意大利童話 The Canary Prince 金絲雀王子
There was a king who had a daughter Her mother was dead, and the stepmother was jealous of the girl and always spoke badly of her to the king The maiden defended herself as best as she could, but the stepmother was so contrary and insistent that the king, though he loved his daughter, finally gave in He told the queen to send the girl away, but to some place where she would be comfortable, for he would never allow her to be mistreated "Have no fear of that," said the stepmother, who then had the girl shut up in a castle in the heart of the forest To keep her company, the queen selected a group of ladies-in-waiting, ordering them never to let the girl go out of the house or even to look out the windows Naturally they received a salary worthy of a royal household The girl was given a beautiful room and all she wanted to eat and drink The only thing she couldn't do was go outdoors But the ladies, enjoying so much leisure time and money, thought only of themselves and paid no attention to her
Every now and then the king would ask his wife, "And how is our daughter? What is she doing with herself these days?" To prove that she did take an interest in the girl, the queen called on her The minute she stepped from her carriage, the ladies-in-waiting all rushed out and told her not to worry, the girl was well and happy The queen went up to the girl's room for a moment "So you're comfortable, are you? You need nothing, do you? You're looking well, I see; the country air is doing you good Stay happy, now Bye-bye, dear!" And off she went She informed the king she had never seen his daughter so content
On the contrary, alwasy alone in the room, with ladies-in-waiting who didn't so much as look at her, the princess spent her days wistfully at the window She sat there leaning on the windowsill, and had she not thought to put a pillow under them, she would have got calluses on her elbows The window looked out on the forest, and all day long the princess saw nothing but treetops, clouds and, down below, the hunters' trail Over that trail one day came the son of a king in pursuit of a wild boar Nearing the castle known to have been unoccupied for no telling how many years, he was amazed to see washing spread out on the battlements, smoke rising from the chimneys, and open casements As he looked about him, he noticed a beautiful maiden at one of the upper windows and smiled at her The maiden saw the prince too, dressed in yellow, with hunter's leggings and gun, and smiling at her, so she smiled back at him For a whole hour, they smiled, bowed, and curtsied, being too far apart to communicate in any other way
The next day, under the pretext of going hunting, the king's son returned, dressed in yellow, and they stared at each other this time for two hours; in addition to smiles, bows, and curtsies, they put a hand over their hearts and waved handkerchiefs at great length The third day the prince stopped for three hours, and they blew each other kisses The fourth day he was there as usual, when from behind a tree a witch peeped and began to guffaw: "Ho, ho, ho, ho!"
"Who are you? What's so funny?" snapped the prince
"What's so funny? Two lovers silly enought to stay so far apart!"
"Would you know how to get any closer to her, ninny?" asked the prince
"I like you both," said the witch, "and I'll help you"
She knocked at the door and handed the ladies-in-waiting a big old book with yellow, smudgy pages, saying it was a gift to the princess so the young lady could pass the time reading The ladies took it to the girl, who opened it at once and read: "This is a magic book Turn the pages forward, and the man becomes a bird; turn them back, and the bird becomes a man once more"
The girl ran to the window, placed the book on the sill, and turned the pages in great haste while watching the youth in yellow standing in the path Moving his arms, he was soon flapping wings and changed into a canary, dressed in yellow as he was Up he soared above the treetops and headed straight for the window, coming to rest on the cushioned sill The princess couldn't resist picking up the beautiful canary and kissing him; then remembering he was a young man, she blushed But on second thought she wasn't ashamed at all and made haste to turn him back into a youth She picked up the book and thumbed backward through it; the canary ruffled his yellow feathers, flapped his wings, then moved arms and was once more the youth dressed in yellow with the hunter's leggings, who knelt before her, declaring, "I love you!"
