Little Snow-White (Grimm)
Short summary
A fairy tale kingdom, medieval times. A queen wished for a child with skin white as snow, lips red as blood, and hair black as ebony. She gave birth to such a daughter but died.
The king remarried a beautiful but vain woman who owned a magic mirror.
When the mirror declared Snow-White fairest, the Queen ordered a huntsman to kill her. He spared her, and she found refuge with seven dwarfs. The Queen discovered she lived and tried to kill her with laces and a poisoned comb, but the dwarfs saved her. Finally, she brought a poisoned apple. After Snow-White bit it, she exclaimed:
White as snow, red as blood, black as ebony-wood! this time the dwarfs cannot wake you up again.
A prince found Snow-White in a glass coffin. When moved, the apple dislodged. They married. The Queen died.
Detailed summary
Division into chapters is editorial.
Snow Whites birth and the evil stepmothers jealousy
On a winter day, a queen sat sewing by a window framed with black ebony. When she pricked her finger, three drops of blood fell upon the snow outside. Admiring the beautiful contrast of colors, she wished:
Would that I had a child as white as snow, as red as blood, and as black as the wood of the window-frame.
Soon after, she gave birth to a daughter with skin white as snow, lips red as blood, and hair black as ebony, who was named Little Snow-White. The queen died after childbirth.
A year later, the king remarried a beautiful but proud and vain woman.
She possessed a magical looking-glass that always spoke the truth.
Daily, she would ask it who was the fairest in the land, and it would confirm her beauty. However, when Snow-White turned seven and surpassed the queen in beauty, the mirror revealed the truth. The queen's heart filled with murderous envy.
The huntsmans mercy and Snow Whites escape into the forest
Unable to bear Snow-White's superior beauty, the queen summoned a huntsman with deadly instructions:
Take the child away into the forest; I will no longer have her in my sight. Kill her, and bring me back her heart as a token.
The huntsman obeyed and led Snow-White into the forest.
When he drew his knife, Snow-White pleaded for her life, promising to run away and never return. Moved by her beauty and innocence, the huntsman took pity on her and let her go. He killed a young boar instead, taking its heart to the queen as false proof of Snow-White's death. The wicked queen ate it, believing she had consumed Snow-White's heart.
Discovery of the dwarfs cottage and new home
Alone and terrified in the vast forest, Snow-White ran through thorns and over sharp stones until evening. She discovered a tiny cottage where everything was small but extraordinarily neat and clean. Inside were seven little plates, cups, knives, forks, and beds covered with snow-white sheets. Hungry and exhausted, she ate a little from each plate and drank from each cup, then tried the beds until she found one that fit perfectly.
When darkness fell, the cottage owners returned - seven dwarfs who worked in the mountains digging for ore.
They lit their candles and noticed someone had disturbed their belongings. Each dwarf discovered evidence of the visitor until the seventh found Snow-White sleeping in his bed. They exclaimed in wonder at her beauty and decided not to wake her. The seventh dwarf shared beds with his companions throughout the night. In the morning, Snow-White explained her story, and the dwarfs offered her shelter in exchange for keeping house, cooking, and cleaning. She gratefully accepted and warned them about her stepmother.
The Queens first murder attempt with poisoned laces
Meanwhile, the queen consulted her mirror again, only to learn that Snow-White still lived with the seven dwarfs and remained the fairest. Furious at the huntsman's betrayal, she disguised herself as an old peddler-woman and traveled to the dwarfs' cottage. She offered Snow-White beautiful colored laces, and the trusting girl let her in. The disguised queen laced Snow-White's bodice so tightly that she collapsed as if dead. When the dwarfs returned, they cut the laces and revived her, warning her to be more careful.
The Queens second attempt with the poisoned comb
The mirror again revealed Snow-White's survival, enraging the queen further. Using witchcraft, she created a poisoned comb and disguised herself as a different old woman. Despite Snow-White's initial refusal to let anyone in, the beautiful comb tempted her to open the door. The moment the poisoned comb touched her hair, Snow-White fell senseless. Fortunately, the dwarfs returned quickly, found the comb, and removed it, saving her life once more.
The fatal apple and Snow Whites apparent death
Learning of her third failure, the queen created a beautiful apple, white with a red cheek, but only the red side was poisoned. Disguised as a countrywoman, she offered it to Snow-White, who refused. To prove its safety, the queen cut the apple in half, eating the white portion while offering Snow-White the poisoned red half. Unable to resist, Snow-White took a bite and immediately fell dead. The queen finally received confirmation from her mirror that she was now the fairest. The dwarfs found Snow-White lifeless and, unable to revive her, placed her in a glass coffin on the mountain where she remained unchanged, as beautiful as ever.
The princes love, Snow Whites revival, and the Queens demise
A king's son discovered the glass coffin and fell in love with Snow-White's beauty.
He begged the dwarfs for the coffin, declaring he could not live without seeing her. Moved by his devotion, they gave it to him. As his servants carried the coffin, they stumbled, dislodging the poisoned apple piece from Snow-White's throat. She awakened, and the prince joyfully proposed marriage. At their wedding, the evil stepmother attended, only to learn from her mirror that the young queen was now the fairest. In her rage and despair, she was forced to wear red-hot iron shoes and dance until she died.