148th Tale of Asbjørnsen & Moe (aka the 'abominable' tale) Just Got An English Translation #notforkids

I want to be an angel although to die, is hard,
but oh the bliss, to think of this, I'll make good Fairbank Lard" - [ca. 1870–1900 postcard]

Hold on to your hats!
Asbjørnsen & Moe fan and London-born, Norwegian-resident translator, Simon Roy Hughes, (whose translation work was just featured in the last TWO editions of the scholarly journal Gramarye), just found a 148th tale that has been missing from almost every publication of Asbjørnsen & Moe tales.
                         

Here's how our Editor and Head Fairy Tale News Hound found out:

(I found a 148th Asbjørnsen & Moe tale.)

— Simon (꒾) (@SimonRoyHughes) July 19, 2019

What?? Where? I thought you had mined the lot of them. But this is awesome. Never enough A&M! You are translating, yes?

— G. Thornton (@inkgypsy) July 20, 2019

It’s a tale that, as far as I can tell, has only been printed twice—in its original publication, from 1853, and in a bibliography from 2011. The subject-matter is somewhat objectionable; it’s called “The Parson-sausage” (aka "the secret tale” and “the abominable tale”).

— Simon (꒾) (@SimonRoyHughes) July 20, 2019

Simon has kindly given us permission to republish his translation in full here, but do be warned - this is not for kiddies and it's pretty clear why it has been quietly missing from Asbjørnsen & Moe volumes. Typical of the period with regard to violence, it does still seem to go a step further with how graphically it's described, so read at your own discretion.

Parson Sausage

(translated by Simon Roy Hughes)

(re-posted in full with kind permission)

^{Note on the title}

There was once upon a time a girl who had been allowed to go to church to attend Mass. But she lived far away in the forest, and the church road was so long that she had to leave home early on Saturday. She walked and she walked, but however she walked, she did not arrive; she had trodden wild grass. She walked and she ran, but she didn’t find the church, nor did she come to folk, until late in the evening; then she came to a cabin far away in the forest. A light shone from the window, and inside a woman went about, cooking and tidying. So the girl went in and asked for a place to stay.

“God help me for a house this is!” said the woman; “I cannot let you stay, I cannot; it would be better to stay in the forest, beneath the sky, than to stay here,” she said, “for here dwell twelve robbers; they are my sons, and if they see you, they will kill you on the spot!”

But the girl said it was better to have a roof above her head, no matter how wrong, than to be out in the forest, beneath the night sky. Well, then she would be allowed to stay, and when they heard the robbers coming, the woman hid her as well as she could, in a corner behind some clutter which lay there. Then came all twelve faring, and between them they had the parson in his parson’s cassock, and in full church decor. They laid him on a stool and stabbed him in his throat with a butcher’s knife, butchered him like any other pig and hung him up by his hind legs. They put his blood in a butcher’s pail, made sausages from it, and cooked and roasted and ate well enough.

The girl did not feel very brave, and she did not think that her life was worth many shillings, there where she lay. But when they had eaten their fill, they settled down, the robbers, and early on Sunday morning the woman woke the girl up, put her on the right path, and then gave her some sausages as food along the way, and bade her hurry so that the robbers wouldn’t take her. But that was something she needn’t bid her, for the girl ran as quickly as she could, and then some. And when the day began to to dawn in the forest, and she glimpsed the church, then she heard a rumbling; the robbers were after her, and wanted to catch her, and so she flew away from the fields, as she thought, and when she saw the church congregation standing on the church hill, waiting for the parson, she swung the sausages in the air, crying: “Parson sausage, parson sausage!” - Then the congregation understood what had become of the parson, and so they immediately took the robbers. Some they beat, and some they hanged, and some they rolled in nail barrels. They caught eleven, but the twelfth escaped, and he walks and crawls and skulks, and if you aren’t very good, then he’ll leap down across all the hills and take you. There he is!

