Folk- and fairy tales hand down a morality and principles for living together in a society. Since greed is such a wide-spread human trait, it became one of the most famous motives in folk and fairy tales. The uncontrolled longing or desire to gain and accumulate more food, wealth, prestige by few can easily spoil…
Category: Norway
THE MASTER-SMITH (Popular Tales from the Norse) By SIR GEORGE WEBBE DASENT
Once on a time, in the days when our Lord and St Peter used to wander on earth, they came to a smith’s house. He had made a bargain with the Devil, that the fiend should have him after seven years, but during that time he was to be the master of all masters in…
HOW ONE WENT OUT TO WOO (Popular Tales from the Norse) By SIR GEORGE WEBBE DASENT
Once on a time there was a lad who went out to woo him a wife. Amongst other places, he came to a farm-house, where the household were little better than beggars; but when the wooer came in, they wanted to make out that they were well to do, as you may guess. Now the…
THE COCK AND HEN (Popular Tales from the Norse) By SIR GEORGE WEBBE DASENT
(In this tale the notes of the Cock and Hen must be imitated.) Hen—You promise me shoes year after year, year after year, and yet I get no shoes! Cock—You shall have them, never fear! Henny penny! Hen—I lay egg after egg, egg after egg, and yet I go about barefoot! Cock—Well, take your eggs,…
PRINCESS ON THE GLASS HILL (Popular Tales from the Norse) By SIR GEORGE WEBBE DASENT
Once on a time there was a man who had a meadow, which lay high up on the hill-side, and in the meadow was a barn, which he had built to keep his hay in. Now, I must tell you, there hadn’t been much in the barn for the last year or two, for every…
THE CAT ON THE DOVREFELL (Popular Tales from the Norse) By SIR GEORGE WEBBE DASENT
Once on a time there was a man up in Finnmark who had caught a great white bear, which he was going to take to the king of Denmark. Now, it so fell out, that he came to the Dovrefell just about Christmas Eve, and there he turned into a cottage where a man lived,…