格林童話：三個(gè)紡紗女(英)

　　Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

　　There was a girl who was lazy and would not spin. Her mother could not make her do so, whatever she said to her. Finally anger and impatience so overcame the mother that she beat her, upon which the girl began to cry loudly.

　　Now the queen was just driving by, and when she heard the crying she ordered her carriage to stop, went into the house, and asked the mother why she was beating her daughter so that her cries could be heard out on the road.

　　The woman was ashamed to reveal her daughter's laziness and said, "I cannot make her stop spinning. She wants to spin on and on forever, and I am poor, and cannot get the flax."

　　Then the queen answered, "There is nothing that I like better to hear than spinning. I am never happier than when the wheels are humming. Let your daughter come with me to the palace. I have flax enough. There she can spin to her heart's content."

　　The mother was completely satisfied with this, and the queen took the girl with her. Arriving at the palace, she took her upstairs to three rooms which were filled from the bottom to the top with the finest flax.

　　"Now spin this flax for me," she said, "and when you are finished, you shall have my oldest son for a husband. I do not mind if you are poor. Your untiring industry will do for a dowry."

　　The girl was frightened inside, for she would not be able to spin the flax, not even if she had lived until she was three hundred years old, sitting at it every day from morning until evening. When she was alone she began to cry, and just sat there for three days without moving a hand. On the third day the queen came, and when she saw that nothing had been spun yet, she was surprised. The girl excused herself by saying that because of her sorrow at being away from her mother's house, she had not yet been able to begin.

　　This satisfied the queen, but as she left she said, "Tomorrow you must begin my work."

　　When the girl was alone again, she did not know what to do, or where to turn for help. In her distress she went to the window. There she saw three women coming toward her. The first one had a broad flat foot, the second one had such a large lower lip that it hung down over her chin, and the third one had a broad thumb.

　　They stopped outside the window, looked up, and asked the girl what was wrong with her.

　　She bemoaned her troubles to them, upon which they offered her their help, saying, "If you will invite us to your wedding, not be ashamed of us, call us your aunts, and let us be seated at your table, we will spin all the flax for you, and in a very short time at that."

　　"With all my heart," she answered. "Come right in and begin the work at once."

　　Then she let the three strange women in, and cleared out a space in the first room where they could sit down and begin their spinning. The one pulled the thread and peddled the wheel, the second one moistened the thread, the third twisted it, then struck the table with her finger. Each time she struck, a skein of the most finely spun thread fell to the floor.

　　The girl kept the three spinners hidden from the queen, but whenever she came, the girl showed her the great quantity of thread that had been spun. The queen could not praise her enough.

　　When the first room was empty, they went to work on the second one, and on the third one, and it too was quickly cleaned out.

　　The three women now took leave and said to the girl, "Do not forget what you have promised us. It will bring you good luck."

　　When the girl showed the queen the empty rooms and the large pile of thread, the latter made preparations for the wedding. The bridegroom was happy that he was getting such a clever and industrious wife, and he praised her vigorously.

　　"I have three aunts," said the girl. "Because they have been very kind to me, I do not want to forget them in my good fortune. Allow me to invite them to the wedding, and let them be seated next to us at the table."

　　The queen and the bridegroom said, "Why should we not allow that?"

　　When the feast began, the three women, dressed in strange clothing, entered.

　　The bride said, "Welcome, dear aunts."

　　"Oh," said the bridegroom, "what brought you to this hideous friendship?"

　　Then he went to the one with the broad flat foot, and asked, "Where did you get such a broad foot?"

　　"From peddling," she answered. "From peddling."

　　Then the bridegroom went to the second one, and said, "Where did you get this fallen lip?"

　　"From licking," she answered. "From licking."

　　Then he asked the third one, "Where did you get this broad thumb?"

　　"From twisting thread," she answered. "From twisting thread."

　　This alarmed the prince, and he said, "My beautiful bride shall never again touch a spinning wheel."

　　With that she was freed from hateful flax spinning.