---

1. This tale has been printed but twice: once in Norske Illustreret Kalender (1853), and once in Østberg, Henning. Asbjørnsen og Moes eventyr og sagn en bibliografi (2011). It has been called “The Secret Tale,” and considered an “abominable tale,” for reasons that are quickly apparent. I doubt I will be including it in the complete collection, but who knows? ↩

We thought we'd include the social media exchange after all was revealed as well, for your enjoyment:

OK that was graphic but ended much better than expected (well, not for the parson). It reminds me of a couple of other tales but I don't have time to look (them) up. I'd include it (in a collection) with all the appropriate warnings (but then, that's me). Thanks - that was actually pretty interesting!

— G. Thornton (@inkgypsy) July 20, 2019

It is interesting, especially for the portrayal of the the parson as “any other pig,” hung by “his hind legs,” and for the heavy-handed didactic at the end, which is unusual in A&M. But it’s neither a children’s tale, nor an erotic tale, and I suppose it will go homeless. 😔

— Simon (꒾) (@SimonRoyHughes) July 20, 2019

Note: Simon has  A collection of Erotic Folktales from Norway, available, and a Norwegian edition of The Three Bears (with nine original illustrations). See below for the links.

(Could) you release a "complete tales of" book? It would fit there.

— G. Thornton (@inkgypsy) July 20, 2019

I’m working on the proposal already, but based on existing Norwegian editions. An appendix, perhaps...

— Simon (꒾) (@SimonRoyHughes) July 20, 2019

We also thought Parson Sausage read as if it were related to The Parson's Mother.  It feels almost like part of the same story (with Parson Sausage being the end of it all), so we asked Simon about any connection. Here's his reply:

Funnily enough, both tales first appeared in Norsk Illustreret Kalender in 1853, “Parson Sausage” immediately before “The Parson’s Mother.” Both were ejected from subsequent publications, the former until now, the latter until 1936. Cannibalism makes murder worse, it seems.

— Simon (꒾) (@SimonRoyHughes) July 23, 2019

So, sort of related.

We will have to wait and see just which book covers this newly translated abominable, secret tale will land between...

Thanks Simon! 

You can read more of Simon's project of translating Norwegian Folktales (that is, to complete the translation of all of Asbjørnsen and Moe's collected tales to English), at his blog HERE. Here's his explanation of the project to inspire you to explore the ever-growing treasure trove there:

About the Norwegian Folktales Project by Simon Hughes 

The collection 

Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Engebretsen Moe collected and published Norwegian folk tales and legends in the middle of the 19^thcentury. Whilst some of the tales are very well known in the English-speaking world, such as "The Three Billy-goats Gruff," many more are completely unknown, never having been translated. Imagine! All the trolls and hulders and nisses you may not have read about, yet. 

(FTNH Ed. As an example, The Pantheon Fairy Tale & Folklore Library edition of Norwegian Folktales contains 36 of the 110 listed as being collected, not including the 31 additional tales from the 'Round the Yule Log' collection, which doesn't count the variants of a few of those either. All other A&M English collections we've found have the phrase "selected from the collection of" in the subtitle. Even with the final tale numbers being a little difficult to count in light-research-mode, it's clear most English collections fall far short of including the bulk, let alone all, of Asbjørnsen and Moe's collected tales, so we're very excited to learn of this project!)

The project 

My intention with this project is to give the collection the treatment it deserves as a part of our world literature, and translate and publish the folklore that Asbjørnsen and Moe collected, in English analogues to the original publications. I am beginning with Peter Christen Asbjørnsen's Norwegian Hulder Tales and Folk Legends (1845/ 48), which has not appeared in English before. As I progress, I will continue to publish each tale on this site, when I have edited it enough to call it a final draft.

Simon (click his name to learn more about him) has a mailing list to keep you in the loop for updates and new tales, which we highly recommend joining. He also has an intriguing book of Erotic Folktales From Norway...

Click on the image above to be taken to the book options.

Every purchase supports his work!

... and a new English translation by Simon, of a Norwegian version of the Three Bears by P. Chr. Asbjørnsen. It's available in ebook format or print-on-demand. Click on the image below to find out how to purchase your own copy.

It's probably easiest to find Simon on Twitter HERE - something we also recommend. Personable and with that true "folklorist-joy" of discussing all things fairy tale (but particularly those of Norwegian origin), he's a continual delight to tweet with. His comments and insights are most commonly seen being retweeted and discussed on our favorite day in social media each week, #FolkloreThursday.

