Snegurochka Brothers Grimm short description. Encyclopedia of Fairytale Heroes: "The Snow Maiden", Brothers Grimm
The main character of the fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm "The Snow Maiden" is a young princess. Her skin was so white that she was called the Snow Maiden. Soon after the birth of the Snow Maiden, her mother died, and the king married another woman. The new queen had a special mirror that could speak. It always told the queen that she was the most beautiful.
But when the Snow Maiden grew up, the mirror began to assert that it was the Snow Maiden who was the most beautiful. The evil stepmother decided to get rid of the Snow Maiden and ordered one of her subordinates to take her to the wild forest, to the animals for reprisal.
But in the forest, the Snow Maiden found a small house in which mountain men, gnomes, lived. They adopted the girl into their family. From the magic mirror, the stepmother learned that the Snow Maiden was alive and well. Several times she went to the dwarfs' house and tried to trick her stepdaughter with cunning. But the gnomes saved the Snow Maiden from death every time. But the evil queen's third attempt was successful. From the poisonous apple, the Snow Maiden fell into an eternal sleep.
One king's son passed through those places. He saw the sleeping Snow Maiden and was so delighted with her beauty that he took her with him. During the journey, a poisoned apple jumped out of the Snow Maiden's throat, and she woke up. The delighted prince offered her his hand and heart, and the princess agreed to marry him. And the evil queen suffered a well-deserved punishment.
This is the summary of the story.
The main meaning of the fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm "The Snow Maiden" is that good always defeats evil, no matter how hard the evil tries. The tale teaches to be attentive and careful with strangers who give some gifts. If a gift is given with malicious intent, it can cause harm.
In the fairy tale, I liked the gnomes who sheltered the Snow Maiden and took care of her. They saved her from death several times.
What proverbs are suitable for the fairy tale of the Brothers Grimm "The Snow Maiden"?
Envy won't do anything.
Whoever deceives today will not be believed tomorrow.
Where there is justice, there is truth.
The fairy tale "The Snow Maiden" by the Brothers Grimm can read a summary of Ві in 5 minutes.
Brothers Grimm "Snow Maiden" summary
Snow Maiden (Snow White)- a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm, published in 1812 and expanded in 1854, about the beautiful daughter of the king, who was sheltered in the forest by gnomes, saving from the wrath of an evil stepmother who owns a magic mirror.
One snowy winter day, the queen sits and sews by an ebony framed window. By chance, she pricks her finger with a needle, drops three drops of blood and thinks: “Ah, if I had a baby, white as snow, ruddy like blood and dark as ebony.” Her wish comes true and a girl is born, who was named Snow White, the dreams of the Queen Mother are embodied in her: she was with snow-white skin, black hair and a healthy blush on her cheeks. After the birth of her daughter, the queen mother dies, and a year later the king marries another, proud and arrogant beauty. When Snow White turns 7, the proud queen's magic mirror recognizes her stepdaughter as the most beautiful in the country. The queen instructs the kennelman to take the girl to the forest and kill her, and as proof to bring her a lung and a liver. Taking pity on Snow White, the dog-hound brings the queen a lung and a liver of a young deer, which she cooks and eats.
Snow White finds a hut in the forest, in which a table is laid for seven people and, in order to satisfy her hunger, she takes some vegetables, bread and wine from each serving, and then, having crossed herself, falls asleep on one of the beds. When it gets dark, the owners come to the hut, which turn out to be seven mountain dwarves-miners. They see the baby and are carried away by its beauty. In the morning, after listening to the story of Snow White, the gnomes offer the girl to stay with them and take care of the household. They also warn against communicating with strangers, fearing the intrigues of her stepmother. Having learned from her mirror that Snow White is still alive beyond the seven mountains, the queen comes three times, disguised as different people, in her arsenal - a strangling dress lace, a poisonous comb and a poisoned apple. Twice Snow White is saved by the dwarves, but the third time they fail to recognize the reason for the death of their favorite. But even breathless Snow White was fresh and ruddy, so the dwarves do not dare to betray her to the ground, they make a transparent crystal coffin with a golden inscription and put it on top of the mountain. Even animals and birds come to mourn the king's daughter, and the good gnomes, one at a time, keep watch in shifts. The evil queen receives confirmation from her mirror that from now on she herself is more beautiful and sweeter than everyone else.
Snow White lies in the coffin for a very long time, seems to be sleeping and still looks beautiful. One day, the prince passes by and, seeing the girl, falls in love with her. The prince asks the dwarves to exchange for gifts or give him a coffin, since he can no longer live without looking at his beloved. Out of sympathy, the dwarves hand over to his servants the coffin with the beauty, which they carry on their shoulders, but stumble, and a piece of poisoned apple jumps out of Snow White's throat. Her life returns. The prince and Snow White celebrate their wedding, to which the evil queen is also invited. Learning from the mirror that the newlywed is more beautiful than she is, the queen panics. However, curiosity takes over and the stepmother appears at the wedding celebration, where she recognizes her stepdaughter. As punishment for her deeds, the villainess must dance in red-hot iron shoes until she falls dead.