　　從前有個(gè)女孩，非常懶惰，怎么著都不愿意紡紗。

　　終於有一天，母親感到忍無可忍，就打了她一頓，她於是嚎啕大哭起來。正巧這時(shí)王后乘車從門前經(jīng)過，聽見了哭聲，吩咐把車停下來，進(jìn)屋問那位母親為甚么打女兒。做母親的怎好意思說自己的女兒如何如何的懶惰，於是就回答說：「我叫她不要再紡了，可她就是不聽，在紡車上仍然紡個(gè)不停。

　　我窮啊，哪買得起那么多的亞麻呀。」

　　王后聽了說道：「我最愛紡紗。讓你的女兒隨我進(jìn)宮去吧，我有的是亞麻，她愿意紡多少就紡多少?！?/p>

　　母親聽了這話，打心眼兒里高興，滿口答應(yīng)下來，王后便帶著女孩走了。

　　她們到了王宮之后，王后領(lǐng)著女孩上了樓，把三間庫房指給她看，只見庫房里裝滿了最好的亞麻?！高?，你就為我紡這些亞麻吧，」王后說道，「你甚么時(shí)候紡?fù)炅?，就嫁給我的長子?！?/p>

　　女孩聽了心里一陣驚恐——即使她每天從早紡到晚，紡到她三百歲的時(shí)候，也休想把那么多的亞麻紡?fù)?。剩下女孩?dú)自一人時(shí)，她就哭了起來。她就這樣哭哭啼啼地坐著，一晃兒三天過去了，還沒動(dòng)手紡紗呢。第三天，女孩不知如何是好，憂心忡忡地來到窗前。恰在這時(shí)她看見有三個(gè)女人走了過來：第一個(gè)女人的一個(gè)腳板又寬又平;第二個(gè)的下嘴唇很長，耷拉到下巴上;而第三個(gè)的一只大拇指非常寬大。這三個(gè)女人走到窗下停住了腳，問女孩為甚么憂心忡忡，她就向她們訴說了自己的苦惱。「只要你不嫌我們丟人，」他們對女孩說道，「請我們參加你的婚禮，說我們是你的表姐，并且讓我們與你同桌喝喜酒，我們就幫你把這些亞麻紡?fù)??！?/p>

　　「我非常樂意?！古⒒卮鹫f。

　　說罷，女孩就讓這三個(gè)長相奇特的女人進(jìn)屋來。她們進(jìn)來后剛一坐下就開始紡紗。每次王后來，女孩生怕王后發(fā)現(xiàn)，便把那三個(gè)紡紗女藏起來，而讓王后看已經(jīng)紡好的紗。王后看了之后，對她讚不絕口。

　　庫房里所有的亞麻都紡?fù)炅?，這三個(gè)紡織女便跟女孩告別，臨行前對她說道：「你可千萬不要忘記了對我們許下的諾言，這關(guān)系到你自己的幸福啊?！?/p>

　　女孩領(lǐng)著王后看了三間空蕩蕩的庫房和堆得像小山似的紗線，王后於是就安排了婚禮。

　　「我有三位表姐，」女孩說，「她們待我非常好。在我自己幸福如意的時(shí)候，怎么也不愿意冷漠了她們。請?jiān)试S我邀請她們來參加婚禮，并且讓她們在婚宴上和我們坐在一起。」

　　王后和王子欣然同意?；槎Y那天，三個(gè)紡紗女果然來了。她們打扮得怪模怪樣的，很令人發(fā)笑。新娘馬上迎上去說：

　　「歡迎你們，親愛的表姐們。」

　　「你的幾個(gè)表姐怎么長得這么丑?」王子問道。隨后，他轉(zhuǎn)身走到那個(gè)大腳板女人身邊，問道：「您的一只腳怎么會(huì)這樣大呢?」

　　「踏紡車踏的唄?！顾卮鸬?。

　　新郎又走到第二個(gè)女人身旁，問道：「您的嘴唇怎么會(huì)耷拉著呢?」

　　「舔麻線舔的唄?！顾卮鹫f。

　　然后他問第三個(gè)女人：「您的大拇指怎么會(huì)這樣寬呢?」

　　「捻麻線捻的唄。」她回答說。

　　王子聽罷三人的回答，大驚失色，於是就說：「我美麗的新娘今后絕不再碰紡車一下?！?/p>

　　就這樣，女孩從此再也用不著干紡紗這個(gè)討厭的活兒了。