Arabian Nights Series Part 2: Burton Vs Lyons Translation Throwdown

(Written by Timeless Tales Magazine Editor Tahlia Merrill Kirk)

This is Part 2 of a series about reading Tales of 1001 Nights. To start at the beginning of the series, click HERE.


Your Arabian Nights Quote of the Day:

I asked an old man walking with his beard down to his knees: “Why are you so bent?” He waved his hands at me. “My youth was lost on the ground,” he said, “And I am bending down to look for it.

- Malcolm C. Lyons. The Arabian Nights: Tales of 1,001 Nights: Volume 1. Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.

Lyons' 2008 Translation

Since the complete unabridged Arabian Nights is around 2,600 pages (the notoriously long War and Peace is only around 1,225 pages), the circle of people who have read the entire thing is relatively small. But there’s always one question that pops ups first when you meet the rare member of this club: What translation are you reading?


For a long time, there was only one option if you wanted a complete unabridged translation. There are dozens of partial or abridged compilations, many heavily edited to take out the sexual content and insert Christian morals. The first to successfully tackle the entire collection was Sir Richard Francis Burton. His 1885 edition stood alone in this category for over a hundred years until Malcolm C. and Ursula Lyons published their Penguin Classic edition in 2008. Considering how long it takes to simply read the full collection, can you imagine being the person who painstakingly converts each page from Arabic to English? The thought blows my mind.

Photograph by Rischgitz/Getty Images

Burton’s version is beloved for its grandiose language and extensive footnotes that provide insight into Middle Eastern culture. He deliberately crafted his writing style to evoke epic literature by Medieval and Elizabethan writers like Chaucer and Shakespeare. But perhaps what Burton fans admire most about his work is its authenticity. All those footnotes came about during his many years living in the Middle East, so much of his research stems from firsthand accounts.
It’s impossible not to indulge in a small detour about the colorful character of Burton himself. His thirst for adventure led him into plenty of dangerous situations. He infamously disguised himself as a Muslim to make a pilgrimage to Mecca, going so far as to become circumcised to avoid discovery. He was once on an expedition that got attacked by Somali warriors and survived being impaled by a javelin through both cheeks. He immersed himself in every culture he visited and mastered over 26 languages. This larger than life legacy undoubtedly contributes to the continuing popularity of his books. There’s something extra exciting about reading a version of Arabian Nights knowing that the author was a real life Indiana Jones.
And after all that buildup, I will now break the news that Ron did not read Burton’s translation. He read the newer Lyons’ version. Sure, Malcolm and Ursula don’t have any stories on their Wikipedia page about being chased out of town on horseback by 300 soldiers--wait, let's give them the benefit of the doubt--I'll fact check that before I make such a broad generalization…
Guys, neither Ursula nor Malcolm have a Wikipedia page. This is tragic! And makes for boring blogging! Their Goodreads pages lead me to believe that The Arabian Nights is probably their lives’ magnum opus. I'll just imagine some amazing romance that brought this couple together in their joint quest to rebirth this great epic book…


Okay, joking aside, the Lyons version of Arabian Nights actually has a lot going for it. Think of Burton’s version as the King James Version of the Bible and the Lyons’ translation as NIV. Lots of people love KJV for its beautiful evocative language that is steeped in tradition and history. But others prefer NIV for being straightforward and easier to understand. It’s the same with Arabian Nights. Burton has a tendency towards rambling and flowery language, using “thee”s and “thou”s to evoke an archaic tone. He deliberately chooses obscure words, using Latin whenever the chance arises. My incredibly well read friend Adam enthused about how many new words he learned from Burton’s text. Constantly googling words is fun for some, but cumbersome for others. The Lyons, on the other hand, take a more grounded approach. They aim for clarity and a smooth effortless reading experience. You’ll never lose the train of thought or get exhausted after reading one tale. Some might argue that the Lyons version lacks pizzazz, but others would say that they allow the words to speak for themselves. 

If you want a more detailed comparison The Guardian wrote this amazing post about the two editions. It even has two side-by-side examples of how drastically different they are. 

If anyone knows how to get in touch with the Lyons, I would love to interview them about the translation process and what their goals were in creating this new edition. 


