''Donkeyskin'' (french: Peau d'Âne) is a French literary fairytale written in verse by

Charles Perrault Charles Perrault ( , also , ; 12 January 1628 – 16 May 1703) was an iconic French author and member of the Académie Française. He laid the foundations for a new literary genre, the fairy tale, with his works derived from earlier folk tales ...

. It was first published in 1695 in a small volume and republished in 1697 in Perrault's ''

Histoires ou contes du temps passé ''Histoires ou contes du temps passé, avec des moralités'' or ''Contes de ma mère l'Oye'' (''Stories or Tales from Past Times, with Morals'' or ''Mother Goose Tales'')Zipes (2000), 236 ff. is a collection of literary fairy tales written by C ...

''.

Andrew Lang Andrew Lang (31 March 1844 – 20 July 1912) was a Scottish poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectures at the University ...

included it, somewhat euphemized, in ''

The Grey Fairy Book ''The Langs' Fairy Books'' are a series of 25 collections of true and fictional stories for children published between 1889 and 1913 by Andrew Lang and his wife, Leonora Blanche Alleyne. The best known books of the series are the 12 collections ...

''.Bottigheimer, Ruth. "Before ''Contes du temps passe (1697): Charles Perrault's ''Griselidis'', ''Souhaits'' and ''Peau''". ''The Romantic Review, Volume 99, Number 3. pp. 175-189 It is classed among folktales of Aarne-Thompson type 510B, unnatural love.

Synopsis

A king had a beautiful wife and a rich castle, including a marvelous donkey whose droppings were gold. One day his wife died, after making him promise not to marry except to a woman whose beauty and attributes equaled hers. The king grieved, but was, in time, persuaded to seek another wife. It became clear that the only woman who would fit the promise was his daughter. She went to her

fairy godmother In fairy tales, a fairy godmother () is a fairy with magical powers who acts as a mentor or parent to someone, in the role that an actual godparent was expected to play in many societies. In Perrault's ''Cinderella'', he concludes the tale with ...

who advised her to make impossible demands as a condition of her consent: a dress as bright as the

sun The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...

, a dress the colors of the

moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...

, a dress all the colors of the

sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...

, and finally, the hide of his marvelous donkey (which produced

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

, and thus was the source of his kingdom's wealth). Such was the king's desire to marry her that he granted all of them. The fairy godmother gave her a marvelous chest to contain all she owned and told her that the donkeyskin would make an excellent disguise. The princess fled and eventually found a royal farm where they let her work in the kitchen, despite her ugliness in the donkeyskin. On feast days, she would dress herself in the fine gowns her father had given her, and one such day, the prince came by her room and peeped through the keyhole. He fell in love at once, fell ill with his longing, and declared that nothing would cure him but a cake baked by Donkeyskin, and nothing they could say of what a dirty creature she was dissuaded him. When Donkeyskin baked the cake, her ring fell into it. The prince found it and declared that he would marry only the woman whose finger it fit. Every other woman having failed, he insisted that Donkeyskin try, and it fit her perfectly. When she had dressed herself in her fine gowns, his parents were reconciled with the match. Donkeyskin later found that her father had remarried to a beautiful widow and everyone lived happily ever after.

Analysis

Tale type

The tale is classified in the international Aarne-Thompson-Uther Index as ATU 510B, "The Dress of Gold, of Silver, and of Stars (Cap O'Rushes)". However, the tale type was renamed "Peau d’Asne" by German folklorist

Hans-Jörg Uther Hans-Jörg Uther (born 20 July 1944 in Herzberg am Harz) is a German literary scholar and folklorist. Biography Uther studied Folklore, Germanistik and History between 1969 and 1970 at the University of Munich and between 1970 and 1973 at the Uni ...

in his 2004 revision of the folktale index, while still retaining its numbering.

Motifs

According to scholarship, the tale type features the death of the heroine's mother, her father's incestuous desire, and her fleeing to another kingdom, where she finds work in a menial position.

