The Juniper TreeJacob and Wilhelm Grimm　　Long ago, at least two thousand years, there was a rich man who had a beautiful and pious wife, and they loved each other dearly. However, they had no children, though they wished very much to have some, and the woman prayed for them day and night, but they didn't get any, and they didn't get any.　　In front of their house there was a courtyard where there stood a juniper tree. One day in winter the woman was standing beneath it, peeling herself an apple, and while she was thus peeling the apple, she cut her finger, and the blood fell into the snow.　　"Oh," said the woman. She sighed heavily, looked at the blood before her, and was most unhappy. "If only I had a child as red as blood and as white as snow." And as she said that, she became quite contented, and felt sure that it was going to happen.　　Then she went into the house, and a month went by, and the snow was gone. And two months, and everything was green. And three months, and all the flowers came out of the earth. And four months, and all the trees in the woods grew thicker, and the green branches were all entwined in one another, and the birds sang until the woods resounded and the blossoms fell from the trees. Then the fifth month passed, and she stood beneath the juniper tree, which smelled so sweet that her heart jumped for joy, and she fell on her knees and was beside herself. And when the sixth month was over, the fruit was thick and large, and then she was quite still. And after the seventh month she picked the juniper berries and ate them greedily. Then she grew sick and sorrowful. Then the eighth month passed, and she called her husband to her, and cried, and said, "If I die, then bury me beneath the juniper tree." Then she was quite comforted and happy until the next month was over, and then she had a child as white as snow and as red as blood, and when she saw it, she was so happy that she died.　　Her husband buried her beneath the juniper tree, and he began to cry bitterly. After some time he was more at ease, and although he still cried, he could bear it. And some time later he took another wife.　　He had a daughter by the second wife, but the first wife's child was a little son, and he was as red as blood and as white as snow. When the woman looked at her daughter, she loved her very much, but then she looked at the little boy, and it pierced her heart, for she thought that he would always stand in her way, and she was always thinking how she could get the entire inheritance for her daughter. And the Evil One filled her mind with this until she grew very angry with the little boy, and she pushed him from one corner to the other and slapped him here and cuffed him there, until the poor child was always afraid, for when he came home from school there was nowhere he could find any peace.　　One day the woman had gone upstairs to her room, when her little daughter came up too, and said, "Mother, give me an apple."　　"Yes, my child," said the woman, and gave her a beautiful apple out of the chest. The chest had a large heavy lid with a large sharp iron lock.　　"Mother," said the little daughter, "is brother not to have one too?"　　This made the woman angry, but she said, "Yes, when he comes home from school."　　When from the window she saw him coming, it was as though the Evil One came over her, and she grabbed the apple and took it away from her daughter, saying, "You shall not have one before your brother."　　She threw the apple into the chest, and shut it. Then the little boy came in the door, and the Evil One made her say to him kindly, "My son, do you want an apple?" And she looked at him fiercely.　　"Mother," said the little boy, "how angry you look. Yes, give me an apple."　　Then it seemed to her as if she had to persuade him. "Come with me," she said, opening the lid of the chest. "Take out an apple for yourself." And while the little boy was leaning over, the Evil One prompted her, and crash! she slammed down the lid, and his head flew off, falling among the red apples.　　Then fear overcame her, and she thought, "Maybe I can get out of this." So she went upstairs to her room to her chest of drawers, and took a white scarf out of the top drawer, and set the head on the neck again, tying the scarf around it so that nothing could be seen. Then she set him on a chair in front of the door and put the apple in his hand.　　After this Marlene came into the kitchen to her mother, who was standing by the fire with a pot of hot water before her which she was stirring around and around.　　"Mother," said Marlene, "brother is sitting at the door, and he looks totally white and has an apple in his hand. I asked him to give me the apple, but he did not answer me, and I was very frightened."　　"Go back to him," said her mother, "and if he will not answer you, then box his ears."　　So Marlene went to him and said, "Brother, give me the apple." But he was silent, so she gave him one on the ear, and his head fell off. Marlene was terrified, and began crying and screaming, and ran to her mother, and said, "Oh, mother, I have knocked my brother's head off," and she cried and cried and could not be comforted.　　"Marlene," said the mother, "what have you done? Be quiet and don't let anyone know about it. It cannot be helped now. We will cook him into stew."　　Then the mother took the little boy and chopped him in pieces, put him into the pot, and cooked him into stew. But Marlene stood by crying and crying, and all her tears fell into the pot, and they did not need any salt.　　Then the father came home, and sat down at the table and said, "Where is my son?" And the mother served up a large, large dish of stew, and Marlene cried and could not stop.　　

