The Fisherman and His Wife

There was once a fisherman and his wife who lived together in a hut by the seashore. The fisherman went out every day with his hook and line to catch fish, and he angled and angled.

One day he was sitting with his rod, looking into the clear water, when suddenly down went the line to the bottom of the water. When he drew it up, he found a great fish on the hook.

The fish said to him, “Fisherman, listen to me. Let me go. I am not a real fish but an enchanted prince. What good shall I be to you if you land me? I shall not taste good. So put me back into the water again and let me swim away.”

“Well,” said the fisherman, “no need of so many words about the matter. As you can speak, I had much rather let you swim away.” So he cast him back into the sea. Then the fisherman went home to his wife in the hut.

“Well, husband,” said the wife, “have you caught anything today?”

“No,” said the man. “That is, I did catch a huge fish, but as he said he was an enchanted prince, I let him go again.”

“Did you not wish for something?” asked his wife.

“No,” said the man. “What should I wish for?”

“Oh dear!” said the wife. “It is so dreadful always to live in this hut. You might as well have wished for a little cottage. I dare say he will give it to us. Go and be quick.”

When he went back, the sea was green and yellow and not nearly so clear. So he stood and said:

Oh, man of the sea, come listen to me,
For Alice, my wife, the plague of my life,
Has sent me to ask a boon of thee.

Then the fish came swimming up and said, “Now then, what does she want?”

“Oh,” said the man, “my wife says that I should have asked you for something when I caught you. She does not want to live any longer in the hut and would rather have a cottage.”

“Go home,” said the fish. “She has it already.”

So the man went home and found, instead of the hut, a little cottage, and his wife was sitting on a bench before the door. She took him by the hand and said to him, “Come in and see if this is not a great deal better.” They went in, and there was a little sitting room and a beautiful little bedroom, a kitchen and a larder, with all sorts of furniture, and iron and brassware of the very best. And at the back was a little yard with chickens and ducks, and a little garden full of green vegetables and fruit.

“Look,” said the wife, “is not that nice?”

“Yes,” said the man. “If this can only last, we shall be happy the rest of our days.”

“We will see about that,” said his wife.

All went well for a week or fortnight. Then the wife said, “Look here, husband, the cottage is really too small. I think the fish had better give us a larger house. I should like very much to live in a large stone castle. So go to your fish, and he will send us a castle.”

“Oh, my dear wife!” said the man. “The cottage is good enough. What do we want a castle for?”

“Go along,” said the wife. “He might just as well give it to us as not. Do as I say.”

The man did not want to go, and he said to himself, “It is not the right thing to do.”

Nevertheless he went. When he came to the seaside, the water was purple and dark blue and gray and dark, and not green and yellow as before. And he stood and said:

Oh, man of the sea, come listen to me,
For Alice, my wife, the plague of my life,
Has sent me to ask a boon of thee.

“Now then, what does she want?” asked the fish. “Oh!” said the man, half-frightened. “She wants to live in a large stone castle.”

“Go home. She is already standing before the door,” said the fish.

Then the man went home, as he supposed. But when he arrived, there stood in the place of the cottage a great castle of stone, and his wife was standing on the steps about to go in. So she took him by the hand and said, “Let us enter.”

With that he went in with her. In the castle was a great hall with a marble floor, and there were a great many servants, who led them through the large door. The passages were decked with tapestry and the rooms with golden chairs and tables.

Crystal chandeliers were hanging from the ceiling, and all the rooms had carpets. The tables were spread with the most delicious foods for anyone who wanted them. At the back of the house was a stable yard for horses and cattle and carriages of the finest. Besides, there was a splendid large garden with the most beautiful flowers and fine fruit trees, and also a park, full half a mile long, with deer, oxen, sheep, and everything the heart could wish for.

“There,” said the wife, “is not this beautiful?”

“Oh, yes,” said the man. “If it will only last, we can live in this fine castle and be very well contented.”

“We will see about that,” said the wife.

The next morning the wife awakened at the break of day, and she looked out of her window and saw the beautiful country lying all around.

“Husband,” she called, “look out of the window. Just think if we could be Kings over all this country. Go to your fish and tell him we should like to be Kings.”

“Now, wife,” said the man. “What should we be Kings for? I don’t want to be King.”