Once, in winter, the queen, sitting at the sewing by the window, accidentally pricks her finger with a sharp needle, from which several dark drops of blood flow, thoughtfully, she said: “Ah, if I had a baby, white as snow, ruddy as blood and dark as ebony."
Her dream comes true and a wonderful beautiful girl is born - Snow White. Mom, lovingly looking at her child, understands that her wishes have come true, because she sees in front of her what she thought of that evening when she pricked her finger and soon the woman dies. The king, a year later, marries again, to a stubborn and proud beautiful girl.
When the girl was seven years old, her stepmother, peering into her magic mirror and wondering who is the most beautiful in the world, hears an answer that does not please her at all, because her stepdaughter took her place, she is the most beautiful and sweetest in the world. The woman is furious, orders the servant to take the Snow Maiden to the forest and deal with her there, and so that the servant does not cheat, bring her insides from the girl.
But, the man is unable to kill a small child, and brings the insides of a forest animal as a sign of evidence. The queen is overjoyed, roasts it and eats it.
The Snow Maiden, left alone, wanders through the forest and stumbles upon a small hut, enters it and sees in front of her a small table set for seven people, and in order to stifle her hunger, she takes a little bit of food from each plate, then goes to bed in one of small cozy beds.
In the evening, the owners themselves come, they turn out to be seven not tall, but very strong peasants - gnomes. They discover the child and admire her beauty.
In the morning, when the girl woke up, and seeing who was next to her, she told about what had happened, after which it was decided to stay with them, watch the house, strictly forbidding her to talk to strangers, so that they would not turn out to be the servants of the evil stepmother.
But the woman found out about what happened, and she tries to harm the child three times, coming to her in the guise of different people. And for the third time, the gnomes could not save the Snow Maiden, she dies from a poisoned apple.
The gnomes cannot bury the girl, it hurts, she is beautiful, but they place her in a glass coffin. And once a prince passes by and falls in love with a girl. Having agreed with the gnomes, the young man takes her. Along the way, the servants stumble, a poisoned apple pops out of her throat, she comes to life and they celebrate the wedding.
Read the story of the Snow Maiden Grimm in a brief retelling
The queen was sewing at the window and pricked herself with a needle. Drops of blood fell on the snow, and the queen thought about her unborn child. She had a ruddy and black-haired daughter Snegurochka, and the queen herself died.
The king married a beautiful but haughty woman. She had a magic mirror, she loved to ask him who is the most beautiful in the world. Once, when asked by the queen, the mirror replied that she was beautiful, but the Snow Maiden was more beautiful than her. The envy of the queen took and she ordered the huntsman to kill the girl. He led the girl into the forest, but took pity on her and let her go.
The Snow Maiden wandered through the forest and stumbled upon a small hut, seven little men lived in it. The girl stayed with them. The Queen, once again asks a question to the mirror and receives an answer that the Snow Maiden is more beautiful.
Realizing that the girl is alive, she dresses up as a merchant and comes to the dwarfs' house. The Snow Maiden lets her into the house, the old woman tightens her laces on her bodice so that the girl is suffocating.
Returning home, the dwarfs see a girl lying on the floor, they unlace her and she begins to breathe.
The Queen again turns to the mirror and again receives the answer that the Snow Maiden is more beautiful. She understands that the girl is alive. Her anger knows no bounds. She prepares a poisonous comb and again goes to the hut. The girl trusts her, lets her comb her hair and falls dead.
The dwarfs save the girl. The Queen learns that the Snow Maiden is not dead. She takes a poisonous apple and treats the girl. The mirror says that she is the most beautiful in the world and the evil queen calms down. The dwarfs make a glass coffin for the Snow Maiden and carry it up the mountain.
One day, the dwarfs give the coffin to the prince. Servants carry him, he falls, a piece of poisoned apple falls out of the girl's throat and she comes to life. The prince offers the Snow Maiden to become his wife.
The evil queen was also invited to their wedding. Going to the celebration, she learns that the young princess is more beautiful. She is going to the wedding. There he steps on hot shoes, and falls dead.
The main idea of the tale is that good always triumphs over evil.
