Grimm's Fairy Stories

From “Dummling and the Three Feathers”: Once upon a time there lived a King who had three sons; the two elder were learned and bright, but the youngest said very little and appeared somewhat foolish, so he was always known as Dummling. When the King grew old and feeble, feeling that he was nearing his end, he wished to leave the crown to one of his three sons, but could not decide to which. He thereupon settled that they should travel, and that the one who could obtain the most splendid carpet should ascend the throne when he died. So that there could be no disagreement as to the way each one should go, the King conducted them to the courtyard of the Palace, and there blew three feathers, by turn, into the air, telling his sons to follow the course that the three feathers took. Then one of the feathers flew eastwards, another westwards, but the third went straight up towards the sky, though it only sped a short distance before falling to earth.

Author Biography

Jacob Ludwig Carl Grimm (1785 – 1863) also known as Ludwig Karl, was a German philologist, jurist and mythologist. He is known as the discoverer of Grimm’s law (linguistics), the co-author with his brother Wilhelm of the monumental Deutsches Wörterbuch, the author of Deutsche Mythologie and, more popularly, as the elder of the Brothers Grimm and the editor of Grimm’s Fairy Tales. Jacob Grimm was born in Hanau, in Hesse-Kassel. His father, Philipp Grimm, was a lawyer, but he died while Jacob was a child and his mother was left with very small means. His mother’s sister was lady of the chamber to the Landgravine of Hesse and she helped to support and educate her numerous family members. Jacob was sent to the public school at Kassel in 1798 with his younger brother Wilhelm (born on 24 February 1786). In 1802, he proceeded to the University of Marburg where he studied law, a profession for which he had been destined by his father. His brother joined him at Marburg a year later, having just recovered from a long and severe illness and likewise began the study of law. Wilhelm Carl Grimm (1786 – 1859) was a German author, the younger of the Brothers Grimm. Wilhelm’s character was a complete contrast to that of his brother. As a boy, he was strong and healthy, but while growing up he suffered a long and severe illness which left him weak the rest of his life. He had a less comprehensive and energetic mind than his brother and he had less of the spirit of investigation, preferring to confine himself to some limited and definitely bounded field of work. He utilized everything that bore directly on his own studies and ignored the rest. These studies were almost always of a literary nature. Wilhelm took great delight in music, for which his brother had but a moderate liking and he had a remarkable gift of story-telling. He was, accordingly, much sought in society, which he frequented much more than his brother.