Boots and His Brothers
Encyclopedia
Boots and His Brothers is a Norwegian fairy tale
collected by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen
and Jørgen Moe
in their Norske Folkeeventyr
.
, and had no well that held water year round. He declared that whoever cut down the oak and dug the well would have the princess and half the kingdom.
Three brothers, who had set out because their father was too poor to give them anything, were going to his palace. The youngest son
heard something hewing, and went off. He found an axe
that was hewing
by itself, and it said that it had been waiting for him. He took it and went back, telling his brother that it had been an axe, and endured their ridicule. Again, he heard something digging, found a shovel digging by itself, and took it as well; then he wondered where a brook came from, and found not a spring but a walnut
, which he stopped up with moss.
When they reached the king, he had decreed that whoever tried and failed would have his ears clipped off and be put on a deserted island. The two older tried, failed, and suffered the punishment. The youngest set the axe to cut down the tree, the spade to dig the well, and the nut to fill it.
The story says that it was just as well that the brothers lost their ears, because it spared them hearing people's comments that their youngest brother had not been a fool to wonder.
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
collected by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen
Peter Christen Asbjørnsen
Peter Christen Asbjørnsen was a Norwegian writer and scholar. He and Jørgen Engebretsen Moe were collectors of Norwegian folklore...
and Jørgen Moe
Jørgen Moe
right|thumb|Norske Folkeeventyr Asbjørnsen and Moe Jørgen Engebretsen Moe was a Norwegian bishop and author...
in their Norske Folkeeventyr
Norske Folkeeventyr
Norwegian Folktales is a collection of Norwegian folktales and legends by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe. It is also known as Asbjørnsen and Moe, after the collectors.-Asbjørnsen and Moe:...
.
Synopsis
A king had his castle shadowed by a great oak treeOak Tree
Oak Tree may refer to:*Oak, the tree*Oak Tree, County Durham, a village in County Durham, England*The Oaktree Foundation, a youth-run aid and development agency*Oak Tree National, golf club in Edmond, Oklahoma...
, and had no well that held water year round. He declared that whoever cut down the oak and dug the well would have the princess and half the kingdom.
Three brothers, who had set out because their father was too poor to give them anything, were going to his palace. The youngest son
Youngest son
The youngest son is a stock character in fairy tales, where he features as the hero. He is usually the third son, but sometimes there are more brothers, and sometimes he has only one; usually, they have no sisters....
heard something hewing, and went off. He found an axe
Axe
The axe, or ax, is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood; to harvest timber; as a weapon; and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol...
that was hewing
Hewing
Hewing is the process of converting sections of a tree stem from its rounded natural form into a form with more or less flat surfaces using primarily, among other tools, an axe or axes...
by itself, and it said that it had been waiting for him. He took it and went back, telling his brother that it had been an axe, and endured their ridicule. Again, he heard something digging, found a shovel digging by itself, and took it as well; then he wondered where a brook came from, and found not a spring but a walnut
Walnut
Juglans is a plant genus of the family Juglandaceae, the seeds of which are known as walnuts. They are deciduous trees, 10–40 meters tall , with pinnate leaves 200–900 millimetres long , with 5–25 leaflets; the shoots have chambered pith, a character shared with the wingnuts , but not the hickories...
, which he stopped up with moss.
When they reached the king, he had decreed that whoever tried and failed would have his ears clipped off and be put on a deserted island. The two older tried, failed, and suffered the punishment. The youngest set the axe to cut down the tree, the spade to dig the well, and the nut to fill it.
The story says that it was just as well that the brothers lost their ears, because it spared them hearing people's comments that their youngest brother had not been a fool to wonder.