“Well,” said the wife, “if you don’t want to be King, I will be. You must go at once to the fish. I must be King.”

So the man went, very much put out that his wife should want to be King. He did not at all want to go, and yet he went all the same.

When he came to the sea, the water was dark and gray and rushed far inland, and he stood there and said:

Oh, man of the sea, come listen to me,
For Alice, my wife, the plague of my life,
Has sent me to ask a boon of thee.

“Now then, what does she want?” asked the fish.

“Oh, dear!” said the man. “She wants to be King.”

“Go home. She is so already,” said the fish.

So the man went back, and as he came to the Palace, he saw it was very much larger and had great towers and splendid gateways. The herald stood before the door, and there were a number of soldiers with kettledrums and trumpets.

When he came inside, everything was of marble and gold, and there were many curtains with great gold tassels. Then he went through the doors to the throne room, and there was his wife, sitting upon a throne of gold and diamonds, and she had a great golden crown on her head, and the scepter in her hand was of pure gold and jewels, and on each side stood six pages in a row, each one a head shorter than the other. So the man went up to her and said, “Well, wife, so now you are King.”

“Yes,” said she. “Now I am King.”

Then he stood and looked at her, and when he had gazed at her for some time he said, “Well, wife, this is fine for you to be King. Now there is nothing more to ask for.”

“Oh, husband!” said the wife, seeming quite restless, “I am tired of this already. Go to your fish and tell him that now I am King, I must be Emperor.”

“Now, wife,” said the man, “what do you want to be Emperor for?”

“Husband,” said she, “go and tell the fish I want to be Emperor.”

“Oh, dear!” said the man. “He could not do it. I cannot ask him such a thing. There is but one Emperor at a time. The fish can’t possibly make anyone Emperor – indeed he can’t.”

“Now, look here,” said the wife, “I am King, and you are only my husband, so will you go at once?

Go along. For if he was able to make me King he is able to make me Emperor, and I will and must be Emperor. So go along.”

So he was obliged to go. And as he went he felt very uncomfortable about it, and he thought to himself, “It is not at all the right thing to do. To want to be Emperor is going too far; the fish will soon get tired of this.”

With this he came to the sea, and the water was quite black, and the foam flew, and the wind blew, and the man was terrified. But he stood and said:

Oh, man of the sea, come listen to me,
For Alice, my wife, the plague of my life,
Has sent me to ask a boon of thee.

“What is it now?”asked the fish.

“Oh, dear!” said the man. “My wife wants to be Emperor.”

“Go home,” said the fish. “She is Emperor already.”

So the man went home and found the Castle adorned with polished marble and golden gates. The troops were being marshaled before the door, and they were blowing trumpets and beating drums. And when he entered he saw barons, earls, and dukes waiting about like servants, and the doors were of bright gold. He saw his wife sitting upon a throne of solid gold, and it was about two miles high. She had a great golden crown on, set in precious stones, and in one hand she had a scepter, and in the other a globe; and on both sides of her stood pages in two rows, all arranged according to size, from the enormous giant of two miles high, to the tiniest dwarf the size of my little finger, and before her stood earls and dukes in crowds.

So the man went up to her and said, “Well, wife, so now you are Emperor. I hope you are contented at last.”

“We will see about that,” said his wife.

With that they went to bed. But she was as far as ever from being contented, and she could not get to sleep for thinking of what she would like to be next.

The next morning as she sat before the window watching the sun rise, she said, “Oh, I have it! What if I should make the sun and moon to rise? Husband,” she called, “wake up and go to your fish and tell him I want power over the sun and moon.”

“Oh, wife!” said the man. “The fish cannot do that. Do be contented, I beg of you.”

But she became most impatient and said, “I can wait no longer. Go at once.”

So off he went, as well as he could for fright. And a dreadful storm arose, so that he could hardly keep on his feet. The houses and trees were blown down, and the mountains trembled, and rocks fell in the sea. The sky was quite black; and it thundered and lightninged; and the waves, crowned with foam, ran mountains high. So he cried out:

Oh, man of the sea, come listen to me,
For Alice, my wife, the plague of my life,

Has sent me to ask a boon of thee. “Well, what now?” said the fish. “Oh, dear!” said the man. “She wants to order about the sun and moon.”

“Go home with you,” said the fish, “and you will find her in the old hut.”

And there they are sitting to this very day.

By Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm