Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm When they read “Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm” on the cover of a book, they usually think that the Brothers Grimm are the authors of the fairy tales contained in the book. But that's not true. The brothers Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm were outstanding German scientists who lived at the beginning of the 19th century and explored

Jacob Ludwig Carl Grimm(German) Jacob Ludwig Karl Grimm; January 4, 1785, Hanau - September 20, 1863, Berlin; brother of Wilhelm) - German philologist, brother of Wilhelm Grimm.

A representative, like his brother, of the Heidelberg romantics (a circle in Heidelberg in 1805-1809), who aimed at reviving public and scientific interest in folk culture (folklore).

The books on the history and grammar of the German language published by the brothers Grimm, against the background of the numerous dialects of the latter, were an incentive to formulate German studies and linguistics into an independent scientific discipline.

The founder of the mythological school in folklore (the book “German Mythology”, 1875).

Together with his brother, he compiled a famous collection of German fairy tales. The main work of the life of the Brothers Grimm is the “German Dictionary” (German). Deutsches Wörterbuch); contrary to the name, it is actually a comparative historical dictionary of all Germanic languages. The authors managed to bring it only to the letter “F”; it was completed only in the 1970s.

Brothers Grimm(German) Bruder Grimm or Die Gebrüder Grimm) (Jacob, 4 January 1785 - 20 September 1863 and William, February 24, 1786 - December 16, 1859) - German linguists and researchers of German folk culture. They collected folklore and published several collections called “Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm,” which became very popular. Together with Karl Lachmann and Georg Friedrich Beneke are considered the founding fathers of German philology and Germanistics. At the end of their lives, they began creating the first dictionary of the German language: Wilhelm died in December 1859, having completed work on the letter D; Jacob outlived his brother by almost four years, having completed the letters A, B, C and E. He died at his desk working on the word nem. Frucht(fruit).

Brothers Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm were born in the city of Hanau. For a long time they lived in the city of Kassel.

The meaning of activity

The books on the history and grammar of the German language published by the brothers Grimm, against the background of the numerous dialects of the latter, were an incentive to formulate linguistics (linguistics) into an independent scientific discipline. Together with his brother, he compiled a famous collection of German fairy tales and laid the foundation for the systematic scientific study of runic writing.

Grimm's Law

Brothers Grimm on the German 1000 mark banknote

As linguists, they were one of the founders of scientific German studies. Jacob formulated and investigated the law, later called "Grimm's law" about the first Germanic movement of consonants.

German dictionary

The brothers compiled the etymological “German Dictionary” (actually all-German). The publication of the German Dictionary, which began in 1852, was completed only in 1961, but even then it is regularly revised.

The Brothers Grimm in literature and cinema

In 2005, the fairy tale film “The Brothers Grimm” was shot. Despite the title and some parallels, the film is indirectly related to real characters.

The Sisters Grimm series of books was also written in America. The plot of this series tells about girls who are descendants of the Brothers Grimm. According to the plot, the Brothers Grimm are not storytellers, but rather chroniclers who wrote down everything about stories that really happened, and all the characters in fairy tales are non-fictional creatures who, moreover, live forever. They call themselves the Ever-Dwellers. The girls, together with their grandmother, investigate various criminal cases related to the eternal residents. The books are written by Michael Buckley and the series consists of nine books. Only eight have been written so far. The books became a bestseller in New York. The Brothers Grimm themselves do not appear in the book series, since the action takes place in our time.

In 2011, the television series “Grimm” was launched in the United States, telling the story of a descendant of the Grimm family living in America. According to the plot, the brothers were people with a special gift to see the true face of creatures living in human form and in their fairy tales they described stories about these creatures. They and their descendants destroy evil creatures.

In the American television series “The Tenth Kingdom,” the characters learn that in the dungeon where they were placed 200 years ago, the Brothers Grimm were imprisoned, who taught the German language to prison rats. Returning to our world, they described their adventures in the Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm.

