Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

Once upon a time, in the middle of winter, when snowflakes were falling from the sky like feathers, a queen sat sewing at a window with a frame of black ebony. As she sewed, she glanced at the snow and pricked her finger with the needle. Three drops of blood fell onto the snow. The red on the white snow looked so beautiful that the queen thought, "If only I had a child as white as snow, as red as blood, and with hair as black as the wood of this window frame."

Soon afterwards she had a little daughter, who was as white as snow, with cheeks as red as blood and hair as black as ebony. They named her Snow White. But soon after the child was born, the queen died.

A year later the king married again. The new queen was very beautiful, but she was very proud and could not bear anyone to be more beautiful than she was. She had a magic mirror. She would stand in front of it and ask: "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who in this land is the fairest of all?" And the mirror would answer: "My queen, you are the fairest in the land." Then she was satisfied, for she knew that the mirror always told the truth.

But as Snow White grew up, she became more and more beautiful. By the time she was seven years old, she was as beautiful as the bright day, more beautiful even than the queen. One day, when the queen asked her mirror, it answered: "My queen, you are the fairest here, but Snow White is a thousand times fairer than you." The queen turned pale with fright and green with envy. From that moment on, whenever she saw Snow White, her heart turned over inside her. Envy and pride grew in her heart like weeds and gave her no peace day or night.

At last she called a huntsman: "Take the child out into the forest. I never want to see her again. Get rid of her, and bring me her heart as proof." The huntsman obeyed and took the girl into the forest. But when he drew his knife, Snow White began to cry: "Oh, dear huntsman, let me live. I'll run away into the wild forest and never come home again." She was so beautiful and so innocent that the huntsman took pity on her: "Run away then, poor child." "The wild animals will soon eat her," he thought, but it felt as though a stone had been lifted from his heart because he did not have to harm her. Just then a young deer came running by; the huntsman caught it and took its heart to the queen as proof.

Now the poor child was all alone in the great forest. She was so frightened that she looked at every leaf on the trees and did not know what to do. She began to run, over sharp stones and through thorns. Wild animals ran past her, but none of them hurt her. She ran as far as her feet could carry her, and towards evening she came to a little house and went inside to rest.

Everything in the house was tiny, but neater and cleaner than can be told. There was a table with a white cloth and seven little plates, and beside each plate a little spoon, seven little knives and forks and seven little cups. Against the wall stood seven little beds side by side, covered with snow-white sheets. Snow White was very hungry and thirsty. She ate a few vegetables and a bite of bread from each plate and drank a sip from each cup, for she did not want to take everything from any one of them. Then, because she was so tired, she lay down on one of the beds. But none of them fitted her; one was too long, another too short. At last the seventh bed was just right; she lay down in it, said her prayers and fell asleep.

When it was quite dark, the owners of the house came home. They were seven dwarfs who dug for ore in the mountains. They lit their seven little lamps, and they saw that someone had been in the house, for things were not as they had left them. The first said, "Who has been sitting on my chair?" The second, "Who has been eating from my plate?" The third, "Who has taken some of my bread?" The fourth, "Who has eaten my vegetables?" The fifth, "Who has been using my fork?" The sixth, "Who has been cutting with my knife?" The seventh, "Who has been drinking from my cup?"

Then the first looked around and saw a little hollow in his bed: "Who has been lying in my bed?" The others ran up: "Someone has been lying in mine too!" When the seventh looked at his bed, he saw Snow White lying there asleep. He called the others; they all came running with their lamps and held them over Snow White. "Oh my goodness, oh my goodness, what a beautiful child!" they said. They were so happy that they did not wake her, but let her go on sleeping in the bed. The seventh dwarf slept with his companions, an hour with each, and so the night passed.

In the morning Snow White woke up, and when she saw the seven dwarfs she was frightened. But they were very kind: "What is your name?" "My name is Snow White." "How did you come to our house?" She told them that her stepmother had wanted her killed, that the huntsman had spared her, and that she had run all day until she found their little house. The dwarfs said, "If you will keep house for us, cook, make the beds, wash, sew and knit, and keep everything neat and clean, you can stay with us, and you shall have everything you need." "With all my heart," said Snow White, and she stayed with them.

Snow White kept the house in order. In the mornings the dwarfs went into the mountains to look for ore, and in the evenings they came home, and then their supper had to be ready. Because the girl was alone all day, the good dwarfs warned her: "Beware of your stepmother. She will soon find out that you are here. Don't let anyone in."

The queen, believing she had eaten Snow White's heart, thought that she was once again the most beautiful of all. She went to her mirror: "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who in this land is the fairest of all?" The mirror answered: "My queen, you are the fairest here. But over the mountains, with the seven dwarfs, Snow White is a thousand times fairer than you." The queen was horrified, for she knew the mirror did not lie. She realised that the huntsman had deceived her and that Snow White was still alive.

The queen painted her face and dressed herself as an old pedlar woman, so that no one could recognise her. She went over the seven mountains to the house of the seven dwarfs, knocked on the door and called: "Pretty things for sale, pretty things!" Snow White looked out of the window: "Good day, dear lady, what are you selling?" "Good things, pretty things, laces of every colour," and she took out a lace woven of silk. "I can let this honest woman in," thought Snow White, and she unbolted the door and bought the pretty lace. "Child, come and let me lace you up properly," said the old woman. Snow White, suspecting nothing, stood in front of her. The old woman laced her up so quickly and so tightly that Snow White could not breathe and fell down in a faint. "Now you were the fairest," said the queen, and she hurried away.

