Folktales are unique literature: stories passed from generation to generation in a culture. All cultures have folktales. Often as these stories are told and retold, they change slightly. Many folktales originally told by word of mouth are now in written form, and many readers enjoy them. Myths and fairy tales are types of folktales. Folktales told in a culture tell a lot about the beliefs and values of a culture. For instance, Cinderella tells about the dream of rags to riches and about the rewards of being a hardworking, kind person.

America, because it attracted immigrants from many nations, is full of the folktales from many cultures. As people journeyed to America to build railroads, farm the land, and build communities, they added to the rich cultural heritage of our nation.

This is just one example of a folktale from a group of people who journeyed to America. Before you begin to read, discover where this folktale originated. As you read, think about what values and beliefs this folktale teaches. After you read, compare this folktale to others you have read. Is this like some that you know? How?

Before you begin to read:
Try to find the location where this folktale originated.

As you read:
Think about what values and beliefs this folktale teaches.

After you read:
Compare this folktale to others you have read. Is this like some that you know? How?

The Princess and the Mouse—an Arabian Tale

Once upon a time, there lived a king and a queen and their beautiful daughter Safia. The family deeply loved one another.

One day, an evil magician came to the palace and asked to be allowed to stay. He claimed to be a professor who was being persecuted by enemies. He said he had nowhere else to go and needed to write an important book. The kind king offered the magician a room, gave him food, and filled all of his needs.

Each day the magician practiced his evil spells while pretending to be writing his book. Secretly, the magician wanted only to take the throne from the kind king and have complete power. One day, he disguised himself as an old woman and went to meet Safia in the gardens of the palace. He said to the girl, “Princess, let me be your laundress for it is my greatest desire to serve you.” The princess invited the disguised magician into her quarters. When they arrived, the man quickly bundled up the young woman in a laundry bag and took her to his quarters. There, he transformed her into a small doll and placed her in a cupboard.

The next week, the magician went to the court and acted surprised to see it in an uproar. Many fortune tellers had come to the palace but could offer no help to the grieving king and queen. Later, the magician again disguised himself as a washer woman and entered the queen’s rooms. Before she could look up from her weeping, the magician had put the woman into a laundry bag, taken her to his room, and transformed her into a doll like her daughter. The next day, the magician captured the king as well, and the kingdom fell into despair.

The royal advisors were horror stricken and came to the professor for advice. The magician offered to rule the kingdom until the royal family could be found, and the grateful nobles thanked him. Time passed and the royal family continued to be missing.

One day, a mouse entered a cupboard in the professor’s old room. Inside he was surprised to meet the princess who asked him for his help. The brave mouse agreed to help Safia and told her he would return the next day after consulting with a wise woman in the forest.

When the mouse returned, he chewed a hole in the cupboard, freed Safia, and took her to the wise woman. The wise woman shared her plan with Safia. She said, “First you must travel down the road until you come upon an orange horse. Feed the horse the magic grass seed then whisper in its ear asking it to take you to the magic pear tree. When you arrive, pick the pear. Again whisper to the horse and ask it to take you to the well where the green ogre lives. There, throw the pear into the well. When the ogre eats the pear, the magician will die, all of his spells will be broken, and all the people he has transformed will be returned to their original form.”

Safia listened carefully to the wise woman and followed her advice exactly. She began her journey, met the horse, gathered the pear, and fed it to the ogre. Instantly, she returned to her original size and excitedly returned to the castle. There, she was greeted with joy by the courtiers. Safia rushed past them and went to the magician’s old room. Throwing open the other cupboard, she found her confused parents who couldn’t remember how they had arrived in the small space. The residents of the palace celebrated, and the magician’s body was disposed of.

The next day from out of the woods, came a handsome young man. He approached the castle and asked to speak to the princess. Surprised, Safia went to meet him. The young man told Safia his story. Many years before, the magician had transformed the young man into a mouse. He was the mouse who had saved the royal family; he was returned to the form of a young man when the magician died. In gratitude, the king granted his daughter’s hand in marriage to the young man.