The Good Bargain

Author: Brothers Grimm

Age8–12
Reading time13 min
LevelAdvanced

Introduction

This is a classic 'numskull comedy' (catalogued by folklorists as ATU 1642), whose hero is a seemingly foolish peasant: he takes the frogs' croaking for haggling over his price, and a dog's barking for a promise to pay, blundering and losing out all along — yet somehow ends up ahead. 'Whoever makes the unsmiling princess laugh may marry her' is another old motif told the world over, which you will meet in other tales too. But reading this story asks us to keep clear eyes alongside our children: its second half paints a Jewish character as greedy, cunning, and deserving of a beating — a scar left by the deep-rooted antisemitic prejudice of 19th-century Europe. A few of the tales the Grimms collected carry this bias of their era, and we read it today not to accept that prejudice but, on the contrary, to recognise it and to say plainly to our children: casting a whole people as villains is wrong. What is truly worth enjoying is the good-natured comedy of misunderstanding in the first half; the second half serves to teach something more important still — that even the most famous old story can contain something that should not be excused.

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There was once a peasant who had driven his cow to the fair, and sold her for seven thalers. On the way home he had to pass a pond, and already from afar he heard the frogs crying, "Aik, aik, aik, aik."

"Well," said he to himself, "they are talking without rhyme or reason, it is seven that I have received, not eight."

When he got to the water, he cried to them, "Stupid animals that you are! Don't you know better than that? It is seven thalers and not eight."

The frogs, however, stood to their, "aik aik, aik, aik."

"Come, then, if you won't believe it, I can count it out to you." And he took his money out of his pocket and counted out the seven thalers, always reckoning four and twenty groschen to a thaler.

The frogs, however, paid no attention to his reckoning, but still cried, "aik, aik, aik, aik."

"What," cried the peasant, quite angry, "since you are determined to know better than I, count it yourselves," and threw all the money into the water to them.

He stood still and wanted to wait until they were done and had brought him his own again, but the frogs maintained their opinion and cried continually, "aik, aik, aik, aik," and besides that, did not throw the money out again.

He still waited a long while until evening came on and he was forced to go home. Then he abused the frogs and cried, "You water-splashers, you thick-heads, you goggle-eyes, you have great mouths and can screech till you hurt one's ears, but you cannot count seven thalers! Do you think I'm going to stand here till you get done?"

And with that he went away, but the frogs still cried, "aik, aik, aik, aik," after him till he went home quite angry.

After a while he bought another cow, which he killed, and he made the calculation that if he sold the meat well he might gain as much as the two cows were worth, and have the skin into the bargain.

When therefore he got to the town with the meat, a great troop of dogs were gathered together in front of the gate, with a large greyhound at the head of them, which jumped at the meat, snuffed at it, and barked, "Wow, wow, wow."

As there was no stopping him, the peasant said to him, "Yes, yes, I know quite well that thou art saying, 'wow, wow, wow,' because thou wantest some of the meat; but I should fare badly if I were to give it to thee."

The dog, however, answered nothing but "wow, wow."

"Wilt thou promise not to devour it all then, and wilt thou go bail for thy companions?"

"Wow, wow, wow," said the dog.

"Well, if thou insistest on it, I will leave it for thee; I know thee well, and know who is thy master; but this I tell thee, I must have my money in three days or else it will go ill with thee; thou must just bring it out to me."

Thereupon he unloaded the meat and turned back again, the dogs fell upon it and loudly barked, "wow, wow."

The countryman, who heard them from afar, said to himself, "Hark, now they all want some, but the big one is responsible to me for it."

When three days had passed, the countryman thought, "To-night my money will be in my pocket," and was quite delighted. But no one would come and pay it.

"There is no trusting any one now," said he; and at last he lost patience, and went into the town to the butcher and demanded his money.

The butcher thought it was a joke, but the peasant said, "Jesting apart, I will have my money! Did not the great dog bring you the whole of the slaughtered cow three days ago?"

Then the butcher grew angry, snatched a broomstick and drove him out.

"Wait a while," said the peasant, "there is still some justice in the world!" and went to the royal palace and begged for an audience.

He was led before the King, who sat there with his daughter, and asked him what injury he had suffered.

"Alas!" said he, "the frogs and the dogs have taken from me what is mine, and the butcher has paid me for it with the stick," and he related at full length all that had happened.

Thereupon the King's daughter began to laugh heartily, and the King said to him, "I cannot give you justice in this, but you shall have my daughter to wife for it, -- in her whole life she has never yet laughed as she has just done at thee, and I have promised her to him who could make her laugh. Thou mayst thank God for thy good fortune!"

