golden-haired one. And all twelve princesses are dressed the same. And they all have the same veils on their heads. Hair under them is not visible. So your business, Irzhik, is difficult.
Irzhik fishermen transported to the island.
Irzhik went straight to the crystal palace to the king, bowed to him and told him why he had come to the island.
- Okay! said the king. “I am not a stubborn man. I will give my daughter in marriage to your king. But in return, you must complete my tasks for three days. Is it coming?
- Coming! Irik agreed.
- Go get some sleep off the road. Have a rest. My tasks are intricate. You can't solve them right off the bat.
Irzhik slept well! The sea wind blew through the windows all night, the surf roared, and occasionally small splashes even flew onto the bed.
Irzhik got up in the morning and came to the king. The king thought for a moment and said:
- Here's your first task. My golden-haired daughter wore a pearl necklace around her neck. The thread broke, and all the pearls scattered in the thick grass. Collect them all to one.
Irzhik went to the lawn, where the princess scattered pearls. The grass is waist-deep, and so thick that you can't see the ground beneath it.
— Eh, — Irzhik sighed, — if my ant friends were here, they would help me!
He suddenly hears a squeak in the grass, as if hundreds of some tiny people are fussing around his feet:
— We're here! We are here! How can I help you, Irzhik? Collect pearls? Wait, we're in a moment!
Ants ran in, waved their antennae and began to drag pearl after pearl to Irzhik's feet. Irzhik barely had time to string them on a harsh thread.
Collected all the necklace and carried it to the king. The king counted the pearls for a long time, lost his way, counted again.
- That's right! Okay, I'll give you a harder task tomorrow. Irzhik comes to the king the next day. The king slyly
looked at him and said:
- That's the trouble! My golden-haired daughter was bathing and dropped a golden ring into the sea. I'm giving you a day to get it.
Irzhik went to the sea, sat on the shore and almost cried. The sea in front of him lies warm, clear and so deep that it’s even scary to think.
- Eh, - says Irzhik, - if there was a golden fish here, it would help me out!
Suddenly, in the sea, something flashed on the dark water, and a golden fish emerged from the depths.
- Don't be sad! - she said to Irzhik. - I just saw a pike with a golden ring on its fin. - Be calm, I will get it.
Irzhik waited for a long time, until finally a golden fish with a golden ring on its fin emerged.
Irzhik carefully removed the ring from the fin so that the fish would not be hurt, thanked her and went to the palace.
- Well, - said the king, - you are a clever person, apparently. Come tomorrow for the last task.
And the last task was the most difficult: to bring living and dead water to the king. Where can I get it? Irzhik went aimlessly, reached the great forest, stopped and thought:
“If my crows were here, they would…”
Before he had time to think, he hears: above his head the whistle of wings, croaking and sees: familiar crows are flying towards him.
Irzhik told them his grief.
The crows flew away, they were not there for a long time, and then again rustled their wings and dragged two eggplants with living and dead water to Irzhik in their beaks.
- Carr, carr, berry and be happy! Carr!
Irzhik took the eggplants and went to the crystal palace. He went out to the edge and stopped: a black spider wove a web between two trees, caught a fly in it, killed it and sits sucking the fly's blood. Irzhik splashed dead water on the spider. The spider immediately died - folded its legs and fell to the ground. Then Irzhik sprinkled the fly with living water. She came to life, beat her wings, buzzed, broke the web and flew away. And flying away, she said to Irzhik:
- For your happiness, you revived me. I will help you recognize Goldilocks.
Irzhik came to the king with living and dead water. The king even gasped, did not believe for a long time, but he tried the dead water on an old mouse that ran through the palace room, and the living water on a dried flower in the garden and was delighted.
I believed. He took Irzhik by the hand and led him into a white hall with a golden ceiling. In the middle of the hall stood a round crystal table, and behind it on crystal chairs sat twelve beauties, so similar to each other that Irzhik only waved his hand and lowered his eyes - how can you tell which one of them is Goldilocks! They all have the same long dresses, and the same white veils on their heads. Not a hair is visible from under them.
- Well, choose, - says the king. - Guess - your happiness! But no - you will leave here alone, as you came.
Irzhik raised his eyes and suddenly hears something buzzing near his ear.
- J-i-i-i, go around the table. I'll give you a hint. Irzhik looked: a small fly was flying over him. Irzhik
walked slowly around the table, while the princesses sat downcast. And everyone's cheeks flushed the same way. And the fly buzzes and buzzes:
- Not that one! Not the one! Not the one! But this one - she, golden-haired! Irzhik stopped, pretended to be still in doubt, then said:0005 - Here is the golden-haired princess!
- Your happiness! the king shouted.
The princess quickly left the table, threw off her white veil, and her golden hair spilled over her shoulders. And immediately the whole hall sparkled with such brilliance from this hair that it seemed that the sun gave all its light to the hair of the princess.
