Fairy Tales

"151 Rumpelstiltskin" by thecmn is marked with CC PDM 1.0

As explained in the 'conventions of fairy tales' section, a fairy story always includes a number of important elements.

In Rumpelstiltskin, these include: 

GOOD CHARACTER

In the Rumpelstiltskin story a good character is the miller's daughter.

"A. L. Bowley - 'Rumpelstiltskin'" by sofi01 is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0

THE BADDY

Rumpelstiltskin is definitely the baddy in this story!

"edward gorey illustration - rumpelstiltskin" by gilliflower is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

MAGIC

One of the main features of this story is the straw magically being spun into gold.

"Rumpelstiltskin and The Princess and the Pea" by Spacecat, San Francisco is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

OBSTACLE OR TASK

A fairy tale usually includes an obstacle or task which the characters must tackle with to reach their happy ending.  Can you think of the obstacles and tasks which feature in the Rumpelstiltskin story?

HAPPILY EVER AFTER

The queen guesses Rumpelstiltskin's name so she can keep her baby and live happily ever after...

MORAL

What do you think is the moral message of the Rumpelstiltskin story? 

"Rumpelstiltskin" by moedermens is licensed under CC BY 2.0

The Sur La Lune website includes lots of information about Rumpelstiltskin, including details of the history of the story.

"153 Rumpelstiltskin" by thecmn is marked with CC PDM 1.0

Click on the links below to read the story of Rumplestiltskin.

An image from the Missouri Southern State University theatre production of "Rumplestiltskin"

See how the creators of Shrek have adapted the character of Rumpelstiltskin for their 2010 Shrek film.