By the time they finished confessing all their love for one another, it was evening Slowly, the princess leafed through the book Looking into her eyes the youth turned back into a canary, perched on the windowsill, then on the eaves, then trusting to the wind, flew down in wide arcs, lighting on the lower limb of a tree At that, she turned the pages back in the book and the canary was a prince once more who jumped down, whistled for his dogs, threw a kiss toward the window, and continued along the trail out of sight
So every day the pages were turned forward to bring the prince flying up to the window at the top of the tower, then turned backward to restore his human form, then forward again to enable him to fly away, and finally backward for him to get home Never in their whole life had the two young people known such happiness
One day the queen called on her stepdaughter She walked about the room, saying, "You're all right, aren't you? I see you're a trifle slimmer, but that's certainly no cause for concern, is it? It's true, isn't it, you've never felt better?" As she talked, she checked to see that everything was in place She opened the window and peered out Here came the prince in yellow along the trail with his dogs "If this silly girl thinks she is going to flirt at the window," said the stepmother to herself, "she has another thought coming to her" She sent the girl for a glass of water and some sugar, then hurriedly removed five or six hairpins from her own hair and concealed them in the pillow with the sharp points sticking straight up "That will teach her to lean on the windowsill!" The girl returned with the water and sugar, but the queen said, "Oh, I'm no longer thirsty; you drink it, my dear! I must be getting back to your father You don't need anything, do you? Well, goodbye" And she was off
As soon as the queen's carriage was out of sight, the girl hurriedly flipped over the pages of the book, the prince turned into a canary, flew to the window, and struck the pillow like an arrow He instantly let out a shrill cry of pain The yellow feathers were stained with blood; the canary had driven the pins into his breast He rose with a convulsive flapping, trusted himself to the wind, descended in irregular arcs, and lit on the ground with outstretched wings The frightened princess, not yet fully aware of what had happened, quickly turned the pages back in the hope there would be no wounds when he regained his human form Alas, the prince reappeared dripping blood from the deep stabs that had rent the yellow garment on his chest, and lay back surrounded by his dogs
At the howling of the dogs, the other hunters came to his aid and carried him off on a stretcher of branches, but he didn't so much as glance up at the window of his beloved, who was still overwhelmed with grief and fright
Back at his palace, the prince showed no promise of recovery, nor did the doctors know what to do for him The wounds refused to heal over, and constantly hurt His father the king posted proclamations on every street corner promising a fortune to anyone who could cure him, but not a soul turned up to try
The princess meanwhile was consumed with longing for her lover She cut her sheets into thin strips which she tied one to the other in a long, long rope Then one night she let herself down from the high tower and set out on the hunters' trail But because of the thick darkness and the howls of the wolves, she decided to wait for daylight Finding an old oak with a hollow trunk, she nestled inside and, in her exhaustion, fell asleep at once She woke up while it was still pitch-dark, under the impression she had heard a whistle Listening closely, she heard another whistle, then a third and a fourth, after which she saw four candle flames advancing They were four witches coming from the four corners of the earth to their appointed meeting under that tree Through a crack in the trunk the princess, unseen by them, spied on the four crones carrying candles and sneering a welcome to one another: "Ah, ah, ah!"
They lit a bonfire under the tree and sat down to warm themselves and roast a couple of bats for dinner When they had eaten their fill, they began asking one another what they had seen of interest out in the world
"I saw the sultan of Turkey, who bought himself twenty new wives"
"I saw the emperor of China, who has let his pigtail grow three yards long"
"I saw the king of the cannibals, who ate his chamberlain by mistake"
"I saw the king of this region, who has the sick son nobody can cure, since I alone know the remedy"
"And what is it?" asked the other witches
"In the floor of his room is a loose tile All one need to do is lift the tile, and there underneath is a phial containing an ointment that would heal everyone of his wounds"
It was all the princess inside the tree could do not to scream for joy By this time the witches had told one another all they had to say, so each went her own way The princess jumped from the tree and set out in the dawn for the city At the first secondhand dealer's she came to, she bought an old doctor's gown and a pair of spectacles, and knocked at the royal palace Seeing the little doctor with such scant paraphernalia, the servants weren't going to let him in, but the king said, "What harm could he do my son who can't be any worse off than he is now? Let him see what he can do" The sham doctor asked to be left alone with the sick man, and the request was granted
Finding her lover groaning and unconscious in his sickbed, the princess felt like weeping and smothering him with kisses But she restrained herself because of the urgency of carrying out the witch's directions She paced up and down the room until she stepped on a loose tile, which she raised and discovered a phial of ointment With it she rubbed the prince's wounds, and no sooner had she touched each one with ointment than the wound disappeared completely Overjoyed she called the king, who came in and saw his son sleeping peacefully, with the color back in his cheeks, and no trace of any of the wounds
"Ask for whatever you like, doctor," said the king "All the wealth in the kingdom is yours"
"I wish no money," replied the doctor "Just give me the prince's shield bearing the family coat-of-arms, his standard, and his yellow vest that was rent and bloodied" Upon receiving the three items, she took her leave
Three days later, the king's son was again out hunting He passed the castle in the heart of the forest, but didn't deign to look up at the princess's window She immediately picked up the book, leafed through it, and the prince had no choice but change into a canary He flew into the room, and the princess turned him back into a man "Let me go," he said "Isn't it enough to have pierced me with those pins of yours and caused me so much agony?" The prince, in truth, no longer loved the girl, blaming her for his misfortune
On the verge of fainting, she exclaimed, "But I saved your life! I am the one who cured you!"
