" The Juniper Tree" By the Grimm Brothers
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"The Juniper Tree" by the Grimm Brothers is about the cruelty of a stepmother towards her stepson. The husband in the story has a son from the first wife who was "as red as blood and as white as snow." The second wife had a daughter who was not as fair as the stepson and the stepmother grew jealous of the boy. One day as the boy was coming home from school, the stepmother decided to rid herself of the stepson. When he came into the house and went to grab an apple from the chest, the stepmother smashed the chest on him and decapitated him. Afterwards she was so scared of someone finding out what she had done, that she tied his head in place and sat him on a chair by the door. Later, when the daughter complains that the brother won't listen, the mother tells the girl to box him in the ears if he doesn't answer. The boy's head falls off and the mother says that the girl must keep quiet so she doesn't get in trouble. The stepmother cooks the boy and turns him into a meal which the father ate. The gruesome death of the son is carried out not by a stranger but by his own stepmother. The woman who was supposed to love and care for him betrayed him. What's worse is that she even cooks him as a meal for his unsuspecting father. The cruel truth behind this fairy tale is that even family can betray each-other. The violence we see in this story leads us to question whether family ties really protect us or whether betrayal and cruelty is common among family members.
“Fairy TalesBy the Grimm Brothers.” Fairy Tales - The Juniper-Tree (by the Grimm Brothers), www.authorama.com/grimms-fairy-tales-40.html. Accessed 11 Apr. 2017.
"The Juniper Tree" by the Grimm Brothers is about the cruelty of a stepmother towards her stepson. The husband in the story has a son from the first wife who was "as red as blood and as white as snow." The second wife had a daughter who was not as fair as the stepson and the stepmother grew jealous of the boy. One day as the boy was coming home from school, the stepmother decided to rid herself of the stepson. When he came into the house and went to grab an apple from the chest, the stepmother smashed the chest on him and decapitated him. Afterwards she was so scared of someone finding out what she had done, that she tied his head in place and sat him on a chair by the door. Later, when the daughter complains that the brother won't listen, the mother tells the girl to box him in the ears if he doesn't answer. The boy's head falls off and the mother says that the girl must keep quiet so she doesn't get in trouble. The stepmother cooks the boy and turns him into a meal which the father ate. The gruesome death of the son is carried out not by a stranger but by his own stepmother. The woman who was supposed to love and care for him betrayed him. What's worse is that she even cooks him as a meal for his unsuspecting father. The cruel truth behind this fairy tale is that even family can betray each-other. The violence we see in this story leads us to question whether family ties really protect us or whether betrayal and cruelty is common among family members.
“Fairy TalesBy the Grimm Brothers.” Fairy Tales - The Juniper-Tree (by the Grimm Brothers), www.authorama.com/grimms-fairy-tales-40.html. Accessed 11 Apr. 2017.
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