The queen looked straight at Irzhik and averted her eyes: she had never seen such a handsome and stately young man. The princess's heart was beating heavily, but her father's word is law. She will have to marry the old, evil king!
Irzhik took the bride to his master. He protected her all the way, making sure that her horse did not stumble, that a cold drop of rain did not fall on her shoulders. It was a sad return. Because Irzhik also fell in love with the golden-haired princess, but he could not tell her about it.
The grumpy old king giggled with joy when he saw the beauty, and ordered to quickly prepare the wedding. And Irzhik said:
- I wanted to hang you on a dry bough for disobedience, so that crows would peck at your corpse.
But for the fact that you found me a bride, I declare you a royal favor. I will not hang you, but I will order you to cut off your head and bury with honor.
In the morning they cut off Irzhik's head on the chopping block. The golden-haired beauty sobbed and asked the king to give her the headless body and head of Irzhik. The king frowned, but did not dare to refuse the bride.
Goldilocks put her head to her body, sprinkled living water - her head grew, not even a trace was left. She sprinkled Irzhik a second time - and he jumped up alive, young and even more handsome than he was before the execution. And he asked Goldilocks:
- Why did I fall asleep so soundly?
- You would have fallen asleep forever, - Goldilocks answered him, - if I had not saved you, dear.
The king saw Irzhik and was dumbfounded: how did he come to life, and even become so handsome! The king was a cunning old man and immediately decided to take advantage of this case. He called the executioner and ordered:
- Cut off my head! And then let Goldilocks sprinkle wonderful water on me.
And I will come alive young and beautiful.
The executioner willingly cut off the head of the old king. But it was not possible to resurrect him. In vain they just poured all the living water on him. There must have been so much anger in the king that no living water could help. They buried the king without tears, to the beat of drums. And since the country needed a smart and kind ruler, he chose the people as the ruler of Irzhik - it was not for nothing that he was the wisest man in the world. And Goldilocks became the wife of Irzhik, and they lived a long and happy life.
And so ended this tale of how the animals repaid kindness for kindness and how the king lost his head.
Category: Fairy tales of the peoples of Europe
Goldilocks - Casket — LiveJournal
"In one country - I forgot its name - there was an evil and grumpy old king. Once a merchant came to his palace, brought fresh fish in a basket .
.." I remember such a beginning of the famous Czech fairy tale "Goldilocks" from childhood, but more precisely, this is the beginning of the Russian retelling by K.G. Paustovsky.
I mastered Karel Jaromir Erben's original and found a closer Russian translation by T. Axel. So now I know how the retelling, beloved since childhood, and the original differ from each other.
Czech original K.Ya. Erben is more miserly; in the retelling of K.G. Paustovsky has many short additions that make the fairy tale more beautiful and explain the motives of the characters' behavior. But besides this, the very idea of the tale is stated differently in the retelling.
The original begins with a report about a king who understood the language of the beasts. In the translation of T. Axel: "Once upon a time there was a king, so smart that he even understood the speech of animals. That's how he learned this ..." (Literal translation: "And listen to how he learned this"). The reader may decide that the main character is the same king who started the plot: the cook Irzhik went for a golden-haired beauty, and then he was cut off his head.
That the king is old - it is said, but not immediately; that he is evil goes without saying in the course of the action. In the finale, Irzhik, a former cook, is elected king because there was no one smarter than him in the kingdom: apart from the late king, only he understood the speech of animals. Thus, the tale of K.Ya. Erben is primarily about the mind. Or is that the first superficial impression.
Retelling by K.G. Paustovsky about "how the animals repaid kindness for kindness, and how the king lost his head." The narrator adds kindness and mercy to the mind - as necessary conditions for victory in the story and requirements for a good king. Here is his ending: "And since the country needed a smart and kind ruler, I chose the people as the ruler of Irzhik - it was not for nothing that he was the wisest man in the world." That is, it is understood that there should be no wisdom without kindness.
From the very beginning to the end, the retelling emphasizes the malice and cruelty of the king and the good nature of his antagonist, the real protagonist - the servant Irzhik.
After the cunning guy tasted the forbidden dish (which rightly incurs the master's wrath on him), K.G. Paustovsky inserts: “Since then, Irzhik began to understand everything that the animals talked about with each other. He learned that the life of animals is not so easy as people think - animals have both grief and worries. From that time on, Irzhik became pity the animals and tried to help every smallest animal if it got into trouble.
By the way, how did it all start? - from the fact that they cooked some fish for dinner. In the original, this is a snake (had). The king orders Irzhik to fry it, calling it a fish, but he is perplexed: why does the strange fish look so much like a snake? In the retelling of K.G. Paustovsky, this is done somewhat differently. The merchant sells to the evil king, after all, not a snake, but a fish. The fish looks unusual, but it is very beautiful. The king suspects that it is poisonous (all that remains of the snake from the original), and Irzhik is sorry to cook it: "Each fish scale glowed with multi-colored fire, like a rainbow.
