Heidi Anne Heiner's Blog, page 173

Music Month: The Song of the Swan Maiden by Margie Butler

The above is a video of Margie Butler singing "The Song of the Swan Maiden," a ballad. Butler has many songs released but this appears not to have been released for purchase yet.

Today is all about swan maidens of different sorts, so this was a beautiful choice for kicking off the day.

Here are the lyrics:

Chorus:
The people of the town say she's crazy,
The people of the town say she's mad.
As she wanders by the shore long hours,
Dreaming of the love she once had.

Many nights I've seen her weeping
Underneath the darkened sky.
Many days I've heard her
Singing the same sad lullabye.
I have wandered by the ocean,
Just to hear her mournful song.
Her heart so filled with longing,
To the night she does belong.

Chorus

In the cold light of the dawning,
Just as the morning sun did break,
I thought I saw her swimming
With the swans upon the lake
On that silent day she vanished,
Of her song there was no trace.
I walked the cliffs and meadows,
I searched in every place.

They say some strange enchanted magic
Has taken her away.
Bewitched so by her sorrow
They say she'll always stay.
Some say that she's become a swallow,
And out to the sea has flown.
Some say into a willow,
Weeping she has grown.

Chorus

Through the seasons I will wander,
Through the heather, through the snow.
I'll sing it to the willow,
Surely she will know.
I'll sing it to the morning,
The song that she has given me,
Likewise into the evening,
Someday I know she'll see.

Chorus

A Little Bit of Snow White History

Since the publishing of the article 'Once Upon a Time's' Ginnifer Goodwin talks fairy tales, plus first look at Sunday's episode in the Los Angeles Times a few days ago, fairy tale enthusiasts have been discussing the article online. After all, while we get a lot of material about the inspiration behind NBC's Grimm, the fairy tale research for ABC's Once Upon a Time has been rather sketchy with the implication that the creators haven't looked much beyond the Disney versions and dimestore versions of the tales. And the article doesn't do much to allay that fear since Godwin comes across as more knowledgable than the creators with her personal research although I will allow for media spin on that one. (Kudos to Godwin, I'm a bigger fan after reading the article.)

Here's the most talked about element of the article to date:

You surely did a lot of research prior to jumping into the role. What did you consider the best interpretation of Snow White?

I watched every Snow White movie ever made because I thought I could steal from people. The one I love the best is Elizabeth McGovern starring in Shelley Duvall''s "Faerie Tale Theatre." I think it's by far the best telling of the story. I read all kinds of versions because this is not a story written by the Grimms. This is a story older than anyone could possibly trace. It's possible that it was based on a real-life story of a princess named Maria Sophia Maragrita. What is bananas to me about this is I called the creators before we began the show and was like, "I love that you named her Mary Margaret after the woman who could have possibly been the inspiration for Snow White," and they were like, "What are you talking about?" I was like, you can find online — but most of the pages you have to get translated because they're in Russian or something — but I had said that Mary Margaret was clearly named after Maria Sophia Margarita. And they were like, "No, seriously, what are you talking about?"

My first thought upon reading this? That I needed to rewatch Shelley Duvall's Snow White. Then I thought, uh oh, the questions are going to come about Maria Sophia Margaretha Catharina von Erthal. And the nets have lit up with it somewhat in the past few days. I don't have links. To be honest, I barely have had time to sleep the past few weeks, but I'm giving myself a break and taking a few minutes to write about this.

And since I did compile, edit and do some translating for a collection with about 40 Snow White stories in it, the aptly named Sleeping Beauties: Sleeping Beauty and Snow White Tales From Around the World, I will chime in.

First of all, there are actually two different historical figures who have been chosen as inspiration for Snow White, the first is Margarete von Waldeck and the second is Maria Sophia Margaretha Catharina von Erthal. There is a nice short Mental Floss article about both:

Margarete von Waldeck

Back in the mid 1500s, there was a beautiful girl named Margarete von Waldeck who lived in a mining town called (…wait for it…) Waldeck, a small community in northwestern Germany. Children worked in the mines there, so you can see where retelling of the tale eventually morphed the children into small men over the years. Possibly due to problems with her father's new wife, Margarete moved out of Waldeck when she was about 17 years old, headed for Brussels. When she got there, her beauty attracted the attention of Philip II of Spain. Apparently someone didn't care for the idea of Philip marrying Margarete, and she fell gravely ill. Most people thought she was poisoned, and her handwriting in her last will and testament was shaky enough to make most people think she had developed tremors, a sign of poisoning. This Snow White never got her prince – she died from the mysterious illness when she was just 21. To this day, no one knows who poisoned Margarete, but we can rule out one suspect: her stepmother was already dead.