Picture or drawing Snow Maiden
Other retellings for the reader's diary
- Summary of Tolstoy Childhood briefly and chapter by chapter
"Childhood" - the first story of the trilogy of Lev Nikolaevich. It was written in 1852. The genre of the work can be interpreted as an autobiographical story. The author himself narrates
- Summary Preusler Little water
The mill waterman, returning to his house nestled at the very bottom of the pond near the mill, was very surprised by the silence and order that was created in his walls plastered with fresh silt
- Summary of Chekhov's thick and thin story
- Summary of War and Peace 4 volume in parts and chapters
The final volume of the novel includes all the significant events for the country that took place in 1812. Described by Tolstoy and the battle of Borodino, and the surrender of Moscow to the enemy and the flight of the French
- Summary Wormhole Sholokhov
In the work of Sholokhov Chervotochin, there is a story about the fate of families during the formation of the Soviet state. We are talking about an ordinary average family: the head of the family is Yakov Alekseevich
Among the many fairy tales, it is especially fascinating to read the fairy tale "The Snow Maiden" by the Brothers Grimm, it feels the love and wisdom of our people. Despite the fact that all fairy tales are fantasy, however, they often retain the logic and sequence of events. Once again, rereading this composition, you will certainly discover something new, useful and instructive, and essentially important. Faced with such strong, strong-willed and kind qualities of the hero, you involuntarily feel the desire to change yourself for the better. In the works, diminutive descriptions of nature are often used, making the picture that appears even more saturated. There is a balancing act between good and bad, tempting and necessary, and how wonderful that every time the choice is right and responsible. An important role for children's perception is played by visual images, with which, quite successfully, this work abounds. The fairy tale "The Snow Maiden" by the Brothers Grimm to read for free online will be fun for both children and their parents, the kids will be happy with a good ending, and moms and dads will be happy for the kids!
That was in the middle of winter. Snowflakes were falling like fluff from the sky, and the queen was sitting at the window - its frame was of ebony - and the queen was sewing. When she was sewing, she looked at the snow and pricked her finger with a needle, and three drops of blood fell on the snow. And the red on the white snow looked so beautiful that she thought to herself: “Now, if I had a child, white like this snow, and ruddy like blood, and black-haired like a tree on a window frame!”
And the queen soon gave birth to a daughter, and she was white as snow, blush like blood, and as black-haired as ebony, and that is why they called her the Snow Maiden. And when the child was born, the queen died.
A year later the king took another wife. This was a beautiful woman, but proud and arrogant, she could not stand it when anyone surpassed her in beauty. She had a magic mirror, and when she stood in front of it and looked into it, she would ask:
And the mirror answered:
You, queen, are the most beautiful in the country.
And she was pleased, because she knew that the mirror was telling the truth.
And the Snow Maiden grew up during this time and became more and more beautiful, and when she was seven years old, she was as beautiful as a clear day, and more beautiful than the queen herself. When the queen asked her mirror:
Mirror, mirror on the wall
Who is the most beautiful in our country?
The mirror replied:
You, lady queen, are beautiful,
But the Snow Maiden is a thousand times richer in beauty.
Then the queen was frightened, turned yellow, turned green with envy. She used to see the Snow Maiden - and her heart breaks, she disliked the girl so much. And envy and arrogance grew like weeds in her heart higher and higher, and from now on she had no rest day or night.
Then she called one of her rangers and said:
Take this girl into the woods, I can't see her anymore. You must kill her and bring me her lungs and liver as proof.
The huntsman obeyed and led the girl into the forest; but when he pulled out his hunting knife and was about to pierce the innocent heart of the Snow Maiden, she began to cry and ask:
Ah, dear huntsman, let me live! I will run far, far into the dense forest and never return home.
And because she was so beautiful, the huntsman took pity on her and said:
So be it, run, poor girl!
And he thought to himself: “All the same, wild animals will soon eat you there,” and it was as if a stone had fallen from his heart when he did not have to kill the Snow Maiden.
And just at that time a young deer ran up, the huntsman stabbed him, cut out his lungs and liver and brought them to the queen as a sign of proof that her order had been carried out. The cook was ordered to boil them in salt water, and the evil woman ate them, thinking that they were the lungs and liver of the Snow Maiden.
The poor girl was left alone in the dense forest, and in fear she looked at all the leaves on the trees, not knowing how to proceed further, how to help her grief.
She started to run, and ran over sharp stones, through thorny thickets; and wild beasts jumped about her, but did not touch her. She ran as far as she could, but it was finally getting dark. Suddenly she saw a small hut and went into it to rest. And in that hut everything was so small, but beautiful and clean, which cannot be said in a fairy tale or described with a pen.
There was a table covered with a white tablecloth, and on it were seven small plates, next to each plate a spoon, and seven more small knives and forks, and seven small goblets. There were seven small beds in a row against the wall, and they were covered with snow-white bedspreads.
The Snow Maiden wanted to eat and drink, she took a little bit of vegetables and bread from each plate and drank a drop of wine from each goblet - she did not want to drink everything from one. And since she was very tired, she lay down in one of the beds, but none of them suited her: one was too long, the other too short; but the seventh turned out to be just right for her; she lay down in it and, surrendering herself to the mercy of the Lord, fell asleep.
