The VERY Messed Up Origins of Hansel and Gretel | Fables Explained - Jon Solo

We've all heard the story of Hansel and Gretel... but have you heard where it came from? ಠ_ಠ Today we're breaking down the history and transformation of the Hansel and Gretel fable over time!
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If you have a theory you'd like me to talk about you can comment down below OR share it on my official subreddit! Please do not send it to my business email :)
• Brothers Grimm Story (1857 edition): www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm015.html
• Comparing Editions: www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm015a....
• Ninnillo and Nennella: from the "The Pentamerone" (1788) books.google.com/books?id=vCw...
• Little Thumb Story: www.pitt.edu/~dash/perrault08...
• Multilingual Folktale Database: www.mftd.org
• The Classic Fairytales, Opie & Opie (1980)
► Music Sources:
• REVEALING MY INTRO SONG! • REVEALING MY INTRO SONG!
• Background Music: Killing Time Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
#HanselAndGretel #FablesExplained #BrothersGrimmStories

[@JonSolo]

Hope you like this episode, SoloFam! Thank you for watching :) Don't forget to hit that LIKE button if you haven't yet and ring that bell to join the notification fam! (☞ﾟヮﾟ)☞

[@ericbuckner5772]

Do the lion king please

[@ericbuckner5772]

sickid41 i don’t know

[@ericbuckner5772]

sickid41 about what you said

[@krissystark704]

I don't know how to add you on the Facebook..

[@wolfgody.f.k4881]

Can you do one on both of the books you talking about

[@melissabuchholz1731]

So they killed the witch and the mother also died. Could that mean that the witch is the mother?

[@FWUFFYCAKES]

Mindblown!

[@Lemonnitenite]

Hmmmmm....

[@kenhollis6197]

It has been speculated that they are in fact the same person, that the mother is jealous of her daughter's youth because she's becoming an old hag.

[@myiacook]

🤔 hmm

[@librahoshino6752]

That idea is suggested in Tim Burton's Hansel and Gretel as the actor playing the step-mother also plays the witch. Reminded me of how in the Peter Pan stage play, the children's father traditionally double-casts as Capt Hook.

[@SharpDesign]

Imagine what would have happened if the mother didn't die before they came back. Go away, You little.. We have gold... My children!

[@persephonethebookdragon9520]

If it were their stepmother, it'd be a jerk move. If it were their birth mother it'd be an EXTREMELY Jerk Move.

[@asadam9883]

You are talking about mother what about father

[@pseudotaco]

@@asadam9883 The father didn't die, so there is no need to talk about what if he didn't die. Also, the father is portrayed as genuinely caring for the children, that doesn't really seem to be the case with the (step)mother.

[@geekemedia]

😂😂

[@riotgrrrl8807]

@@pseudotaco genuinely caring and incredibly passive.

[@QueenCloveroftheice]

“Witches have terrible eyesight.” *takes off my glasses* Yep. That checks out.

[@howoriginal8621]

You're not a witch, you're probably like a beautiful person, or something..

[@WhiteSage2]

He said witch not bitch.

[@outkast3133]

@@WhiteSage2 🔥 🔥

[@user-qg4wi3vs8l]

I felt that on a personal level because I have terrible vision

[@malaikamiteo]

@@user-qg4wi3vs8l same

[@sunilpermaul7876]

*Gretel:* "We are free brother, the witch will trouble us no more." *Hansel:* "Why are you talking like that?" *Gretel:* "This is how I talk." *Thor:* "Are you mocking me?" *Gretel:* "No.." *Hansel:* "You just did it again!"

[@hildalau8375]

😂😂😂

[@ScarScar...]

🤣🤣🤣

[@calicochips9731]

😂😂😂

[@_o-0072]

I don't get it

[@naomijackson2382]

Just punneh the scene where star lord and Thor first met and star lord was trying to sound like Thor cuz he was manlier and bigger then him. They sayin Gretal is pulling a star lord

[@greenhairprincess3120]

Lmao the pic of the step mom😂😂😂😂 got the “can i speak to the manager” hair cut and everything 😂

[@betsysipe5512]

Yes! That cracked me up too!

[@whiteowl4097]

Yes I think her name was Karen.

[@valkyriefeirro1744]

Karen!

[@HeidiSue60]

It's Karen!

[@BeautifulMind0169]

That was Kate Gosselin

[@bi_anca7554]

Conspiracy theorie: what if the swan that helped them out was the ugly duckling

[@mzcaribbeauty5283]

some day wow. i like this plot twist. this is a good way to combine them

[@itsjxda8202]

WE NEED SHANE

[@ashleylandsberg8679]

Yes

[@Yourlocalfoxtherian2]

Good plot twist

[@_lynxy_1160]

some day OMG YOUR RIGHT

[@schmirieneele9183]

"The wind, the wind, the heavenly child" rhymes in german. It sounds like: "Der Wind, der Wind, das himmlische Kind"

[@dianheffernan3436]

That sounds so,Hitler's mens

[@cbg1609]

Knusper, knusper, knäuschen...

[@crow5326]

Also would ryme in dutch! De wind de wind het hemelse kind

[@lycaserenity3292]

You pronounce it "waind", so it rhymes in English as well.

