Analysis of the fairy tale "Frozen". Frozen The plot of the fairy tale Frozen

Wilhelm GAUF

COLD HEART

Anyone who has ever visited the Black Forest will tell you that you will never see such tall and mighty fir trees anywhere else, nowhere else will you meet such tall and strong people. It seems as if the very air, saturated with sun and resin, made the inhabitants of the Black Forest different from their neighbors, the inhabitants of the surrounding plains. Even their clothes are not the same as others. The inhabitants of the mountainous side of the Black Forest dress up especially intricately. The men there wear black camisoles, wide, finely pleated trousers, red stockings and pointed hats with large brims. And I must admit that this outfit gives them a very impressive and respectable look.

All the residents here are excellent glassmakers. Their fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers were engaged in this craft, and the fame of Black Forest glassblowers has long spread throughout the world.

On the other side of the forest, closer to the river, the same Black Forest people live, but they practice a different craft, and their customs are also different. All of them, just like their fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers, are lumberjacks and raftsmen. On long rafts they float the timber down the Neckar to the Rhine, and along the Rhine all the way to the sea.

They stop in every coastal city and wait for buyers, and the thickest and longest logs are driven to Holland, and the Dutch build their ships from this wood.

Raftsmen are accustomed to a harsh, wandering life. Therefore, their clothes are not at all similar to the clothes of glass masters. They wear jackets made of dark canvas and black leather pants on green, palm-width, bristles. From the deep pockets of their trousers there is always a copper ruler sticking out - a sign of their craft. But most of all they are proud of their boots. Yes, and there is something to be proud of! Nobody in the world wears such boots. You can pull them above your knees and walk in them on water as if on dry land.

Until recently, the inhabitants of the Black Forest believed in forest spirits. Now, of course, everyone knows that there are no spirits, but many legends about mysterious forest inhabitants have been passed down from grandfathers to grandchildren.

They say that these forest spirits wore dresses exactly like the people among whom they lived.

The Glass Man - a good friend of people - always appeared in a wide-brimmed peaked hat, in a black camisole and trousers, and on his feet he had red stockings and black shoes. He was the size of a one-year-old child, but this did not in the least hinder his power.

And Michel the Giant wore the clothes of raftsmen, and those. Those who happened to see him were assured that a good fifty calfskins must have gone into his boots, and that an adult man could hide his head in these boots. And they all swore that they were not exaggerating at all.

One Svarunald guy once had to meet these forest spirits.

You will now find out how this happened and what happened.

Many years ago there lived in the Black Forest a poor widow named and nicknamed Barbara Munch.

Her husband was a coal miner, and when he died, her sixteen-year-old son Peter had to take up the same craft. Until now, he had only watched his father extinguish coal, but now he himself had to sit days and nights near a smoking coal pit, and then drive with a cart along the roads and streets, offering his black goods at all gates and scaring the children with his face and clothes darkened by coal dust.

The good (or bad) thing about being a coal miner is that it leaves a lot of time for thinking.

And Peter Munch, sitting alone by his fire, just like many other coal miners, thought about everything in the world. The silence of the forest, the rustle of the wind in the treetops, the lonely cry of a bird - everything made him think about the people he met while traveling with his cart, about himself and about his sad fate.

“What a miserable fate to be a black, dirty coal miner! – thought Peter. - Whether it’s the craft of a glazier, a watchmaker or a shoemaker! Even the musicians who are hired to play at Sunday parties are more revered than us!” Now, if Peter Munch happens to go out into the street on a holiday - cleanly washed, in his father’s formal caftan with silver buttons, in new red stockings and shoes with buckles... Anyone seeing him from afar will say: “What a guy - well done.” ! Who would it be? And he’ll come closer and just wave his hand: “Oh, but it’s just Peter Munch, the coal miner!..” And he’ll pass by.

But most of all, Peter Munch envied the raftsmen. When these forest giants came to them for a holiday, having hung half a pound of silver trinkets on themselves - all sorts of chains, buttons and buckles - and, with their legs spread wide, looked at the dances, puffing from a yard long Cologne pipes, it seemed to Peter that there was nothing in the world people are happier and more respectful. When these lucky ones put their hand into their pockets and pulled out whole handfuls of silver coins, Peter’s breath tightened, his head became clouded, and he, sad, returned to his hut. He could not see how these “wood gentlemen” lost more in one evening than he himself earned in a whole year.

