I'd read this fairy tale long ago, and it's nice to revisit it. I guess the trapping aspect isn't supposed to be problematic since she's a fairy, not a human woman. Fairy tales and mythologies seem to depict capturing a non-human as a mate as somehow more acceptable -- perhaps because trickery is necessary to bring about a union that is, at its core, unnatural.

And being an unnatural union, one of the parties (usually the human) always does something to mess it up and bring it all to an end. No matter how much humans might want the magical and extraordinary, we can't deny our own natures and just follow the guidelines, no matter how clearly they're given to us. I saw this fairy tale as another version of the adage, "a fish and a bird may fall in love, but where would they live?" The woodcutter kept messing up his "marriage" because he couldn't deny his human sympathy and desire to please (for his wife, for his mother). And the fairy, upon being returned her clothes, followed her first instinct and returned to heaven with her children.

Haha. Your interpretation of the story cracked me up...=) On another note, I don't think she really experienced Stockholm Syndrome, since she viewed him as a kind stranger rather than a kidnapper.

I think there's a similar in Japan like this one. Btw, I think your version of the story beats the original.

There's an old chinese movie from the 80's that adapted the fairy tale into a film called the Peacock Princess. It was a classic to my childhood however this one involves a prince and no kids, and rather than being homesick, the fairy is kicked out of the country by the people claiming that she is a witch while the prince was away at war. Although I believe it's a chinese movie, they are dressed like southeast asians or maybe a southern chinese ethnic tribe. It has everything that a kid would love from the early 80's asian film industry: music, dancing, bad CG, princesses, princes, animal friends, friendship, magic, etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWVCKsm-eQg

Ahaha, i loved how you inserted little quips here and there in your retelling (stockholm syndrome, LOL!)

I remember not liking this story either, when I was kid. I read it in my church's library (my parents would only reiterate the foolish frog's son story at bedtime...). Except the story I read cut off at the happy reunion in heaven. Reading this just makes it seem even worse...

OMG, this is so hilarious & witty, yet enlightening at the same time, love it. thanks javabeans=)

Neato! The Chinese have a similar story. I think the one narrated in this link http://www.chinavoc.com/festivals/double_seven.htm is closest to the version I grew up with. Interesting that it bothers you- it was one of my favorite storybooks...then again, it helps that I loved the pictures in my book and the fairy of Chinese lore is unambiguously happy in her marriage aaand she wasn't kidnapped. So I guess that there would effectively remove most of the uncomfortable bits and all that's left is the fairy getting her clothes stolen. ...well that sums up nicely...

Wanted to share that the story is referenced in Chinese pop culture too- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qt9akg1aGh0 (at 0:42). This was the very popular theme to a very popular drama that aired in 2004.

Thanks!!

Thanks for sharing this, javabeans.
There is also a similar folk tale like this in Indonesia. About a guy who steal a look when the fairies are bathing in a pond AND also a fairy's clothes to keep her in earth with him. Not sure how the story ends though...
It's kinda disturbing how these folk tales are related to bathing scene when they are actually told as bedtime stories for the little children. Definitely not a PG-13 stuff!
Anyway, am definitely agree on how you relate the folk tale to the modern days. How distorted our views are when it comes to the OTP, when the male leads are being possesive towards the other female leads, I'd find it to be really romantic because that means that the male lead can't seem to let the female lead go and he will strive to keep her in his world, no matter what (hmmm.. <3). But when secondary characters show the same level of possessiveness, I'd find it dowright irritating. Guess I don't really like to have my OTP to be contended by other secondary characters...

Thanks for sharing this, javabeans.
There is also a similar folk tale like this in Indonesia. About a guy who steal a look when the fairies are bathing in a pond AND also a fairy's clothes to keep her in earth with him. Not sure how the story ends though...
It's kinda disturbing how these folk tales are related to bathing scene when they are actually told as bedtime stories for the little children. Definitely not a PG-13 stuff!
Anyway, am definitely agree on how you relate the folk tale to the modern days. How distorted our views are when it comes to the OTP, when the male leads are being possesive towards the other female leads, I'd find it to be really romantic because that means that the male lead can't seem to let the female lead go and he will strive to keep her in his world, no matter what (hmmm.. <3). But when secondary characters display the same level of possessiveness, I'd find it dowright irritating. Guess I don't really like to have my OTP to be contended by other secondary characters...

there's a japanese folk story very similar to this, and it's actually inspired a mangaka to draw a series with this similar story (in the japanese version fairy is called the tennyu- or celestial maiden and her celestial robe was robbed also by a pervy possessive jerk) and it's in the point of view of the reincarnation of that tennyu... the manga was drawn and written by Yuu Watase and is called Ayashi no ceres... It's actually pretty interesting and dark...