Some fairy tales

Monument to the Brothers Grimm in Hanau

Graves of the Brothers Grimm in Schöneberg, Berlin

• Snow White (German) Schneewittchen)
• Bremen Town Musicians (German) Die Bremer Stadtmusikanten)
• Wolf and seven kids (German) Der Wolf und die sieben jungen Geißlein)
• Hansel and Gretel (German) Hansel und Gretel)
• Sweet porridge (German) Der süße Brei)
• Friendship between cat and mouse (German) Katze und Maus in Gesellschaft)
• Rapunzel (German) Rapunzel)
• Rumpelstiltskin, aka Dwarf-Tihogrom (German) Rumpelstilzchen)
• Straw, coal and bean (German) Strohhalm, Kohle und Bohne)
• About a fisherman and his wife (German) Von dem Fischer un syner Fru)
• Belyanochka and Rosette (German) Schneeweißchen und Rosenrot)
• King Thrushbeard (German) König Drosselbart)
• Smart Elsa
• Mrs. Blizzard (German) Frau Holle)
• The Devil with Three Golden Hairs (German) Der Teufel mit den drei goldenen Haaren)
• Twelve Brothers (German) Die zwölf Bruder)
• Star thalers
• crystal ball
• Maid of Malein (German) Jungfrau Maleen)
• Faithful Beasts (German) Die treuen Tiere)
• Iron Hans (German) Der starke Hans)
• King of the Golden Mountain (German) Der König vom goldenen Berg)
• White snake (German) Die Weiße Schlange)
• The Robber and his sons
• Three snake leaves (German) Die drei Männlein im Walde)
• The thief and his teacher (German) De Gaudeif un sien Meester)
• Brave Little Tailor (German) Das tapfere Schneiderlein)
• The Tale of the One Who Went to Learn from Fear (German) Märchen von einem, der auszog, das Fürchten zu lernen)

Film adaptation of the works of the Brothers Grimm

Based on the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, the animated series “Simsala Grimm” was filmed. The animated films of the series are connected by a modern unifying plot and a constantly repeating ritual: the cunning and playful harlequin Yo-Yo (or YOYO) and the handsome hulk-scientist Dr. Croc, make their flight on a richly decorated book and mysteriously always find themselves in the center of events of one of the the well-known fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm. Years of release of the series: 1999-2002, Released: Greenlight Media AG (Germany), 26 episodes of 20-25 minutes were filmed.

The producer of the series “Simsala Grimm” is the Berlin company Greenlight Media AG, which is a well-known European exporter of video products. In 1993, the founder and president of the company, a young journalist and writer Andrei Yuryevich Sikojev (Andre Sikojev, born 1961), together with a group of like-minded people from Berlin, began developing their own version of an animated film adaptation of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales. The originality of the film adaptation concept, careful attitude to the source material, as well as the highest quality of animation led to the triumphant worldwide success of the new series. The series "Simsala Grimm" is constantly shown in 130 countries around the world, including all European countries, as well as countries in Southeast Asia, South America, the USA and Japan.

About the authors

• Gerstner G. Brothers Grimm. - Young Guard, 1980. - 272 p. - (Life of wonderful people). -100,000 copies

Fairy tales included in the collection of the Brothers Grimm, but published earlier by Charles Perrault:

• Little Red Riding Hood
• Thumb Boy
• sleeping Beauty
• Cinderella

GRIMM JACOB LUDWIG CARL
01/04/1785, Hanau (Hanau) - 09/20/1863, Berlin
GRIMM WILHELM KARL
02/24/1786, Hanau (Hanau) - 12/16/1859, Berlin
German storytellers, philologists