Hauff's fairy tale "Frozen" summary which is given in this article is a work by a famous German writer, which was written in 1827. This is the story of poor coal miner Peter Munch, who must endure the test of money and fame. The plot of this book, its main ideas are given in this article.

Poor coal miner

The main character of Gauff's fairy tale cold heart", a summary of which you are now reading, coal miner Peter Munch. He works, but earns very little, over time he begins to feel very burdened by his poverty. Moreover, he considers the craft that he inherited from his father not honorable.

He comes up with a lot of ideas on how to make a lot of money, but Peter doesn't like any of them. The main character of Gauff's fairy tale "Frozen" (a brief summary will help you quickly remember the main events of this book) tries to summon the Glass Man, remembering an ancient legend, but cannot remember the last two lines of the spell. When he comes to the village of woodcutters, he is told the legend of Michel the Giant, who gives riches, demanding in return only a symbolic reward.

Finally, Peter remembers the entire text to summon the Glass Man, and then meets Michel, who at first promises him wealth, and when main character tries to run away, throws his hook at him. Munch manages to reach the border of his farm, the gaff breaks, one of the chips flying away from it turns into a snake, but even here Peter is lucky, it is killed by a huge wood grouse.

Meeting the Glass Man

He came at Munch’s call and is now ready to fulfill any three of his wishes. Peter's dream is to learn to dance, to always have as much money with him as the richest man in the city, and also to have his own glass factory. Glass Man disappointed with Munch’s so mundane third wish, he advises leaving it “for later,” but gives money to open the plant.

The hero of Gauff's book "Frozen" launches his own factory, but everything free time spends at the gaming table. One day it turns out that the richest man in the city, whose name is Fat Ezekiel, has no money in his pocket, and therefore Peter is left with nothing.

Then he turns to Michel the Giant, who gives him a lot of money, but in return takes his heart. A stone heart is inserted into Munch's chest, and the real one is now stored in the Giant's home on the shelves along with the hearts of other rich people.

Is there happiness in money?

Having become rich, Peter does not feel happy. In Hauff's fairy tale "Frozen", a brief summary will help you refresh your memory of this work before a seminar or exam, Munch's life becomes even worse. First, he beats his wife Lisbeth because she serves bread and a cup of wine to an old man passing by. And it turns out to be the Glass Man. After this she leaves Munch.

Meanwhile, the time comes for the third wish, which remains with Peter. He asks for his living, warm heart to be returned to him. The Glass Man readily tells him how to do it. Peter goes to Michel, declaring that he does not believe that he took the hearts from him, demanding that he put them back in to check. Brave Munch did not fear the Giant, even when he began to send various elements: water, fire and others. As a result, an unknown force nevertheless threw Peter outside Michel’s domain, and the Giant himself turned into a small worm.

At the end of the fairy tale, Munch meets the Glass Man, wanting to die in order to end his unfortunate life once and for all. But instead of the ax that Peter asked for, he brings him his wife and mother. Meanwhile, the huge and rich house in which he lived burned down, the wealth dissolved, but in the place of his father’s old house there was a small but new house. Soon the Munchs have a son, to whom the Glass Man presents his last gift. These are pine cones that Peter once picked up in the forest. They turn into brand new thalers. This is the summary of Gauff's Frozen.

Gauff's work was filmed in the Soviet Union. In 1981, it became one of the parts of Irma Rausch's television film "A Tale Told at Night."

The role of coal miner Peter Munch was played by Alexander Galibin, the Dutchman Michel was played by Peter's wife - Maya Kirse, the owner of the forest (the Glass Man in Hauff's fairy tale) - Jüri Järvet, and the rich man Klaus, who sold his soul for the opportunity to always win at dice, by Leonid Yarmolnik.

main idea

Wilhelm Hauff's fairy tale "Frozen" is, in fact, a kind of parable. It is noteworthy that even the final words of the protagonist that it is better to be content with little than to own wealth and a cold heart echo lines from the Gospel.

The main idea of ​​the fairy tale “Frozen” by Gauff is aimed at explaining, first of all, to inexperienced young people that even having wealth does not mean that you can immediately realize all your dreams. In fact, to be happy you don’t need to have everything you want, since the consequence of an excessive state is a lack of motivation for life activity and the desire for self-improvement.