Maria Sophia Margaretha Catharina von Erthal

Behind door number two, we have Maria Sophia Margaretha Catharina von Erthal, to be known as Maria from here on out. Born in 1729, Maria grew up in a castle in Lohr, Germany. The castle is a museum today, and if you visit, you'll be able to look into a certain famous mirror. It's believed that Maria's father, Prince Philipp Christoph von Erthal, gave the looking glass to his second wife as a gift. Sounding a little familiar? Maria's outlook under her stepmother wasn't quite so bleak – there was no huntsman seeking internal organs for proof of Maria's death – but scholars think it wasn't an easy existence. "Presumably the hard reality of life for Maria Sophia under this woman was recast as a fairy story by the Brothers Grimm," Dr. Karlheinz Bartels, a Snow White scholar, has said. Oh, and Maria's story boasts "dwarves" in a fashion similar to Margarethe's: it's said that only smaller-statured men were able to fit in the nearby mine tunnels of Bieber.

And here's another more in depth article about Maria Sophia Margaretha Catharina von Erthal at Once upon a time, Snow White lived in Bavaria.

Nice that they both have forms of Margaret for their names, right? So OUAT is safe either way although the name appears to be happy coincidence on the tv show's part.

But in the end, the chances of either of these women actually being the source story are very slim, especially due to dates and then the working of elements to fit the story. Not that there might not have been some influence either way--the tale could have influenced the historical accounts, too, after all--but in the end we have no concrete proof beyond coincidence of some elements--mostly the girls being of noble birth and having difficult family lives--combined with the hope for tourism dollars. That's the problem with history. It's really so nebulous.

But it is always dangerous to assign fairy tales to actual historical personages. Bluebeard is notorious for this and the proponents act as if only the nobility killed their wives in times past when they seek source stories and personages from Gilles de Rais to Henry VIII are offered up as the inspiration. Unfortunately, there have been wife killers throughout history. And there have been (step)mothers seeking to kill their (step)daughters throughout history, too. (Remember that the Grimms were notorious for making deadly mothers over into stepmothers out of devotion to their own mother, to oversimplify things.)

But if you want some interesting early twists on the Snow White tale, I'll share this from my introduction to Sleeping Beauties:

While the Grimms story is now the most commonly disseminated version in print, several variations come from Italy, including The Young Slave and The Crystal Casket. The former appears in Giambattista Basile's Il Pentamerone, first published in 1634. Neither tale is a direct antecedent, but both contain many of the motifs and plot devices found in the German Snow White and its variants collected by the brothers. There are no dwarfs in the Italian versions. Gangs of robbers, fairies or religious figures usually provide temporary safe haven to the young girl instead. There are several tales from Italy and Greece of this variety, many of which are included in this collection.

Another interesting variant, Gold-Tree and Silver-Tree, comes from Scotland. In this tale, the mother seeks to kill her beautiful daughter. The father deceives his wife and sends his daughter to another king to be married. Despite these precautions, the mother murders her but her devoted husband refuses to bury her. Eventually he marries again and his second wife revives the first wife. She offers to leave but the king chooses to keep both wives who become friends. The second wife later kills the wicked mother during another murder attempt. Then the king and his two wives live happily ever after together. Since polygamy wasn't common in Scottish history, scholars speculate that the tale traveled there from a country in which the practice was more accepted.

This Scottish tale bears a strong resemblance to The Lay of Eliduc by Marie de France first recorded in the late 12th century. The lay is a Christianized version of the story with Eliduc as the king. In this version he doesn't keep both wives. His first wife enters a nunnery instead of living in a plural marriage. Eventually Eliduc and his beloved wife enter into holy orders, too. At first reading, the lay appears unrelated to the version of the tale that is so well-loved today, but its relationship to the less popular variants is obvious upon closer inspection.

And you can read about more variants as well as the full text of the tales mentioned above on SurLaLune's site, of course.

Free eBook: The Myths, Legends, and Lore of Ireland

The Myths, Legends, and Lore of Ireland is free today in Kindle format. Definitely a promo for St. Paddy's but the discount may not last for the entire week.

