East of the Sun and West of the Moon
Encyclopedia
East of the Sun and West of the Moon is a Norwegian
folk tale.
East of the Sun and West of the Moon was collected by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen
and Jørgen Moe
. It is Aarne-Thompson type 425A, the search for the lost husband; other tales of this type include Black Bull of Norroway
, The King of Love
, The Brown Bear of Norway
, The Daughter of the Skies
, The Enchanted Pig
, The Tale of the Hoodie
, Master Semolina, The Sprig of Rosemary
, The Enchanted Snake
, and White-Bear-King-Valemon
. The Swedish version is called Prince Hat under the Ground
.
It was included by Andrew Lang
in The Blue Fairy Book.
castle. At night, he takes off his bear form in order to come to her bed as a man, although the lack of light means that she never sees him.
When she grows homesick, the bear agrees that she might go home as long as she agrees that she will never speak with her mother alone, but only when other people are about. At home, they welcome her, and her mother makes persistent attempts to speak with her alone, finally succeeding and persuading her to tell the whole tale. Hearing it, her mother insists that the White Bear must really be a troll
, gives her some candles, and tells her to light them at night, to see what is sharing her bed.
She obeys, and finds he is a highly attractive prince, but she spills three drops of the melted tallow on him, waking him. He tells her that if she held out a year, he would have been free, but now he must go to his wicked stepmother, who enchanted him into this shape
and lives in a castle east of the sun and west of the moon, and marry her hideous daughter
.
In the morning, she finds that the palace has vanished. She sets out in search of him. Coming to a great mountain, she finds an old woman playing with a golden apple. She asks if she knows the way to the castle east of the sun and west of the moon. The old woman cannot tell her, but lends her a horse to reach a neighbor who might know, and gives her the apple. The neighbor is sitting outside another mountain, with a golden carding-comb. She, also, does not know the way to the castle east of the sun and west of the moon, but lends her a horse to reach a neighbor who might know, and gives her the carding-comb. The third
neighbor has a golden spinning wheel. She, also, does not know the way to the castle east of the sun and west of the moon, but lends her a horse to reach the East Wind and gives her the spinning wheel.
The East Wind has never been to the castle east of the sun and west of the moon, but his brother the West Wind might have, being stronger. He takes her to the West Wind. The West Wind does the same, bringing her to the South Wind; the South Wind does the same, bringing her to the North Wind.
The North Wind reports that he once blew an aspen leaf there, and was exhausted after, but he will take her if she really wants to go. She does, and so he does.
The next morning, she takes out the golden apple. The daughter who was to marry the prince sees it and wants to buy it. The girl agrees, if she can spend the night with the prince. The daughter agrees but gives the prince a sleeping drink, so that the girl cannot wake him, and does the same the next night, when it was the price of the carding comb.
But trying to wake the prince, she had wept and called on him, and some imprisoned townspeople in the castle told the prince of it, and the third
night, in return for the golden spinning wheel, the princess brings the drink, but the prince does not drink it, and so is awake. He tells her that she can save him: he will declare that he will not marry anyone who cannot wash the tallow drops from his shirt since troll
s, such as his stepmother and her daughter, cannot do it. So instead, he will call her in, and she will be able to do it, so she will marry him.
The plan works, and the trolls, in a rage, burst. So the prince and his bride freed the prisoners captive there, and took the gold and silver, and left the castle east of the sun and west of the moon.
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
folk tale.
East of the Sun and West of the Moon was 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...
. It is Aarne-Thompson type 425A, the search for the lost husband; other tales of this type include Black Bull of Norroway
Black Bull of Norroway
The Black Bull of Norroway is a fairy tale collected by Joseph Jacobs in More English Fairy Tales.The language, including references to bannocks, would indicate a Scottish story teller, in this instance, Kenny Norman Macleod....
, The King of Love
The King of Love
The King of Love is an Italian fairy tale collected by Thomas Frederick Crane in Italian Popular Tales.It is Aarne-Thompson type 425A. Others of this type include The Black Bull of Norroway, The Brown Bear of Norway, The Daughter of the Skies, East of the Sun and West of the Moon, The Enchanted...