As a rule, people mistakenly believe that if they receive enough money, they will be grateful and happy. But Peter Munch refutes this judgment. After all, to work as a coal miner he had everything he needed, dexterity and skill, but when he began managing a glass factory, it turned out that he was not smart enough.

Heart of Stone

The key image in this work is the image of a cold or stony heart. With its help, the author metaphorically characterizes people who, in their well-being, lose their human appearance.

In order to turn into such a person, it is not at all necessary to meet the Giant Michel in real life. It is enough to make money your main priority, forget about everything else, and your heart will immediately harden.

This tale also teaches that Peter still managed to return to the true path when, after meeting with bad people on his own life path was able to discern those who really wish him well and happiness.

Fairy tale success

The success of Hauff's tale was ensured by the peculiarities of the language in which it was written. He is as simple and elegant as possible, which is why the ideas contained in his works are perceived without tension and easily.

The translators of his works into Russian managed to do the same. This was done by Tamara Gabbe and Alexandra Lyubarskaya, and the poems were translated by Samuil Marshak.

Wilhelm Hauff. Its main idea is to instill in children tolerance and empathy for other people, in particular for the main character of the fairy tale. You can start a story on the topic “Gauf “Little Muk”: a summary” with the fact that a certain boy from the city of Nicea, together with his friends, loved to listen to amazing stories. They were told by one very wise old dwarf.

His name was Little Mook. The summary in continuation indicates that then the boy grew up and began to retell the stories of the dwarf, as if he himself was watching what was happening from the side. After all, he met Little Mook as a child, and he was a very funny and awkward person. His body was tiny, but his head was huge, larger than that of ordinary people.

“Little Muk”: summary

He lived completely alone in his big house. He went outside very rarely, mostly walking on the flat roof of his mansion.

When the children saw him, they often teased him, pulled his robe, and stepped on his huge shoes. One day our narrator also participated in this unpleasant action, for which Little Muk complained to the tomboy’s father. Although the boy was punished, he learned the story of the dwarf.

His real name was Mukra. His father was a poor man, but respected. They lived in the city of Nicaea. Since Muk was a dwarf, he almost always stayed at home. The father did not like his son because of his ugliness, so he did not teach him anything. When his father died, Muk was 16 years old, his entire inheritance - including the house - was lost to debts. Muk only got his father's things.

In search of happiness

The summary of the fairy tale “Little Muk” continues its development with the fact that the poor guy went to wander and seek his happiness. It was hard for him, he was tormented by hunger and thirst, and finally, one day he came to the city where he saw an old woman - Mrs. Ahavzi. She invited everyone who wanted to eat. But for some reason, only cats and dogs came running to her from all over the area.

The emaciated dwarf also decided to approach. He told her his sad story, and she left him with her to look after her pets, of which the old woman had a lot. But soon the animals became so impudent that as soon as the old woman went about her business, they immediately began to destroy everything around. And then they complained that Little Mook did it. The summary tells that the old woman, of course, believed her beloved charges.

Magic trophies

And then one day, when the dwarf was in Mrs. Akhavzi’s room, the cat broke a vase there. Muk realized that he couldn’t take his head off and ran away from her house, taking his wand and his grandmother’s shoes, since his own were already completely worn out. After all, she didn’t pay him any money anyway.

As it turned out later, these things were magical. As soon as he turned on his heel three times, he ended up where he wanted. And the cane helped to look for treasures.

Muk-fleet

Muk reached the nearest city and became the king’s runner. At first, everyone laughed at him until they saw how he was the first to reach the finish line in the competition. Then everyone in the kingdom hated him. And the dwarf decided that he could get their love through money, and began to distribute silver and gold, which he found with the help of his magic wand. But this did not happen; on the contrary, he was accused of theft and put in prison. To avoid being executed, he told the king his secret about the shoes and the wand, then Little Mook was released, but the things were taken away.

Dates

The summary of the story “Little Muk” will further tell us that the poor dwarf went traveling again. And suddenly he found two date trees with ripened fruits, which he decided to eat. Having eaten the fruits from one tree, he felt that donkey ears and a huge nose had grown on him; after eating the fruits of another tree, everything disappeared from him. Then Muk decided to go back to the city to start trading these funny fruits. The chief cook at the court collected dates and fed them to all the courtiers along with the king. Everyone liked the great taste of dates, but when they discovered their deformity, they got scared and began urgently looking for doctors.