"That's not so," said the prince "My life was saved by a foreign doctor who asked for no recompense except my coat-of-arms, my standard, and my bloodied vest!"
"Here are your coat-of-arms, your standard, and your vest! The doctor was none other than myself! The pins were the cruel doing of my stepmother!"
The prince gazed into her eyes, dumbfounded Never had she looked so beautiful He fell at her feet asking her forgiveness and declaring his deep gratitude and love
That very evening he informed his father he was going to marry the maiden in the castle in the forest
"You may marry only the daughter of a king or an emperor," replied his father
"I shall marry the woman who saved my life"
So they made preparations for the wedding, inviting all the kings and queens in the vicinity Also present was the princess's royal father, who had been informed of nothing When the bride came out, he looked at her and exclaimed, "My daughter!"
"What!" said the royal host "My son's bride is your daughter? Why did she not tell us?"
"Because," explained the bride, "I no longer consider myself the daughter of a man who let my stepmother imprison me" And she pointed at the queen
Learning of all his daughter's misfortune, the father was filled with pity for the girl and with loathing for his wicked wife Nor did he wait until he was back home to have the woman seized Thus the marriage was celebrated to the satisfaction and joy of all, with the exception of that wretch
(Turin)
NOTES:
"The Canary Prince" Il Principe canarino) from Rua (in Archivio per lo studio delle tradizioni popolari, Palermo-Turin, VI [1887], 401), Turin
This folktale from Turin, with its balladlike pathos, develops a medieval motif, which is also literary (But Marie de France's lai, Yonec, is quite different, being the story of an adultery) My personal touches here include the prince's yellow suit and leggings, the description of the transformation in a flutter of wings, the gossip of the witches who traveled the world over, and a bit of stylistic cunning