"Oh," answered the peasant, "I will not have her, I have a wife already, and she is one too many for me; when I go home, it is just as bad as if I had a wife standing in every corner."

Then the King grew angry, and said, "Thou art a boor."

"Ah, Lord King," replied the peasant, "what can you expect from an ox, but beef?"

"Stop," answered the King, "thou shalt have another reward. Be off now, but come back in three days, and then thou shalt have five hundred counted out in full."

When the peasant went out by the gate, the sentry said, "Thou hast made the King's daughter laugh, so thou wilt certainly receive something good."

"Yes, that is what I think," answered the peasant; "five hundred are to be counted out to me."

"Hark thee," said the soldier, "give me some of it. What canst thou do with all that money?"

"As it is thou," said the peasant, "thou shalt have two hundred; present thyself in three days' time before the King, and let it be paid to thee."

A Jew, who was standing by and had heard the conversation, ran after the peasant, held him by the coat, and said, "Oh, wonder! what a luck-child thou art! I will change it for thee, I will change it for thee into small coins, what dost thou want with the great thalers?"

"Jew," said the countryman, "three hundred canst thou still have; give it to me at once in coin, in three days from this, thou wilt be paid for it by the King."

The Jew was delighted with the profit, and brought the sum in bad groschen, three of which were worth two good ones. After three days had passed, according to the King's command, the peasant went before the King.

"Pull his coat off," said the latter, "and he shall have his five hundred."

"Ah!" said the peasant, "they no longer belong to me; I presented two hundred of them to the sentinel, and three hundred the Jew has changed for me, so by right nothing at all belongs to me."

In the meantime the soldier and the Jew entered and claimed what they had gained from the peasant, and they received the blows strictly counted out.

The soldier bore it patiently and knew already how it tasted, but the Jew said sorrowfully, "Alas, alas, are these the heavy thalers?"

The King could not help laughing at the peasant, and as all his anger was gone, he said, "As thou hast already lost thy reward before it fell to thy lot, I will give thee something in the place of it. Go into my treasure chamber and get some money for thyself, as much as thou wilt."

The peasant did not need to be told twice, and stuffed into his big pockets whatsoever would go in. Afterwards he went to an inn and counted out his money.

The Jew had crept after him and heard how he muttered to himself, "That rogue of a King has cheated me after all, why could he not have given me the money himself, and then I should have known what I had? How can I tell now if what I have had the luck to put in my pockets is right or not?"

"Good heavens!" said the Jew to himself, "that man is speaking disrespectfully of our lord the King, I will run and inform, and then I shall get a reward, and he will be punished as well."

When the King heard of the peasant's words he fell into a passion, and commanded the Jew to go and bring the offender to him.

The Jew ran to the peasant, "You are to go at once to the lord King in the very clothes you have on."

"I know what's right better than that," answered the peasant, "I shall have a new coat made first. Dost thou think that a man with so much money in his pocket is to go there in his ragged old coat?"

The Jew, as he saw that the peasant would not stir without another coat, and as he feared that if the King's anger cooled, he himself would lose his reward, and the peasant his punishment, said, "I will out of pure friendship lend thee a coat for the short time. What will people not do for love!"

The peasant was contented with this, put the Jew's coat on, and went off with him.

The King reproached the countryman because of the evil speaking of which the Jew had informed him.

"Ah," said the peasant, "what a Jew says is always false -- no true word ever comes out of his mouth! That rascal there is capable of maintaining that I have his coat on."

"What is that?" shrieked the Jew. "Is the coat not mine? Have I not lent it to thee out of pure friendship, in order that thou might appear before the lord King?"

When the King heard that, he said, "The Jew has assuredly deceived one or the other of us, either myself or the peasant," and again he ordered something to be counted out to him in hard thalers.

The peasant, however, went home in the good coat, with the good money in his pocket, and said to himself, "This time I have hit it!"

Vocabulary from "The Good Bargain"

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

bargainB2

/ˈbɑːɡɪn/n.

Something bought cheaply; also, an agreement about buying or selling.

划算的买卖；便宜货；交易。

He might gain as much as the two cows were worth, and have the skin into the bargain.
他赚的钱可能抵得上两头牛的价值，而且还能白赚一张牛皮。

thalers(thaler)B2

/ˈtɑːləz/n.

Old European silver coins.

塔勒（旧时欧洲的银币）。

There was once a peasant who had driven his cow to the fair, and sold her for seven thalers.
从前有个农夫，把他的牛赶到集市上，卖了七个塔勒。

reckoning(reckon)C1

/ˈrekənɪŋ/n.