Origins

In a study, scholar

Ruth Bottigheimer Ruth B. Bottigheimer is a literary scholar, folklorist, and author. She is currently Research Professor in the department of English at Stony Brook University, State University of New York

notes that, before Perrault's tale, French author

Bonaventure des Périers Bonaventure ( ; it, Bonaventura ; la, Bonaventura de Balneoregio; 1221 – 15 July 1274), born Giovanni di Fidanza, was an Italian Catholic Franciscan, bishop, Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal, Scholasticism, scholastic theologian ...

had a heroine (named Pernette) dressed in a donkey's hide (albeit to repel a lover's advances), and, in a later tale, a heroine is called "Peau d’Asne", but she is helped by ants. Bottigheimer also suggests that Perrault did not introduce the incest motif, but must have reworked it from an earlier source, namely,

Giambattista Basile Giambattista Basile (February 1566 – February 1632) was an Italian poet, courtier, and fairy tale collector. His collections include the oldest recorded forms of many well-known (and more obscure) European fairy tales. He is chiefly remembere ...

's ''

The She-Bear "The She-bear" is an Italian literary fairy tale, written by Giambattista Basile in his 1634 work, the ''Pentamerone''. Ruth Manning-Sanders included it in ''A Book of Princes and Princesses''. It is Aarne-Thompson classification system folktal ...

'' (from ''

Pentamerone The ''Pentamerone'', subtitled ''Lo cunto de li cunti'' ("The Tale of Tales"), is a seventeenth-century Neapolitan fairy tale collection by Italian poet and courtier Giambattista Basile. Background The stories in the ''Pentamerone'' were collec ...

'') and Straparola's ''Teobaldo'' (from '' The Facetious Nights'').

Relation to other tales

According to Ton Deker and Stith Thompson, after the heroine flees home and finds work elsewhere, the second part of the tale type (the three balls and three dresses) connects tale type 510B to type 510A, that is, ''Cinderella''.

Variants

Europe

Greece

In a Greek variant from Epeirus collected by Austrian consul

Johann Georg von Hahn Johann Georg von Hahn (11 July 1811 – 23 September 1869) was an Austrian Empire, Austrian and later Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian diplomat, Philology, philologist and specialist in History of Albania, Albanian history, Albanian language, lan ...

with the title ''Allerleirauh'', a widowed king declares he wants to marry his own daughter, despite her protests. To delay him, the princess asks him to fashion her two dresses of gold and a bed that can furrow through the ground to reach any other place. The king gives her the requested items; she takes the dresses, some ducats for money, jumps on the bed and goes to another city. The city's prince, during a hunt, finds the princess, wrapped in furs, in the forest and takes her in as a goose herder. Some time later, this prince holds a grand ball, and the princess attends it with her dress of gold. She dazzles the prince, but escapes the ball back to her low station, and throws some ducats to delay the prince. He becomes interested in fiding her, so he holds two more balls. After the third ball, the princess loses one of her shoes and the prince tries it on every maiden, but cannot find its owner. At last, the princess, still wearing her golden dress underneath the animal furs, goes to bring some water to the prince, and he recognizes her. Von Hahn summarized a Greek tale from

Smyrna Smyrna ( ; grc, Σμύρνη, Smýrnē, or , ) was a Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to promi ...

: after his wife dies, a king promises to marry one that can fit the dead queen's ring on her finger. The ring fits on his daughter, and he tries to marry her. To stop her father, she is advised by a being named Miren to ask for three seamless dresses: one of silver, another of gold and a third of pearl. The devil, disguised as an old man, gives the king the dresses, to the princess's horror. Miren guides the princess to a cave in the outskirts of another town, and she gives food and water for the princess for six months. One day, a prince, during a hunt, stops to rest in front of the cave and prepares some food. Drawn by the smell, the princess comes out of the cave; the prince finds her and takes her in to his castle. The princess, called Μαλλιαρή due to her hairy appearance, she only nods in agreement as she does her chores. The prince then holds three balls, one on each night, and the princess, doffing her shaggy appearance, wears each of the dresses for each night. The prince becomes ill with longing, and his mother asks for some food to be prepared for him. The princess bakes a bread for him and hides her ring, then a clock, and lastly a string of pearls.