For those who are interested, here's a link to the Penguin Classics Volume 1-3 that Ron read: https://www.amazon.com/Arabian-Nights-Tales-Penguin-Classics/dp/0140449388


Next up in this blog series: Is Arabian Nights Super Sexist? Stay tuned!

A Look At The Ash Lad With Translator Simon Hughes

Ash Lad and the Troll by Thomas Gronbukt

At first glance, a name like 'Ash Lad' might lead someone not familiar with Norwegian tales to think this popular character was just a male version of Cinderella. While the two characters share some aspects beyond the name similarities, such as a lowly position in their household and caring for the fire, Ash Lad has much more in common with the English Jack and the Russian Ivan. In their respective folklore and fairy tales, all three of them, while usually considered a little dim, or naive, are not necessarily the idiots the rest of the village (or family) would say they are. Sometimes they are quite smart, but also sometimes not, depending on the tale. What can be agreed on though, is that they're all, very, very lucky.

Interestingly, the Wikipedia article on Ash Lad (Askeladden) adds this little nugget, explaining partly why we make the Cinderella association, though the earliest known tale uses the name Askefis*:

In Asbjørnsens's first edition (1843), the name is rendered as Askepott, which in Norway is commonly associated with Cinderella. This was later turned into Askeladden by Moltke Moe.

Our guest blogger today, Simon Hughes, looks at how the name Ash Lad came to be, and why it can be confusing, even, at times, misleading.

The Ash Lad

(Behind the Name)

by Simon Hughes

(re-posted in full with kind permission)

The protagonist in a good number of Norwegian folktales, Askeladden (often translated as “Boots”, or “the Ash Lad”) is an apparent naïf, though he subsequently shows himself to be witty, shrewd, and fantastically resourceful. The oldest recorded form of the name is Oskefis (“ash-blower” - although “fis” has evolved to mean “fart” in modern Norwegian), denoting one who blows the embers to keep the fire going, a job often reserved for the lowest member of the household. Later oral traditions give the name Oskeladd, Oskelabb, Oskelamp, or Oskefot, where the second stem (-ladd, -labb, -lamp, -fot) denotes a rough woollen sock or slipper, suggesting this character has his feet in, or close to, the hearth.

Theodor Kittelsen - The Ash Lad Poking in the Ashes
(FTNH Ed: We like how he is being creative with the embers!)

In some tales, Askeladden's forename is given as Espen, Svein, Halvor, Lars, Hans, or Tyrihans. Tyrihans is a household function, though, like Askeladden: “Hans who looks after the "tyrived”, tyrived being the resin-laden pinewood used as kindling. This name suggests that Askeladden has complete responsibility for the fire, from collecting kindling, to lighting it, to tending it - quite an important job on the farm, in fact.**

Thanks Simon! 

You can read more of Simon's project of translating Norwegian Folktales (that is, to complete the translation of all of Asbjørnsen and Moe's collected tales to English), at his blog HERE. Here's his explanation of the project to inspire you to explore the ever-growing treasure trove there:

About the Norwegian Folktales Project by Simon Hughes 

The collection 

Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Engebretsen Moe collected and published Norwegian folk tales and legends in the middle of the 19^thcentury. Whilst some of the tales are very well known in the English-speaking world, such as "The Three Billy-goats Gruff," many more are completely unknown, never having been translated. Imagine! All the trolls and hulders and nisses you may not have read about, yet. 

(FTNH Ed. As an example, The Pantheon Fairy Tale & Folklore Library edition of Norwegian Folktales contains 36 of the 110 listed as being collected, not including the 31 additional tales from the 'Round the Yule Log' collection, which doesn't count the variants of a few of those either. All other A&M English collections we've found have the phrase "selected from the collection of" in the subtitle. Even with the final tale numbers being a little difficult to count in light-research-mode, it's clear most English collections fall far short of including the bulk, let alone all, of Asbjørnsen and Moe's collected tales, so we're very excited to learn of this project!)

The project 

My intention with this project is to give the collection the treatment it deserves as a part of our world literature, and translate and publish the folklore that Asbjørnsen and Moe collected, in English analogues to the original publications. I am beginning with Peter Christen Asbjørnsen's Norwegian Hulder Tales and Folk Legends (1845/ 48), which has not appeared in English before.As I progress, I will continue to publish each tale on this site, when I have edited it enough to call it a final draft.

