|
Author
|
Comment
|
curious incident
Registered User
(10/30/05 10:26 pm)
|
east of the sun query
Hi,
I'm writing a novel loosely based on East of the Sun, West of the Moon. And I was going to refer to the story in the book (oh so referential), but I then realised that it was first published in 1840-something, and my book is set in 1810.
and whilst I am sure that the story existed long, long before it was published, what I need to know is: Was it CALLED 'East of the Sun West of the Moon' BEFORE it was published?
Any help would me much appreciated.
-lili
|
Rosemary Lake
Registered User
(10/30/05 11:15 pm)
|
which?
I think I've seen that title applied to (at least) two different stories. Could you tell us more about the story you're using?
|
curious incident
Registered User
(10/30/05 11:23 pm)
|
Re: which?
A girl is forced into marriage with a bear. She finds out he is really a handsome prince, but wrecks the whole thing and he is banished to a kingdom East of the Sun West of the Moon where he has to marry a troll princess with a big nose.
The four winds take the girl to the kingdom, and she gets three gifts from three old crones. She rescues the prince, the troll princess explodes and everyone lives happily ever after...
|
Veronica Schanoes
Registered User
(10/30/05 11:53 pm)
|
Re: which?
This is the one where she has to wear iron shoes, right?
|
evil little pixie
Registered User
(10/31/05 10:26 am)
|
Re: which?
The iron shoes appear in some versions, but not others, including the annotated one on Surlalune. Back in elementary school I read another version where the servant girl who warns the prince not to drink the potion has a bigger role at the end (they have to do something more than washing the shirt to get rid of the trolls, but I can't remember what, though I think it involves boiling water) but I haven't been able to find it again. I think it was probably the same version that had the iron shoes, because I remember them too.
|
Crceres
Registered User
(10/31/05 11:18 am)
|
Roman myth
I don't know how you want the reference to tie in with the rest of the story, but maybe Cupid and Psyche would work? It might give you an opportunity to slip in an oblique reference to the theme of the story, though the myth may be a little too distant from the folktale.
|
Veronica Schanoes
Registered User
(10/31/05 1:28 pm)
|
fiction
If your novel is a work of fiction, I don't think it's too much of a leap to presume that a story that was collected and written down in 1845 was circulating in 1810. It's not an assumption I'd necessarily want to make in a scholarly article, but why not take a little artistic license for the sake of the story?
|
Writerpatrick
Registered User
(11/1/05 11:09 am)
|
Re: fiction
It's common for events to become written stories decades later. Plato wrote about Atlantis based upon events that supposedly happened hundreds or thousands of years earlier.
|
Rosemary Lake
Registered User
(11/2/05 12:41 am)
|
King Valemon
A girl is forced into marriage with a bear. She finds out he is really a handsome prince, but wrecks the whole thing and he is banished to a kingdom East of the Sun West of the Moon where he has to marry a troll princess with a big nose.
The four winds take the girl to the kingdom, and she gets three gifts from three old crones.
--------------------------------------------------
Check this one?
www.rootsweb.com/~norway/Valemon.htm
This sounds like one I did a retelling of a few years ago, changing much of it. The title of the version I used was NOT "East of the Sun". Iirc it might have been something like "Valemon the White Bear" or "King Valemon".
Since then, I've seen quite similar versions, none titled "East of the Sun" (tho that phrase might occur within the story).
Google brought up some references to 'Valemon' as an Andersen story, an Abjorgensen(sp?) and Moe, and a 'Russian' story.
|
MMusicOfTheNight
Unregistered User
(11/23/05 4:42 pm)
|
Other things to look at
I'm actually working on a musical of this tale myself. It's interesting because it is so closely based on Cupid and Pysche, which is considered to be the first fairy tale. I would recommend looking at other Norse tales to incorporate common themes, like glass, iron, and the color blue.
|
curious incident
Registered User
(11/23/05 5:05 pm)
|
thanks!
many thanks for all your useful comments.
I've had a bit of a poke around, and read many, many variations of this story. And I've decided that, since my book is, after all, fiction, I may as well make up my own variation, using all my favourite elements of the story.
much obliged...
|