Book description:

More than 20 million Americans claim some sort of Irish heritage. But how much do you really know about this amazing country? Forget about shamrocks, leprechauns, and all that blarney--this book is a concise and authoritative guide that dispels the myths and tells the true stories of the Irish. Highlights include:

Who St. Patrick really was
The story behind "Sunday Bloody Sunday"
Scandals in the Irish church
Coming to America and the real gangs of New York
The spooky truth behind changelings, leprechauns, and fairies

Complete with an Irish language primer and pronunciation guide, this book is an informative pot of gold for everyone who loves the Irish!

About the Authors

Ryan Hackney received his BA and MA in the History of Science from Harvard University. He has written for Let's Go guides to Britain, Europe, and Ecuador, and he edited Let's Go Ireland. He also got engaged in Ireland (to an American) and has an Irish-Canadian bulldog named Chaucey.

Amy Hackney Blackwell graduated from Duke University with degrees in History and Medieval and Renaissance Studies, with a concentration in the history and literature of the British Isles. She received an MA in Early Modern European History from Vanderbilt.

Music Month: Three Little Pigs by Green Jelly

It's Monday. Time for some humor. So today's song is Three Little Pigs by Green Jelly. This was a hit actually. I missed it the first time since I was in college and not seeing much music videos which apparently is where it gained its popularity. But it is fun today, too. Maybe more so since this music style has lessened in popularity.

Here's the first few stanzas from the lyrics:

Why don't you sit right back and I
I may tell you a tale, a tale of 3
Little pigs and a big bad wolf

Well, the first little piggy
Well, he was kinda hick
He spent most of his days
Just day dreamin' of the city

And then one day he bought a guitar
He moved to Hollywood to become a star
But living on the farm he knew nothing of the city
Built his house outta straw, what a pity?

According to Wikipedia:

"Three Little Pigs" is a song by the comedy heavy metal band Green Jellÿ, from the album Cereal Killer Soundtrack, released by Zoo Entertainment in 1992.

The single was later re-released in 1993 under the name Green Jellÿ, due to a lawsuit. The song reached #17 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the summer of 1993, and charted even higher in the UK, where it reached #5. The chart success can be partly attributed to the song's unique and heavily-aired music video. The song was ranked #35 on VH1's 40 Most Awesomely Bad Metal Songs...Ever.

Once Upon a Time: Sneak Peek Episode 15: Red-Handed

Tonight's long-anticipated episode of Once Upon a Time is "Red-Handed" in which we FINALLY get some of Red Riding Hood's backstory. After last week's very disappointing episode, we need a good one. (Gypsy covered the bases on how disappointing episode 14 was on her blog.) I knew we were in trouble when I saw those fairy costumes and set in the first few seconds. Ouch. If it were parody, yes. Not parody? No!

From TVOverMind:

It shouldn't come as a surprise that Granny from Once Upon a Time is just as formidable in the fairytale world as she is in Storybrooke. And it also shouldn't come as a surprise that Ruby and Red are both yearning to get out from under her thumb. In this weekend's episode, Ruby actually decides to quit her job at Granny's Diner and do some soul-searching. Emma offers to hire her on as the sheriff's assistant so that she can figure out what she's good at.

While Ruby's existential crisis in Storybrooke is clearly important, Red's crisis in the fairytale world of Once Upon a Time is far more a matter of life and death. You see, a wolf is terrorizing her village. At first, it seems like the wolf is only picking off sheep. When some of the villagers put a hunting party together and come talk to Granny about it, she thinks they're stupid to try and get themselves killed to save a few sheep. Red is very eager to go with them, but Granny quickly shoots down that idea and tells her to stay inside with her red cloak, because apparently red repels wolves. We also learn that Red is in love with a man named Peter, who Granny does not approve of.

Music Month: Rapunzel by Laura Brino

Rapunzel by Laura Brino is today's song of the day. It is from her Elephant album.

Here is a video made by a fan for the song which charmed me. I couldn't find the full lyrics online and didn't have time to try to type them up so you'll have to watch the video or download the song to hear. "You scaled my walls" is a refrain. There are a few Rapunzel references in this sweet but not saccharine love song.

And as I was playing it, John asked "Who is that? I like it." He's the music person in the family, so that is a recommendation.

Music Month: Hey Cinderella by Suzy Bogguss

Hey Cinderella by Suzy Bogguss is one of my favorite Cinderella inspired songs. Yes, it's another message of disillusionment but still not as negative as so many others. I'm not a big country music fan despite all my years in Nashville--I was born here and have always moved back even after years away. But I do love folk so Bogguss is one of my favorite country artists since she has a strong folk influenced in many of her recordings. Her voice also fits perfectly in my own range which is a bonus for singing along.