, The Brown Bear of Norway
The Brown Bear of Norway
The Brown Bear of Norway is a Scottish fairy tale collected by Fitzroy MacLean in West Highland Tales. Andrew Lang included it in The Lilac Fairy Book.It is Aarne-Thompson type 425A, the search for the lost husband...
, The Daughter of the Skies
The Daughter of the Skies
The Daughter of the Skies is a Scottish fairy tale collected by John Francis Campbell in Popular Tales of the West Highlands, listing his informant as James MacLauchlan, a servant from Islay.It is Aarne-Thompson type 425A...
, The Enchanted Pig
The Enchanted Pig
The Enchanted Pig is a Romanian fairy tale, collected in Rumanische Märchen and also by Petre Ispirescu in Legende sau basmele românilor. Andrew Lang included it in The Red Fairy Book.It is Aarne-Thompson type 425A, the search for the lost husband...
, The Tale of the Hoodie
The Tale of the Hoodie
The Tale of the Hoodie is a Scottish fairy tale, collected by John Francis Campbell in his Popular Tales of the West Highlands. Andrew Lang included it, as The Hoodie-Crow, in The Lilac Fairy Book....
, Master Semolina, The Sprig of Rosemary
The Sprig of Rosemary
The Sprig of Rosemary is a Spanish fairy tale collected by Dr. D. Francisco de S. Maspons y Labros in Cuentos Populars Catalans. Andrew Lang included it in The Pink Fairy Book.It is Aarne-Thompson type 425A, the search for the lost husband....
, The Enchanted Snake
The Enchanted Snake
The Enchanted Snake or The Snake is an Italian fairy tale. Giambattista Basile wrote a variant in the Pentamerone. Andrew Lang drew upon this variant, for inclusion in The Green Fairy Book....
, and White-Bear-King-Valemon
White-Bear-King-Valemon
White-Bear-King-Valemon is a Norwegian fairy tale collected by the artist August Schneider in 1870, after a peasant woman, Thore Aslaksdotter , in Setesdal. The tale was for the first time retold and published in Peter Christen Asbjørnsen's Norske Folke-Eventyr. Ny Samling...
. The Swedish version is called Prince Hat under the Ground
Prince Hat under the Ground
Prince Hat under the Ground is the Swedish version of an old Scandinavian fairy tale. The Norwegian version is called East of the Sun and West of the Moon....
.
It was included by Andrew Lang
Andrew Lang
Andrew Lang was a Scots poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectures at the University of St Andrews are named after him.- Biography :Lang was born in Selkirk...
in The Blue Fairy Book.
Synopsis
The White Bear approaches a poor peasant and asks if he will give him his youngest daughter; in return, he will make the man rich. The girl is reluctant, so the peasant asks the bear to return, and persuades her in the meantime. The White Bear takes her off to a rich and enchantedIncantation
An incantation or enchantment is a charm or spell created using words. An incantation may take place during a ritual, either a hymn or prayer, and may invoke or praise a deity. In magic, occultism, witchcraft it may be used with the intention of casting a spell on an object or a person...
castle. At night, he takes off his bear form in order to come to her bed as a man, although the lack of light means that she never sees him.
When she grows homesick, the bear agrees that she might go home as long as she agrees that she will never speak with her mother alone, but only when other people are about. At home, they welcome her, and her mother makes persistent attempts to speak with her alone, finally succeeding and persuading her to tell the whole tale. Hearing it, her mother insists that the White Bear must really be a troll
Troll
A troll is a supernatural being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore. In origin, the term troll was a generally negative synonym for a jötunn , a being in Norse mythology...
, gives her some candles, and tells her to light them at night, to see what is sharing her bed.
She obeys, and finds he is a highly attractive prince, but she spills three drops of the melted tallow on him, waking him. He tells her that if she held out a year, he would have been free, but now he must go to his wicked stepmother, who enchanted him into this shape
Shapeshifting
Shapeshifting is a common theme in mythology, folklore, and fairy tales. It is also found in epic poems, science fiction literature, fantasy literature, children's literature, Shakespearean comedy, ballet, film, television, comics, and video games...
and lives in a castle east of the sun and west of the moon, and marry her hideous daughter
False hero
The false hero is a stock character in fairy tales, and sometimes also in ballads. The character appears near the end of a story in order to claim to be the hero or heroine and is, therefore, always of the same sex as the hero or heroine. The false hero presents some claim to the position. By...
