Amongst the recurring archetypes of the Grimm fairy tales, there’s one- always the youngest of his other two brothers- renowned as the Simpleton/ Dummling. He’s usually considered the laughing stock or the black sheep of his family. Why the fellow is observed inferior results from how naïve, natural, kind, and emotionally attached, one’s perception of him, to his surroundings always tells. However down-to-earth it may be, in texts such as “The Queen Bee”, “The Three Feathers”, and “The Golden Goose” the term simpleton is presumed equivalent to honest. So, the “Simpleton” is with ease supposed to be pliable.
In his Morphology of the Folktale, Vladimir Propp advances an idea that is significantly rooted in the European folk/ fairy tales. The Functions of the Dramatis Personae, his concept, consists of a variety of jobs or roles addressed to the characters in a play or story. The idea of these roles works in that they make considerable contribution to the continuation of the plot and the creation of conflict(s) in the story. So, to introduce the mechanisms of this drive, Propp comes up with the notion of the Functions which he lists them to be for about 31 in number. Yet, not all of these Functions are necessarily applicable to each and every tale or story. Now, reverting to Simpleton, if the “The Three Feathers” story is to be set as an example, here, on which some of these major Functions turn applicable, the following list should just serve as a narratological analysis:
The Father-King wills to determine the fate of the inheritance of his kingdom for after he passes away. His first son, second son, and Simpleton- the third son- he sends on a journey. Now, this initiating part of the story in Propp’s terminology would be Absentation: The members of the younger generation, on whom the story here is focused, absent themselves, or rather, make themselves scarce from the safe zone they initially inhabited.
The next step, Propp terms as Interdiction. Here’s when some forbidding sense is transferred to the principal character. In the context of “The Three Feathers”, the method the Father-King uses to make his sons embark on a journey is, in effect, based on a competition: He who, in this case, produces the most beautiful carpet is set to win the inheritance. So, the Father-King initiates the competition by setting out three feathers to fly in three distinct directions. The interdiction, which is characterized by a forbidding sense, happens when unlike his two other brothers’, Simpleton’s feather doesn’t fly much at length. So he jumps to the assumption that perhaps, his was not meant to be. That only lasts till he discovers that his feather’s just landed somewhere quite different from the literal sense of an expected linear direction.
In this step, the story witnesses the Violation of the interdiction by the hero. Well, of course, this violation is not of the nature of violence or, necessarily, revolt. It corresponds to the nature of the previous interdiction. As the previous interdiction had just swept disappointment over Simpleton, the hero, the violation of it dawns on him as his curiosity is piqued— unlike the quality that he is mostly, especially by his brothers, paired up with. Curiosity leads him to discover the “trap-door” underneath the feather, as he’ll be coaxed on to follow the flight of stairs beneath it.
This phase strikes up initial appointment between the hero- Simpleton, in this case- and a magical donor. Encountering this donor or “provider”, as Propp also puts it, is achieved by accident. The personage whom Simpleton comes face-to-face with at the end of the stairs is to supply him with a tool which will work the way of the story towards, what Propp calls, the eventual “liquidation of the misfortune”. The big, fat toad which becomes Simpleton’s donor interrogates him. In a way, the hero is put to test. And since our character type is a simpleton, then the most valuable feature in his bearing is honesty to be tested.
Now that Simpleton is required to be provided with a magical tool from the magical donor, the toad who has verified his honesty, lends him the most beautiful carpet in the kingdom out of a chest. The carpet, here, works out as the “provision or receipt of a magical agent”.
The delivery of the hero is next achieved through. The hero’s triumph hadn’t been even guessed by his two other brothers, let alone the Father-King, who gets instantaneously astonished by the Simpleton’s provision.
However, as the journey seems to have ended, another begins, caused by Simpleton’s two brothers’ clamour of jealousy against their youngest and most foolish brother. At this point of the story, Simpleton is dragged into a more severe “competition”. Again, the reason goes back to how he often is observed by others— a “Dummling” and a good-for-nothing. According to Propp, now that the hero is put to a side safer, as the initial misfortune can already be considered removed, there arises another challenge- or it can also be in series- that he is “led to the whereabouts of [another] object of search”:
He is supposed to fetch: a) the most beautiful ring and b) the most beautiful girl respectively. And again, the circumstances and conditions fall in a way that his path is crossed with the same donor, the toad, who supplies him with all the askings of his Father-King.
Last but not least, another challenge is decided: it is decided that the wife of whom springs through a hoop hung at the centre of the hall without experiencing harm or damage, the Father-King will declare him as the heir to the throne. Here is where Simpleton’s brothers are pretenders to heroic acts, “the false hero”. Yet, the actual hero is presented to do a real heroic test as to strengthen his status.
Finally, the solution of the real heroic task takes place, and Simpleton gets marked with recognition for securing the status of which he’d, for long, been teased and mocked about. The fact that he’s now branded does not necessarily have anything to do with physical markings, but the concept here is metaphorical. Then, the exposure of his two brothers as pretenders to heroism happens which actually makes Simpleton’s victory shine brighter.
Though in accordance with Propp’s Functions, no punishment in the story is recognized and designated for the two brothers… Simpleton gets to be awarded with a bride and a kingdom, immediately, for the rest of his life. Such Function is termed as the “wedding” in which the hero is married and ascends the throne.
The Simpleton, also, in any other role and design such as in “The Queen Bee” is not taken seriously until- as Propp puts it- he is “Branded”. Yet, the way in which the wheel of fortune is overturned and the antgonistic atmosphere overcome has not to do with the usage of tough super power or craving cleverness. For, those are elements out of Simpleton’s reach. His achievement is warranted by his very archetypal sequence: the innocent hero. Hence, his victory falls into place only because his character is spent in spiritual alignment with nature.
References:
Grimm, Jacob, and Wilhelm Grimm. The Complete Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm. Routledge Classics, 2002: p.p. 277- 279.
Propp, Vladimir. Morphology of the Folktale. Trans. Laurence Scott, 2nd ed. University of Texas Press, 1968 : p.p. 25- 63.
Maytham Khaghani
