Tattercoats
Encyclopedia
Tattercoats is an English fairy tale
collected by Joseph Jacobs
in his More English Fairy Tales.
It is Aarne-Thompson type 510B, the persecuted heroine. Others of this type include Cap O' Rushes
, Catskin
, Little Cat Skin
, Allerleirauh
, The King who Wished to Marry His Daughter
, The She-Bear
, Donkeyskin
, Mossycoat
, The Princess That Wore A Rabbit-Skin Dress
, and The Bear
.
Her grandfather was invited to a royal ball. He had his hair sheared off, for it had bound him to his chair, and made preparations to go. Tattercoats's old nurse begged him to take her, but he refused. Her gooseherd friend proposed they should go and watch. He played his pipe, and they danced merrily along the way. A richly dressed young man asked them the way to the city. When he heard they were going there, walked along with them, and asked Tattercoats to marry him. She told him to choose his bride at the king's ball. He told her to come, just as she was, to the king's ball at midnight, and he would dance with her.
She went, and the gooseherd went with all his geese. Everyone stared, but the prince, who was the finely dressed young man, rose up and told his father that this was the woman he wished to marry. The gooseherd played on his pipe, and all Tattercoats's clothing was transformed into shining robes, and the geese into pages holding her train. Everyone approved, and the prince married her.
The gooseherd vanished and was never seen again.
Tattercoats's grandfather, because he had vowed never to look on her, went back to his castle and is still mourning there.
It is also unusual in the hero in 510B usually finds the heroine repulsive in her poor clothing: whether a catskin coat in Catskin
, an overdress of rushes in Cap O' Rushes
, or a gown of all kinds of fur, in Allerleirauh
.
The gooseherd, despite his unusual place in the opening of the tales, acts the function of the donor
.
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 Joseph Jacobs
Joseph Jacobs
Joseph Jacobs was a folklorist, literary critic and historian. His works included contributions to the Jewish Encyclopaedia, translations of European works, and critical editions of early English literature...
in his More English Fairy Tales.
It is Aarne-Thompson type 510B, the persecuted heroine. Others of this type include Cap O' Rushes
Cap O' Rushes
"Cap-o'-Rushes" is an English fairy tale published by Joseph Jacobs in English Fairy Tales.Jacobs gives his source as "Contributed by Mrs. Walter-Thomas to "Suffolk Notes and Queries" of the Ipswich Journal, published by Mr. Lang in Longman's Magazine, vol. xiii., also in Folk-Lore September, 1890"...
, Catskin
Catskin
Catskin is an English fairy tale collected by Joseph Jacobs, in More English Fairy Tales. Marian Roalfe Cox, in her pioneering study of Cinderella, identified as one of the basic types, the Unnatural Father, contrasting with Cinderella itself and Cap O' Rushes.It is Aarne-Thompson type 510B,...
, Little Cat Skin
Little Cat Skin
Little Catskin is an American fairy tale from Kentucky, collected by Marie Campbell in Tales from the Cloud Walking Country, listing her informant as Big Nelt....
, Allerleirauh
Allerleirauh
Allerleirauh is a fairy tale recorded by the Brothers Grimm. Since the second edition published in 1819, it has been recorded as Tale no. 65. Andrew Lang included it in The Green Fairy Book....
, The King who Wished to Marry His Daughter
The King who Wished to Marry His Daughter
"The King Who Wished to Marry His Daughter" is a Scottish fairy tale collected by John Francis Campbell in Popular Tales of the West Highlands, listing his informant as Ann Darroch from Islay.It is Aarne-Thompson type 510B, unnatural love...
, The She-Bear
The She-Bear
"The She-bear" is an Italian literary fairy tale, written by Giambattista Basile in his 1634 work, the Pentamerone.Ruth Manning-Sanders included it in A Book of Princes and Princesses....
, Donkeyskin
Donkeyskin
Donkeyskin is a French fairy tale told by Charles Perrault.Andrew Lang included it, somewhat euphemized, in The Grey Fairy Book.It is Aarne-Thompson folktale type 510B, unnatural love...
, Mossycoat
Mossycoat
Mossycoat is a fairy tale collected by Katherine M. Briggs and Ruth I. Tongue in Folktales of England.Also included within A Book of British Fairy Tales by Alan Garner....
, The Princess That Wore A Rabbit-Skin Dress
The Princess That Wore A Rabbit-Skin Dress
"The Princess That Wore a Rabbit-skin Dress" is an American fairy tale from Kentucky, collected by Marie Campbell in Tales from the Cloud Walking Country, listing her informant as Uncle Tom Dixon.It is Aarne-Thompson type 510B...
, and The Bear
The Bear (fairy tale)
The Bear is a fairy tale collected by Andrew Lang in The Grey Fairy Book.It is Aarne-Thompson classification system type 510B, unnatural love...
.
Synopsis
A great lord had no living relatives except a little granddaughter, and because her mother, his daughter, had died in childbirth, he swore that he would never look at her. He sat in his castle and mourned his dead daughter. The granddaughter grew up quite neglected, and was called "Tattercoats" for her ragged clothing. She spent her days in the fields with only a gooseherd for her companion.Her grandfather was invited to a royal ball. He had his hair sheared off, for it had bound him to his chair, and made preparations to go. Tattercoats's old nurse begged him to take her, but he refused. Her gooseherd friend proposed they should go and watch. He played his pipe, and they danced merrily along the way. A richly dressed young man asked them the way to the city. When he heard they were going there, walked along with them, and asked Tattercoats to marry him. She told him to choose his bride at the king's ball. He told her to come, just as she was, to the king's ball at midnight, and he would dance with her.
She went, and the gooseherd went with all his geese. Everyone stared, but the prince, who was the finely dressed young man, rose up and told his father that this was the woman he wished to marry. The gooseherd played on his pipe, and all Tattercoats's clothing was transformed into shining robes, and the geese into pages holding her train. Everyone approved, and the prince married her.
The gooseherd vanished and was never seen again.
Tattercoats's grandfather, because he had vowed never to look on her, went back to his castle and is still mourning there.
Commentary
This is an unusual variant on 510B, in which the heroine is usually persecuted by her father rather than her grandfather, and in which she runs away prior to the ball to escape him.It is also unusual in the hero in 510B usually finds the heroine repulsive in her poor clothing: whether a catskin coat in Catskin
Catskin
Catskin is an English fairy tale collected by Joseph Jacobs, in More English Fairy Tales. Marian Roalfe Cox, in her pioneering study of Cinderella, identified as one of the basic types, the Unnatural Father, contrasting with Cinderella itself and Cap O' Rushes.It is Aarne-Thompson type 510B,...
, an overdress of rushes in Cap O' Rushes
Cap O' Rushes
"Cap-o'-Rushes" is an English fairy tale published by Joseph Jacobs in English Fairy Tales.Jacobs gives his source as "Contributed by Mrs. Walter-Thomas to "Suffolk Notes and Queries" of the Ipswich Journal, published by Mr. Lang in Longman's Magazine, vol. xiii., also in Folk-Lore September, 1890"...
, or a gown of all kinds of fur, in Allerleirauh
Allerleirauh
Allerleirauh is a fairy tale recorded by the Brothers Grimm. Since the second edition published in 1819, it has been recorded as Tale no. 65. Andrew Lang included it in The Green Fairy Book....
.
The gooseherd, despite his unusual place in the opening of the tales, acts the function of the donor
Donor (fairy tale)
In fairy tales, a donor is a character that tests the hero and provides magical assistances to the hero when he succeeds.The fairy godmother is a well-known form of this character...
.