Copyright: Italian Folktales Selected and Retold by Italo Calvino,
translated by George Martin,
Pantheon Books, New York 1980
金絲雀王子
從前有一個國王，他有一個女兒。這女孩的母親去世后，繼母容不下她，總對國王說她的壞話。姑娘一再為自己辯白，可繼母說盡了壞話，用盡了手段，盡管國王很疼愛自己的女兒，最終也不得不順從王后之意，讓她把姑娘送走。不過一定要給公主安排一個好去處，不能虧待了她。繼母說：“這件事，您就放心吧，不必操勞了。”可一轉(zhuǎn)臉，她就命人把公主關(guān)進森林中的一個城堡里了。還挑選了一批宮中貴婦，讓她們到城堡陪伴公主，并下令不許公主出去，連窗戶也不能靠近，當(dāng)然，她也照著王宮里的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)支付這些侍女的報酬。她給公主安排了一間不錯的房間，吃的喝的都可以滿足她，只是不許她跨出大門一步。但是，那些拿著優(yōu)厚報酬的侍女，整天無所事事，只顧自己尋樂，根本不管公主。
國王時不時問妻子：“我們的女兒現(xiàn)在怎么樣了?過得好嗎?”而王后為了讓國王相信自己關(guān)心公主，就去看望她。到了城堡，剛下馬車，侍女們就都跑上前來，告訴她公主一切都好，每天高高興興的，讓她放心。王后到公主的房間轉(zhuǎn)了一下，說：“你在這里過得不錯，是嗎?這里什么也不缺吧?你看上去臉色很好，這里的空氣很新鮮，你舒舒服服地住著吧。再見!”說完就走了?；氐酵鯇m，她告訴國王她從沒見過他的女兒這樣高興過。
而實際上公主總是孤獨地待在房間里，那些陪伴她的侍女連管都不管她，她整天站在窗前傷心地度過一天又一天，如果不是想起在窗臺上墊了一個坐墊，她那支在窗臺上的雙肘早就磨出繭子來了。窗戶朝著森林，公主整天整天地望著窗外的樹梢、遠處的白云和獵人們行走的小路。有一天，她看見一個王子從小路上經(jīng)過，他是追趕一只野豬才來到這座城堡附近的。他知道這是一座荒廢了多年的城堡，當(dāng)他望見上面有人居住的樣子，覺得很驚奇。只見城墻垛間晾曬著衣物，窗戶打開著，煙囪冒著煙。他正驚奇地看著，突然發(fā)現(xiàn)城堡上面的一扇窗戶里，站著一個美麗的姑娘，就沖著她微微一笑。因為相距太遠無法交談，王子和公主又是微笑又是點頭，又是鞠躬，就這樣含情脈脈地對視了一個小時。
第二天，那個王子身著黃色獵裝，假裝打獵，又來到了城堡下，他們對望了兩個小時。這一次除了微笑、點頭、鞠躬，他們兩人還都用手捂住自己的心口，然后向?qū)Ψ綋]動著手帕。第三天，王子站了三個小時，他們還互相用手傳遞著飛吻。第四天，王子像前幾次一樣又來了，這時一個女巫從一棵樹后探出身，大聲笑起來：“哈哈，哈哈，哈哈!”
“你是誰?有什么好笑的?”王子厲聲喝道。
“我從沒見過像你們兩個這樣隔得這么遠又這么癡情的戀人。”
“你知道我怎么才能上去見她呢?老婆婆。”王子問。
女巫說：“看你挺可愛的，我就幫你一把。”然后，就去敲城堡的門。她遞給侍女們一本老舊的厚書，皺巴巴、臟兮兮的，說是她送給公主的一份禮物，好讓公主讀著它打發(fā)時間。侍女們把書送給了公主，公主急忙打開來一看，上面寫著：這是一本魔書。如果你從前往后翻，你的心上人就會變成一只鳥，而如果你從后往前翻，你的心上人就會由鳥變成人。
公主立即跑到窗前，把書放在窗臺上，急不可耐地翻起來，同時緊盯著那個身著黃色獵裝、站在小路上的小伙子。只見小伙子的兩臂動了起來，上下拍動變成了翅膀，而小伙子變成了一只金絲雀。金絲雀從地上飛起來，飛得比樹梢還高，然后直奔窗口飛來，停在窗臺上的墊子上。公主情不自禁地把這只美麗的金絲雀小心翼翼地捧在手里，親吻著它，這時，她想起這是一個小伙子，感到很難為情，可轉(zhuǎn)念一想，又覺得很自然了，恨不能馬上讓它變回先前的那個小伙子。她拿起那本書，向前快速地翻著，只見金絲雀豎起黃色的羽毛，拍動著翅膀，慢慢變成了雙臂，又重新變回到那個身著黃色獵裝、打著綁腿的小伙子。小伙子跪在她腳下，對她說：“我愛你!”
