The Devil and His Grandmother

Author: Brothers Grimm

Age8–12
Reading time8 min
LevelIntermediate

Introduction

'The Devil and His Grandmother' is the 125th tale in Grimm, classed by folklorists as ATU 812, 'The Devil's Riddle.' It opens with three men deserting the army 'because the pay was so bad' — a detail with the ring of real history, for around the time of the Napoleonic wars a soldier going hungry and unpaid was common enough, and such tales of a poor soldier dealing with the devil were especially numerous among the folk. The story's real charm lies in its unexpected rescuer: the 'devil's grandmother.' In German folklore the devil is often defeated not by a hero but betrayed by the women of his own household (a grandmother or mother) — soft-hearted, they let slip his secrets to some poor human. If you've read 'The Devil with the Three Golden Hairs,' you'll recognise the same pattern, with an old grandmother there too coaxing secrets from the devil's own head. And the motif of 'selling yourself to the devil for seven years of splendour' is a folk cousin of German literature's famous 'Faustian bargain.' The riddle the devil sets — a dead dog-fish for a roast, a whale's rib for a spoon, a hollow horse's hoof for a wine-glass — is a grotesque 'banquet of hell,' full of dark humour. As you read, notice this: of the three soldiers, why is it precisely the 'merry one who refuses to give up' who saves them all in the end?

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There was a great war, and the King had many soldiers, but gave them small pay, so small that they could not live upon it, so three of them agreed among themselves to desert. One of them said to the others, "If we are caught we shall be hanged on the gallows; how shall we manage it?" Another said, "Look at that great cornfield, if we were to hide ourselves there, no one could find us; the troops are not allowed to enter it, and to-morrow they are to march away."

They crept into the corn, only the troops did not march away, but remained lying all round about it. They stayed in the corn for two days and two nights, and were so hungry that they all but died, but if they had come out, their death would have been certain. Then said they, "What is the use of our deserting if we have to perish miserably here?"

But now a fiery dragon came flying through the air, and it came down to them, and asked why they had concealed themselves there? They answered, "We are three soldiers who have deserted because the pay was so bad, and now we shall have to die of hunger if we stay here, or to dangle on the gallows if we go out."

"If you will serve me for seven years," said the dragon, "I will convey you through the army so that no one shall seize you." - "We have no choice and are compelled to accept," they replied. Then the dragon caught hold of them with his claws, and carried them away through the air over the army, and put them down again on the earth far from it; but the dragon was no other than the Devil. He gave them a small whip and said, "Whip with it and crack it, and then as much gold will spring up round about as you can wish for; then you can live like great lords, keep horses, and drive your carriages, but when the seven years have come to an end, you are my property." Then he put before them a book which they were all three forced to sign.

"I will, however, then set you a riddle," said he, "and if you can guess that, you shall be free, and released from my power." Then the dragon flew away from them, and they went away with their whip, had gold in plenty, ordered themselves rich apparel, and travelled about the world. Wherever they were they lived in pleasure and magnificence, rode on horseback, drove in carriages, ate and drank, but did nothing wicked.

The time slipped quickly away, and when the seven years were coming to an end, two of them were terribly anxious and alarmed; but the third took the affair easily, and said, "Brothers, fear nothing, my head is sharp enough, I shall guess the riddle."

They went out into the open country and sat down, and the two pulled sorrowful faces. Then an aged woman came up to them who inquired why they were so sad? "Alas!" said they, "how can that concern you? After all, you cannot help us." - "Who knows?" said she. "confide your trouble to me."

So they told her that they had been the Devil's servants for nearly seven years, and that he had provided them with gold as plentifully as if it had been blackberries, but that they had sold themselves to him, and were forfeited to him, if at the end of the seven years they could not guess a riddle."

The old woman said, "If you are to be saved, one of you must go into the forest, there he will come to a fallen rock which looks like a little house, he must enter that, and then he will obtain help." The two melancholy ones thought to themselves, "That will still not save us," and stayed where they were, but the third, the merry one, got up and walked on in the forest until he found the rock-house.