Simon (click his name to learn more about him) has a mailing list to keep you in the loop for updates and new tales, which we highly recommend joining. He also has a newly published, intriguing book of Norwegian tales...

You can click on the image above to be taken to the book options.

Every purchase supports his work!

Simon is also translating the Norwegian literary fairy tales of Regine Normann! Simon writes: "She wrote two volumes of literary fairy tales, and two volumes of legends set in the north of Norway. None of these volumes has ever been translated into English, and so the English-speaking world has no idea of the riches it has been missing, for the last eighty years." Here's a small summary on Regina Normann from the Greenwood Encyclopedia of Folklore and Fairy Tales (her name is highlighted):

You can find his Regine Normann project HERE.

It's probably easiest to find Simon on Twitter HERE - something we also recommend. Personable and with that true "folklorist-joy" of discussing all things fairy tale (but particularly those of Norwegian origin), he's a continual delight to tweet with. His comments and insights are most commonly seen being retweeted and discussed on our favorite day in social media each week, #FolkloreThursday.

Askeladden who got the princess
to say he was lying ( Asbjørnsen & Moe)
Artist: Erik Werenskiold (1855-1938)

Sources for Askeladden/Ash Lad:

• https://snl.no/askeladden
• https://snl.no/Askefis
• https://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oskefisen
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Askeladden
• http://www.nob-ordbok.uio.no/perl/ordbok.cgi?OPP=ladd
• http://www.nob-ordbok.uio.no/perl/ordbok.cgi?OPP=tyri

* Askefis is the name of the joint Nordic Askeladden. The name denotes one who blows on the embers (from fisa: blow, breathe) to get the fire to flare up. In some places in the Nordic region Askefis denotes a supernatural being that is located in the firepit, "the firepit spirit"; it is likely that the fairy-tale name of the disdained, but always fortunate son, who lingers by the fireplace, is a transfer from here, but probably affected by one or more foreign names of the fairy-tale "lier-in-the-ashes". The name Askefis (Norwegian most often "Oskefis") first appears in Nordic literature in the 1400s (in proverbs). (From Norwegian Encyclopedia - updated 3/3/18 from our original posting using Google Translate, to a much better translation, with special thanks to Simon Hughes)

** Important job?! Absolutely! This is Norway we're talking about. Pre-modern technology, a family would likely freeze to death much of the year if the fire in their hearth went out! [The hottest month in Oslo, the capital, averages 64°F (18°C) while the median lowest temp in Winter is 27°F (-3°C). Brr!]

Google Translate Sings 'Aesthetic & the Animals' (aka B&tB) aka the importance of good translation!

Ah Google Translate! Where would researchers and far flung friends and colleagues be without you? Performer Malinda Kathleen Reese gave us a glimpse of what non-English speaking folks, trying to translate tales and lyrics via Google Translate, might be 'hearing' instead...

This is a bit of (very well done) fun, of course, but it illustrates wonderfully why, when studying tales translated to English from other languages, you should be aware of the translator and how accurate they're considered to be, or (if you're lucky and have their notes) why they chose to use certain words and phrases instead of the more obvious ones... for instance the ones the Google Translate might suggest. ;)
             
One of the difficulties in translating to English is that it's a very imprecise language and definitions are constantly evolving, because social and popular meaning changes. And that's only half of the equation. The other is the original language and its quirks. If you've ever dabbled in languages with even minor translation endeavors, you quickly learned that there is rarely a 'correct' way to translate  - except that the guaranteed 'wrong way' is to try the word-for-word method - and that it's more of an art form than a science of substituting equal meanings.

You have to take into account:

• the words and what they specifically mean (and their equivalent in the language you're translating too)
• what the words also imply (the subtext of using that specific word instead of similar ones), which is influenced by...
• the context at the time - and place - of writing
• all of which usually has a 'tone' and style

(A very small selection of recommended books of translated tales with lots of great notes!)

And that doesn't include:

• storytelling style - which is very important in translating tales
• cultural expressions, idioms, similes and metaphors
• those words that have no English equivalent

(And there are more factors too that a qualified folklorist or professional translator could discuss at length, but you get the idea.)

When you take these into account, even retelling old tales originally written in English can prove tricky..!

