The Brothers Grimm

Who are the Grimm Brothers? Jacob Ludwig Grimm Wilhelm Carl Grimm 1785-1863 1786-1859

The Grimm’s Birthplace

The Grimm Family’s Home in Steinau, Deutschland Family History Father = Philipp Wilhelm Grimm 1751-1796 Very respected lawyer Mother = Dorothea Zimmer 1755-1808 9 children 3 sons died during infancy Left 5 boys and 1 girl The Grimm Family’s Home in Steinau, Deutschland

Unfortunate Events 1791 = the Grimm family moves to Steinau Philipp Grimm obtains a district magistrate position Family had a large home with servants 1796 = Philipp Grimm passes away due to pneumonia This causes major financial issues for the family  they lost their servants, home, etc.

Education Jacob & Wilhelm = sent to Lyzeum High School by their Aunt Henriette Zimmer Jacob graduates in 1803 Wilhelm in 1804 Both at the head of their class Jacob & Wilhelm proceed to Marburg University together hoping to follow in their father’s footsteps Jacob drops out to follow Roman Law expert Friedrich Karl Von Savigny and moves to Paris Wilhelm receives a law degree in 1806

Some More Events 1808 =Dorothea Zimmer (their mom) dies at age 52 Jacob was overwhelmed and took a position as a librarian in Kassel to support his siblings Wilhelm soon followed to work with Jacob in Kassel This is where and when they began collecting stories

The Facts Richtig Falsch Their primary method for collecting tales was by inviting story tellers to their homes and writing the information down Story tellers consisted of young educated woman from middle class to aristocracy It was believed that the Grimm brothers went around to various peasants collecting tales

The Grimm Brothers wanted the people to know the basic truths about the customs and practices of the German people and wanted to preserve authentic ties to the oral tradition

Kinder- und Hausmärchen English translation = Children’s and Household Tales 1812 = 1st volume was published. Consisted of 86 stories and folktales 1814 = 2nd volume is published. Consisted of 70 stories and folktales Altogether the Kinder- und Hausmärchen saw 8 editions The final edition contained 200 stories and folktales, including 10 children's legends

Their Achievements The Grimm brothers produced a significant amount of books during their lifetime Jacob Grimm publishes 21 Wilhelm Grimm publishes 14 Together the brothers published 8

Scholarly Contributions Folklore History Ethnology Religion Jurisprudence Lexicography Literary Criticism

That’s Not All! 1819 = Jacob and Wilhelm receive honorary doctorates from Marburg University 1825 = Wilhelm marries Henriette Wild, a former story teller, having 4 children (3 boys & 1 girl) Jacob lived with Wilhelm and Henriette The Grimm brothers were always inseparable

The Grimm’s Final Days Wilhelm Karl Grimm dies on December 16, 1859 at the age of 73 Jacob Ludwig Grimm dies on September 20, 1863 at the age of 78

Some Fairy Tales Aschenputtel = Cinderella Schneewitchen = Snow White Rumpelstilzchen = Rumpelstiltskin Rotkäppchen = Little Red Riding Hood Hänsel und Gretel = Hansel and Gretel Der Froschkönig = The Frog King Dornröschen = Sleeping Beauty

Their Intentions The Grimm brothers were writers of violent, vivid imagery Their fairy tales would allow us to work through our fears Also the Grimm brothers wanted to teach people lessons on moral values -- “Right & Wrong” The number one message that people were to gain out of their stories was… “Children should use their brains to overcome any situation”

Walt Disney Today's versions of children's stories are toned down Its more of a “Happily Ever After” theme These were made so children wouldn’t have fear or nightmares

The Fairy Tale Road ambles for 370 miles through German landscapes that evoke dreams and nightmares.

Some stories with Violent Themes Snow White Cinderella Red Riding Hood Hansel and Gretel Sleeping Beauty The Goose Girl

Some Examples Of The Violence In Hänsel und Gretel = the witch was burned to death in her oven In Aschenputtel = the stepsisters try to cut off parts of their feet in order to fit into the slipper; punishment for deceiving the prince was having their eyes pecked out by pigeons In The Goose Girl = a servant girl was dragged to death in a barrel spiked with nails In Schneewittchen = the witch is forced to wear red-hot iron shoes and dance herself to death

Little Red Cap Auf Deutsch = Rotkäppchen She was given a little cap of red velvet, which suited her so well that she would never wear anything else; so she was always called Little Red Cap.

Illustrations of Snow White Grimm’s Snow White Disney’s Snow White

Illustrations of the Grimm’s Cinderella

Interesting Facts Kinder- und Hausmärchen came second only to the Bible as the best seller in Germany and remains that way today There are theme parks, films, books, and plays dedicated to the brothers Grimm

In the Museum of Steinau