Revenge

Little Muk, disguised as a healer, came to the palace and healed one of the depicted servants. Then the king promised him a lot of money. But he chose shoes and a wand, tore off his beard and instantly disappeared.

The king saw that it was Little Mook. The summary ends with him leaving the king forever a freak. Since then, the wise dwarf has lived in the city, where the boys teased him, but after the story was told, they stopped laughing at him, and even on the contrary, they began to respect and bow to him when they met.

Wilhelm Hauff. "Frozen" summary. Wilhelm Hauff. "Frozen" summary.

1. Poor coal miner from the Black Forest, Peter Munk, a smart little fellow, began to be burdened by the low-income and, it seems, not at all respectable craft, inherited from his father. However, of all the ideas of how to suddenly get a lot of money, he didn’t like any of them. Remembering the old legend about the Glass Man, he tries to summon him, but forgets the last two lines of the spell. In the village of woodcutters, he is told a legend about Michel the Giant, who gives riches, but demands a large fee for them. When Peter finally remembered the entire text of the Glass Man's challenge, he met Michel, who at first promised riches, but when Peter tried to run away, he threw his hook at him. Fortunately, Peter reached the border of his farm, and the gaff broke, and the snake, into which one of the chips flying off from the gaff turned into, was killed by a huge wood grouse. It turned out that this was not a capercaillie at all, but a Glass Man. He promised to grant three wishes, and the guy wished to dance well, to always have as much money in his pocket as the richest man in their city, a glass factory. The Glass Man, disappointed by such material desires, advised to leave the third wish for later, but gave money to open a factory. But Peter soon launched the plant, and spent all his time at the gaming table. One day, Fat Ezekiel (the richest man in the city) had no money in his pocket, therefore, and Peter found himself with nothing. . Michel the Giant gave him a lot of hard coins, but in return he took his living heart (on the shelves in Michel’s home there were jars with the hearts of many rich people), and inserted a stone one into his chest. But money did not bring happiness to Peter with a cold heart, and after he hit his wife Lisbeth, who served a cup of wine and bread to a passing old man (it was the Glass Man), and she disappeared, the time came for the third wish: Peter wanted to regain his warm heart . The Glass Man taught him how to do this: the guy told Michel that he did not believe that he had taken his heart, and for the sake of verification, he inserted it back. Brave Munch, whose warm heart was harder than stone, was not afraid of the Giant, and when he sent the elements one after another at him (fire, water, ..), an unknown force carried Peter beyond the boundaries of Michel's possessions, and the giant himself became small, like a worm . Having met the Glass Man, Munch wanted to die to end his shameful life, but instead of an ax, he brought him a mother and a wife. Peter’s luxurious house burned down, there was no wealth, but a new one stood in the place of his father’s old house. And when the Munks had a son, the Glass Man presented his last gift: the pine cones picked up by Peter in his forest turned into brand new thalers.

In Baghdad, the caliph and his vizier buy a box of powder and instructions for it from a street vendor. From the translator they learn that this is a magic powder that allows you to turn into animals and understand their language - to do this you need to sniff the powder and say the word “mutabor”. But if someone laughs as an animal, he will forget the magic word and will not be able to turn back into a human. This is what happened with the caliph and the vizier - they turned into storks and laughed, as a result they forgot the word. Later they find out that these are all the tricks of an evil wizard, who has now become the ruler of Baghdad. Hoping that their spell would break in the sacred place, they flew there. But along the way they stopped at the ruins of a palace, where they found an owl, which turned out to be an enchanted princess. The owl told them that wizards gather in these ruins and talk about their tricks. The caliph and the vizier overheard the wizard and learned the magic word. They turned back into people, and the owl into a beautiful princess. After returning to Baghdad, the caliph married the princess, and ordered the evil wizard to be executed in the ruins.

Watch the fairy tale “Calif the Stork”:

The Baghdad caliph Hasid was contented one evening on his sofa; he took a light nap, for the day had turned out to be hot, and now, after his nap, he seemed quite in good spirits. He smoked a long rosewood pipe, from time to time took a sip of the coffee that the slave poured for him, and each time, savoring the drink, he stroked his beard with a contented look. In a word, it was clear that the caliph was in excellent spirits.

It was at this hour that he was most accommodating, softest and most merciful; That is why his great vizier Mansor appeared to him every day at this time. Here he also came, but, contrary to his usual habit, he was very preoccupied. The caliph took the pipe out of his mouth for a minute and said:

“Why do you look so worried, Grand Vizier?”