When it was already completely dark, the owners of the hut came; there were seven dwarfs who mined ore in the mountains. They lit seven of their lamps, and when it became light in the hut, they noticed that they had someone, because not everything turned out to be in the order that it was before. And the first dwarf said:
Who was sitting in my chair?
Who ate this from my plate?
Who took a piece of my bread?
Fourth:
Who ate my vegetables?
Who took my fork?
And who cut with my knife?
The seventh asked:
Who was drinking from my little cup?
He was the first to look around and noticed a small wrinkle on his bed, and asked:
Who was that on my bed?
Then the rest ran up and began to say:
And there was someone in mine too.
The seventh dwarf looked at his bed, he sees - the Snow Maiden lies in it and sleeps. Then he called the others; they ran up, began to scream in surprise, brought seven of their light bulbs and lit up the Snow Maiden.
Oh my god! Oh my god! they exclaimed. - What, however, a handsome child!
They were so happy that they did not wake her up and left her to sleep in bed. And the seventh dwarf slept with each of his comrades for an hour - and so the night passed.
Morning has come. The Snow Maiden woke up, saw seven dwarfs and got scared. But they were kind to her and asked her:
What is your name?
My name is Snegurochka, she answered.
How did you get into our hut? the dwarfs continued to ask.
And she told them that her stepmother wanted to kill her, but the huntsman took pity on her, and that she fled the whole day, until finally she found their hut.
The dwarfs asked:
Would you like to run a business with us? Cooking, whipping beds, washing, sewing and knitting, keeping everything clean and in order - if you agree to this, then you can stay with us, and you will have everything in abundance.
Well, - said the Snow Maiden, - with great pleasure, - and stayed with them.
Watch out for your stepmother: she will soon know that you are here. Look, don't let anyone into the house.
And the queen, having eaten the lungs and liver of the Snow Maiden, again began to think that she was now the very first beauty in the country. She went to the mirror and asked:
Mirror, mirror on the wall
Who is the most beautiful in our country?
And the mirror answered:
You queen are beautiful
But the Snow Maiden is there, beyond the mountains,
At the seven dwarfs outside the walls,
A thousand times richer in beauty!
The queen was frightened then - she knew that the mirror was telling the truth, and realized that the huntsman had deceived her, that the Snow Maiden was still alive. And she began to think again and wonder how to exterminate her. And she did not have peace from envy, because she was not the very first beauty in the country.
And in the end, she thought of something: she made up her face, disguised herself as an old merchant, and now it was impossible to recognize her. She went through the seven mountains to the seven dwarfs, knocked on the door and said:
The Snow Maiden looked out the window and said:
Hello dove! What are you selling?
Good goods, excellent goods, - she answered, - the laces are multi-colored, - and she took out one of them to show her, and it was woven from motley silk.
“This respectable woman can, perhaps, be allowed into the house,” thought the Snow Maiden. She pulled back the deadbolt and bought herself beautiful shoelaces.
Oh, how they suit you, girl, - said the old woman, - let me lace up your bodice properly.
The Snow Maiden, not foreseeing anything bad, stood in front of her and let her new shoelaces be tightened on her. And the old woman began to lace up, so quickly and so tightly that the Snow Maiden suffocated and fell dead to the ground.
This is because you were the most beautiful, - said the queen and quickly disappeared.
And soon, towards evening, seven dwarfs returned home, and how frightened they were when they saw that their dear Snow Maiden was lying on the floor - she would not move, she would not move, as if dead! They lifted it up and saw that it was tightly laced; then they cut the laces, and she began to breathe a little and gradually came to her senses.
When the dwarfs heard about how it all happened, they said:
The old merchant was actually an evil queen. Be careful, do not let anyone in when we are not at home.
Meanwhile, the evil woman returned home, went to the mirror and asked:
Mirror, mirror on the wall
Who is the most beautiful in our country?
The mirror answered her, as before:
You queen are beautiful
But the Snow Maiden is there, beyond the mountains,
At the seven dwarfs outside the walls,
A thousand times richer in beauty!
When she heard such an answer, all the blood rushed to her heart, she was so frightened - she realized that the Snow Maiden had come to life again.
Well, now, - she said, - I will think of something that will surely destroy you, - and, knowing various witchcraft, she prepared a poisonous comb. Then she changed clothes and pretended to be another old woman. And she went over the seven mountains to the seven dwarfs, knocked on the door and said:
I sell good stuff! Selling!
The Snow Maiden looked out the window and said:
You can probably take a look, - said the old woman, took out a poisonous comb and, lifting it up, showed the Snow Maiden.
The girl liked him so much that she allowed herself to be deceived and opened the door. They agreed on a price, and the old woman said:
Well, now let me give you a good haircut.
Poor Snow Maiden, suspecting nothing, let the old woman comb her hair; but as soon as she touched her hair with a comb, the poison immediately began to act, and the girl fell senseless to the ground.