.
In the morning, she finds that the palace has vanished. She sets out in search of him. Coming to a great mountain, she finds an old woman playing with a golden apple. She asks if she knows the way to the castle east of the sun and west of the moon. The old woman cannot tell her, but lends her a horse to reach a neighbor who might know, and gives her the apple. The neighbor is sitting outside another mountain, with a golden carding-comb. She, also, does not know the way to the castle east of the sun and west of the moon, but lends her a horse to reach a neighbor who might know, and gives her the carding-comb. The third
Rule of three (writing)
The "rule of three" is a principle in writing that suggests that things that come in threes are inherently funnier, more satisfying, or more effective than other numbers of things. The reader/audience of this form of text is also more likely to consume information if it is written in groups of...
neighbor has a golden spinning wheel. She, also, does not know the way to the castle east of the sun and west of the moon, but lends her a horse to reach the East Wind and gives her the spinning wheel.
The East Wind has never been to the castle east of the sun and west of the moon, but his brother the West Wind might have, being stronger. He takes her to the West Wind. The West Wind does the same, bringing her to the South Wind; the South Wind does the same, bringing her to the North Wind.
The North Wind reports that he once blew an aspen leaf there, and was exhausted after, but he will take her if she really wants to go. She does, and so he does.
The next morning, she takes out the golden apple. The daughter who was to marry the prince sees it and wants to buy it. The girl agrees, if she can spend the night with the prince. The daughter agrees but gives the prince a sleeping drink, so that the girl cannot wake him, and does the same the next night, when it was the price of the carding comb.
But trying to wake the prince, she had wept and called on him, and some imprisoned townspeople in the castle told the prince of it, and the third
Rule of three (writing)
The "rule of three" is a principle in writing that suggests that things that come in threes are inherently funnier, more satisfying, or more effective than other numbers of things. The reader/audience of this form of text is also more likely to consume information if it is written in groups of...
night, in return for the golden spinning wheel, the princess brings the drink, but the prince does not drink it, and so is awake. He tells her that she can save him: he will declare that he will not marry anyone who cannot wash the tallow drops from his shirt since troll
Troll
A troll is a supernatural being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore. In origin, the term troll was a generally negative synonym for a jötunn , a being in Norse mythology...
s, such as his stepmother and her daughter, cannot do it. So instead, he will call her in, and she will be able to do it, so she will marry him.
The plan works, and the trolls, in a rage, burst. So the prince and his bride freed the prisoners captive there, and took the gold and silver, and left the castle east of the sun and west of the moon.
Retellings
- East of the Sun & West of the Moon,1994, play written by Tina Howe.
- East of the Sun & West of the Moon, written and illustrated by Kay Nielsen.
- East of the Sun & West of the Moon, written and illustrated by Mercer MayerMercer MayerMercer Mayer is an American children's book writer and illustrator. He has published over 300 books using a wide range of illustrative styles...
. - Once Upon a Winter's Night by Dennis L. McKiernanDennis L. McKiernanDennis Lester McKiernan, born , is an American writer best known for his high fantasy The Iron Tower. His genres include high fantasy , science fiction, horror fiction, and crime fiction.- Biography :...
- East by Edith PattouEdith PattouEdith Pattou is the author of several fantasy novels, including East, an ALA Top Ten Best Book for Young Adults. She is a graduate of the Francis W. Parker School, Scripps College , Claremont Graduate School and UCLA . She is married to Charles Emery, a professor of psychology at The Ohio State...
. - Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow, by Jessica Day George
- Enchanted: East of the sun, West of the moon by Nancy Madore.
- The Dancing Bears, 1954, by W. S. Merwin.
- Rabbit Ears ProductionsRabbit Ears ProductionsRabbit Ears Productions is a children's series that aired from 1984-1995 on PBS. The series features famous actors such as Robin Williams, Raul Julia, Laura Dern, Denzel Washington, Danny Glover, and others narrating classic children's classics either well-known in the United States or from around...
East of the Sun, West of the Moon by D.J. MacHale, illus. Vivienne Flesher. - IceIce (Durst book)Ice is a novel written by Sarah Beth Durst, a modernized retelling of the fairy tale East of the Sun and West of the Moon. It was a nominee for the Andre Norton Award in 2009.-Plot:...
by Sarah Beth Durst.
