Week 13 Story: Rumpelstiltskin
Rumpelstiltskin
Once upon a time, there was a destitute peddler. He had a beautiful daughter. One day, he was making his sales pitch to a baron in his mansion on the fancy side of town. In order to impress the baron, the peddler said, “My daughter can make diamonds out of clay.”
The baron said to the peddler, “That’s an interesting talent. Bring her to my mansion tomorrow, so I can see for myself.”
When the girl arrived at the mansion, she was led to a small room on the first floor that was full of clay. There were stoneware, earthen and kaolin varieties. The room had a pottery wheel, carving tools, and a kiln. “Hurry and get working! Mold this clay all night. If there are no diamonds in the morning, you will never see your father again!” He left the room and locked her in.
The peddler’s daughter sat, alone and confused. She had never seen clay, let alone know how to mold anything. She was worried about her father, and scared for her life and began to sob.
Then, the locked door opened. A small man approached her and asked, “Why are you crying?”
The girl sobbingly answered, “I am supposed to mold this clay into diamonds and I have no idea what I am doing.”
The small man said, “I will mold the clay into diamonds for you, if you give me something in return. What do you have to offer?”
“My golden hair clip,” said the girl.
The small man took the golden hair clip, grabbed a huge piece of clay and began spinning the pottery wheel. He spun and spun and spun. It looked as if he was casting a magic spell. The clay began to shimmer like the stars in the sky. After heating the shiny balls of clay in the kiln, the small man chiseled away at them. Suddenly, the room was full of beautiful diamonds.
The following morning, the baron came. When he saw the diamonds, he was shocked. He smiled, an evil, greedy smile. He wanted more. He took the peddler’s daughter to the basement. The huge room was entirely full of clay. It seemed as if there was no end in sight. Again, he ordered her to mold the clay or else she would never see her father.
The girl began to cry. She was only able to get through the previous night because of the small man’s help.
The small man appeared again. He said, “What will you give me if I mold this clay into diamonds for you?”
“I have nothing more to give you,” answered the girl.
“Then promise me, after you marry the baron, that I can have your first-born child.”
The girl thought to herself, “I don’t want to marry such an evil man, let alone, have a child with him.” Not knowing what else to do, she went ahead and promised the small man her child. All she wanted was to see her father. In return, the man molded the clay into diamonds.
The next morning, the baron came and was satisfied with the room full of diamonds. He asked the girl for her hand in marriage but she refused.
She returned home, excited to see her father. However, when she got there, the small man was waiting for her. He was enraged. “You promised me your first-born child but you refused to marry the baron! So, I will take your father away!”
The girl began to sob uncontrollably. She explained to the small man, “There was no way I could marry the baron. He is a vile man who kidnapped me and threatened to take my father from me! All because of his greed!”
The small man took pity on her and said, “I will give you three days. If you can tell me my name, I will leave you and your family alone. If not, you will marry the baron and give me your first-born!”
The girl spent all night thinking of all the names she knew. She sent her brother to the countryside for help. When the small man returned the next day, she began with Clovis, Sherwin, Balthazar, and all the names she knew. After each one, the small man said, “That is not my name.”
By the third day, the girl’s brother returned. He explained, “I was unable to find any new names, but when I reached a large cave to rest, I saw a small man, dancing and singing around a fire.”
Today, I’ll drink my wine,
Tomorrow the girl will wed
Soon I’ll have the child
Rumpelstiltskin is my name
The girl was relieved and happy to hear this news. Soon, the small man came and asked, “Peddler’s daughter, what is my name?”
She first asked, “Is your name Alastair?”
“No.”
“Is your name Mordecai?”
“No.”
“Well, is your name Rumpelstiltskin?”
“The devil told you that! You must be some kind of witch!” shouted the small man. He was frightened and angry. He left, never to return. The girl was happy to stay with her father. She eventually married the sweet farm boy from down the road and had two wonderful children.
Hi Daphne!
ReplyDeleteI really like that you changed it so that the girl would not marry her kidnapper. That part never made sense to me either. In the version I read, the daughter has to spin wheat into gold. Did you change that too, or did you read a different version? What made you decide to change the king into a baron? Great story!