The Grand Vizier crossed his hands on his chest, bowed to his master and replied:

My lord! I don’t know if I look worried, but downstairs in front of the palace there is a peddler with such beautiful things that I’m annoyed that I don’t have extra money.

The caliph, who had long wanted to please his grand vizier with something, sent a black slave downstairs to fetch a peddler. Soon the slave returned with the peddler. He was a fat man, very dark in complexion and dressed in rags. He had a chest with him that contained all kinds of goods - pearls and rings, richly mounted pistols, bowls and combs. The caliph and his vizier reviewed everything, and the caliph eventually bought beautiful pistols for himself and Mansor, and a comb for the vizier’s wife.

When the peddler was about to lock the stall, the caliph noticed another box in it and asked if there were any goods there. The peddler pulled out a drawer and took out from it a snuffbox with blackish powder and a piece of paper with strange writing that neither the Caliph nor Mansor could decipher.

“I once received these items from a merchant who found them on the street in Mecca,” said the peddler, “I don’t know what they contain; I will sell them to you for the lowest price, because I have no use for them.

The caliph, who willingly collected ancient manuscripts for his library, although he could not read them, bought the manuscript and the box and sent the peddler away.

However, the caliph really wanted to know what was said in the manuscript, and he asked the vizier if he knew anyone who could decipher it.

“Gracious sir and master,” answered the vizier, “there lives a man at the large mosque whose name is the Wise Selim, he knows all languages, tell him to call, perhaps he will understand these mysterious marks.”

The wise Selim was soon brought in.

Selim,” the caliph addressed him. - Selim, they say you are a great sage; take a look at this manuscript, whether you can understand it or not; if you take it apart, you will receive new holiday clothes from me, but if you don’t take it apart, you will receive a dozen slaps in the face and two dozen blows on the heels for being called the Wise in vain.

Selim bowed and said:

Thy will be done, oh my lord!

He looked at the manuscript for a long time and suddenly cried out:

Let them hang me, if this is not Latin, oh my lord!

Tell me what is written there,” the caliph ordered, “since it’s in Latin.”

Selim began to translate: “The person who found this, may he thank Allah for his mercy! Whoever sniffs the powder from this box and at the same time pronounces “mutabor” can turn into any animal, and will also understand the language of animals. When he wants to take human form again, let him bow three times to the east and say the same word; however, being transformed, beware of laughing, otherwise the magic word will completely disappear from your memory, and you will remain a beast.”

Then the caliph turned to his vizier:

What a truly successful purchase, Mansor! What fun it will be to become a beast! Come to me tomorrow morning; We will go to the field together, smell a little from my box and listen to what is said in the air, in the forest and in the field!

The next morning, before Caliph Hasid had time to have breakfast and get dressed, the Grand Vizier appeared, executing orders, to accompany him on his walk.

The caliph tucked a snuffbox containing magic powder into his belt and, ordering his retinue not to accompany him, he and the grand vizier set off on their journey. They first went through the extensive gardens of the caliph, but in vain they looked for living creatures there in order to try their trick. Then the Grand Vizier suggested going to the pond, where he often happened to see many birds, namely storks, which attracted his attention with the majesty of their habits and tireless chattering.

The caliph agreed to his vizier's proposal and went with him to the pond. Arriving there, they saw a stork who was sedately walking back and forth, looking for frogs and chattering something under his breath. At the same time, they saw a second stork high in the sky, flying to the same place.

“I’m ready to bet my beard, my most gracious lord,” said the Grand Vizier, “that these two long-legged men will now have a very interesting conversation among themselves.” What if we turned into storks?

“It’s a clever idea,” answered the caliph. - But first we need to remember once again how to become human again. That’s right, bow to the east three times and say “mutabor”, then I will again be the caliph, and you will be the vizier. But God forbid we should laugh, otherwise we will perish!

While the caliph was speaking, a second stork flew over their heads and slowly descended to the ground. The Caliph quickly took out a snuff-box from under his belt, took a good snuff from it and handed it to the Grand Vizier, who sniffed it too, and both cried out: “Mutabor!”

And now their legs shrank and became thin and red; the beautiful shoes of the caliph and his companion became clumsy stork paws, the arms became wings, the neck stretched out and became an elbow long, the beard disappeared, and the body was covered with soft feathers.