You, written beauty, - said the evil woman, - now the end has come to you! And having said this, she left.
But, fortunately, it was towards evening, and the seven dwarfs soon returned home. Noticing that the Snow Maiden was lying dead on the floor, they immediately suspected her stepmother of this, began to find out what was the matter, and found a poisonous comb; and as soon as they pulled him out, the Snow Maiden again came to her senses and told them about everything that had happened. Then the dwarfs once again warned her to be careful and not open the door to anyone.
And the queen returned home, sat down in front of the mirror and said:
Mirror, mirror on the wall
Who is the most beautiful in our country?
And the mirror answered, as before:
You queen are beautiful
But the Snow Maiden is there, beyond the mountains,
At the seven dwarfs outside the walls,
A thousand times richer in beauty!
Hearing what the mirror was saying, she trembled and trembled all over with anger.
The Snow Maiden must die, she shouted, even if it cost me my own life!
And she went to a secret room where no one ever entered, and prepared there a poisonous, poisonous apple. It was very beautiful in appearance, white with red dots, and anyone who saw it would want to eat it; but whoever ate even a piece would certainly die.
When the apple was ready, the queen made up her face, dressed as a peasant woman and set off on her way - over the seven mountains, to the seven dwarfs. She knocked; The Snow Maiden stuck her head out the window and said:
It was not ordered to let anyone into the house - seven dwarfs forbade me to do so.
It is correct, - answered the peasant woman, - but where will I put my apples? Do you want me to give you one of them?
No, - said the Snow Maiden, - I was not ordered to take anything.
Are you afraid of poison? asked the old woman. - Look, I will cut the apple into two halves: you will eat the ruddy one, and I will eat the white one.
And the apple was made so cunningly that only its ruddy half was poisoned. The Snow Maiden wanted to taste a beautiful apple, and when she saw that the peasant woman was eating it, the girl could not resist, put her hand out of the window and took the poisoned half. As soon as she bit off a piece, she immediately fell dead to the ground. The queen looked at her with her terrible eyes, and, laughing loudly, said:
White as snow, ruddy as blood, black-haired as ebony! Now your dwarfs will never wake you up!
She returned home and began to ask the mirror:
Mirror, mirror on the wall
Who is the most beautiful in our country?
And the mirror answered at last:
You, queen, are the most beautiful in the whole country.
Then her envious heart calmed down, as far as such a heart can find peace.
The dwarfs, returning home in the evening, found the Snow Maiden lying on the ground, lifeless and dead. They picked her up and began to look for poison: they unlaced her, combed her hair, washed her with water and wine, but nothing helped - the poor girl, as she was dead, so she remained dead.
They put her in a coffin, all seven sat around her, began to mourn for her, and wept like this for three whole days. Then they decided to bury her, but she looked as if she were alive - her cheeks were still beautiful and ruddy.
And they said:
How can you bury it in the ground?
And they ordered that a glass coffin be made for her, so that she could be seen from all sides, and they put her in that coffin, wrote on it in golden letters her name and that she was the king's daughter. They carried the coffin to the mountain, and always one of them remained on guard with her. And animals and birds also appeared to mourn the Snow Maiden: first an owl, then a raven, and finally a dove.
And for a long, long time the Snow Maiden lay in her coffin, and it seemed that she was sleeping - she was white as snow, blush like blood, and black-haired like ebony.
But one day it happened that the prince drove into that forest and ended up in the house of dwarfs to spend the night there. He saw a coffin on the mountain, and in it a beautiful Snow Maiden, and read what was written on it in golden letters. And then he said to the dwarfs:
Give me this coffin, I will give you everything you want for it.
But the dwarfs answered:
We won't give it up even for all the gold in the world.
Then he said:
So give it to me - I can’t live without seeing the Snow Maiden, I will deeply respect and honor her as my beloved.
When he said this, the good dwarfs took pity on him and gave him the coffin; and the prince ordered his servants to carry him on their shoulders. But it so happened that they stumbled in the bushes, and from the concussion a piece of the poisoned apple fell out of the Snow Maiden's throat. Then she opened her eyes, lifted the lid of the coffin, and then got up from it and came to life again.
Oh my God, where am I? - she exclaimed.
The king, overjoyed, replied:
You are with me, - and told her everything that happened, and said: - You are dearer to me than anything in the world; come with me to my father's castle and you will be my wife.
The Snow Maiden agreed and went with him; and they celebrated the marriage with great pomp.
But the evil stepmother of the Snow Maiden was also invited to the wedding feast. She dressed up in a beautiful dress, went to the mirror and said:
+1Information for parents: The Snow Maiden is one of the most popular tales of the Brothers Grimm. It tells the story of a beautiful princess whose mother has died and her father has remarried. The stepmother did not take a liking to the beautiful young princess. The fairy tale "The Snow Maiden" will be interesting for children aged 5 to 8 years before going to bed.