Speaking of untranslatable words, can you imagine a retelling of Rapunzel, in which these words - wonderfully illustrated  by Marija Tiurina - are used? (Click on the images to see full size.)

And what about this one for Riquet of the Tuft?

You can find a lovely bunch of many more 'untranslatable words', that have been wonderfully illustrated HERE.

It's a pretty fascinating subject and we're a little in awe of people who translate tales and other creative and social works (not to mention those who facilitate United Nations negotiations!). Be prepared for a fun ride down a rabbit hole if you decide to look into this subject further!

(Note: our suggestion, if you don't want a world of instant-overwhelm, would be to start with annotated tales, and tale collections in which the translators include their notes on the story origins, collection and translation process, sometimes summarized in a foreword on each of the stories. Be prepared to never read anything quite the same way again!)

And just because these are a lot of fun, here's Malinda's latest Google Translate Sings video with a compilation of Mary Poppins songs. Enjoy!

Want more? Malinda has a bunch of princess songs too, in which she sings the original and has a 'sing-off' with the google translate version. Funny stuff!

Book in the Works: "Mother Goose Refigured"

Consider this an official 'heads-up" from us, for your fairy tale studies and folklore libraries:

Coming in November from Wayne State University Press is a fascinating new book on a topic that has had quite a bit of attention in the past coupe of years. It's titled Mother Goose Refigured, written by Christine A. Jones, and, unlike most people's impressions that Mother Goose is a nursery rhyme figure only, the character and archetype often made appearances alongside fairy tales as well, especially in the French fairy tale salon era, of which Charles Perrault was a member. His collection of fairy tales was actually titled Stories or Tales from Times Past; or, Tales of Mother Goose (1697). This book looks at the translations and adaptations of this volume and how that affected the tales themselves.

About the author, who is no newbie to critical writing on fairy tales (we still have our eye on Feathers, Paws, Fins and Claws: Fairy Tale Beasts!):

Christine A. Jones is a specialist of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century France at the University of Utah with interests in the luxury trades and the fairy tale. She has authored Shapely Bodies: The Image of Porcelain in Eighteenth-Century France as well as numerous articles on trade history. With folklore scholar Jennifer Schacker, she has coedited Marvelous Transformations: An Anthology of Fairy Tales and Contemporary Critical Perspectives and Feathers, Paws, Fins, and Claws: Fairy Tale Beasts, illustrated by Lina Kusaite (Wayne State University Press, 2015).

And we must mention: we adore the cover with Red in the wolf-en forest!

Here's the write-up. Included are two images from the book:

Charles Perrault published Histoires ou Contes du temps passé ("Stories or Tales of the Past") in France in 1697 during what scholars call the first "vogue" of tales produced by learned French writers. The genre that we now know so well was new and an uncommon kind of literature in the epic world of Louis XIV’s court. This inaugural collection of French fairy tales features characters like Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Puss in Boots that over the course of the eighteenth century became icons of social history in France and abroad. Translating the original Histoires ou Contes means grappling not only with the strangeness of seventeenth-century French but also with the ubiquity and familiarity of plots and heroines in their famous English personae. 

From its very first translation in 1729, Histoires ou Contes has depended heavily on its English translations for the genesis of character names and enduring recognition. This dependability makes new, innovative translation challenging. For example, can Perrault’s invented name "Cendrillon" be retranslated into anything other than "Cinderella"? And what would happen to our understanding of the tale if it were? Is it possible to sidestep the Anglophone tradition and view the seventeenth-century French anew? Why not leave Cinderella alone, as she is deeply ingrained in cultural lore and beloved the way she is? Such questions inspired the translations of these tales in Mother Goose Refigured, which aim to generate new critical interest in heroines and heroes that seem frozen in time. The book offers introductory essays on the history of interpretation and translation, before retranslating each of the Histoires ou Contes with the aim to prove that if Perrault’s is a classical frame of reference, these tales nonetheless exhibit strikingly modern strategies. 

Designed for scholars, their classrooms, and other adult readers of fairy tales, Mother Goose Refigured promises to inspire new academic interpretations of the Mother Goose tales, particularly among readers who do not have access to the original French and have relied for their critical inquiries on traditional renderings of the tales.