In the county of Hanau in Hesse, in the very heart of Germany, lived the Brothers Grimm. There were as many brothers as there were fingers on one hand, and even a little sister, Lotta. Their father was a judge, and their good mother ran the household.
The eldest children's names were Jacob and Wilhelm. They were inseparable brothers of the same age. Together they ran to the neighboring glover’s workshop, together, under the supervision of a maid, they walked through the streets of their hometown to see their French teacher.
When Jacob turned six, the family moved to his father’s homeland, to quiet and cozy Steinau. There were plenty of miracles here. What was the value of one old house where the Grimms settled and where, according to the stories of adults, a ghost wandered in the dead of night. And there was also a city wall, near which there were two springs and where, according to the same adults, storks brought children, and a huge “bee” garden.
The childhood fairy tale ended when eleven-year-old Jacob, who became the head of the family, made an entry in the family Bible about the death of his father. And at this time, soldiers were marching along the roads leading through the town to different parts of the world, and guns roared in the distance. The fire of the Napoleonic Wars flared up in Europe. And they did not bypass Germany, divided into dozens of lands and tiny principalities.
Oh, how the Grimm family needed the good fairy from the fairy tale back then, “knowing how best to avert trouble”! For many years, this good fairy for the Brothers Grimm was their mother’s sister. She helped give children an education. And before two serious and diligent young men from the provinces, the whole world opened up: Paris, Vienna, Berlin, Stockholm. In the meantime, a postal carriage, decorated with coats of arms, took them to the city of Kassel, to the Lyceum, which they were able to graduate in four years instead of the required seven.
Months pass, and now the brothers - students of the University of Marburg in bright red tailcoats, shiny boots with spurs - rush to the lectures of their beloved professor Friedrich Savigny. But the legal profession, chosen according to family tradition, attracted less and less. How much more interesting it was to find majestic medieval poems and tales in ancient manuscripts.
However, poetry is poetry, and the brothers constantly had to think about a piece of bread. First of all, Jacob was forced to take care of this: Wilhelm was often sick.
Positions changed one after another: secretary of the military mission, diplomat, librarian. But even working in the library with Wilhelm (at times “a pleasant and useful activity”) - did not allow me to do the main thing. Native "old language, poetic art and law"- that’s what captivated the brothers more and more.
In 1806-1807, the first articles by Jacob and Wilhelm appeared, and by 1811 the first books. Sometimes they were signed with the name of one of the brothers. And if the work could not be divided, they simply put two words: "The Brothers Grimm".
"Collected by the Brothers Grimm" They also wrote on their most famous book, “Children’s and Family Tales,” the first volume of which became a Christmas gift in 1812. Among those who helped the brothers in collecting fairy tales were modest maids and baronial daughters, and one of the storytellers, the twelve-year-old daughter of a pharmacist, many years later became Wilhelm’s wife.
The younger brother was especially fond of fairy tales. Wilhelm Grimm is not "embroidered with sequins" simple stories, but after his careful work on them, the tales became even more beautiful.
Fairy tales made the brothers famous, but they could not protect them from life’s hardships. “The five of us eat three servings...”- this was written in the year the fairy tales were published. And later: “We, like wanderers, have experienced rain, storm, and sunny days one after another...”
The storm - expulsion from the University of Göttingen and from the possessions of the Hanoverian king for supporting freedom and the constitution - was helped to survive by faithful friendship. “You and I will never part!” “We are so accustomed to our community that separation for me is tantamount to death”. This is from Wilhelm and Jacob's letters to each other.
The brothers were not alike: serious, aloof "idle" companies Jacob and the soft, romantic Wilhelm (how can one not remember their student nicknames "Old man" And "Baby").
And yet fame overtook them. She greeted her brothers with cheers in the student classrooms. Jacob Grimm's work on the “Grammar” and “Dictionary” of the German language aroused more interest than the fairy tale collection in its time. The brothers became members of many scientific societies, national academies, professors and one of the founders of the science of German studies.
Well, everything is like in a fairy tale? No, recognition was not the golden rain that fell in one of the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm. It was just the result of work (what prose!), work that forced young Jacob to save time so much that he only went to get his hair cut after growing real curls, and cut his hair as short as possible so as to spend less time on it.
Throughout their lives, the Grimm brothers wrote and prepared for publication many incredibly important and complex scientific works that live to this day: “German Grammar” in four volumes of a thousand pages each, a multi-volume “Dictionary of the German Language”, which they could only finish a hundred years later other scientists, “German heroic tales”, “German mythology”, “Antiquities of German law”, “History of the German language” and much more.
What about fairy tales? These mysterious “Little Men”, “Musicians of Bremen” and “The Devil with Three Golden Hairs”?.. As they say in one of the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm: “If they haven’t died yet, they are still alive”.

Nadezhda Ilchuk

WORKS OF THE BROTHERS GRIMM

“Once in the winter, when deep snow fell, one poor boy had to go into the forest to bring brushwood on a sled. So he collected it and put it in the sled, and since he was very cold, he decided not to rush home, but first make a fire and warm up a little. He began to shovel away the snow and... found a small golden key. He thought that since there was a key, there should be a lock for it, he began to dig in the ground and found an iron casket ... " Every book by the Brothers Grimm is like a fairy-tale casket full of wonderful treasures.

Books for kids:

GRANDMOTHER BLIZZA / Retold with him. B. Zakhoder; Rice. E. Bulatova, O. Vasilyeva. - M.: Malysh, 1992. - 15 p.: ill.

GRANDMOTHER BLIZZA: Fairy tales / Retold with him. B. Zakhoder; Rice. M. Mayofis. - M.: Malysh, 1984. - 95 p.: ill.

SNOW WHITE / Retelling by V. Solovyova; Artist O. Kondakova. - Kaliningrad: Amber Tale, 2001. - 167 p.: ill. - (Masters of Illustration).

SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN Dwarfs / Retold by Yu. Plastov; Artist T. Yufa. - Petrozavodsk: Karelia, 1981. - 22 p.: ill.