In the evening, when the seven dwarfs came home, they were terrified to see Snow White lying on the floor in a faint. They lifted her up, and when they saw that she had been laced too tightly, they cut the lace. She began to breathe a little, and slowly she came back to life. When they heard what had happened, the dwarfs said, "That old pedlar woman was none other than the wicked queen. Take care, and don't let anyone in when we are not here."

As soon as the queen got home, she ran to her mirror. When the mirror told her again that Snow White was alive, the queen flew into a rage. Because she knew magic, she made a poisoned comb. She disguised herself as a different old woman and went to the dwarfs' house again: "Pretty things for sale, pretty things!" "Go away, I'm not allowed to let anyone in," said Snow White. "No one can stop you from looking," said the old woman, and she held up the poisoned comb. The comb pleased the girl so much that she could not resist, and she opened the door. "Come, let me comb your hair nicely," said the old woman. Poor Snow White, thinking nothing of it, let her. But as soon as the comb touched her hair, the poison took effect, and the girl fell down senseless. Luckily, it was nearly evening. When the dwarfs came home and found Snow White lying on the floor again, they at once suspected the stepmother and found the comb. As soon as they pulled it from her hair, Snow White came to herself. Once again the dwarfs warned her to be very careful.

When the queen learned from her mirror that Snow White was still alive, she trembled with rage: "Snow White shall die, even if it costs me my life!" She went into a secret room where no one ever came and made a poisoned apple. From the outside it looked beautiful, white with red cheeks, so that anyone who saw it would want it; but whoever took one bite would fall down as if dead. When the apple was ready, she painted her face, dressed herself as a farmer's wife, and went over the seven mountains to the dwarfs' house.

She knocked at the door. Snow White put her head out of the window: "I can't let anyone in. The seven dwarfs have forbidden it." "That's all right with me," said the farmer's wife. "I'll sell my apples somewhere else. Here, let me give you one as a present." "No," said Snow White, "I mustn't take anything." "Are you afraid of poison? Look, I'll cut the apple in two. You eat the red half, and I'll eat the white." The apple had been made so cunningly that only the red half was poisoned. Snow White kept looking at the lovely apple, and when she saw the farmer's wife biting into it, she could not resist any longer. She reached out and took the poisoned half. She had hardly taken a bite when she fell down to the ground. The queen looked at her with a dreadful glare and laughed: "White as snow, red as blood, black as ebony! This time the dwarfs won't be able to wake you." And she went home and asked her mirror. And at last the mirror answered, "My queen, you are the fairest in the land." Then her envious heart was at peace, as much as an envious heart can ever be at peace.

When the dwarfs came home in the evening, they found Snow White lying on the ground. No breath came from her mouth. They lifted her up, looked for anything poisonous, unlaced her, combed her hair and washed her with water, but nothing helped. The dear child did not wake. They laid her on a bier, and all seven of them sat around it and wept for three days.

They wanted to bury her, but she still looked as fresh as if she were alive, and her cheeks were still a lovely red. "We can't put her in the dark ground," they said, and they had a coffin made of glass, so that she could be seen from every side. They laid her in it and wrote her name on it in golden letters, and that she was a king's daughter. They set the coffin on top of the mountain, and one of them always stayed beside it to watch over her. And the animals came too and wept for Snow White: first an owl, then a raven, and last of all a dove.

Snow White lay in the coffin for a long, long time, but she did not change; she looked as if she were asleep. For she was still as white as snow, as red as blood, and her hair as black as ebony. One day a prince lost his way in the forest and came to the dwarfs' house to spend the night. On the mountain he saw the coffin with beautiful Snow White inside, and read what was written on it in golden letters. He said to the dwarfs, "Let me have the coffin. I will give you whatever you want for it." "We wouldn't give it up for all the gold in the world," said the dwarfs. "Then give it to me as a gift," said the prince, "for I cannot live without seeing Snow White. I will honour and treasure her as my dearest possession." The good dwarfs took pity on him and gave him the coffin.

The prince's servants lifted the coffin onto their shoulders. But on the way they stumbled over a bush. With the jolt, the piece of poisoned apple that Snow White had bitten off flew out of her throat. Soon she opened her eyes, lifted the lid of the coffin and sat up; she was alive again. "Oh, where am I?" "You are with me," said the prince joyfully, and he told her what had happened. "I love you more than anything in the world. Come with me to my father's palace and be my wife." Snow White loved him too, and she went with him.

Their wedding was celebrated with great splendour. The wicked stepmother was also invited to the wedding. She put on her fine clothes and stood before her mirror: "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who in this land is the fairest of all?" The mirror answered: "My queen, you are the fairest here. But the young queen is a thousand times fairer than you." The wicked woman was so frightened that she did not know what to do. At first she did not want to go to the wedding at all, but she could not rest; she had to see the young queen. When she walked in, she recognised Snow White and stood frozen with fear. Because of her pride and envy, nobody loved her, and nobody made room for her. The wicked queen left the palace, fled to the farthest corner of the land and was never seen again. And Snow White lived happily with the prince for many long years; every year she invited the seven dwarfs to the palace and served them the very finest food.