East Slavs

Tale type ATU 510B also exists in the repertoire of the

East Slavs The East Slavs are the most populous subgroup of the Slavs. They speak the East Slavic languages, and formed the majority of the population of the medieval state Kievan Rus', which they claim as their cultural ancestor.John Channon & Robert H ...

. According to the East Slavic Folktale Catalogue (russian: СУС, translit=SUS), last updated by scholar in 1979, the type is known as SUS 510B, "russian: Свиной чехол, translit=Svinoy chekhol, lit=Pigskin": on threat of an incestuous marriage with her own father, the heroine asks for three dresses to be made (one of stars, one of the moon and one of the sun); she wears a pigskin and finds work elsewhere; a prince holds three balls that she attends, and he goes after her.

Portugal

According to Portuguese scholars Isabel Cárdigos and Paulo Jorge Correia, tale type ATU 510B also exists in the Portuguese Folktale Catalogue with the title ''Peau d’Âne'' or pt, A princesa na Pele de Burro, lit=The princess in the Donkeyskin.

Italy

In a Sicilian tale collected by folklorist

Giuseppe Pitrè Giuseppe Pitrè (22 December 184110 April 1916) was an Italian folklorist, medical doctor, professor, and senator for Sicily. As a folklorist he is credited with extending the realm of folklore to include all manifestations of popular life. He is ...

with the title ''Pilusedda'', a king and a queen have a beautiful daughter. One day, the queen falls ill and bids her husband marry any other woman that can fit her own ring. After she dies, the princess unsuspectedly tries on her mother's ring, and is found out by the king, who wishes to marry her. Horrified at the idea, the princess consults with a wise man, who advises her to ask her father for three dresses: one the colour of the sky, embroidered in gold and bedecked with stones like the sun, the moon and the planets; one of a sea-green colour and decorated with the houses of the countryside; and one rose-coloured dress with four rows of bangles and tiny golden bells. The king summons his cousin, who is a devil, and arranges the three dresses for his daughter. As a last resort, the wise man gives the princess three hazelnuts and advises her to wear a horse-skin as disguise. The princess does so and flees to another kingdom, where she is found by a prince's gamekeeper and brought to the castle as a kitchen maid. She prepares the prince three pieces of bread on different occasions, and places her father's watch, her father's tiepin and a golden ring inside. The prince finds the objects inside the food and suspects Pilusedda is more than what she appears. Later, the prince invites Pilusedda to accompany him to the Royal Chapel, but she declines. After he leaves, she takes off the horse-skin, cracks open a hazelnut and wears one of the dresses her father gave her to the chapel, where she dazzles the prince. After her third visit to the Royal Chapel, the prince follows her carriage and discovers the mysterious maiden at the Chapel was Pilusedda. They marry.

Americas

United States

American folklorist Leonard W. Roberts collected a tale from a

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

teller of French descent, in Beattyville, Kentucky. In this tale, titled ''The Princess in the Donkey Skin'', a king plans to marry his daughter to the ugly king of Faraway Land, but the princess refuses and declares she would rather live in a donkey's skin than marry him. Considering it a provocation, the king gives her the donkey's skin and banishes her from the palace. The princess wanders off and finds work with an old woman in her hut. Later, the king of Faraway Land and his son, after a hunt, go to the old woman's hut to eat, and the old woman orders the princess to prepare them dinner. The princess cooks some soup for the royal guests and lets a diamond ring slip inside. The prince eats the soup, finds the ring and pockets it. Meanwhile, the princess is crying in her room, when a fairy godmother appears and turns her into a "purty" girl, with diamonds in her hair and with a beautiful dress. The princess, in new clothes, goes to the balcony under the moonlight. The prince sees her and, falling in love, comes to court her. The princess then leaves. The prince returns later for a second visit and meets the princess again. With the ring in hand, he decides to look for its owner all over the world. Failing that, he then goes back to the girl in the donkey's skin and places her ring on her finger. Finding the ring's owner, the prince and princess marry.