WHITE AND ROSE / Ill. A. Ermolaev. - M.: Malysh, 1973. - 24 p.: ill.

THE BREMEN MUSICIANS / Retold for children by A. Vvedensky; Rice. M. Mayofis. - L.: Det. lit., 1991. - 14 p.: ill. - (My first books).

A POT OF PORridge / In the retelling of A. Vvedensky; Ed. S. Marshak; Artist V. Khlebnikov. - M.: Malysh, 1992. - 5 p.: ill.

A POT OF PORridge: Fairy tales / Retelling with him. A. Vvedensky; Ed. S. Marshak. - M.: Det. lit., 1990. - 30 p.: ill. - (Read for yourself).

POT OF PORridge / Fig. V. Konashevich. - L.: Artist of the RSFSR, 1988. - 10 p.: ill.

THE GOLDEN GOOSE: Fairy Tales: Trans. with him. / Artist. O. Kondakova; Entry Art. and after. K.Sergienko. - M.: Det. lit., 1989. - 127 p.: ill.

KING THRUSHBEARD: Fairy Tales / Artist. V. Chaplya. - M.: Malysh, 1992. - 88 p.: ill.

BEST TALES / Trans. with him. G. Petnikova; Artist A. Arkhipova. - M.: Egmont Russia Ltd., 2003. - 198 p.: ill.

BOY-TO-THING / Artist. I. Petelina. - M.: Eksmo, 1997. - 127 p. - (For little ones).

GINGERBREAD HOUSE / Retelling by A. Vvedensky; Rice. B.Kalaushina. - L.: Detgiz, 1959. - 17 p.: ill.

SEVEN BRAVES; SMART ELSA / Artist. V. Konashevich. - L.: Lenizdat, 1981. - 16 p.: ill.

TALES / Transl. with him. Y. Koronovsky, G. Petnikov; Artist N. Ustinov. - M.: ROSMEN, 2002. - 143 p.: ill. - (The best fairy tales of the world).

THE DARLING TAILOR / Retelling with him. B.Zakhodera; Artist E. Monin. - M.: Bustard, 2001. - 103 p.: ill. - (Tale after tale).

Books for family reading:

CHILDREN'S AND FAMILY TALES / Transl. with him. E. Ivanova; Entry Art. B. Lauer; Il. O. Ubelode. - M.: NOTA BENE, 2001. - 711 p.: ill.

COMPLETE COLLECTION OF FAIRY TALES: In 2 volumes / Transl. with him. and preface E. Ivanova. - M.: OLMA-PRESS, 2002.

TALES / Transl. with him. G. Petnikova; Il. N. Golts. - M.: Artist. lit., 1991. - 319 pp.: ill. - (For family reading).

TALES / Transl. with him. G. Petnikova; Rice. N. Tseitlina. - M.: Artist. lit., 1978. - 509 pp.: ill.

TALES / Transl. with him. G. Petnikova; Artist F.Groth-Johann, R.Leiweber. - M.: Eksmo, 2004. - 542 p.: ill. - (World children's classic).

TALES OF THE BROTHERS GRIMM: Trans. with him. / Intro. Art. V. Keller; Artist G.A.V.Traugots. - L.: Artist of the RSFSR, 1979. - 303 p.: ill.

COLLECTED WORKS: In 2 volumes / Transl. with him. edited by P.N. Polevoy. - M.: Algorithm, 1999. - (B-ka AIF for children).

Edition for book lovers:

TALES: Elenberg manuscript 1810 with commentary. / Trans., [intro. Art., comment.] A. Naumenko. - M.: Book, 1988. - 444 pp.: ill.

Nadezhda Ilchuk, Svetlana Malaya (bibliography)