In the little house, however, a very aged woman was sitting, who was the Devil's grandmother, and asked the soldier where he came from, and what he wanted there? He told her everything that had happened, and as he pleased her well, she had pity on him, and said she would help him.

She lifted up a great stone which lay above a cellar, and said, "Conceal thyself there, thou canst hear everything that is said here; only sit still, and do not stir. When the dragon comes, I will question him about the riddle, he tells everything to me, so listen carefully to his answer."

At twelve o'clock at night, the dragon came flying thither, and asked for his dinner. The grandmother laid the table, and served up food and drink, so that he was pleased, and they ate and drank together. In the course of conversation, she asked him what kind of a day he had had, and how many souls he had got?

"Nothing went very well to-day," he answered, "but I have laid hold of three soldiers, I have them safe." - "Indeed! three soldiers, that's something like, but they may escape you yet." The Devil said mockingly, "They are mine! I will set them a riddle, which they will never in this world be able to guess!"

"What riddle is that?" she inquired. "I will tell you. In the great North Sea lies a dead dog-fish, that shall be your roast meat, and the rib of a whale shall be your silver spoon, and a hollow old horse's hoof shall be your wine-glass."

When the Devil had gone to bed, the old grandmother raised up the stone, and let out the soldier. "Hast thou paid particular attention to everything?" - "Yes," said he, "I know enough, and will contrive to save myself."

Then he had to go back another way, through the window, secretly and with all speed to his companions. He told them how the Devil had been overreached by the old grandmother, and how he had learned the answer to the riddle from him. Then they were all joyous, and of good cheer, and took the whip and whipped so much gold for themselves that it ran all over the ground.

When the seven years had fully gone by, the Devil came with the book, showed the signatures, and said, "I will take you with me to hell. There you shall have a meal! If you can guess what kind of roast meat you will have to eat, you shall be free and released from your bargain, and may keep the whip as well."

Then the first soldier began and said, "In the great North Sea lies a dead dog-fish, that no doubt is the roast meat." The Devil was angry, and began to mutter, "Hm! hm! hm!" And asked the second, "But what will your spoon be?" - "The rib of a whale, that is to be our silver spoon."

The Devil made a wry face, again growled, "Hm! hm! hm!" and said to the third, "And do you also know what your wine-glass is to be?" - "An old horse's hoof is to be our wineglass."

Then the Devil flew away with a loud cry, and had no more power over them, but the three kept the whip, whipped as much money for themselves with it as they wanted, and lived happily to their end.

Vocabulary from "The Devil and His Grandmother"

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

desertB2

/dɪˈzɜːt/v.

To run away from the army without permission.

开小差；擅自逃离（军队）。

Three of them agreed among themselves to desert.
其中三个士兵商量着一起开小差。

gallowsC1

/ˈɡæləʊz/n.

A wooden frame used in the past for hanging criminals.

绞刑架。

If we are caught we shall be hanged on the gallows.
如果我们被抓到，就会被绞死在绞刑架上。

perishC1

/ˈperɪʃ/v.

To die, especially in a sudden or miserable way.

死亡；丧生。

What is the use of our deserting if we have to perish miserably here?
如果我们在这里悲惨地死去，当逃兵又有什么用呢？

fieryB2

/ˈfaɪəri/adj.

Made of or looking like fire; blazing.

火一般的；喷火的；炽烈的。

But now a fiery dragon came flying through the air, and it came down to them.
就在这时，一条火龙从空中飞过，降落在他们面前。

concealB2

/kənˈsiːl/v.

To hide something so it cannot be seen.

隐藏；藏匿。

"Conceal thyself there, thou canst hear everything that is said here."
"藏在里面，你可以听到这里说的一切。"

conveyC1

/kənˈveɪ/v.

To carry or take someone from one place to another.