Retellings and adaptations

*'' Peau d'âne (Donkey Skin)'' (1970), a French film directed by

Jacques Demy Jacques Demy (; 5 June 1931 – 27 October 1990) was a French director, lyricist, and screenwriter. He appeared at the height of the French New Wave alongside contemporaries like Jean-Luc Godard and François Truffaut. Demy's films are celebrat ...

and starring

Jean Marais Jean-Alfred Villain-Marais (11 December 1913 – 8 November 1998), known professionally as Jean Marais (), was a French actor, film director, theatre director, painter, sculptor, visual artist, writer and photographer. He performed in over 100 f ...

and

Catherine Deneuve Catherine Fabienne Dorléac (born 22 October 1943), known professionally as Catherine Deneuve (, , ), is a French actress as well as an occasional singer, model, and producer, considered one of the greatest European actresses. She gained recogni ...

*''Donkey Skin'' (1976), a translation by

Angela Carter Angela Olive Pearce (formerly Carter, Stalker; 7 May 1940 – 16 February 1992), who published under the name Angela Carter, was an English novelist, short story writer, poet, and journalist, known for her feminist, magical realism, and picar ...

for ''The Fairy Tales of Charles Perrault'' *'' The Donkey's Hide'' (1982), a Soviet film adaptation. * '' Sapsorrow'' (1988), an episode of

Jim Henson James Maury Henson (September 24, 1936 – May 16, 1990) was an American puppeteer, animator, cartoonist, actor, inventor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notice as the creator of The Muppets and '' Fraggle Rock'' (1983–1987) and ...

's TV series '' The Storyteller'' *''

Deerskin Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hogs ...

'' (1993), a novel by

Robin McKinley Robin McKinley (born November 16, 1952) is an American author best known for her fantasy novels and fairy tale retellings. Her 1984 novel ''The Hero and the Crown'' won the Newbery Medal as the year's best new American children's book. In 2022 ...

* ''Donkeyskin'' (1995), a

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

Terri Windling Terri Windling (born December 3, 1958 in Fort Dix, New Jersey) is an American editor, artist, essayist, and the author of books for both children and adults. She has won nine World Fantasy Awards, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award, and the Bram Stoke ...

* ''Donkeyskin'' (1995), a poem by

Midori Snyder Midori Snyder is an American writer of fantasy, mythic fiction, and nonfiction on myth and folklore. She has published eight novels for children and adults, winning the Mythopoeic Award for ''The Innamorati''. Her work has been translated into F ...

* ''The Tale of the Skin'' (1997), a

Emma Donoghue Emma Donoghue (born 24 October 1969) is an Irish-Canadian playwright, literary historian, novelist, and screenwriter. Her 2010 novel ''Room'' was a finalist for the Booker Prize and an international best-seller. Donoghue's 1995 novel '' Hood'' ...

* ''Pelzmantel: A Medieval Tale'' (2003), a novel by K. A. Laity *'' Unnatural Issue'' (2011), a novel by

Mercedes Lackey Mercedes Ritchie Lackey (born June 24, 1950) is an American writer of fantasy novels. Many of her novels and trilogies are interlinked and set in the world of Velgarth, mostly in and around the country of Valdemar. Her Valdemar novels include i ...

* ''The Color Master'' (2013), a post-modern fairy tale by Aimee Bender detailing the struggle of the dressmakers. * ''Riverbed'' (2017), a

by Deirdre Sullivan * "Donkeyskin" or "Faith" is a character in Telltale's game series ''

The Wolf Among Us ''The Wolf Among Us'' is an episodic graphic mystery-drama adventure game developed by Telltale Games, based on Bill Willingham's ''Fables'' comic book series, to which it serves as a prequel. The game consists of five episodes that were re ...

''. * The Grimm Fairytale All Kinds of Fur can be considered a variant on the tale.

References

External links

* *
Other tales of type ATU 510B
by

D. L. Ashliman Dee L. Ashliman (born January 1, 1938), who writes professionally as D. L. Ashliman, is an American folklorist and writer. He is Professor Emeritus of German at the University of Pittsburgh and is considered to be a leading expert on folklore an ...

{{Authority control French fairy tales Works by Charles Perrault Fictional princesses Female characters in fairy tales Incest in fiction ATU 500-559