LITERATURE ABOUT THE LIFE AND WORK OF THE BROTHERS GRIMM

Gerstner G. Brothers Grimm. - M.: Mol. Guard, 1980. - 271 p.: ill. - (Life is remarkable. People).
Grimm brothers // Encyclopedic Dictionary: Reprint. playback ed. F.A. Brockhaus - I.A. Efron 1890. - M.: Terra - Terra, 1991. - T. 18. - P. 732-734.
Deneke L. [Grimm J., Grimm V.] // Cinderella and other fairy tales collected by the brothers Grimm: In Russian. and German language - Bonn: Inter Nationses, 1990. - pp. 124-128.
Ivanova E. The most famous brothers in the world // Grimm Y., Grimm V. Complete collection of fairy tales: In 2 volumes - M.: OLMA-PRESS, 2002. - T. 1. - P. 11-20.
Keller V. Academicians of folk tales // Grimm Ya., Grimm V. Tales of the Brothers Grimm. - L.: Artist of the RSFSR, 1979. - P. 5-11.
Lauer B. Poetry of the people and cultural tradition // Grimm Ya., Grimm V. Children's and family tales. - M.: NOTA BENE, 2001. - P. 3-18.
Mavlevich N. Comments: Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm-Karl Grimm // Literary tales of foreign writers. - M.: Det. lit., 1982. - pp. 643-644.
Nagibin Yu. About fairy tales and storytellers // Literary fairy tales of foreign writers. - M.: Det. lit., 1982. - pp. 3-26.
Sergienko K. The Brothers Grimm are going for fairy tales // Grimm Y., Grimm V. The Golden Goose. - M: Det. lit., 1989. - P. 5-8; 51-54; 73-76; 123-126.
Skurla G. Brothers Grimm: Life and Creativity: Trans. with him. / Preface A. Gugnina. - M.: Raduga, 1989. - 304 p.: ill.
Shevchenko G. Afterword: [The Brothers Grimm: Life and Creativity] // Grimm Y., Grimm V. Fairy tales. - M.: Pravda, 1989. - P. 463-475.

N.I., S.M.

SCREEN ADAPTATIONS OF THE BROTHERS GRIMM'S WORKS

- ART FILMS -

Belyanochka and Rosette. Dir. Z. Hartmann. GDR, 1979. Cast: Y. Yurishtova, K. Martin, H.-P. Minetti, P. Travnicek, B. Wolf and others.
Magic tree. Dir. F. Stephanie. GDR, 1957. Cast: K. Bodenstein, E. Dux, R. Kruger and others.
Six of us will go around the whole world. Dir. R.Simon. GDR, 1972. Starring: I. Menzel, G. Schubert, F. Solter and others.
Hans Reckle and the devil. Dir. G. Kratzer. GDR, 1974. Starring: R. Hoppe, P. Aust, Z. Tsglinicki, M. Gunter and others.
Mrs. Metelitsa. Dir. G. Colditz. GDR, 1963. Starring: M. Danegger, K. Ugovski, K. Lind, E. Florin and others.
Golden goose. Dir. Z. Hartmann. GDR, 1964. Starring: K. Eichel, K. Ugovski, P. Dommish and others.
The story of a shepherdess princess and her faithful horse Falada. Dir. M. Wallroth, K. Petzold. GDR, 1988. Starring: D.Moravkova, R.Bayer, J.Folf and others.
How to marry a king. Based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale "The Clever Peasant's Daughter". Dir. R.Simon. GDR, 1969. Cast: K. Habbema, S. Schultz, H. Fischer, P. Dommish and others.
King Thrushbeard. Dir. V. Beck. GDR, 1965. Cast: M. Krug, H. Schreiber, K. Ugovski and others.
King Drozdovik. Dir. M. Luther. Czechoslovakia-Germany-Italy, 1984. Cast: M. Schell, A. Tarabkova, L. Vakulik, M. Labuda, G. Olshevsky and others.
Switched queen. Dir. D. Scharfenberg. GDR, 1984. Cast: U. Karussayt, K. Beve, K. Piontek, K. Steier, M. Marian and others.
Prince beyond the seven seas. Dir. V. Beck. GDR, 1972. Cast: R. Blume, A. Fritz, M. Heine and others.
Sleeping Beauty. Dir. S. Parnitsky. Czechoslovakia-Germany, 1989. Cast: J. Kakosheva, D. Dinkova, G. Burkhard and others.
Brave little tailor. Dir. D. Tranchik. Slovakia-Germany, 1990. Cast: M. Noga, G. Musk, M. Molina and others.
The devil with three golden hairs. GDR, 1977.