“You have a nice beak, Mr. Grand Vizier,” said the caliph, barely recovering from amazement. “I swear by the beard of the prophet, I have never seen anything like this in my life.”

“I humbly thank you,” answered the Grand Vizier, bowing, “but I dare to say that it suits your Majesty even more to be a stork than a caliph.” However, would you like to go listen to our comrades and find out whether we really understand in the true way?

Meanwhile, the second stork managed to descend to the ground; he cleaned his legs with his beak, smoothed his feathers and headed towards the first stork. Both new storks hurried closer and, to their amazement, heard the following conversation:

Good morning, Mrs. Longlegs, is it already light in the meadow?

Thank you, darling Ratchet! I got myself something for breakfast; Would you like a quarter lizard or a frog fillet?

I am deeply grateful, but these days I don’t have the slightest appetite. I came to the meadow for a completely different matter. My father has guests today, I will have to dance in front of them, so I want to practice a little in my spare time.

And the young stork walked across the meadow, throwing out the most amazing little knees. Caliph and Mansor looked after her in amazement, but when she stopped in a picturesque pose on one leg, gracefully flapping her wings, they could not help themselves, an uncontrollable laugh burst out of their beaks, from which they took a long time to catch their breath. The Caliph was the first to control himself.

No amount of money can buy this kind of fun! - he cried. “It’s a pity that the stupid creatures were afraid of our laughter, otherwise they probably would have started singing!”

But then it occurred to the Grand Vizier that laughing during the transformation was not allowed. He shared his fears with the caliph.

By Mecca and Medina, it would be bad fun if I had to remain a stork. Remember this stupid word, I’m having trouble with it.

We must bow three times to the east and at the same time say: “Mu... mu... mutarob.”

They turned to the east and began to bow, almost touching the ground with their beaks.

- Mutarob! - exclaimed the caliph.

“Mutarob,” exclaimed the vizier.

But - woe! - No matter how much they repeated this word, they could not remove the witchcraft from themselves.

They tried all the words that came to their minds: murtubor, and murbutor, and murburbur, and murturbur, and murburut, and mutrubut, but nothing helped. The magic word disappeared from their memory forever, and they were and remain storks.

The enchanted caliph and vizier trudged sadly through the fields, not knowing how to help their misfortune. They could not shed their stork form, nor could they return to the city to name themselves: who would believe the stork that he was the caliph? And even if someone believed it, would the people of Baghdad want a stork as their caliph?

So they wandered for many days, subsisting on grains, which were not easy for them to chew with their long beaks. Lizards and frogs did not inspire them with appetite; they were afraid of spoiling their digestion with such delicacies. Their only consolation in their distress was the ability to fly, and they often flew over the roofs of Baghdad, wanting to see what was happening there.

In the first days they noticed great anxiety and sadness in the streets; but approximately on the fourth day after their transformation, they were sitting in the caliph’s palace, when suddenly they saw a magnificent procession on the street below; trumpets and drums sounded; on a decorated horse sat a man in a woven golden purple caftan, surrounded by a shiny retinue; Half of Baghdad ran after him, and everyone shouted: “Glory to Mizra, the ruler of Baghdad!”

The storks on the roof of the palace looked at each other, and Caliph Hasid said:

Can you guess now why I am bewitched? This same Mitsra is the son of my sworn enemy, the powerful wizard Kashnur, who in an evil hour swore to take cruel revenge on me. But hope does not leave me. Follow me, faithful companion of my troubles, we will go to the tomb of the prophet; perhaps the magic will dissipate in holy places.

They rose from the roof of the palace and flew towards Medina. But it was difficult to fly; both storks lacked dexterity.

“My lord,” the Grand Vizier groaned two hours later, “with your permission, there is no more urine for me, you are flying too fast!” And the evening is already falling, we should find shelter for the night.

The Hasid heeded his servant's plea; Down in the valley he just noticed ruins that, apparently, could give them shelter, and they flew there. The ruins where they went down for the night had obviously once been a castle. Beautiful columns rose above the piles of stone; Numerous chambers, fairly preserved, testified to the former splendor of the building. The Hasid and his companion wandered through the galleries in search of a dry place; suddenly the stork Mansor stopped.

“My lord and master,” he babbled barely audibly, “although it is absurd for the Grand Vizier, much less a stork, to be afraid of ghosts, yet I am terrified, because here something is clearly sighing and groaning nearby.

