Fitcher's Bird

Author: Grimm Brothers

Age7–10
Reading time10 min
LevelAdvanced

Introduction

If you have read Charles Perrault's French tale 'Bluebeard,' you will notice that 'Fitcher's Bird' is its German twin — the same forbidden room, the same blood-stained key that cannot be washed clean, the same murderer who kills wives out of curiosity. Folklorists file this whole family of stories under the number ATU 311. Yet the Grimms' version differs in one crucial way: in 'Bluebeard' the wife is passive and can only stall for time until her brothers gallop to the rescue, but here the youngest sister is her own hero. She sees through the 'test' of the egg, reassembles and revives her murdered sisters, and finally escapes disguised in honey and feathers as a bird no one can recognize. The odd name 'Fitcher,' the Grimms guessed, may come from an Icelandic word for webbed water-birds — a neat echo of that feathered disguise. Reading this version, notice with your child how the cleverness to save others can be more powerful than waiting to be saved.

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There was once a wizard who used to take the form of a poor man, and went to houses and begged, and caught pretty girls. No one knew whither he carried them, for they were never seen more.

One day he appeared before the door of a man who had three pretty daughters; he looked like a poor weak beggar, and carried a basket on his back, as if he meant to collect charitable gifts in it. He begged for a little food, and when the eldest daughter came out and was just reaching him a piece of bread, he did but touch her, and she was forced to jump into his basket.

Thereupon he hurried away with long strides, and carried her away into a dark forest to his house, which stood in the midst of it. Everything in the house was magnificent; he gave her whatsoever she could possibly desire, and said: "My darling, thou wilt certainly be happy with me, for thou hast everything thy heart can wish for."

This lasted a few days, and then he said: "I must journey forth, and leave thee alone for a short time; there are the keys of the house; thou mayst go everywhere and look at everything except into one room, which this little key here opens, and there I forbid thee to go on pain of death." He likewise gave her an egg and said: "Preserve the egg carefully for me, and carry it continually about with thee, for a great misfortune would arise from the loss of it."

She took the keys and the egg, and promised to obey him in everything. When he was gone, she went all round the house from the bottom to the top, and examined everything. The rooms shone with silver and gold, and she thought she had never seen such great splendour. At length she came to the forbidden door; she wished to pass it by, but curiosity let her have no rest. She examined the key, it looked just like any other; she put it in the keyhole and turned it a little, and the door sprang open.

But what did she see when she went in? A great bloody basin stood in the middle of the room, and therein lay human beings, dead and hewn to pieces, and hard by was a block of wood, and a gleaming axe lay upon it. She was so terribly alarmed that the egg which she held in her hand fell into the basin. She got it out and washed the blood off, but in vain, it appeared again in a moment. She washed and scrubbed, but she could not get it out.

It was not long before the man came back from his journey, and the first things which he asked for were the key and the egg. She gave them to him, but she trembled as she did so, and he saw at once by the red spots that she had been in the bloody chamber.

"Since thou hast gone into the room against my will," said he, "thou shalt go back into it against thine own. Thy life is ended." He threw her down, dragged her thither by her hair, cut her head off on the block, and hewed her in pieces so that her blood ran on the ground. Then he threw her into the basin with the rest.

"Now I will fetch myself the second," said the wizard, and again he went to the house in the shape of a poor man, and begged. Then the second daughter brought him a piece of bread; he caught her like the first, by simply touching her, and carried her away. She did not fare better than her sister. She allowed herself to be led away by her curiosity, opened the door of the bloody chamber, looked in, and had to atone for it with her life on the wizard's return.

Then he went and brought the third sister, but she was clever and crafty. When he had given her the keys and the egg, and had left her, she first put the egg away with great care, and then she examined the house, and at last went into the forbidden room.

Alas, what did she behold! Both her sisters lay there in the basin, cruelly murdered, and cut in pieces. But she began to gather their limbs together and put them in order, head, body, arms and legs. And when nothing further was wanting the limbs began to move and unite themselves together, and both the maidens opened their eyes and were once more alive. Then they rejoiced and kissed and caressed each other.

On his arrival, the man at once demanded the keys and the egg, and as he could perceive no trace of any blood on it, he said: "Thou hast stood the test, thou shalt be my bride." He now had no longer any power over her, and was forced to do whatsoever she desired.

"Oh, very well," said she, "thou shalt first take a basketful of gold to my father and mother, and carry it thyself on thy back; in the meantime I will prepare for the wedding." Then she ran to her sisters, whom she had hidden in a little chamber, and said: "The moment has come when I can save you. The wretch shall himself carry you home again, but as soon as you are at home send help to me."

She put both of them in a basket and covered them quite over with gold, so that nothing of them was to be seen, then she called in the wizard and said to him: "Now carry the basket away, but I shall look through my little window and watch to see if thou stoppest on the way to stand or to rest."

The wizard raised the basket on his back and went away with it, but it weighed him down so heavily that the perspiration streamed from his face. Then he sat down and wanted to rest awhile, but immediately one of the girls in the basket cried: "I am looking through my little window, and I see that thou art resting. Wilt thou go on at once?" He thought it was his bride who was calling that to him; and got up on his legs again.

Once more he was going to sit down, but instantly she cried: "I am looking through my little window, and I see that thou art resting. Wilt thou go on directly?" And whenever he stood still, she cried this, and then he was forced to go onwards, until at last, groaning and out of breath, he took the basket with the gold and the two maidens into their parents' house.

At home, however, the bride prepared the marriage-feast, and sent invitations to the friends of the wizard. Then she took a skull with grinning teeth, put some ornaments on it and a wreath of flowers, carried it upstairs to the garret-window, and let it look out from thence.