兩個人互相傾訴著愛慕之情，不知不覺中夜幕已經(jīng)降臨。公主緩緩地開始翻著書頁。小伙子雙眼緊盯著公主，變成了一只金絲雀，它跳上陽臺，又跳上屋檐，隨后，迎風(fēng)飛起來，盤旋著向下，落在一根低矮的樹枝上。這時，公主又把書向前翻，金絲雀又變成了王子，王子跳到地上，吹了聲口哨喚來了獵狗，朝著公主的窗口拋了一個飛吻，便沿著小路遠去了。
就這樣，那本魔書每天都為了讓王子飛到城堡尖塔上的窗口翻一遍，又為把他變回人身翻一遍，然后又為了讓他飛去翻一遍，為了讓他回家又翻一遍。兩個年輕人從沒感受過如此的幸福。
一天，王后來看繼女，她到公主的房間轉(zhuǎn)了一圈后，還是假惺惺地說：“你過得不錯，是嗎?你看上去瘦了一點，但這也沒什么，對嗎?你過得從沒有這樣舒服過，是嗎?”她一邊說著，一邊環(huán)顧四周查看一下有什么不妥。她打開窗戶往外看，發(fā)現(xiàn)了那個身著黃色獵裝的王子帶著獵狗走進城堡。王后想：“要是這個小騷貨膽敢在窗口賣弄風(fēng)情，我就好好教訓(xùn)她一下。”于是，她讓公主去端來一杯水和糖，而她急忙從頭發(fā)上摘下自己戴的五六根別針，插在墊子里，針尖朝上，但又使別人很難發(fā)現(xiàn)。“這樣，她就會嘗到趴在窗臺上的滋味了。”公主把她要的水和糖端過來，她卻說：“噢，我又不渴了，你喝了吧，小可憐!我得回到你父親那里。你什么也不需要，是吧?那我走了。”說完就走了。
王后的馬車剛一走遠，公主就急切地翻起書來，王子變成了金絲雀，飛向窗臺，箭一般落在墊子上。金絲雀當(dāng)即疼得大叫起來，鮮血染紅了黃色的羽毛，是墊子里的那幾根針刺進了金絲雀的胸脯。它掙扎著抬起那對搖晃不穩(wěn)的翅膀，借著風(fēng)力，搖擺著飛下去，張著翅膀摔在地上。公主嚇懵了，弄不清到底發(fā)生了什么事，急急忙忙向前翻著書頁，希望金絲雀變回人身后，王子的傷痛能夠消失。唉，變回人身后，只見他黃色獵裝的胸前被刺破了幾處很深的傷口，鮮血滴個不停，他只好仰臥在地上，他的那幾只獵狗圍在他的身旁。
獵狗的狂叫聲引來了另外一些獵人，大家趕來救他，用一副樹枝做的擔(dān)架把他抬走了，王子甚至沒有睜眼看一下他的戀人的窗口，而她正為王子的傷擔(dān)驚受怕呢。
王子被帶回王宮后，沒向任何人透露受傷的經(jīng)過，御醫(yī)們也無法給他更多的幫助。他的傷口不僅沒愈合，反而越發(fā)厲害。國王讓人在所有的大街小巷都貼上布告，重金招募能治好王子傷病的人，結(jié)果無人敢應(yīng)募。
這時，公主因為見不到心上人而焦慮萬分。她把床單剪成細條，搓緊，然后系在一起，結(jié)成一根很長很長的繩子，趁著黑夜順著繩子從高高的城堡塔尖上滑了下來。她順著那條打獵的小路向前走著，但是到處是漆黑一片和狼的嗥叫聲。公主想還是等早上天亮再走吧，就摸黑來到一株空心的老槐樹下，鉆進樹洞里，曲著腿坐下，她累極了，很快就睡著了。她醒來的時候，天還黑著，可她隱約聽到有口哨聲，側(cè)耳傾聽，又聽到一聲，接著聽到了第三聲，第四聲。而且她還遠遠看見有四支燭火在向她靠近。這是四個女巫，她們從世界的四個地方來，要聚在這棵樹下碰面。公主躲在樹里，沒讓她們發(fā)現(xiàn)，她從樹干的縫隙中，看見四個老婦人每人手里都拿著根蠟燭，大呼小叫地笑著，問候著：“哈哈!哈哈!哈哈!”