The act of counting or calculating.

计算；结算。

The frogs, however, paid no attention to his reckoning, but still cried, "aik, aik."
然而青蛙根本不理会他的计算，依旧叫着：'呱，呱。'

abused(abuse)C1

/əˈbjuːzd/v.

Spoke to someone with rude, insulting words.

辱骂；痛骂。

Then he abused the frogs and cried, "You water-splashers, you thick-heads!"
于是他痛骂青蛙：'你们这群玩水的家伙，笨脑瓜！'

screechC1

/skriːtʃ/v.

To make a loud, harsh, high-pitched cry.

尖叫；发出刺耳的叫声。

You have great mouths and can screech till you hurt one's ears.
你们嘴巴挺大，叫得震耳欲聋。

greyhoundB2

/ˈɡreɪhaʊnd/n.

A tall, slender, very fast breed of dog.

灰狗；格雷伊猎犬（一种高瘦而奔跑极快的狗）。

A great troop of dogs were gathered together, with a large greyhound at the head of them.
一大群狗聚集在一起，领头的是一只大灰狗。

snuffed(snuff)C1

/snʌft/v.

Smelled something by sniffing at it.

嗅；闻（用鼻子）。

A large greyhound jumped at the meat, snuffed at it, and barked.
一只大灰狗扑向那肉，闻了闻，叫了起来。

audienceB2

/ˈɔːdiəns/n.

A formal meeting with an important person such as a king.

（与国王等要人的）正式会见；觐见。

He went to the royal palace and begged for an audience.
于是他去了皇宫请求觐见。

injuryB2

/ˈɪndʒəri/n.

Harm or wrong done to someone.

伤害；冤屈；损害。

He was led before the King, who asked him what injury he had suffered.
他被带到国王面前，国王问他受了什么冤屈。

patienceB1

/ˈpeɪʃns/n.

The ability to wait or endure without getting annoyed.

耐心；忍耐。

At last he lost patience, and went into the town to the butcher.
最后他失去了耐心，进城去找屠夫。

delightedB1

/dɪˈlaɪtɪd/adj.

Very pleased and happy.

十分高兴的；欣喜的。

The countryman thought, "To-night my money will be in my pocket," and was quite delighted.
乡下人想：'今晚我的钱就会进口袋了。'他非常高兴。

muttered(mutter)B2

/ˈmʌtəd/v.

Spoke in a low, unclear voice, often complaining.

咕哝；低声抱怨。

He heard how he muttered to himself, "That rogue of a King has cheated me after all."
他听见农夫自言自语道：'那个流氓国王到底还是骗了我。'

Reading Together & Learning More

The Moral

This is a comedy about a peasant who seems a simpleton yet keeps stumbling into good luck. Its fun lies in how a put-upon little man who is always losing out and making a fool of himself finally turns the tables through a mix of innocence and low cunning. But note that the peasant himself lies and cheats too — he is no role model, and the tale is meant to make us laugh, not to be copied.

Educational Value

Useful for discussing the humour of misunderstanding (mistaking frogs' croaks for haggling, a dog's bark for a promise) and the theme of honesty — the peasant, the moneylender, and the King are none of them wholly honest. It is also an important opportunity to help children see that old stories can carry the prejudices of their time, and that we must learn to recognise and reject them (see the parent tips).

Tips for Parents

Important note: the second half of this story portrays a Jewish character as greedy, ridiculous, and deserving of punishment, and even puts the words 'what a Jew says is always false' into the peasant's mouth. This is a product of the antisemitic prejudice that was widespread in 19th-century Europe, and today we clearly recognise it as wrong and hurtful — casting a whole people as bad is a form of bigotry. Please be sure to make this clear to your child: a story being old does not make its prejudices right. Use it as a chance to talk about why we must never judge someone as bad because of their identity (their people, faith, or looks). The first half (the frogs, the dog, making the princess laugh) is light comedy you can safely enjoy together.

Talk About It

The peasant mistakes the frogs' croaking for haggling and a dog's bark for a promise to pay. Why are these misunderstandings funny? What would you have thought?
The story contains the line 'what a Jew says is always false.' Do you think you can call someone bad just because of their people or their faith? Why is thinking that way wrong?
The peasant himself lies and cheats (for instance, tricking the King about whose coat it is). Is he a good person? Is the story praising him, or laughing at him?
The princess never laughs until she hears the peasant's run of bad luck. Have you ever wanted to laugh at someone's mishap and felt a little embarrassed about it?
If you were to retell this story, how would you change it so that it keeps what is funny but hurts no one?