"
In one of the episodes of the fairy tale, Irzhik kills a horse to feed the crows who are dying of hunger. This is both in the original and in the retelling, but in the retelling there is an explanation, because of which Irzhik should not look cruel and a traitor to his friend: "The king purposely gave Irzhik an old, sick horse - a real nag. There is a horse, the horse's legs are shaking ", and it is clear that this trip for him is one torment. Irzhik jumped off the horse, thought, stabbed him and left the horse carcass to the crows - let them feed."
In one of the previous episodes of the tale, both in the original and in the retelling, when the king and Irzhik go for a walk together, the cook's horse is completely different - young, cheerful and hot (like his master). He wants to jump over the mountain... It is interesting that neither in the original nor in the retelling, Irzhik's horse protests against being killed and fed to the crows (or does not have time to protest).
The retelling also emphasizes the contrast between the evil king - Mr. Irzhik and the kinder king - the father of Goldilocks: "I am not a stubborn person"; "Relax. My problems are intricate. You can't solve them right off the bat" (in the original, simply "You can rest until tomorrow"). This is followed by a small decorative insert-description: "Irzhik slept well! The sea wind blew through the windows all night, the surf roared, and occasionally even small splashes flew onto the bed."
But in the original there is one episode that was not included in the retelling of K. G. Paustovsky; he illustrates with what touching diligence the animals help their deliverer. When the hero is ready to collect the heroine's pearl necklace, the lame ant brings the very last pearl, and without it the necklace would not be complete: "Wait, tie the thread!"
Final. K.Ya. Erben's death of the evil king is a pure accident. As he ordered, they cut off his head in order to resurrect him later with the help of magic water, but they did not realize that first you need to use dead water, and only then - living water.
"The lifeless body of the king was poured with living water until it was all poured out, but the head did not grow to the body in any way. Then they began to pour dead water, and the head immediately grew, but there was no living water to resurrect the dead." Perhaps this is the highest retribution, but it is not directly mentioned. K. G. Paustovsky, on the contrary, emphasizes that the death of the king is retribution for his malice and ingratitude: “The executioner willingly cut off the head of the old king. But they failed to resurrect him. there is so much anger in the king that no living water can help. They buried the king without tears, to the beat of drums." So no matter how loud it sounds, nature itself opposed his resurrection.
But the most interesting thing is how the role of the heroine changes in different versions of the fairy tale. "About how animals repaid kindness for kindness ..." is an instructive idea, but still too boring for a story where there is a beautiful beloved.
Both in the Czech fairy tale and in the retelling by K. G. Paustovsky, the role of the heroine is static until the end. But, if there is a beautiful girl in history, she must somehow prove herself (otherwise it is not clear who is causing so much fuss), and in the final part it is Goldilocks who saves Irzhik. In the fairy tale of K. Ya. Erben, nothing is said about the fact that by that time they had begun to love. This, of course, is not enough! In the film based on the fairy tale, the love of the main characters is born even when Irzhik has just arrived at the castle of the heroine's father and will carry out assignments. But, since the princess' headdress hides her hair, he does not realize that it is Goldilocks.
KG Paustovsky develops a love theme: the heroine falls in love with the hero at first sight - Irzhik, it turns out, is also a handsome man - and the hero hides his feelings for the heroine. "The princess looked straight at Irzhik and averted her eyes..." "It was a sad return.
Because Irzhik also fell in love with the golden-haired princess, but could not tell her about it." In the end, kindness is rewarded not only with gaining power, but also with family happiness: "They lived a long and happy life."
By the way, I remember one more version of the treatment of the same plot - the fairy tale of Madame d'Onois "The Beauty of Golden Curls". There are a lot of differences from the Czech "Goldilocks", but the main thing is that the heroine is much more significant. She rules in her own domains, has a court, is proud of the glory of her beauty, and herself gives tasks to the messenger of the groom, maintaining her prestige: she is not so easy to achieve. The plot of the plot is that the beauty refused the king who wooed her simply out of a whim. In the final part of the tale, the heroine manages to become the wife of the negative king, but, having become a widow, she herself runs into the dungeon where the chosen one of her heart is imprisoned, she herself frees him from the chains and makes him the new king.
Another difference is how the relationship between the king and, so to speak, his representative, who is going to get a bride for him, is depicted. The negative king in this tale is not an old man, but a young and handsome man; the local Irzhik is a knight Hello, one of the king's closest associates. Initially, they are friends, but friendship is destroyed by jealousy when the messenger returns with the bride - and therefore the king's evil disposition manifests itself only closer to the finale. The death of the king here is also the result of an accident: in order to become younger and more beautiful, he rubs his face with dead water, not knowing that the bottle with the water of Beauty and Health that stood in that place has broken.
Like this: if a woman tells a story about a marriage test, she will try to pay more attention to the heroine. :-)
Not necessary P.S. For some reason, I remember very well exactly how I first heard the tale of Goldilocks. It was in the 1980s in an evening fairy tale on Ukrainian television, in one of the releases in Russian.