Now the caliph stopped and also clearly heard a quiet groan, more human than animal.

Full of hope, he rushed in the direction from which the groans were coming, but the vizier grabbed his wing with his beak and tearfully begged him not to rush towards new unknown dangers. But in vain! The caliph and under the plumage of the stork had a brave heart beating; he broke free, sacrificing several feathers, and rushed into one of the dark passages. Soon he found himself in front of a door, which seemed to be only closed and from where moans and slight howls could be heard. He pushed the door with his beak and froze in confusion on the threshold. In a dilapidated room, where scant light fell from a lattice window, he saw a night owl sitting on the floor. Copious tears rolled from her large round eyes, and hoarse moans burst out from her crooked beak. But, seeing the caliph and his vizier, who in the meantime had also managed to get here, the owl raised a joyful cry.

Gracefully wiping away a tear from her eyes with her brown speckled wing, she, to the amazement of the caliph and his vizier, cried out humanly in pure Arabic:

Welcome, gentlemen storks! You are a good sign for me that my salvation is close, for through storks great happiness will come to me, as was once predicted to me!

When the Caliph recovered from his amazement, he bowed his long neck, placed his thin legs in a graceful position and said:

Night owl! Judging by your words, we have found in you a companion in misfortune! But alas! You hope in vain that we bring you salvation, and you yourself will be convinced of our helplessness when you hear our story.

The night owl asked me to tell her everything, and the caliph began to tell the story, which we already know.

When the caliph told the owl his story, the owl thanked him and said:

Listen also to my story and find out that I am no less unhappy than you. My father is the ruler of India; I am his only, ill-fated daughter, I am called Luza. The same wizard Kashnur who bewitched you brought me into trouble too. He once came to my father to woo me for his son Mitsra. But my father, a hot-tempered man, ordered him to be lowered down the stairs. The villain managed to make his way to me in a different guise, and when I wanted to somehow quench my thirst with a cool drink in my garden, he, disguised as a slave, brought me a drink that turned me into this disgusting monster. When I fainted from fright, he carried me here and shouted in my ear in a terrible voice: “Remain here as a freak, despised even by animals, until the end of your days or until someone, of his own free will, wishes to make you his wife, even in this disgusting form. This is my revenge on you and your arrogant father.”

Many months have passed since then. I live alone and sadly as a hermit in these ruins, rejected by the whole world, disgusted even by animals; The beauties of nature are inaccessible to me, for I am blind during the day, and only when the pale light of the moon illuminates these ruins does the scale fall from my eyes.

The owl finished and again wiped her eyes with her wing, for the story of her suffering brought new tears from her.


While the princess was telling the story, the caliph fell into deep thought.

“Either I don’t understand anything,” he said, “or there is a secret relationship between our misfortunes; but where can I find the key to this riddle?

The owl answered him:

Oh, my lord, I also have such a presentiment, for once, in my early youth, one wise woman predicted to me that great happiness would come to me through a stork, and it seems to me that I know a way to save ourselves.

The Caliph was very surprised and asked what this method was.

The wizard who brought misfortune to both of us comes here every month. Not far from this room there is a hall. There he usually feasts with a large company. I've eavesdropped on them more than once. They tell each other their vile deeds; maybe this time he will say the word you forgot.

“O priceless princess,” cried the caliph, “tell me when he appears and where that hall is.”

The owl was silent for a minute and then said:

Do not be angry with me, but only on one condition can I fulfill your desire.

Speak up! Speak! - Hasid cried. - Give orders, I’m ready for anything.

The fact is that I, too, would like to be free, but this is only possible if one of you takes me as your wife.

The storks were apparently somewhat embarrassed by this proposal, and the Caliph nodded to his servant to leave the room with him.

“Grand Vizier,” said the Caliph outside the door, “this is not a pleasant business, but you could still agree.”

Oh, right? - he objected. - So that my wife, when I return home, will scratch out my eyes? Besides, I am an old man, and you are a young and single man - it would be more appropriate for you to marry a young and beautiful princess.

That’s exactly it,” the caliph sighed, sadly lowering his wings, “where did you get the idea that she is young and beautiful?” This is called a blind deal!

They persuaded each other for a long time, but in the end, when the caliph saw that his vizier was more willing to remain a stork than to marry an owl, he decided to fulfill the condition himself. The owl was very happy. She revealed to them that they had come at the most opportune time; in all likelihood, it was on that night that the gathering of wizards would take place.

