The Fisherman and His Wife by Brothers Grimm [PDF]

Information: The Fisherman and His Wife

• Author: Brothers Grimm
• Publication Date: 1812
• Main Characters:
  • The Fisherman: A humble, obedient man who catches the enchanted flounder and reluctantly returns to the sea each time his wife demands more
  • Ilsebill: The fisherman's wife, whose desires escalate from a simple cottage to wanting divine power, driving the entire conflict of the story
  • The Flounder: An enchanted prince in the form of a fish who grants increasingly extravagant wishes until the final demand goes too far
• Brief Summary: A poor fisherman catches a flounder who claims to be an enchanted prince and begs to be released. The fisherman lets him go, but his wife Ilsebill insists he return to ask the fish for a better house. The fish grants the wish, but Ilsebill's demands escalate from a cottage to a stone house, to a palace, to becoming king, emperor, and pope. When she finally demands to be like God, the enchanted flounder sends them back to their original hovel, and everything is lost.
• Thematic Analysis: The tale explores greed, contentment, and the destructive cycle of unchecked ambition. It contrasts the fisherman's humility with his wife's insatiable desire for power. There is also a quiet commentary on the relationship between humans and nature, with the increasingly stormy sea reflecting the moral cost of each new demand.
• Historical Context: The Brothers Grimm included this tale in their first edition of "Kinder- und Hausmarchen" in 1812, drawn from a version told by the Romantic painter Philipp Otto Runge in Pomeranian Low German. The story reflects early 19th-century European folk traditions that used simple narratives to teach moral lessons about excess and social ambition.