When all was ready, she got into a barrel of honey, and then cut the feather-bed open and rolled herself in it, until she looked like a wondrous bird, and no one could recognize her. Then she went out of the house, and on her way she met some of the wedding-guests, who asked:

"O, Fitcher's bird, how com'st thou here?" "I come from Fitcher's house quite near." "And what may the young bride be doing?" "From cellar to garret she's swept all clean, And now from the window she's peeping, I ween."

At last she met the bridegroom, who was coming slowly back. He, like the others, asked: "O, Fitcher's bird, how com'st thou here?" "I come from Fitcher's house quite near." "And what may the young bride be doing? "From cellar to garret she's swept all clean, And now from the window she's peeping, I ween."

The bridegroom looked up, saw the decked-out skull, thought it was his bride, and nodded to her, greeting her kindly. But when he and his guests had all gone into the house, the brothers and kinsmen of the bride, who had been sent to rescue her, arrived. They locked all the doors of the house, that no one might escape, set fire to it, and the wizard and all his crew had to burn.

Vocabulary from "Fitcher's Bird"

12 key words from this story with definitions and original context sentences for language learners.

whitherC1

/ˈwɪðər/adv.

To what place; where to (an old-fashioned, literary word).

（古语、书面语）到哪里；往何处。

No one knew whither he carried them, for they were never seen more.
没人知道他把她们带到了哪里，因为她们从此再也没出现过。

magnificentB2

/mæɡˈnɪfɪsənt/adj.

Extremely beautiful, impressive, or grand.

壮丽的；富丽堂皇的；宏伟华丽的。

Everything in the house was magnificent; he gave her whatsoever she could possibly desire.
房子里的一切都富丽堂皇；他给了她想要的一切。

splendourB2

/ˈsplendər/n.

Magnificent and impressive beauty; grandeur (British spelling of 'splendor').

壮丽；辉煌；华美（'splendor' 的英式拼写）。

The rooms shone with silver and gold, and she thought she had never seen such great splendour.
房间里金银闪耀，她想她从未见过如此奢华的景象。

forbidden(forbid)B1

/fərˈbɪdən/adj.

Not allowed; prohibited, especially by a rule or command.

被禁止的；不准进入或做的。

At length she came to the forbidden door; she wished to pass it by.
最后她来到了那扇被禁止的门前；她本想走过去。

curiosityB1

/ˌkjʊəriˈɒsɪti/n.

A strong desire to know or learn something.

好奇心；求知欲。

She wished to pass it by, but curiosity let her have no rest.
她本想走过去，但好奇心让她无法平静。

hewn(hew)C1

/hjuːn/v.

Chopped or cut with heavy blows (past participle of 'hew').

（hew 的过去分词）砍；劈；砍成（碎块）。

Therein lay human beings, dead and hewn to pieces.
里面躺着被人砍成碎片的人体。

gleaming(gleam)B2

/ˈɡliːmɪŋ/adj.

Shining brightly, especially with reflected light.

闪闪发光的；发亮的。

Hard by was a block of wood, and a gleaming axe lay upon it.
旁边是一块木头，上面放着一把闪闪发光的斧子。

in vainB2

/ɪn ˈveɪn/phr.

Without success; producing no useful result.

徒劳；白费力气；没有成功。

She got it out and washed the blood off, but in vain, it appeared again in a moment.
她把它拿出来洗掉血迹，但这徒劳无功，血迹瞬间又出现了。

trembled(tremble)B1

/ˈtrembld/v.

Shook slightly, usually from fear, cold, or nervousness.

（因恐惧、寒冷或紧张而）发抖；颤抖。

She gave them to him, but she trembled as she did so.
她把东西递给他，但手在颤抖。

atoneC1

/əˈtəʊn/v.

To make up for a wrong or mistake; to pay a price for a fault.

赎罪；弥补（过错）；为过失付出代价。

She looked in, and had to atone for it with her life on the wizard's return.
往里看了一眼，结果在巫师回来时为此付出了生命的代价。

craftyB2

/ˈkrɑːfti/adj.

Clever at getting what you want, especially through cunning or trickery.

机灵的；狡黠的；善用巧计的。

Then he went and brought the third sister, but she was clever and crafty.
然后他去把第三个姐妹抓来了，但这一个既聪明又狡猾。

perspirationC1

/ˌpɜːspɪˈreɪʃən/n.

Sweat; the moisture given off by the body (a formal word for sweat).

汗水；出汗（'sweat' 的正式说法）。

It weighed him down so heavily that the perspiration streamed from his face.
这东西把他压得太重了，汗水顺着脸流下来。

Reading Together & Learning More

The Moral

In the face of danger, a calm mind and cleverness can save lives better than panic or brute force; true courage is finding a way to protect yourself and those you love even when you are afraid.

Educational Value

Helps children value quick thinking and composure, showing that the heroine is not a princess waiting to be rescued but an active protagonist who saves her sisters and outwits the villain, nurturing the courage to solve problems independently.

Tips for Parents

This is a darker Grimm tale with some frightening scenes, best read together with older children. Use it as a chance to discuss: how do we keep ourselves safe around strangers, and why we should not drop our guard just because someone looks pitiful.

Talk About It

The wizard gives each girl an egg to carry with her. Why does this egg become the key to telling the first two sisters apart from the youngest?
Before entering the forbidden room, the youngest sister carefully puts the egg somewhere safe. What does this small act tell us about her?
In this story the girl saves her sisters and escapes by her own wits. What other stories do you know where the hero solves the problem instead of waiting to be rescued?
The wizard disguises himself as a poor, pitiful beggar to trick people. If a stranger were unusually friendly or acted pitiful, what could you do to stay safe?
Which of the youngest sister's clever moves do you think was the smartest? If it were you, what other escape plan could you imagine?