Read the story of the Snow Maiden
On a winter day, while the snow was falling in flakes, one queen sat and sewed under the window, which had an ebony frame. She sewed and looked at the snow, and pricked her finger with a needle until it bled. And the queen thought to herself: “Oh, if I had a baby white as snow, ruddy like blood, and black-haired like ebony!”
And soon her desire was definitely fulfilled: her daughter was born to her - white as snow, ruddy like blood, and black-haired; and was named Snegurochka for her whiteness.
And as soon as the daughter was born, the queen mother died. A year later, the king married another. This second wife of his was a beauty, but also proud and arrogant, and could not stand that anyone could equal her in beauty.
Moreover, she had such a magic mirror in front of which she liked to stand, admire herself and say:
Then the mirror answered her:
You, queen, are dearer to everyone here.
And she walked away from the mirror pleased - pleased and knew that the mirror would not tell her lies.
The Snow Maiden, meanwhile, was growing up and getting prettier, and by the age of eight she was as beautiful as a clear day. And when the queen once asked the mirror:
Mirror, mirror, speak quickly,
Who is the most beautiful here, who is the sweetest of all?
The mirror answered her:
You, queen, are beautiful;
And yet the Snow Maiden is taller than beauty.
The queen was horrified, turned yellow, turned green with envy. From that hour, when she used to see the Snow Maiden, her heart was ready to burst into pieces from anger. And envy with pride, like weeds, began to grow in her heart, and grow wider and wider, so that, finally, neither day nor night did she have peace.
And then one day she called her kennel and said: “Take this girl out into the forest so that she doesn’t come across my eyes again. Kill her, and as proof that my order has been carried out, bring me her lung and liver."
The huntsman obeyed, led the girl out of the palace into the forest, and as he took out his hunting knife to pierce the innocent heart of the Snow Maiden, she began to cry and ask: “Kind man, do not kill me; I will run away into the dense forest and never return home.
The houndsman took pity on the pretty girl and said: “Well, go. God be with you, poor girl!” And he himself thought: “Wild animals will quickly tear you to pieces in the forest,” and yet it was like a stone fell from his heart when he spared the child.
Just at that time a young deer jumped out of the bushes; the kennel pinned him, took out a lung with a liver and brought them to the queen as proof that her order had been carried out.
The cook was ordered to salt and boil them, and the evil woman ate them, imagining that she was eating the lung and liver of the Snow Maiden.
And then the poor thing found herself in a dense forest alone - all alone, and she became so scared that she examined every leaf on the trees, and did not know what to do and how to be.
And she started to run, and ran over sharp stones and thorny bushes, and wild animals scurried past her back and forth, but they did not do her any harm.
She ran while her frisky legs carried almost until evening; when she was tired, she saw a small hut and entered it.
Everything in this hut was small, but it was so clean and beautiful that it was impossible to say. In the middle of the hut stood a table with seven small plates, and on each plate a spoon, and then seven knives and forks, and with each utensil a glass. Near the table were seven cribs, covered with snow-white bedding, in a row.
The Snow Maiden, who was very hungry and thirsty, tasted vegetables and bread from each plate and drank a drop of wine from each glass, because she did not want to take everything from one. Then, tired from walking, she tried to lie down on one of the beds; but not one suited her in measure; one was too long, the other too short, and only the seventh was just right for her. In it she lay down, crossed herself and fell asleep.
When it got completely dark, her owners came to the hut - seven gnomes who were rummaging in the mountains, extracting ore. They lit their seven candles, and when it became light in the hut, they saw that someone had visited them, because not everything was in the order in which they had left everything in their dwelling.
The first one said, "Who was sitting on my chair?" Second: "Who ate my plate?" Third: "Who broke off a piece of my bread?" Fourth: "Who has tasted my food?" Fifth: "Who ate with my fork?" Sixth: "Who cut with my knife?" Seventh: "Who drank from my cup?"
Then the first one turned around and saw that there was a small wrinkle on his bed; he immediately said: "Who touched my bed?" Everyone else ran to the beds and shouted: “Someone lay down in both mine and mine!”
And the seventh, looking into his bed, saw the sleeping Snow Maiden lying in it. He called the rest, and they ran and began to exclaim in amazement, and brought their seven candles to the bed to light the Snow Maiden. "Oh my god! they exclaimed. How beautiful this little one is! - and everyone was so delighted with her arrival that they did not dare to wake her up, and left her alone on that bed.
And the seventh gnome decided to spend the night like this: in the bed of each of his comrades, he had to sleep for one hour.
With the onset of morning, the Snow Maiden woke up and, seeing seven gnomes, got scared. They treated her very affectionately and asked her: “What is your name?” “My name is Snegurochka,” she answered. "How did you get into our house?" the gnomes asked her.
Then she told them that her stepmother ordered to kill her, and the kennel spared her - and so she ran all day until she came across their hut.