- CARTOONS -

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Dir. W.Disney. USA, 1937.
The Bremen Town Musicians. Musical fantasy based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale. Scene V. Livanova, Yu. Entina. Dir. I. Kovalevskaya. Production designer M. Zherebchevsky. Comp. G. Gladkov. USSR, 1969. Vocal parts: E. Zherzdeva, A. Gorokhov, O. Anofriev.
Cheerful musicians. Puppet cartoon. Based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale "The Town Musicians of Bremen". Scene A. Ptushko. Dir. A. Ptushko. Artist Yu. Shvets. Comp. G. Milyutin. USSR, 1937.
A pot of porridge. Scene V.Golovanova. Dir. N. Golovanova. Production designer G. Zuikova. Comp. Sh.Kallosh. USSR, 1984. The roles were voiced by: E. Vesnik, L. Gnilova.
Capricious princess. Scene M. Volpina. Dir. V. Brumberg, Z. Brumberg. Production designers: L. Azarkh, V. Lalayants. Comp. A. Varlamov. USSR, 1969. The roles were voiced by: A. Papanov, R. Zelenaya, Y. Kozlovsky, M. Mironova, A. Konsovsky.
Thumb Boy. Scene O. Khodataeva. Dir. O. Khodataeva. Artist P. Nosov. Comp. A. Crane. USSR, 1938.
Brave little tailor. Scene M. Volpina. Dir. V. Brumberg, Z. Brumberg. Production designers L. Azarkh, V. Lalayants. Comp. A. Varlamov. USSR, 1964. The roles were voiced by: E. Garin, S. Tseits, O. Anofriev, A. Konsovsky, M. Tumanov, G. Vitsin and others.

They are among the universal minds of their time, that is, that extremely rare breed of people, before whose name we so easily, sometimes thoughtlessly, attach the epithet “genius,” while experiencing a vague feeling of admiration mixed with distrust. Indeed, the Brothers Grimm are perhaps more revered than known, apart from their popularity as collectors of fairy tales. Meanwhile, their activity was enormous and versatile, it covered many areas that at first glance seemed alien to each other - Scandinavian mythology and legal history, collecting works of German folklore and compiling a historical dictionary of the German language, and much, much more. And if Wilhelm Grimm had periods of increased creative activity followed by periods of decline, which was mainly explained by the weakness of his health, then the life of Jacob Grimm was continuous inspired work and obsessive scientific research, the results of which give us reason to call him “the father of German philology.”

By origin, the Brothers Grimm belonged to the so-called middle class. Their father was first a lawyer in Hanau, and then entered the legal service of the Prince of Hanau. The Brothers Grimm were born there: Jacob - January 4, 1785, Wilhelm - February 24, 1786. From their earliest youth they were bound by the closest bonds of friendship, which did not break throughout their lives. Their father died in 1796, leaving the family in a very cramped position, so that only thanks to the generosity of their maternal aunt, the Grimm brothers were able to complete their studies, for which they showed brilliant abilities very early. Jacob Grimm first studied at the Kassel Lyceum, then entered the University of Marburg, with the firm intention of studying legal sciences, following the example of his father. He actually attended lectures at the Faculty of Law for some time and studied law, but soon realized that he was more interested in philology. In 1804, shortly after graduating from university, Jacob Grimm went to Paris to help Prof. Savigny, his former teacher, in search of ancient manuscripts. Through Savigny he met C. Brentano, who at that time, together with L. von Arnim, was collecting folk songs, legends and fairy tales, and was also inspired by this idea.

In 1808, Jacob Grimm became the personal librarian of Napoleon Bonaparte's brother, Jerome Bonaparte, then King of Westphalia. The king was very pleased with the work of the young librarian, did not burden him with unnecessary orders and requests, and generally appeared in his own library extremely rarely, giving Jacob complete freedom to engage in scientific activities. In 1812, the Brothers Grimm published the first volume of their famous “Children's and Family Tales”, three years later the second volume appeared; These two volumes included 200 folk tales and 10 so-called “children's legends.” Two years after the publication of Fairy Tales, the Brothers Grimm published a collection of German Legends in two volumes. At the end of the war with France, in 1815, Jacob Grimm was sent along with a representative of the Electorate of Kassel to the Congress of Vienna, and a profitable diplomatic career even opened up for him. But Jacob felt disgust for her, and in general, in official pursuits, he naturally saw only an obstacle to pursuing science. Therefore, in 1816, he left the service, rejected the professorship offered to him in Bonn, refused large salaries and preferred over everything a modest position as a librarian in Kassel, where his brother had already worked as a secretary since 1814. Both brothers maintained this humble position until 1820, while simultaneously pursuing various philological studies, and this period of their lives was extremely fruitful in relation to their scientific activities.