From the information included with the video embedded above:

"Hey Cinderella" is a single and song from the 1993 album, "Something Up My Sleeve", by Suzy Bogguss. The album was released on Liberty Records and was produced by Suzy Bogguss and Jimmy Bowen. The album peaked at #27 on the Billboard Top Country Albums charts.

"Hey Cinderella" was written by Matraca Berg, Suzy Bogguss and Gary Harrison. The single was released on Liberty Records and peaked at #5 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles and Tracks charts in early 1994.
The music video was directed by Roger Pistole.

The chorus, from the lyrics:

Hey hey, Cinderella, what's the story all about
I got a funny feeling we missed a page or two somehow
Ohh-ohhhh, Cinderella, maybe you could help us out
Does the shoe fit you now?

 

Bargain eBook: How To Slay a Dragon by Bill Allen

How To Slay a Dragon by Bill Allen is also a free ebook today on Amazon.

Book description:

Greg Hart can't slay a dragon. He'd be lucky to win a fight against one of the smaller girls at school.His only real skill is that he can run faster than any other twelve-year-old boy in his class, a necessity, since that's who he's usually running from. Oh, it's not like he's never been the hero at the center of an adventure. It's just the kind of adventures he's been involved with have always been the made-up kind he's written about in his journal.Now the magicians of Myrth have yanked Greg into a strange new world, where the monsters he must run from are far scarier--and hungrier--than anything he's ever run from before. He tries to tell everyone there's been a mistake. Ruuan is a very large dragon, while Greg, on the other hand, is neither large nor a dragon. He's barely much of a boy. Unfortunately, such trivialities could never stop the people of Myrth from believing Greg will rescue King Peter's daughter from Ruuan. After all, Greg has been named in a prophecy, and no prophecy has ever been wrong before.Why, Greg wonders, does he have to be at the heart of the first one that is?

Bargain Ebook: The Mermaids by Robert Edric

The Mermaids, a novelette by Robert Edric, is free in the Kindle store at Amazon today.

Book description:

An isolated, struggling fishing village, inward-looking and increasingly dependent on the outside world for its survival.

And then at dawn, one early-summer morning, the fifteen-year-old Sarah Carr witnesses a group of mermaids, and immediately that small, suspicious world is divided between those of its inhabitants desperate to regard this sighting as their salvation, as something to be advertised and exploited; and those who understand only too well the ridicule, pity and contempt this might equally swiftly bring down upon them.

All now depends on somehow verifying what Sarah Carr says she saw, and over the course of those few overheated days, the whole world appears in turmoil – a place of scarcely-believable wonders and possibilities; a place of squandered opportunities, and of tawdry and regrettable compromises.

And for those few tumultuous, alarming days a natural balance is irretrievably lost, and the whole village, with the girl immovable and unflinching at its centre, struggles to regain that balance and to ensure that that which might secure and safeguard its future – the sighting of the mythical creatures themselves – does not now, ultimately lead to its destruction from within.

Bargain Book: Lavinia by Ursula K. Le Guin

Lavinia by Ursula K. Le Guin is temporarily marked down to $3.99 in ebook format on Amazon. This one takes a character from The Aeneid and develops her story. It is very well-reviewed.

Review from Publishers Weekly since a book description was missing:

In the Aeneid, the only notable lines Virgil devotes to Aeneas' second wife, Lavinia, concern an omen: the day before Aeneus lands in Latinum, Lavinia's hair is veiled by a ghost fire, presaging war. Le Guin's masterful novel gives a voice to Lavinia, the daughter of King Latinus and Queen Amata, who rule Latinum in the era before the founding of Rome. Amata lost her sons to a childhood sickness and has since become slightly mad. She is fixated on marrying Lavinia to Amata's nephew, Turnus, the king of neighboring Rutuli. It's a good match, and Turnus is handsome, but Lavinia is reluctant. Following the words of an oracle, King Latinus announces that Lavinia will marry Aeneas, a newly landed stranger from Troy; the news provokes Amata, the farmers of Latinum, and Turnus, who starts a civil war. Le Guin is famous for creating alternative worlds (as in Left Hand of Darkness), and she approaches Lavinia's world, from which Western civilization took its course, as unique and strange as any fantasy. It's a novel that deserves to be ranked with Robert Graves's I, Claudius.