The gnomes said to her: “Would you like to look after our household chores - cook, wash for us, make beds, sew and knit? And if you do all this skillfully and neatly, then you can stay with us for a long time and will not suffer a lack of anything. - “If you please,” answered the Snow Maiden, “with great pleasure,” and stayed with them.
She kept the house of the gnomes in great order; in the morning they usually went to the mountains in search of copper and gold, in the evening they returned to their hut, and then food was always ready for them.
All day the Snow Maiden remained alone - alone in the house, and therefore the good gnomes warned her and said: “Beware of your stepmother! She will soon find out where you are, so do not let anyone into the house except us.
And the queen-stepmother, after she ate the lung and liver of the Snow Maiden, suggested that she was now the first beauty in the whole country, and said:
Mirror, mirror, speak quickly,
Who is the most beautiful here, who is the sweetest of all?
Then the mirror answered her:
You are beautiful queen
The queen was frightened; she knew that the mirror never lied, and she realized that the kennel had deceived her and that the Snow Maiden was alive.
And she began to think about how she would exterminate her stepdaughter, because envy did not give her peace and she certainly wanted to be the first beauty in the whole country.
When she finally came up with something, she painted her face, dressed as an old merchant and became completely unrecognizable.
In this form, she set off on her way over the seven mountains to the hut of the seven dwarfs, knocked on their door and shouted: “Various goods, cheap, corrupt!”
The Snow Maiden looked out of the window and shouted to the merchant:
“Hello, auntie, what are you selling?” - “A good product, of the first grade,” answered the merchant, “laces, multi-colored ribbons,” and she pulled out one lace woven from motley silk for display. “Well, of course, I can let this merchant in here,” thought the Snow Maiden, unlocked the door and bought herself a beautiful lace. “Uh, child,” the old woman said to the Snow Maiden, “who do you look like! Come here, let me lace you up properly!”
The Snow Maiden did not suggest anything bad, turned her back on the old woman and let her lace herself up with a new lace: she laced up quickly and so tightly that the Snow Maiden immediately took her breath away and she fell to the ground dead. “Well, now you won’t be the first beauty anymore!” - said the evil stepmother and hastily left.
Soon after that, in the evening, the seven dwarfs returned home and how frightened they were when they saw the Snow Maiden sprawled on the ground; moreover, she did not move, and did not stir, she was as if dead.
They lifted her up and, seeing that she had died from too tight lacing, immediately cut the lace, and she began to breathe again, at first a little, then completely came to life.
When the dwarves heard from her what had happened to her, they said: “This old merchant was your stepmother, the godless queen; beware and do not let anyone into the house in our absence.
And the evil woman, returning home, went to the mirror and asked:
Mirror, mirror, speak quickly,
Who is the most beautiful here, who is the sweetest of all?
And the mirror still answered her:
You are beautiful queen
But still the Snow Maiden, behind the mountain
Lives in the house of mountain gnomes,
Many will surpass you in beauty.
Hearing this, the evil stepmother was so frightened that all her blood rushed to her heart: she realized that the Snow Maiden had come to life again.
“Well, now,” she said, “I’ll think of something that will kill you right away!” - and with the help of various charms in which she was skilled, she made a poisonous comb. Then she changed clothes and assumed the image of another old woman.
She went over the seven mountains to the house of the seven dwarfs, knocked on their door and began to shout: “Goods, goods for sale!”
The Snow Maiden looked out of the window and said: “Come in, I don’t dare to let anyone into the house.” “Well, it’s true that you’re not forbidden to look at the goods,” said the old woman, pulled out a poisonous comb and showed it to the Snow Maiden. The girl liked the comb to such an extent that she allowed herself to be fooled and opened the door to the merchant.
When they agreed on the price, the old woman said: "Let me comb your hair properly." Nothing bad even entered the poor Snow Maiden's head, and she gave the old woman full freedom to comb her hair as she pleased; but as soon as she launched the comb into her hair, its poisonous properties acted, and the Snow Maiden lost consciousness. “Come on, you perfection of beauty! - said the evil woman. “Now it’s over with you,” and she walked away.
Fortunately, this happened in the evening, about the time when the dwarves returned home.
When they saw that the Snow Maiden was lying dead on the ground, they immediately suspected her stepmother, began to search around and found a poisonous comb in the girl's hair, and as soon as they took it out. The Snow Maiden came to her senses and told everything that had happened to her. Then they once again warned her to be careful and not open the door to anyone.
And meanwhile the queen, having returned home, stood in front of the mirror and said:
Mirror, mirror, speak quickly,
Who is the most beautiful here, who is the sweetest of all?
And the mirror answered her, as before:
You are beautiful queen
But still the Snow Maiden, behind the mountain
Lives in the house of mountain gnomes,
Many will surpass you in beauty.
