Hansel+and+Gretel

= **Hansel & Gretel ** =

**Summary of the Original Tale**
Hansel & Gretel are children of a Woodcutter. A famine starts and the children's Stepmother tries to tell the father that their lives will be easier without the children if they are gone, having two less mouths to feed. The father is reluctant to submit, however he decides to go with her plan. They are both unaware that Gretel overhears their conversation, and she returns to tell Hansel what is to become of them. They gather pebbles through the night to use later, laying a trail to get back to their home once they are deep into the woods. The next morning, they are taken into the forest and left there to die, though they find their way back once the moon illuminates the pebbles. The Woodcutter and his wife are stunned, and they decide to take them even deeper the next day, locking their door so they cannot collect any pebbles. The morning of going back into the forest, Hansel grabs a slice of bread and lays a trail of breadcrumbs so they can again find their way back, but they find that birds have eaten the bread and they are lost in the woods. After wandering around, they find a cottage made of cake and bread, greedily beginning to eat the rooftop. A witch emerges, but promises the children warm beds and food. Little do they know that the witch has built this house specifically to entice children into her clutches so that she may eat them. She locks Hansel in an iron cage to fatten him up and makes a slave out of Gretel. The witch feeds Hansel regularly, but he tries to fool her with a chicken bone, making it seem like he is still too skinny to eat. After weeks of this, she grew impatient and decided to eat him anyway, "be he fat or lean." She prepares the oven for Hansel, thinking that she has enough of an appetite to eat Gretel as well. The witch asks Gretel to check the oven and see if the flames are high enough, and Gretel catches on to what she is doing, lying that she does not understand. The witch demonstrates, sticking her head in the oven and Gretel pushes her in and locks the doors, burning her alive. She unlocks Hansel, and they stumble upon a treasure chest, containing jewels and gold. They pack as many goods as they can in knapsacks and make their way back home to their father. They return to find that their stepmother has mysteriously died and their father has not known what to do with his grief, lamenting the loss of his children as well. He is elated to see them, along with toting the witch's wealth, and the live richer than ever.

[|Original Tale (Written by Grimms Brothers in 1812)]
Modern Tale:
 * __**The True Story of Hansel and Gretel**__ by Louise Murphy (Penguin, 2003). When Nazis occupied, two Jewish children try to find safety in a dense forest. A woman named Magda, considered by her neighboring villagers to be a witch, is determined to save them from a Nazi officer who arrives in the area.
 * **__The Eye of the Warlock__** by P.W. Catanese (Aladdin, 2005). This is part of Catanese’s series called Further Adventures -- sequels to well known fairy tales. The two step-sisters of a young man named Rudi are kidnapped by the warlock who was the father of the witch in Hansel and Gretel. In return for their release, Rudi must bring him Hansel.
 * **__The Magic Circle__** by Donna Napoli (Dutton Books, 1993)A penetrating look at superstition, witchcraft and medieval religion. A woman, devoted to her children and God, is falsely accused of witchcraft and placed under a curse that makes her crave the flesh of children. Hansel and Gretel are woven into the story in a unique way.
 * __**Mother Love**__ by Loise Hawes(Houghton Mifflin, 2008) Gretel's take on the adventure she shared with her brother Hansel

Tale from another country:
 * [|Baba Yaga (Russia)]
 * A wicked stepmother sends her step son and daughter to visit her grandmother, who is the Baba Yoga. The Baba-Yaga is a witch-like character who flies around on a giant broomstick. She kidnaps and eats small children, and lives in a hut that stands on chicken legs. The children end up running away to their father and tell him everything that happens so he sent the stepmother away and lived a new life.


 * [|Johnnie and Grizzle (European Tale)]
 * A farmer and his wife were poor so they decided to leave their 2 children in the middle of a forest. But Johnnie left a trail of pebbles so that they could find their way home. The next day the farmer took the kids back into the forest and Johnnie left a trail of bread crumbs, but the birds had eaten it. So the kids wandered and found a house made of candy. The old woman fattened Johnnie up and made Grizzle work. Eventually, Grizzle pushed the old woman into the oven and they ran away with the old woman chasing them. But they got away and found home, finding out that the farmer and the wife now have a lot of money and had been looking for the kids.


 * [|The Babes in the Woods (Appalachia)]
 * The stepmother didn't like her stepchildren so she pretended that they were out of food so her and her husband would have to decide to leave their kids in the woods. The boy left a trail of bread crumbs, but the birds had eaten them. The kids found a small hut with an old witch. The old witch was about to cook them, but the girl shoved the witch in the oven and ran away with her brother. They saw their father looking for them in the forest because it ends up that he found out what the stepmother was up to so he had beaten her nearly to death.