In 1830, Jacob Grimm was invited to Göttingen as professor of German literature and senior librarian at the University of Göttingen. Wilhelm entered the same place as a junior librarian and in 1831 was elevated to extraordinary, and in 1835 to ordinary professor. Both brothers lived well here, especially because here they met a friendly circle, which included the first luminaries of contemporary German science. Also in 1835, Jacob Grimm published his study “Germanic Mythology” here. This work is still considered a classic work on comparative mythology (the Brothers Grimm are the founders of the so-called “mythological school” in folklore; Friedrich Schelling and the Schlegel brothers, in particular, belonged to this school). But their stay in Gottingen was short-lived. The new King of Hanover, who ascended the throne in 1837, decided to abolish the constitution given to Hanover by his predecessor, which aroused general discontent against himself; but only seven Göttingen professors had enough courage to openly protest against the violation of the fundamental state law. The Brothers Grimm were among them. King Ernst August responded to this with the immediate dismissal of all seven professors and the expulsion from Hanoverian borders of those who were not Hanoverian natives. Within three days, the Brothers Grimm were to leave Hanover and temporarily settle in Kassel. But German public opinion stood up for them, and two major book publishers (Reimer and Girtzel) approached them with a proposal to compile a German dictionary on the broadest scientific basis.

In 1840, the Prussian Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm wished to provide patronage to the brothers and invited them to Berlin. They were elected members of the Berlin Academy of Sciences and, as academicians, received the right to teach at the University of Berlin. They devoted the last years of their lives mainly to lecturing and scientific research, undertaking in 1852 a work of incredible volume and complexity to compile a dictionary of the German language. After the death of Wilhelm in Kassel on December 16, 1859 and the death of Jacob in Berlin on September 20, 1863, this work was continued by various groups of scientists (completed in 1961)

Jacob Grimm entered the history of linguistics primarily as the author of the four-volume “German Grammar”. Its first volume is devoted to morphology and phonetics, the second - mainly to morphology, the third - to word formation and the fourth - to syntax. The basis of this study is a comparison on a historical basis of all Germanic languages, covering a huge amount of material, starting with the first written monuments. Together with the study of Fr. Bopp “On the conjugation system of Sanskrit in comparison with the conjugation of Greek, Latin, Persian and Germanic languages” “German grammar” by J. Grimm became the primary basis on the basis of which comparative historical linguistics subsequently arose. The founders of comparative studies did not limit themselves to comparing languages. In a number of their works, primarily in J. Grimm’s “German Grammar,” the historical development of individual languages ​​and language groups was studied. Anticipating Humboldt's ideas, Jacob Grimm called language an ever-changing category in which contradictory forces or antinomies operate. “When studying the history of language, one sees everywhere a living movement, hardness, flexible, pliable variability, a constant change of ups and downs, an indomitable desire for something new, which has never yet reached its final completion.” All these changes in the language, caused by its unconsciously acting spirit, determine both the difficulty and the ease of mastering a language, both foreign and native. It should be noted that Jacob. Grimm was significantly influenced by romantic ideas about the “spirit of the people” and its reflection in language, especially emphasizing the role of data on popular dialects. Calling for the study of the “folk” language in all its living diversity, Jacob Grimm had a huge influence on the development of German dialectology.

The study of the historical development of Germanic languages ​​made it possible for J. Grimm to identify the patterns of their phonetic development. He and some of his contemporaries were responsible for the first formulations of specific laws of sound changes in language. The concept of sound law, introduced by F. Bopp in 1824 and developed by J. Grimm, was not yet given such fundamental importance at that time; but it was developed by subsequent generations of comparativists.

It can be said that the brothers Grimm were also at the origins of German lexicography, having undertaken a truly titanic work to compile the first historical dictionary of the German language (from 1500 to the first half of the 19th century). The preparatory work alone took 14 years, and in 1852 the first volume was published (the brothers brought the dictionary to the word Frucht). Jacob Grimm, who was distinguished by better health and phenomenal performance, bore the brunt of this hellish work. The dictionary was published in small editions, which were then combined into huge volumes. The dictionary entries in it include a wide variety of, if not exhaustive, information about the word: etymology, history, word formation, grammatical and stylistic notes, all sorts of shades of meaning and examples of use. Until now, the Brothers Grimm’s “Dictionary of the German Language” is considered a unique publication, unparalleled in the history of world lexicography. It was reprinted and revised many times, taking into account changes occurring in the language. Its last edition was published, as already mentioned, in 1961 and had a volume of 32 volumes, including 350 thousand words.

The comparative historical method of revealing the origins of national culture and national spirit, developed by Jacob Grimm, turned out to be universal to a certain extent. In fact, the Grimm brothers brought German philology out of the subordinate position it occupied in the “historical school of law” and significantly expanded its boundaries. They included here linguistics, the history of Germanic tribes and peoples, their ethnography, life, customs, source studies and historiography, the search and publication of all kinds of monuments of Russian literature. They also included Germanic and comparative mythology, as well as various areas of folklore. The Brothers Grimm found, published, translated and commented on many monuments of Germanic, Romanesque, Scandinavian and Celtic antiquities (“Song of Hildebrandt”, “German Traditions”, “Tales of the Irish Elves”, “Old Danish Heroic Songs” and much more). And so on continuously - one work after another, until their very death. Perhaps something in their scientific research will now seem controversial and not free from a certain bias. But, according to Wilhelm Scherer, “the impulse that came from them, and the new goals that they indicated, have now become integral to the process of development of science, and each new shoot carries a particle of it.”

