BEAUTY AND THE
BEAST
The Brothers Grimm
Once upon a time . . . as
a merchant set off for market, he asked each of his three daughters what
she would like as a present on his return. The first daughter wanted a
brocade dress, the second a pearl necklace, but the third, whose name was
Beauty, the youngest, prettiest and sweetest of them all, said to her
father:
"All I'd like is a
rose you've picked specially for me!"
When the merchant had
finished his business, he set off for home. However, a sudden storm blew
up, and his horse could hardly make headway in the howling gale. Cold and
weary, the merchant had lost all hope of reaching an inn when he suddenly
noticed a bright light shining in the middle of a wood. As he drew near,
he saw that it was a castle, bathed in light.
"I hope I'll find
shelter there for the night," he said to himself. When he reached the
door, he saw it was open, but though he shouted, nobody came to greet him.
Plucking up courage, he went inside, still calling out to attract
attention. On a table in the main hall, a splendid dinner lay already
served. The merchant lingered, still shouting for the owner of the castle.
But no one came, and so the starving merchant sat down to a hearty meal.
Overcome by curiosity, he
ventured upstairs, where the corridor led into magnificent rooms and
halls. A fire crackled in the first room and a soft bed looked very
inviting. It was now late, and the merchant could not resist. He lay down
on the bed and fell fast asleep. When he woke next morning, an unknown
hand had placed a mug of steaming coffee and some fruit by his bedside.
The merchant had breakfast
and after tidying himself up, went downstairs to thank his generous host.
But, as on the evening before, there was nobody in sight. Shaking his head
in wonder at the strangeness of it all, he went towards the garden where
he had left his horse, tethered to a tree. Suddenly, a large rose bush
caught his eye.
Remembering his promise to
Beauty, he bent down to pick a rose. Instantly, out of the rose garden,
sprang a horrible beast, wearing splendid clothes. Two bloodshot eyes,
gleaming angrily, glared at him and a deep, terrifying voice growled:
"Ungrateful man! I gave you shelter, you ate at my table and slept in
my own bed, but now all the thanks I get is the theft of my favourite
flowers! I shall put you to death for this slight!" Trembling with
fear, the merchant fell on his knees before the Beast.
"Forgive me! Forgive
me! Don't kill me! I'll do anything you say! The rose wasn't for me, it
was for my daughter Beauty. I promised to bring her back a rose from my
journey!" The Beast dropped the paw it had clamped on the unhappy
merchant.
"I shall spare your
life, but on one condition, that you bring me your daughter!" The
terror-stricken merchant, faced with certain death if he did not obey,
promised that he would do so. When he reached home in tears, his three
daughters ran to greet him. After he had told them of his dreadful
adventure, Beauty put his mind at rest immediately.
"Dear father, I'd do
anything for you! Don't worry, you'll be able to keep your promise and
save your life! Take me to the castle. I'll stay there in your
place!" The merchant hugged his daughter.
"I never did doubt
your love for me. For the moment I can only thank you for saving my
life." So Beauty was led to the castle. The Beast, however, had quite
an unexpected greeting for the girl. Instead of menacing doom as it had
done with her father, it was surprisingly pleasant.
In the beginning, Beauty
was frightened of the Beast, and shuddered at the sight of it. Then she
found that, in spite of the monster's awful head, her horror of it was
gradually fading as time went by. She had one of the finest rooms in the
Castle, and sat for hours, embroidering in front of the fire. And the
Beast would sit, for hours on end, only a short distance away, silently
gazing at her. Then it started to say a few kind words, till in the end,
Beauty was amazed to discover that she was actually enjoying its
conversation. The days passed, and Beauty and the Beast became good
friends. Then one day, the Beast asked the girl to be his wife.
Taken by surprise, Beauty
did not know what to say. Marry such an ugly monster? She would rather
die! But she did not want to hurt the feelings of one who, after all, had
been kind to her. And she remembered too that she owed it her own life as
well as her father's.
"I really can't say
yes," she began shakily. "I'd so much like to . . ." The
Beast interrupted her with an abrupt gesture.
"I quite understand!
And I'm not offended by your refusal!" Life went on as usual, and
nothing further was said. One day, the Beast presented Beauty with a
magnificent magic mirror. When Beauty peeped into it, she could see her
family, far away.
"You won't feel so
lonely now," were the words that accompanied the gift. Beauty stared
for hours at her distant family. Then she began to feel worried. One day,
the Beast found her weeping beside the magic mirror.
"What's wrong?"
he asked, kindly as always.
"My father is gravely
ill and close to dying! Oh, how I wish I could see him again, before it's
too late!" But the Beast only shook its head.
"No! You will never
leave this castle!" And off it stalked in a rage. However, a little
later, it returned and spoke solemnly to the girl.
"If you swear that
you will return here in seven days time, I'll let you go and visit your
father!" Beauty threw herself at the Beast's feet in delight.
"I swear! I swear I
will! How kind you are! You've made a loving daughter so happy!" In
reality, the merchant had fallen ill from a broken heart at knowing his
daughter was being kept prisoner. When he embraced her again, he was soon
on the road to recovery. Beauty stayed beside him for hours on end,
describing her life at the Castle, and explaining that the Beast was
really good and kind. The days flashed past, and at last the merchant was
able to leave his bed. He was completely well again. Beauty was happy at
last. However, she had failed to notice that seven days had gone by.
Then one night she woke
from a terrible nightmare. She had dreamt that the Beast was dying and
calling for her, twisting in agony.
"Come back! Come back
to me!" it was pleading. The solemn promise she had made drove her to
leave home immediately.
"Hurry! Hurry, good
horse!" she said, whipping her steed onwards towards the castle,
afraid that she might arrive too late. She rushed up the stairs, calling,
but there was no reply. Her heart in her mouth, Beauty ran into the garden
and there crouched the Beast, its eyes shut, as though dead. Beauty threw
herself at it and hugged it tightly.
"Don't die! Don't
die! I'll marry you . . ." At these words, a miracle took place. The
Beast's ugly snout turned magically into the face of a handsome young man.
"How I've been
longing for this moment!" he said. "I was suffering in silence,
and couldn't tell my frightful secret. An evil witch turned me into a
monster and only the love of a maiden willing to accept me as I was, could
transform me back into my real self. My dearest! I'll be so happy if
you'll marry me . . ."
The wedding took place
shortly after and, from that day on, the young Prince would have nothing
but roses in his gardens. And that's why, to this day, the castle is known
as the Castle of the Rose.
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