大概是在二千年以前吧，有一个富人对自己的妻子非常爱护，夫妻俩相亲相爱，生活非常幸福，遗憾的是他们一直没有小孩。他们的房屋前有一座花园，里面有一棵高大的桧树。一年冬天，外面下起了大雪，大地披上了白色的银装，妻子站在桧树下，一边欣赏着雪景，一边削着苹果，一不留神，小刀切到了手指头，滴滴鲜血流出来洒在了雪地上。看着白雪衬托着的鲜红血点，她深深地歎了一口气说道：「唉—-！要是我有一个孩子，他的皮肤像雪一般的白嫩，又透着血一样的红润，我该是多么的幸福啊！」说着想着，她的心情变得兴奋起来，彷彿自己的愿望真的就要成为现实一样。　　冬天过去了，春风吹来，卸去了披在大地身上的银装，又给她换上了绿色的外套，朵朵鲜花点缀着翠绿的田野；当树木吐露出春芽时，嫩枝又开始被拂去枝头的残花，小鸟在树丛间欢快地飞来跳去，唱着讚美春天的歌声。面对这生机盎然的大自然，富人的妻子满怀希望，心中充满了喜悦。初夏来临，温暖的阳光又催开了桧树的花蕾，和暖的夏风夹带着丝丝甜意的花香飘进了她的房中。花香使她心情激荡，心跳不已。她来到桧树下，欣喜地跪在地上，虔诚地默默祈祷着。秋天快到了，当树枝上挂满纍纍果实的时候，她从桧树上採下色泽深红的乾果。不知为甚么，她此时的心情显得非常悲哀而伤心。她叫来丈夫对他说：「如果我死了，就把我埋在这桧树下吧。」不久，她生下了一个非常漂亮的儿子，孩子长得正如她所希望的一样，真是白里透红、红中透粉。看见自己可爱的孩子，她心里充满了快乐，再也支持不住生产的痛苦，慢慢地垂下脑袋，离开了自己的丈夫和刚生下的孩子。　　丈夫按照她的愿望把她埋在了桧树下，痛哭着哀悼她的去世。过了一段时间，他心情平静了一些，眼泪也少多了。又过了一段时间，他的眼泪完全没有了，再过了一段时间，他娶了另外一个妻子。　　时光流逝，第二个妻子生了一个女儿，她非常呵护这个女儿，但前妻生下的儿子长得越来越惹人喜爱，像雪一样的白嫩，透着血一般的红润。她看见这个孩子就充满了仇恨，认为有了他，她和自己的女儿就得不到丈夫的全部财富了。所以，她对这个可怜的孩子百般苛待，经常虐待他，把他从屋子里的一个角落推搡到另一个角落，一会儿给他一拳头，过一会儿又拧他一下，他身上尽是青红紫绿的瘀伤。他从学校放学回来，往往一进屋就没有安宁的地方可待，这使他看见继母就害怕。　　有一次，小女孩的母亲要到贮藏室去，她赶上妈妈说道：「妈妈，我可以吃一个苹果吗？」妈妈回答说：「好的！我的小乖乖。」说完，她从箱子里拿出一个鲜艳的红苹果给了她。这个箱子的盖子非常沉重，上面有一把锋利的大铁卡子。小女孩接过苹果说道：「妈妈，再给我一个，我要拿给小哥哥去吃。」她妈妈听了心里很不高兴，但嘴里却说道：「好吧，我的宝贝！等他放学回来后，我同样会给他一个的。」说着这话，她从窗子里看见小男孩正好回来了，马上从女儿手中夺回苹果，扔进箱子，关上盖子对女儿说：「等哥哥回来以后，再一起吃吧。」　　小男孩走进家门，这个阴险的女人用温柔的声音说道：「进来吧，我的乖孩子，我给你一个苹果吃。」小男孩听到这话，说道：「妈妈，你今天真亲切！我的确很想吃苹果。」「好的，跟我进来吧！」说罢，她把他带进贮藏室，揭开箱子盖说：「你自己拿一个吧。」当小男孩俯身低头，伸手准备从箱子里拿苹果时，她狠毒地拉下了箱盖，「砰！」的一声，沉重的箱盖猛地砍下了这可怜小男孩的头，头掉落在了箱子里的苹果中。当她意识到自己所做的事以后，感到非常恐惧，心里算计着怎样才能让自己与这事脱离干系。她走进自己的卧室，从抽屉里拿出一条手巾，来到贮藏室，将小男孩的头接在他的脖子上，用手巾缠住，又将他抱到门前的一个凳子上坐着，在他手里塞了一个苹果。一切料理完毕，没有一个人看见她所干的勾当。　　不久，小女孩玛傑丽走进厨房，看见妈妈站在火炉旁，搅动着一锅热水，她说道：「妈妈，哥哥坐在门边，手里拿着一个苹果，我要他给我，但他一句话也不说，脸色好苍白，我好怕哟。」妈妈回答道：「混帐！你再去，如果他不回答你的话，就狠狠地给他一耳光。」玛傑丽转身来到门口对哥哥说：「哥哥，把苹果给我。」但哥哥不说一句话，她伸手一耳光打去，哥哥的头一下子就打被落下来。这一下，她连魂都吓跑了，尖叫着跑到她妈妈面前，说自己把哥哥的头打掉了，说着就伤心欲绝地大哭起来。妈妈说道：「玛傑丽！你做了甚么事呀？唉！已经做了的事是无法挽回的了，我们最好把他处理掉，不要向任何人提起这事。」母亲抓起小男孩，把他剁碎，放到锅子里，做了一锅汤。可是玛傑丽只是站在那里哭，眼泪一滴滴地掉进锅里，所以锅里根本就不用放盐了。　　当父亲回家吃饭的时候，他问道：「我的小儿子呢？」母亲没有吭声，她端了一大碗黑汤放在桌子上，玛傑丽一直伤心地低着头在痛哭。
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