 * [|Molly Whuppie (English Tale)]
 * Poor parents left their 3 children in the woods. The children found an old woman's house who owns a giant . In the middle of the night, the youngest child, Molly, noticed that the woman put ropes around all the girls' necks. So Molly took them off and they all ran away. They ran until they found a giant house, being the King's house. Molly told him the story and he wanted her to go back and steal the Giant's sword. She steals he sword, but then the King also wants the Giant's ring. So Molly steals the ring, but then the King wants the Giant's purse. So Molly tries to steal the purse, but the Giant catches her and puts her in a sack. Molly frees herself from the sack and is free. All three girls are now married to the King's sons.

>>
 * [|The Two Children and the Witch (Portugal)]
 * Two children were looking for their mom in the woods when they came across an old woman frying cakes. She locked the 2 children in a box and fed them until they got fat. They were then taken out of the box and were told to heat the oven. The woman wanted the children to sit on a peel in front of the oven, but they asked her to show them how to sit on it. So the woman sat down and the kids shoved the peel into the oven and she burned. The children now own the shed and everything in it.

Parody:
 * [|Hansel and Gretel: The Spoof]
 * The parents decide to leave the children in the woods by themselves so that the entire family doesn’t have to starve during the famine. Their step-mom had no issues with it but their father did. They start walking through to woods for an hour when the wolf from little red riding hood appears. The children explain to the wolf that he is lost and continue on their way. Two hours later they come upon the candy house. When the children ell asleep the old woman carries Hansel off into a cage. She tells Gretel to start cooking for her brother to fatten him up. Gretel shows the witch the Grimm’s brother tale and still outsmarts the witch and puts her in the oven. Then, they steal her jewels and go home to their father.

About the Brothers Grimm Version:
 * [|Hansel and Gretel]
 * The Brothers Grimm wrote the original story of Hansel and Gretel. This link includes products related to the story, such as dolls and coloring books. It also talks about the Brothers Grimm and their history. They began their work, not with children in mind, but to document the origins and development of language. There are more links to pages about the story.

**Articles**
[|Hansel and Gretel: A Tale of Childhood Terror Tamed by Time] [|SurLaLune] Annotations for Hansel and Gretel, describes different versions of Hansel and Gretel from other cultures and describes how everything came to be. [|Hansel and Gretel: Light on the Fright] A NY Times article about a television adaptation, as well as an opera and play. [|Hansel and Gretel in 3D (2011)] There is a new movie coming out next year directed by Michael Bay (Transformers 1&2)
 * The original story was written by the Grimm Brothers and has since been altered into many different versions. The story, like many others, is based on stereotypes of people during that certain time period. The Grimm Brothers tried their best to make the ending to the story happy and appropriate for all age groups.

**Mass Media**
The following are all movies based on the Grimms Brother version of Hansel and Gretel:
 * 1987 movie, director Len Talan
 * 2002 movie, director Gary J. Tunnicliffe
 * 2007 movie, South Korea Horror Film
 * 1982 short film by Tim Burton
 * 2011 movie coming out in 3D

**Blog Posts**
[|Classical Review] A Review of Humperdink’s Hansel and Gretel based opera. [|Fairy Tale Channel] Describes the story of Hansel and Gretel and analyzes the characters [|Mom's Blog] Parents opinions on whether or not the Story of Hansel and Gretel is appropriate for children.

**Videos**
[|Lotte Reiniger] [|Woody Woodpecker Cartoon]

**Podcasts/iTunes/iMovies/other**
[|Free Audiobooks for Children from iTunes]

[|Tim Burton's The Exhibition Audio Tour]

**Corresponding Criticism**
[|Litcriticism.doc]

This story focuses on an impoverished family. This time, birds have eaten the bread crumb trail, and so Hansel and Gretel cannot retrace their steps. As the hungry children wander through the forest, they discover a miraculous sight—a cottage constructed entirely of candies and cake. As the story proceeds, it becomes clear that the witch's intentions toward the children are not altruistic. As the children discover the threat the witch poses, Gretel manages to trick the witch inside the cottage's oven, where she meets a fiery death. Hansel and Gretel then return home bearing their captor's riches. The tale of "Hansel and Gretel" carries some cautions standard to fairy tales. The parents dispose of their children for the prospect of fuller bellies, the children enter harm's way by yielding to the allure of a house made of sweets, and the witch, who wishes to feed on the orphaned children, finds herself cooked in an oven.

[|maternal cannibalism]

**Critical Lenses**

 * __Marxist Criticism__ : Gretel has power in this story because she is not locked up in the cage. She uses this power by setting up the old woman near the oven and pushing her in. This saves Hansel and Gretel.
 * __Psychological Criticism__ : The traditional aspect of mind is most prominent in the father because he only thinks about how there will be less people to feed, rather than using his heart and keeping his children. The modern psychological concept such as the unconscious is seen in the story. The stepmother has the "hidden desire" to get rid of the children. But she covers up her hate by suggesting that the father gets rid of them himself for "money" purposes. Again, the traditional aspect of mind is seen in the stepmother because she clearly does not have a heart or soul in this story.