Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Once upon a time, in a majestic castle nestled in a lush forest, there lived a beautiful princess named Snow White. She was named for her skin, which was as white as snow, her lips as red as a rose, and her hair as black as ebony. Snow White’s mother, the queen, had passed away when she was young, and her father, the king, had remarried a woman who was beautiful but vain and cruel. The new queen possessed a magic mirror, to which she would often ask, “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?” For many years, the mirror replied, “You, my queen, are the fairest of them all.” But as Snow White grew older, her beauty surpassed even that of the queen.
One day, when the queen asked her mirror the familiar question, it replied, “You, my queen, are fair; it is true. But Snow White is a thousand times fairer than you.” Enraged with jealousy, the queen ordered a huntsman to take Snow White into the forest and kill her. To prove the deed was done, she demanded he bring back Snow White’s heart. The huntsman led Snow White deep into the woods, but when the moment came, he could not bring himself to harm her. “Run away, child,” he urged her. “The queen wants you dead, but I cannot do it. Flee into the forest and never return to the castle.”
Terrified and heartbroken, Snow White ran through the dark woods, stumbling over roots and rocks until she collapsed in exhaustion. When she awoke, the forest creatures—birds, rabbits, and deer—gathered around her, offering comfort. They led her to a small cottage hidden deep in the woods. Inside, the cottage was dusty and cluttered, but it was clear that someone lived there. Snow White noticed seven tiny chairs, seven tiny beds, and a table set with seven tiny plates. “Perhaps the people who live here will let me stay,” she thought. With the help of her animal friends, she cleaned the cottage from top to bottom, hoping to earn the inhabitants’ gratitude.
When the seven dwarfs returned home from their work in the diamond mines, they were astonished to find their cottage clean and a young woman asleep in their beds. Snow White awoke and explained her plight, and the dwarfs, touched by her kindness and beauty, invited her to stay with them. “You can live here and take care of the house while we work in the mines,” they said. “But you must be careful. The queen is cunning, and if she finds you, she will stop at nothing to destroy you.”
Meanwhile, the queen discovered that Snow White was still alive when her magic mirror revealed the truth. Consumed by rage, she vowed to kill Snow White herself. Disguising herself as an old peddler woman, the queen concocted a plan. She visited the dwarfs’ cottage while they were away and offered Snow White a beautiful corset. When Snow White tried it on, the queen tightened the laces so much that Snow White fainted. Fortunately, the dwarfs returned in time to revive her and warned her never to let strangers into the house.
Undeterred, the queen tried again, this time using a poisoned comb. She disguised herself as a different old woman and offered the comb to Snow White, who couldn’t resist its beauty. The moment Snow White placed the comb in her hair, she fell unconscious. Once again, the dwarfs returned just in time to save her and removed the comb from her hair.
Finally, the queen created a poisoned apple, one so perfectly red and tempting that no one could resist it. Disguised as a farmer’s wife, she offered the apple to Snow White. Though Snow White was hesitant, the queen convinced her to take a single bite. The moment she did, she fell into a deep, deathlike sleep. This time, the dwarfs could not wake her. Heartbroken, they placed her in a glass coffin in the forest, where they kept watch over her day and night.
One day, a prince passing through the forest saw Snow White in her glass coffin and was struck by her beauty. He begged the dwarfs to let him take her to his castle, and as his servants carried the coffin, one of them stumbled, dislodging the piece of poisoned apple from Snow White’s throat. She awoke, and the prince was overjoyed. They returned to his kingdom, where they were married in a grand ceremony.
As for the queen, her wickedness caught up with her. When she learned that Snow White had survived, she was consumed by fury. But before she could act, the magic mirror revealed her treachery to the king, and she was banished from the kingdom forever.
Snow White and the prince lived happily ever after, and the seven dwarfs remained her lifelong friends, visiting her often in her new home. The story of Snow White became a timeless tale of kindness, resilience, and the triumph of good over evil.