运送；带领；输送。

"If you will serve me for seven years, I will convey you through the army so that no one shall seize you."
"如果你们愿意服侍我七年，我就带你们穿过大军，没人能抓住你们。"

compelled(compel)C1

/kəmˈpeld/v.

Forced to do something because there is no choice.

被迫；不得不。

"We have no choice and are compelled to accept," they replied.
"我们要么接受，要么别无选择，"他们回答。

claws(claw)B1

/klɔːz/n.

The sharp curved nails on an animal's or bird's foot.

爪子；利爪。

Then the dragon caught hold of them with his claws, and carried them away through the air over the army.
于是龙用爪子抓住他们，带着他们从空中飞过军队。

riddleB2

/ˈrɪdl/n.

A puzzling question that needs a clever answer.

谜语；难题。

"I will set them a riddle, which they will never in this world be able to guess!"
"我要给他们出一个谜语，这个世界没人能猜得出来！"

forfeited(forfeit)C1

/ˈfɔːfɪtɪd/v.

Lost or gave up a right or possession as a penalty.

丧失；被没收（作为代价）。

They had sold themselves to him, and were forfeited to him.
他们已经把自己卖给了他，如果七年结束时猜不出谜语，就要归他所有。

melancholyC1

/ˈmelənkəli/adj.

Very sad and gloomy.

忧郁的；郁郁寡欢的。

The two melancholy ones thought to themselves, "That will still not save us," and stayed where they were.
那两个忧郁的人心想："那也救不了我们，"于是留在原地。

hoofB2

/huːf/n.

The hard part of the foot of a horse or similar animal.

蹄；马蹄。

"An old horse's hoof is to be our wineglass."
"一只老马蹄就是我们的酒杯。"

Reading Together & Learning More

The Moral

Of the three soldiers, two are paralysed with fear the moment they hear about the riddle, while only the 'merry one' says, 'fear nothing, my head is sharp enough,' and gets up and walks into the forest — and it is he who finds a way out. That is the heart of the story: faced with the same hopeless situation, whether you sit and fret or rise and try often decides two completely different endings. It does not teach us to strike bargains with the devil (that was a bad idea from the start); rather, it tells us that when things look utterly lost, don't rush to give up — a calm head and a little courage to act can often find the way out that others cannot see.

Educational Value

Good for talking with children about how attitude shapes the outcome: the three soldiers are in exactly the same fix, but two pull long faces and give up, while the third stays hopeful and goes looking for a solution — and only he saves them all. You can also discuss the wisdom of asking for help: what really rescues them is the willingness to speak up and tell a strange old woman their troubles. The tale's 'selling yourself for riches' turn opens a deeper topic too: agreeing to something you shouldn't, for the sake of a present gain, often costs far more in the end.

Tips for Parents

The story contains a 'devil' and 'selling one's soul,' but on the whole it is a comedy won by wit, not a scary tale: the devil is outfoxed by his own grandmother, the three soldiers win their freedom with no real harm, and the ending is light and happy. It suits children over 8. Guide your child to notice a delicious detail: the key rescuer turns out to be the 'devil's grandmother' — soft-hearted, pitying the underdog, and scheming against her own grandson. Afterwards you might discuss: why does the story deliberately have the two soldiers 'do nothing' and send only the cheerful third to try? If you were one of the two who gave up, would you regret it later?

Talk About It

The three soldiers are in the same situation, but two tremble and give up, while only the third says 'fear nothing, I'll guess the riddle' and sets off to find a way. What makes the endings so different?
The one who saves the three soldiers is the 'devil's grandmother.' Why would she help strangers and scheme against her own grandson? What kind of person do you think she is?
The soldiers live in luxury on the devil's gold, but 'do nothing wicked.' Why do you think the story adds that line — what is it trying to tell us?
To stay alive, the soldiers 'sell themselves' to the devil for seven years. If someone offered you something you really wanted in exchange for agreeing to something dangerous, what would you do?
In the end every answer is guessed and the devil flies off with a furious cry. Where do you think he loses — to bad luck, or to other people's teamwork and quick thinking?