Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes
Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes is a collection of poems by Roald Dahl that was published in 1982. It consists of six poems, each of which tells a new well-known fairy tale, with the plot taking surprising, often cynical turns. The book was illustrated by Quentin Blake .
content
- Cinderella
The poem Cinderella is a reinterpretation of the fairy tale of Cinderella . In the first verse it is announced that this is the true version of the fairy tale, which is much more brutal than the widely known one. The prince is presented as extremely violent, which is why Cinderella decides in the end not to marry him, but asks the fairy to find her a decent husband instead. She marries a jam seller and leads a happy life.
- Jack and the Beanstalk
The English fairy tale Hans and the Beanstalk is modified in such a way that the protagonist is spared the giant by bathing thoroughly and the giant cannot smell him. He then decides to bathe every day.
- Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Snow White's poem begins like the well-known fairy tale. However, the seven dwarfs here are seven former jockeys who make a living from horse racing . Snow White steals her stepmother's enchanted mirror and uses it to predict the outcome of the horse races, helping them all achieve great success. The poem ends with the ironic moral that gambling is not a sin, provided you always win.
- Goldilocks and the Three Bears
The poem Goldilocks and the Three Bears is less of a retelling than a commentary on the fairy tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears . Roald Dahl goes through the story section by section, putting himself in the position of the bear family. He disapproves of Goldilocks getting away scot-free in the fairy tale, although she shows no manners and commits several crimes, and suggests an alternative ending in which the bear child eats Goldilocks instead of the breakfast she stole from her.
- Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf
Little Red Riding Hood's poem essentially follows the storyline of the fairy tale, with the difference that Little Red Riding Hood is much more independent in this version, cannot be outwitted by the wolf and instead of the hunter shoots the wolf himself. At the end, she proudly wears a wolf fur coat.
- The Three Little Pigs
The fairy tale The Three Little Pigs is initially told according to the original version. However, when the wolf threatens the third pig, this Little Red Riding Hood, who already has experience with wolves, calls and asks it for help. Little Red Riding Hood intervenes and defeats this wolf too. The moral of the story, however, is that one should not trust young ladies from the upper class, since Little Red Riding Hood not only has a second coat tailored from the wolf's fur, but also a suitcase from the pig's skin.
reception
Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes is considered a classic in English-language children's literature. The Cambridge Guide to Literature in English cites it as an example of Dahl's linguistic fluency. However, it was not received positively without exception. The book - like other books by Roald Dahl - has often been banned from US schools in response to complaints from parents because it is unsuitable for children because of its depictions of violence and its disrespectful language. His volume of poetry, Rhyme Stew , published seven years later , in which he processed other fairy tales (including Hansel and Gretel , The Emperor's New Clothes , Ali Baba and Aladin ) in a similar form, Dahl himself provided with the note that it was for "little people" ( "Small people" ) unsuitable.
German translation
Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes is not fully available in German. However, four of the fairy tales (Cinderella, Snow White, Little Red Riding Hood and The Three Little Pigs) are part of the 1983 anthology Konfetti in a German adaptation by Heinrich Maria Ledig-Rowohlt .
Audio books
An audio book version by Pam Ferris and Geoffrey Palmer , which also contains Roald Dahl's poetry collection Dirty Beasts , was published in 2005 by Puffin Audiobooks . A new edition by Scottish actor Alan Cumming was released in 2008.
expenditure
- Original version
- Roald Dahl: Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes, Perma-Bound Books, 1982 (first edition)
- Roald Dahl: Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes, Puffin Books, 1995, ISBN 978-0140375336
- German version of selected poems
- Roald Dahl: Confetti. Uncomfortable and naughty, Rowohlt Verlag , Reinbek 1983, ISBN 3-498-01245-2
- Audio books
- Revolting Rhymes & Dirty Beasts, read by Pam Ferris and Geoffrey Palmer, Puffin 2005, ISBN 978-0141806365
- Revolting Rhymes & Dirty Beasts, read by Alan Cumming, Puffin 2008, ISBN 978-0141807812
filming
Under the title Revolting Rhymes one appeared in 2017 British - German computer-animated television - short film by Jakob Schuh and Jan Lachauer . He tells five of the six poems (with the exception of Goldilocks and the Three Bears ). The actions of Little Red Riding Hood , Snow White and The Three Little Pigs are combined with one another; Cinderella and Jack and the Beanstalk appear as a story in the story. The film was at the Oscar ceremony in 2018 as Best Animated Short Film nomination.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Ian Ousby (ed.): The Cambridge Guide to Literature in English. Cambridge University Press 1993, ISBN 0-5214-4086-6 , p. 269.
- ↑ Herbert N. Foerstel: Banned in the USA. A Reference Guide to Book Censorship in Schools and Public Libraries. Greenwood Press, Westport / Connecticut 1994, ISBN 0-3132-8517-9 , p. 173.