When the queen heard this, she trembled with rage. “The Snow Maiden must die! - she exclaimed. “Even if I had to die with her!”
Then she retired to a secret closet, into which no one but her entered, and there she made a poisonous - poisonous apple. In appearance, the apple was wonderful, pouring, with ruddy barrels, so that everyone, looking at it, wanted to taste it, but just bite off a piece - and you will die.
When the apple was made, the queen painted her face, disguised herself as a peasant woman and went over the seven mountains to the seven dwarfs.
She knocked at their house, and the Snow Maiden put her head out the window and said: “I don’t dare to let anyone in here, seven gnomes forbade me.” - “What do I care about this? answered the peasant woman. Where will I go with my apples? Here's one, I'll give you one." “No,” answered the Snow Maiden, “I don’t dare to accept anything.” “Are you afraid of poison? asked the peasant woman. “So, look, I’ll cut the apple in two: you eat the ruddy half, and I’ll eat the other myself.” And her apple was so skillfully cooked that only the ruddy half of it was poisoned.
The Snow Maiden really wanted to taste this wonderful apple, and when she saw that the peasant woman was eating her half, she could no longer refrain from this desire, stretched out her hand from the window and took the poisoned half of the apple.
But as soon as she bit off a piece of it, she fell dead on the floor. Then the queen-stepmother looked at her with malicious eyes, laughed out loud and said: “Here you are as white as snow, and ruddy as blood, and dark as ebony! Well, this time the dwarves won’t be able to revive you!”
And when she, having come home, stood in front of the mirror and asked:
Mirror, mirror, speak quickly,
Who is the most beautiful here, who is the sweetest of all? -
The mirror finally answered her:
You, queen, are the sweetest here.
Here only her envious heart calmed down, as far as, in general, an envious heart can calm down.
The gnomes, having returned home in the evening, found the Snow Maiden sprawled on the floor, lifeless, dead. They lifted her up, began to look for the cause of her death - they looked for poison, unlaced her dress, combed her hair, washed her with water and wine; however, nothing could help her. The Snow Maiden was dead and remained dead.
They put her in a coffin and, sitting all seven around her body, they began to mourn and mourned for exactly three days in a row.
Already they were going to bury her, but she seemed fresh in appearance, she was as if alive, even her cheeks burned with the same wonderful blush. The gnomes said: “No, we cannot lower her into the dark bowels of the earth,” and they ordered another, transparent crystal coffin for her, put the Snow Maiden in it, so that she could be seen from all sides, and on the lid they wrote her name and that she was a royal daughter.
Then they took the coffin to the top of the mountain, and one of the dwarves constantly remained on guard with him. And even animals, even birds, approaching the coffin, mourned the Snow Maiden: first an owl flew in, then a raven and, finally, a dove.
And for a long, long time the Snow Maiden lay in the coffin and did not change, and seemed to be sleeping, and was as before white as snow, ruddy as blood, dark as ebony.
It happened somehow that the prince drove into that forest and drove up to the house of the gnomes, intending to spend the night there. He saw the coffin on the mountain and the beautiful Snow Maiden in the coffin and read what was written on the lid of the coffin in gold letters.
Then he said to the dwarfs: "Give me the coffin, I will give you everything you want for it."
But the dwarfs answered: "We will not give him up for all the gold in the world." But the prince did not back down: “So give it to me, I can’t get enough of the Snow Maiden: it seems that life will not be sweet to me without her! Give it - and I will honor and appreciate it as a dear friend!
The good gnomes took pity on hearing such an ardent speech from the lips of the prince, and gave him the coffin of the Snow Maiden.
The king ordered his servants to carry the coffin on their shoulders. They carried him and stumbled over some kind of twig, and from this concussion the piece of poisoned apple that she bit off jumped out of the Snow Maiden's throat.
As a piece of an apple jumped out, so she opened her eyes, lifted the lid of the coffin and herself rose alive in it - alive.
The Snow Maiden agreed and went with him, and their wedding was played with great brilliance and splendor.
The evil stepmother of the Snow Maiden was also invited to this celebration. As soon as she dressed up for the wedding, she stood in front of the mirror and said:
Mirror, mirror, speak quickly,
Who is the most beautiful here, who is the sweetest of all?
But the mirror answered:
You are beautiful queen
And yet the newlywed is taller than beauty.
The evil woman, hearing this, uttered a terrible curse, and then suddenly she became so frightened, so frightened that she could not control herself.
At first she did not want to go to the wedding at all, however, she could not calm down and went to see the young queen. As soon as she crossed the threshold of the wedding chamber, she recognized the Snow Maiden in the queen and could not move from her place from horror.
But for her, iron shoes had long been prepared and placed on burning coals ... They were taken with pincers, dragged into the room and placed in front of the evil stepmother. Then they made her put her feet into these red-hot shoes and dance in them until she fell dead on the ground.