She, along with the storks, left the room to lead them to that hall; They walked for a long time in a dark gallery, until light flashed towards them from a dilapidated wall. When they got there, the owl told them not to make any noise. Through the hole in the wall near which they stood, they could see the entire vast hall. It was decorated with columns and beautifully decorated. Many colored lamps replaced daylight. In the middle of the hall there was a large round table laden with exquisite dishes. There was a sofa around the entire table, on which eight people sat. In one of them, the storks recognized the same peddler who sold them the magic powder. His table neighbor asked him to tell him about his latest adventures. And he, along with others, also told the story of the caliph and his vizier.

What kind of word did you give them? - asked one of the wizards.

Very difficult Latin word- mutabor.

Hearing this through the crack in the wall, the storks went crazy with joy. They ran towards the exit of the ruins as fast as their long legs could carry them, and the owl could barely keep up with them. Having got out, the caliph said sensitively, turning to the owl:

Savior of my life and the life of my friend, as a sign of eternal gratitude for what you have done for us, let me be your husband! After that, he turned to the east, and both storks bowed their long necks three times towards the sun, which was just rising from behind the mountain range.


- Mutabor! - they cried, instantly turned into people, and, filled with great joy from the newly given life, the master and servant, crying and laughing, rushed into each other’s arms. But what was their amazement when they looked back. A beautiful lady, magnificently dressed, stood in front of them. Smiling, she extended her hand to the caliph.

Don't you recognize your night owl? - she asked.

It really was her; The caliph, delighted with her beauty and grace, cried out that he became a stork for his own good fortune.

All three immediately went to Baghdad. The caliph found in his belt not only a box of magic powder, but also a wallet with money. In the nearest village he acquired everything they needed for the journey, and thus they soon arrived at the gates of Baghdad. There the arrival of the caliph caused great surprise. He was declared dead, and therefore the people were very happy to find their beloved ruler again.

The more alive it burned popular anger against the deceiver Mizra. Crowds of people rushed into the palace and captured the old wizard and his son. The caliph sent the old man to the very chamber of the ruined castle where the princess lived, being an owl, and ordered him to be hanged there. The caliph offered his son, who knew nothing about his father’s deck art, a choice - either death or snuff.

When he chose the latter, the Grand Vizier presented him with a box. He took a good sniff and magic word caliph, turned into a stork. The caliph ordered him to be locked in an iron cage and placed in his garden.

Caliph Hasid lived long and joyfully; the most cheerful hours for him were those when the Grand Vizier came to him in the evening; they often recalled their adventures when they were storks, and when the caliph happened to be very happy, he condescended to portray the grand vizier in the form of a stork. Gradually, without bending his legs, he walked around the room, chattering something, waving his arms like wings, and showing how he vainly bowed to the east and called out: “Murturbur! Burmurtur! Turburmur!” This performance always entertained Mrs. Califsha and her children a lot; but if the caliph chattered and bowed and shouted “mutarob” for too long, the vizier, smiling, threatened him to tell the lady caliph what the argument was about behind the door of the night owl princess.

When Selim Baruch finished his story, the merchants expressed complete satisfaction.

In fact, the day passed completely unnoticed for us! - said one of them, throwing back the tent flap. - The evening wind brings coolness, we will still have time to cover a fair part of the way.

His companions agreed with him; the tents were folded, and the caravan, lined up in the same order in which it came here, set off.


They rode almost all night long, because during the day they were overcome by the heat, but the night was fresh and shining with stars. Finally they reached a convenient place to rest, pitched their tents and lay down to rest. The merchants took care of the stranger as if he were their most welcome guest. One lent him pillows, another a blanket, a third gave him slaves - in a word, he was arranged no worse than at home. When they got up, the hottest time of the day had already arrived, and they unanimously decided to wait here for the evening. After a joint meal, they moved closer together again, and the young merchant, turning to the eldest, said:

Selim Baruch helped us pass the day pleasantly yesterday; what if you, Akhmet, told us either some story from your long life, which probably has many adventures, or just a funny fairy tale?

In response to this appeal, Akhmet was silent for some time, as if choosing what to focus on, and finally spoke:

Dear friends! During this journey of ours you have shown yourself faithful comrades, and Selim also earned my trust; Therefore, I will tell you one event from my life, which I usually talk about reluctantly and not with everyone: it will be a story about a ship