Very interesting! I think there is a Scotch? Irish? tale that is similar about a witch who fell in love with a Silkie ( man who has a seal skin that turns him into a seal). She saw him one day and fell in love with him so she waited until he fell asleep and took off his seal skin and became a man. She stole his seal skin and hid it. They fall in love and eventually marry and have children but, he is never quite happy always yearning for the sea. Until one day, he finds his seal skin and unable to fight his first love (the sea) leaves her for the oceans. Bereft and heartbroken she committs suicide by jumping into the ocean to be with her lovers...love...well, I think that's how it goes:)

hmm the pervy selfish incompetent bastard died alone and sad... seems like a happy ending to me :D

yes i remember reading this (or being read this) as a kid too, had many books with folk tales from around the world, and after revisiting them when I was a bit older I found something revolting in almost every one.
Folk tales (and fairy tales before they were sanitized for kids, though some even after) are all extremely disturbing, often as not harbouring violent, misogynist, cruel, selfish and calculating characters- and that's just the heroes.. ..no wonder everyone's childhood is so messed up huh..
so kdramas in presenting childhood traumas for every one of their significant characters isn't far wrong.. hmm.. o.O

I don't know where I was that I missed this post. ;) Interesting read, JB. Thanks!

Anyway, the first thing that came to my mind was Selkies (also known as silkies or selchies), mythological creatures found in Faroese, Icelandic, Irish, and Scottish folklore. Selkies are seals that can shed their skin to become humans and can return to seal form by putting it back on. Stories concerning selkies are generally romantic tragedies like The Secret of Roan Inish and Ondine. (In pop culture, see Nora Roberts' Face the Fire and Christina Dodd's A Well-Pleasured Gentleman)

I heard the Irish selkie story as a kid and was disturbed by the man forcing her into marriage. In my story the selkie mother abandons her children as soon as she gets her skin back so it was terrible on that level as well.

in indonesia there's in Indonesia there is a similar story, about seven fairies who descended to earth to bathe in the waterfall, then there is a man who stole one of their shawls.
and the unhappy ending
story titled seventh fairies from heaven

i have always loved this song by f.t. island and was curious what the story was all about. thank you for explaining it!

JB--in the just ended Kdrama The Thorn Birds, this was a recurring theme as to who was the "woodcutter" and who was the "fairy." ...and of course there was the question of who actually was the "thorn bird."

... be it fairy tale, Kdrama, any story... there is love or is it truly love or obsession, truth or deceit, selfishness or sacrifice..... in the end it's learning, what truly is the lesson to learn in fairy tales, dramas...

and as a child I couldn't get enough of any fairy tale, it was so fascinating to listen to radio dramas (battery operated) and read books and just listen to someone tell tales--in a time where there was no electricity so no tv--these stories were more vivid and true. It was so real and believable as any story can be when taken to heart and until now with the Kdramas available... it's always fascinating--thrilling to find what is the end, will it be happily ever after, does the evil stepmother or witch get it or will our heroine/hero suffer....

thanks JB for this blog on a fairy tale... I love how Hongki can be so deeply hypnotic when he sings with such a mature voice...

Brought here from a link on your recent 1N2D recap.

Really interesting. I totally agree with your view on the glossed over parts and the toned down folk tales. It was to my surprise when I dissevered the original Little Mermaid story didn't have a happy ending like the Disney one. I kept wondering what Hyun Bin and Ha Ji Won's characters were talking about (in ref. to the disappearing bubbles) in Secret Garden. I wish there were more of these pop culture recaps.

Same as Celtic selkies. Selkies are seals who took off their pelts and lay in the sun in human form. If you found one of their pelts and hid it, the selkie would stay by your side, but if they ever found their pelt again, they would leave. Slight difference is that in some versions Selkies have to leave if they find their pelts, even if they don't want to go. And there are few old Irish songs about fish turning into women who, upon being brought back to their home river dove back in and vanished forever.

You do know that its pumpkin porridge, not gruel that the woodcutter spilled right?

I've got proof too:
The picture book version says it in TEXT

i wonder why no one has asked...

Where did you get the pictures from? Such lovely artwork!

hehe .. ^^

I realize that I am coming very late to this conversation, but this is my field so I thought I'd just comment belatedly (and probably without notice).

Two quick points:

all fairy tales are cautionary. They are
romantic, yes, but there is ugly darkness at the heart of
all romance and no fairy tale does half the job of obscuring it that any modern romatic story does. Most fairy tales are about how life is unfair, tragic and dangerous. Usually the happy ending comes at a terrible price: Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, etc. wind up married to rich, handsome complete strangers as the best escape from unmerited hostility. And don't even get me started on Red Riding Hood or the Goose Girl.

And the Woodcutter/Fairy story, which has lots of analogs in lots of cultures (the fisherman & the mermaid, the selkies, etc) is in the same vein. In many ways, these
stories warn girls off marriage, reconcile them to not marrying. But, it is also the story of the fairy's triumph. Yes, she is a prisoner for years, but, unlike Cinderella or Snow White or any of the others, she escapes. She returns to herself and all attempts by her rapist to follow her are (finally) unsuccessful. This is a story of her victory.

Since various posters have reported the same tale appearing in Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian and Cambodian folklore, I'm surprised no one has brought up the work of Joseph Campbell. He is famous for popularising comparative mythology and the idea that the common elements in folklore across the world are inspired by human impulses that are fundamental to us, and shared by everyone.