Wilhelm Grimm (02/24/1786 – 12/16/1859) and Jacob Grimm (01/4/1785 – 09/20/1863) - famous German writers and linguists. They collected numerous folklore of their native country, which was reflected in their fairy tales. They are the authors of such works as “Snow White”, “The Town Musicians of Bremen”, “Little Red Riding Hood”, “Cinderella”. The Brothers Grimm are also the creators of the first dictionary of the German language.

Oh, how many different doubts and temptations there will be. Remember, our life is not a child’s play. Drive away temptations, and know the unspoken law: Go, my friend, always go along the path of goodness.

Childhood

The Brothers Grimm were born in Germany just over a year apart. The elder Jacob was born on January 4, 1785, and the younger Wilhelm on January 24, 1786. Their father worked as a lawyer in the city of Hanau, he was the legal adviser to the local ruler. In total, there were six children in the family - in addition to the future writers, there was another boy and three girls.

From birth, the brothers did everything together - they played, walked, studied. Their favorite pastime was studying everything that was around. So, they enthusiastically collected herbariums, observed the habits of animals, and then drew what they saw. And they really loved listening to various mythological stories and parables that adults told them.

When Jacob and Wilhelm were 11 and 10 years old respectively, their father died. The family was on the verge of death, as they had lost their only breadwinner. But a distant relative on the maternal side came to the rescue. This woman took care of the children. She sent her older brothers to study at the Kassel Lyceum, and after that they entered the University of Marburg. And they followed in their father’s footsteps - they began to study law.

Study and the beginning of creativity

While studying at the university, the Grimm brothers showed great talent for science. They were very diligent and enjoyed absorbing all the new information. The teachers predicted a great future for them in the legal profession, but in the end everything turned out differently.

At some point, Wilhelm and Jacob became interested in collecting myths and legends. They met a number of philologists who gave them rich food for research. The brothers began to study the origins of numerous fables and parables. They were interested in where the roots of these stories came from. Professor Friedrich Karl von Savigny had a huge influence on the future of writers. He himself studied ancient manuscripts and often involved his brothers in this activity.

After graduating from university, Grimm's career paths diverged slightly. Jacob began working as a lawyer, and Wilhelm as a secretary in the library of the city of Kassel. Moreover, the younger brother was a little jealous of the older brother, since jurisprudence weighed heavily on him, he wanted to be closer to books. Therefore, at the age of 31, he resigned from service and even rejected a tempting offer to work as a teacher at the university. Instead, he took a job in the same library where Wilhelm worked. And together they returned to their favorite pastime - studying German folklore.

Fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm

Their first collection of folklore was published in 1812, it was called “Children's and Family Tales.” It includes works known today throughout the world - “Snow White”, “The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats”, “The Bremen Town Musicians”. The famous “Little Red Riding Hood” was also there. The literary world already knew this story, since Charles Perrault wrote it more than a hundred years before the Brothers Grimm. But it was the version of Wilhelm and Jacob that became the fairy tale that every child and adult knows today.

All Grimm stories were a reflection of ancient legends, myths and parables. And in their debut collection, they indicated in detail what this or that story was based on. But at the same time, the brothers quite seriously reworked the original source, giving it a more literary look and removing completely scary scenes from it. As a result, the collection “Children's and Family Tales” became a real sensation in the philological community. All the experts who read it noted the main thing - the fairy tales were written in a very lively and simple language, and therefore made you fall in love from the first lines and did not let go until the very end.

In 1815, the second volume of Fairy Tales was published. It was supplemented by such works as “The Brave Little Tailor”, “Cinderella”, “Sleeping Beauty”. And the story “About a Fisherman and His Wife,” which Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin later used as a basis in his “Golden Fish.”

In total, two volumes of “Fairy Tales” contained more than 230 different stories. And many of them have become true classics. These works by the Brothers Grimm were republished many times and filmed many times. And almost all parents read these stories to their children at night.

German Dictionary

But, carried away by the study of folklore, Wilhelm and Jacob did not forget about scientific activity. In the course of their research, they came across a situation that in Germany at that time there were many different dialect languages. But at the same time, there was no single one that was understandable to all peoples.