The Fisherman and His Wife
A poor fisherman catches a flounder who is really an enchanted prince, and lets him go. His wife sends him back again and again to wish for a cottage, a castle and a crown, until she wants to rule the sun and the moon, and finds herself back in her old hovel.
Scene 1: The Enchanted Prince
The Fisherman and His Wife. A Fisherman lived with his wife in a miserable hovel by the sea. One day his line went far down, and he drew up a large Flounder. The Flounder said: “Let me live! I am no Flounder really, but an enchanted prince.” The Fisherman said: “A fish that can talk I should certainly let go.” And he put him back into the clear water.
Scene 2: Flounder, Flounder in the Sea
At home, his wife said: “Did you not wish for anything? Go back and tell him we want a small cottage.” The sea was all green and yellow. The Fisherman stood still and said: “Flounder, flounder in the sea, come, I pray thee, here to me; for my wife, good Ilsabil, wills not as I’d have her will.” The Flounder came swimming up and said: “Go, then. She has it already.”
Scene 3: A Great Stone Castle
Now there stood a little cottage, with hens and ducks. But soon the wife said: “This cottage is far too small. Tell the Flounder to give us a great stone castle.” It is not right, the Fisherman thought, and yet he went. The sea was purple and dark blue, gray and thick. He called, and the Flounder said: “Go to it, then. She is standing before the door.”
Scene 4: I Will Be King
Then there stood a great stone castle, with chairs of pure gold. Next morning the wife said: “Go to the Flounder. I will be King over all the land!” The sea was dark gray, and the water heaved up from below. He said: “Flounder, flounder in the sea, come, I pray thee, here to me; for my wife, good Ilsabil, wills not as I’d have her will.” The Flounder said: “Go to her. She is King already.”
Scene 5: The Sun and the Moon
Now his wife sat on a golden throne, with a crown on her head. The Fisherman said: “Now that you are King, we will wish for nothing more.” But all night she lay awake, wanting more. When the sun rose, she poked her husband and said: “Wake up! Go to the Flounder. I want to make the sun and the moon rise!”
Scene 6: The Storm
The Fisherman fell out of bed in fright, but he went. A great storm was raging! The sea was black, with waves as high as church towers. He cried, but could not hear his own words: “Flounder, flounder in the sea, come, I pray thee, here to me; for my wife, good Ilsabil, wills not as I’d have her will.” The Flounder rose from the dark sea, and the Fisherman said: “Alas, she wants to rule the sun and the moon.” The Flounder said: “Go to her, and you will find her back again in the dirty hovel.”
Scene 7: Back in the Hovel
The castle was gone. There sat his wife in the old hovel again. And there they are living still, at this very time. Be content with what you have, or you may end up with nothing at all.
Moral: Be content with what you have; greed can leave you with nothing at all.
Questions about The Fisherman and His Wife
What did the Fisherman catch on his line?
A large Flounder.
Who did the Flounder say he really was?
An enchanted prince.
What was the first thing the wife wished for?
A small cottage.
What color was the sea on the night of the storm?
Black.
Where was the wife at the end of the story?
Back in the old hovel.
More stories to read aloud
- Cinderella — Kind Cinderella works among the cinders for her proud stepmother and stepsisters, until her fairy godmother turns a pumpkin into a golden coach and sends her to the King’s son’s ball in glass slippers.
- Diamonds and Toads — A kind girl gives water to a poor old woman at the fountain, and the woman, who is really a fairy, makes roses, pearls and diamonds fall from her lips at every word.
- Goldilocks and the Three Bears — While the Three Bears take a walk until their porridge cools, a little girl called Goldilocks walks into their house and tries their porridge, chairs and beds.