The Fairy and Woodcutter story is about our desire for a mate and procreation. This is a need so strong that our moral compass bends to allow theft and subterfuge to satisfy it. The story also tells us that we have a bond with parents and siblings that is so strong that we can abandon mate and children.

In short, folktales are twisted because we are. Lets's think about that a bit more as we lap up the next kdrama romance.

Also check out the new sit-com based on this fairy tale. Sent From Heaven is about the fairy and her mother adjusting to life on earth after they get stranded. It is 100 episodes long so. The few episodes I did watch were silly and funny.
Korean title: I Need A Fairy 선녀가 필요해.

Sounds like the selkie tale -- shapeshifting Irish creature, takes off its seakskin to sunbathe and becomes a beautiful maiden, beachdweller steals her skin and hides it in the rafters or roof thatch -- years later one of their children finds a "leather coat" hidden in the roof and tells his parents, and Mom sneaks off that night, reclaims her skin and skedaddles, without kids. (I've never heard of the kids being taken along, though sometimes the selkie loves the kids enough to visit them.)

I think there were cultures where bride-kidnapping was just what everyone did, and the girls in question were acculturated to believe that if the potential husband wasn't ballsy or crafty enough to execute an effective kidnapping, he'd be a weakling husband and not worth having. Some kidnappings were even "arranged" by lovers beforehand.

On the other hand, I attended a conference recently about women in the Tibet/Nepal area who were still suffering bridal kidnappings today (2000's), and their testimonies

That said,

Sounds like the selkie tale -- shapeshifting Irish creature, takes off its seakskin to sunbathe and becomes a beautiful maiden, beachdweller steals her skin and hides it in the rafters or roof thatch -- years later one of their children finds a "leather coat" hidden in the roof and tells his parents, and Mom sneaks off that night, reclaims her skin and skedaddles, without kids. (I've never heard of the kids being taken along, though sometimes the selkie loves the kids enough to visit them.)

I think there were cultures where bride-kidnapping was just what everyone did, and the girls in question were acculturated to believe that if the potential husband wasn't ballsy or crafty enough to execute an effective kidnapping, he'd be a weakling husband and not worth having. Some kidnappings were even "arranged" by lovers beforehand.

On the other hand, I attended a conference recently about women in the Tibet/Nepal area who were still suffering bridal kidnappings today (2000's), and their testimonies were not happy and shining.

I don't see the problem with recounting fairly tales such as these, as long as we can also have great posts and discussions like these as well -- we can understand the cultures they came from, but also understand why we prefer our modern sensibilities and ideas of women's equality and rights! (And although my K-drama love is undiminished, I could do with less wrist-grabbing and shoving women into cars, really I could.)

Sorry for the double (well, triple now) post!! Something weird happened with my browser!

This is almost the same story as highlighted in "The Secret of Roan Inish"-an Irish children's book made into a movie:

"The story is told from the point-of-view of Fiona — played by Jeni Courtney — a young girl who is sent to live with her grandparents in an Irish fishing village.

Her grandfather weaves tall tales about the family's evacuation from their home on the tiny island of Roan Inish and his great-great grandfather, who once cheated death at the hands of the sea.

As she meets other villagers, Fiona hears more personal stories about an ancestor who married a beautiful, part-human/part-seal, and more about how the sea stole her baby brother during the departure from Roan Inish.
Later, Fiona believes that she has found Jamie romping in the grass on Roan Inish, and she must convince the family of her vision."-Wikipedia

A Selkie can shed her seal skin and become a woman. However, if a man can capture the skin the Selkie must remain a woman. At least this was the plot in the movie when an ancestor stole the skin of a Selkie, and hid it in the attic of his house because I guess that's okay if he's seen the most beautiful woman ever. He does so, and they get married and have children. One day one of the kids tells the Selkie mother where to find her seal skin (kid wasn't really planning this but just reporting that there was a seal skin in the house, and why in the world was Dad keeping it?). Off she goes back into the water, because the call of the sea is too much for a Selkie once she has her seal skin back. Even the ties of blood can't keep her from it.

Wow, myths are pretty pervasive aren't they? Joseph Campbell and Carl Jung really had some points to make that were very valid.

Hey, I read another folktale like this one. But it's not Korean.

Hello to all I have been looking for a movie that I saw some time ago with subject matter very similar to the history that they published in this post, it treats of a kingdom in the sky where three princesses were living and of you see in when they were going down to the land to playing and gathering water, one day one of them still has me in the land for mistake, and she was found by a young peasant, who the ride to his house and together with his rural mother they teach the labores of the land to him, they end falling in love, the father king of the sky the legacy to searching and on having found her offers to the young person to visit his kingdom in the sky and offers him to live there marrying the young woman, it rejects the offer and the king exiles it of the sky and to never return, but it tries to be with the girl and equal she, so it returns to the sky for indiscreet means to fight for her, this one is an animated movie. I wait for any similar help, thank you very much !!! :)