Film Adaptations
- The European film The Polar Bear King (Kvitebjørn Kong Valemon)
- In the early 1980s Don BluthDon BluthDonald Virgil "Don" Bluth is an American animator and independent studio owner. He is best known for his departure from The Walt Disney Company in 1979 and his subsequent directing of animated films such as The Secret of NIMH , An American Tail ,The Land Before Time , and All Dogs Go to Heaven ,...
Productions began work on an animated feature film entitled "East of the Sun and West of the Moon". Ultimately, the film was never made due to a loss of financial backing, even though the film was heavily into production at the time of its cancellation.
- Rabbit Ears ProductionsRabbit Ears ProductionsRabbit Ears Productions is a children's series that aired from 1984-1995 on PBS. The series features famous actors such as Robin Williams, Raul Julia, Laura Dern, Denzel Washington, Danny Glover, and others narrating classic children's classics either well-known in the United States or from around...
East of the Sun, West of the Moon Max von SydowMax von SydowMax von Sydow is a Swedish actor. He has also held French citizenship since 2002. He has starred in many films and had supporting roles in dozens more...
narrates the Rabbit Ears ProductionsRabbit Ears ProductionsRabbit Ears Productions is a children's series that aired from 1984-1995 on PBS. The series features famous actors such as Robin Williams, Raul Julia, Laura Dern, Denzel Washington, Danny Glover, and others narrating classic children's classics either well-known in the United States or from around...
version of this story. Musical accompaniment by Lyle MaysLyle MaysLyle Mays is an American jazz pianist and composer from Wausaukee, Wisconsin. He is best known for his work with guitarist Pat Metheny as a member of the Pat Metheny Group...
- The StorytellerThe StorytellerThe StoryTeller is a live-action/puppet television series. It was an American/British co-production which originally aired in 1988 and was created and produced by Jim Henson....
featured an episode called, The True Bride, is directly based on a German folktale of the same name, but referenced this story in its ending. Two female trolls separate the heroine from her husband in a similar way as the trolls from East of the Sun and West of the Moon. The heroine's love is bewitched by a troll princess into forgetting her, but he is told the truth from the princess' prisoners. In the episode Hans My Hedgehog the husband also turns from a beast into a human.
See also
- Cupid and PsycheCupid and PsycheCupid and Psyche , is a legend that first appeared as a digressionary story told by an old woman in Lucius Apuleius' novel, The Golden Ass, written in the 2nd century CE. Apuleius likely used an earlier tale as the basis for his story, modifying it to suit the thematic needs of his novel.It has...
- PintosmaltoPintosmaltoPintosmalto is an Italian literary fairy tale written by Giambattista Basile in his 1634 work, the Pentamerone.Italo Calvino included a variant from oral tradition, The Handmade King, based on two tales from Calabria...
- The Singing, Springing LarkThe Singing, Springing LarkThe Singing, Springing Lark or The Singing, Soaring Lark is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, appearing as tale no. 88.It is Aarne-Thompson type 425C. Others of this type include Beauty and the Beast and The Small-tooth Dog....
- The Two Kings' ChildrenThe Two Kings' ChildrenThe Two Kings' Children is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm in Grimm's Fairy Tales, tale number 113.It is Aarne-Thompson type 313C, the girl helps the hero flee, and type 884, the forgotten fiancée...
- The Feather of Finist the FalconThe Feather of Finist the FalconThe Feather of Finist the Falcon or Finist the Falcon is a Russian fairy tale collected by Alexander Afanasyev in Narodnye russkie skazki.It is Aarne–Thompson type 432, the prince as bird...
- The Three Daughters of King O'HaraThe Three Daughters of King O'HaraThe Three Daughters of King O'Hara is an Irish fairy tale collected by Jeremiah Curtin in Myths and Folk-lore of Ireland.-Synopsis:A king had three daughters. One day, when he was away, his oldest daughter wished to marry. She got his cloak of darkness, and wished for the handsomest man in the...
- The Three Princesses of WhitelandThe Three Princesses of WhitelandThe Three Princesses of Whiteland is a Norwegian fairy tale, collected by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe. Andrew Lang collected it in The Red Fairy Book....
- J. R. R. Tolkien's use of this phrase