她們在樹下點起了一堆篝火，坐在旁邊取暖，一邊烤著幾只蝙蝠當(dāng)晚餐。當(dāng)她們都飽了，就開始互相聊起各自遇上的新鮮事。
“我看見土耳其的蘇丹了，他又買了二十個妻子了。”
“我看見中國的皇帝了，他的辮子已經(jīng)長到三米長了。”
“我看見食人國的國王了，他一不留神，把自己的寵臣吃了。”
“我看見這附近的那個國王了，他的兒子病了，沒有人能治好他，因為只有我知道那方法。”
“什么方法?”另外三個女巫問。
“在他的房間里，有一塊活動的地磚，打開這塊磚，就能找到一個細頸瓶，瓶里有一種藥膏，可以愈合他所有的傷口。”
公主在樹洞里驚喜得差點叫出聲來，她趕快用手捂住自己的嘴，保持沉默。女巫們最后把自己要說的話都講出來了，就各自上路回去了。公主從樹洞里跳出來，趁著黎明的微光，朝城里走去。路過第一家舊貨鋪時，她買了一件醫(yī)生穿的長袍和一副眼鏡，然后來到王宮前敲開了門。仆人看到這個醫(yī)生帶的器具簡陋，不想放她進去，國王卻說：“反正，我兒子的病已經(jīng)到了無可救藥的地步了，再差的醫(yī)術(shù)也不會傷害到我那可憐的兒子了，也讓他試試吧。”假醫(yī)生請求讓她跟病人單獨待一會，國王也同意了。
王子神志不清地躺在床上呻吟著，公主望著自己的心上人，很想大哭一場，也很想吻遍他全身，但是，她強忍住自己的感情，要趕快按照那個巫婆的秘訣救王子。她在寬大的房間里來來回回地走著，終于找到了一塊活動的地磚，打開一看，里邊有一個小瓶，裝著藥膏。公主把瓶里的藥膏抹在王子的傷口上，她剛把涂著藥膏的手指放到傷口上，傷口馬上就愈合了。公主又驚又喜，去請國王進來。國王看見兒子的傷口全消失了，臉上也漸漸出現(xiàn)了血色，正躺在床上安靜地睡著。
國王說：“醫(yī)生，告訴我你想要什么，我領(lǐng)地上所有的財寶都可以給你。”
醫(yī)生說：“我不想要錢，只要王子用的那塊刻著族徽的盾牌，王子的戰(zhàn)旗和他的那件被血染紅的破了的黃色獵裝。”她得到這三件東西后就離開了。
三天過后，王子又去打獵。他從那個森林中的城堡下經(jīng)過的時候，連看都沒往公主的窗口那邊看。公主馬上取來那本書，翻著書頁，王子盡管全力抵抗，但也只能變成一只金絲雀。他飛到房間里，公主又讓他變回人身。他說：“讓我走，你用發(fā)針刺傷了我還不夠嗎?還想給我更多的痛苦?”確實，王子對公主已經(jīng)沒有任何愛慕之情了，他以為是公主造成了他的不幸。
公主差點昏過去，說：“是我救了你!是我給你治好了傷!”
王子卻說：“假話，給我治傷的是一個外國醫(yī)生，他不要任何酬謝，只帶走了我的族徽、戰(zhàn)旗和我的那件被血染紅的獵裝!”
“這是你的族徽，這是你的戰(zhàn)旗，這是你的獵裝!我就是那個醫(yī)生!那些發(fā)針是我的那位殘忍的繼母放的!”
王子驚愕地望著公主的眼睛，覺得她從沒像現(xiàn)在這樣美麗過。他撲倒在公主的腳下，請求她的原諒，并表明了自己全部的感激之情和愛慕之意。
當(dāng)天晚上，王子就稟告父王要娶森林中城堡上住的那位姑娘為妻。國王卻說：“你只能娶國王或皇帝的女兒為妻。”
“我要娶曾經(jīng)救過我命的姑娘。”
于是，王宮上下忙著準(zhǔn)備婚禮，他們邀請了附近所有的國王和王后。公主的父親也來參加了，他對女兒的事一無所知。當(dāng)他看到新娘出現(xiàn)在自己面前時，驚呼道：“我的女兒!”
“怎么?我兒子的新娘是您的女兒?為什么您以前從沒提過她?”新郎的父親問。
新娘說：“因為他們根本沒把我當(dāng)人看待，我的繼母把我關(guān)押起來。”她邊說邊用手指著那個王后。
國王聽到女兒所有的不幸遭遇，對女兒他感到萬分內(nèi)疚，對狠心的妻子感到憤怒。他等不及回家就把王后抓了起來?；槎Y在喜慶的氣氛中舉行，所有的人都感到歡樂、滿足，只有那個惡婦在等待著悲慘的結(jié)局。
(都靈地區(qū))