[@sourangel0077]

Jaaaa

[@coolperson8233]

“Now Gretel ain’t no chump”

[@laltlanthangac9148]

"After they burned the witch, both the children knew that they could not survive on candy so they ate the witch"🙃

[@ashtonwolf3514]

And Grows up as Witch Hunters Badass Motherfuckers WitchSlayers

[@niahoad]

@@ashtonwolf3514 so i am not the only one who really liked that movie

[@jj5859]

ultimata no no you are not

[@x3no841]

@@ashtonwolf3514 I loved that movie, damnit!! 😂👌👌

[@officialjojoxwolf3306]

Ashton Wolf you watched that too?!!

[@dorkypotato]

“Not to mention basically everyone has a Bias against step mothers, including stepmothers” -Jon solo 2019

[@sarahkolakowski2012]

My stepmother was horrible that's why there's that bias

[@carlyk8560]

Mother in laws are worse.

[@eli627575]

Well having a step mother is the worst to matter how you look at it. Even if the step mother is an angel, not having your mother is heart breaking.

[@parkchimmin7913]

Elizabeth Ochoa True, but it depends on the situation. What happens if the birth mom was abusive and the step mother was nice and caring? You can’t apply that type of thinking for all situations.

[@eli627575]

@@parkchimmin7913 it's still very sad, because the mother was abusive. The kindness of the step mother is not in question. Regarless of how wonderful the step parent is, there is always that pain of being abused or abandon by a biological parent.

[@atroskie5101]

"We are free, brother. The witch shall trouble us no more." 'As much as that didn't sound like Thor talking to Loki.' I love it!! >·

[@giab.3411]

Why do I feel like the wood cutter snapped, and killed his wife lmao!

[@dandy_candy835]

Actually, the wife and the witch were the same person so she died when she got throw in the oven

[@dandy_candy835]

Jisoo Is A Queen Periodt yep

[@It_Is_Oylenox]

This is the story I was told lol

[@treymoment]

@@dandy_candy835 LMAOO

[@kyleighheath9966]

@@dandy_candy835 Jisoo from Blackpink?

[@xavierfletcher7484]

The Grimm brothers always love their stories dark and depressing

[@naly202]

No, we are much more sensitive and wishy washy. In the old days, when kids would die of typhos, cholera, rabis, etc, or when the greatest entertainment was a public execution, these stories were considered light and moralizing. E.g Hansel & Gretl, Red Riding Hood, Pinocchio etc taught children not to stray from the right path and never to trust strangers - which was essential for survival, since kids were often sent to work at an early age.

[@xavierfletcher7484]

@@naly202 I'm not that sensitive

[@jeremiahnoe5361]

Believe it or not, their stories were almost always lighter cleaned up versions of the original folk tales. Just watch this channel for a while and you'll get the idea. Red Riding Hood is a perfect example.

[@xavierfletcher7484]

@@jeremiahnoe5361 I seen that already

[@DamonNomad82]

One might say they are truly "Grimm" storytellers! :P

[@KiaraLionessTM]

“We are free brother the witch shall trouble us no more” Lol I love these messed up origins 😂❤️

[@Indieboo55]

Kiara LionessTM I never knew you liked these

[@KiaraLionessTM]

Ian Taylor ehh when you’re bored you’ll watch just about anything XD

[@Indieboo55]

We both like dark stuff .............. COOL * 3 Days later " Queen Callista : Hey Kiara why do I always see you uploading Dark stuff now ? Kiara : Because I'm a demon now baby! Queen Callista : ................ What is life anymore?

[@noxturne16]

For school in 7th grade in creative writing, we had to write an alternate ending to a fable, so I naturally chose Hansel and Gretel, and I made the ending be that the kids ate the witch instead of her eating them Edit: I realize I was very sadistic

[@wafflesthearttoad6916]

Lol what grade did you get?

[@noxturne16]

@@wafflesthearttoad6916 got a 100 lmao, realized my comment kinda cringe now lol

[@GamersAdventureWorldGAWYT]

@@noxturne16 oh uh ok

[@canaisyoung3601]

That would have worked too.

[@Shadamyfan-rs8xc]

I kinda want to read it lol

[@SodorTrain1225]

One version I heard as a kid had a plot twist, the stepmother was the witch, and after the witch "burned to death", Handel and Gretel brought their father to the candy house to show him so they could live in it. A statue of an old woman made of gingerbread was standing at the door. The children excitedly told their father, "Look father! There's our stepmother!" And then they ate the gingerbread woman. 😨

[@youandyerbloodychicken4196]

The story was already messed up before you even broke down the origins. I mean who in their right mind would tell their children a bed time story essentially based of off canablism.

[@karinland8533]

The tales were not explicit for children, nore for bedtime

[@kennethmitchell6184]

Addy Sugar Daddy. Have you seen some of the video games kid are aloud to play and who knows what eles on the internet. Please. I'd rather read these stories to my kids , at least I'd know what they were reading and where they were at.

[@RoScFan]

Those kinds of stories and worst were widely circulated throughout all people and of all generations for most of human history. Even as little as 50 y back and the way kids were treated would be tantamount to child abuse today. Telling them stories about a child eating witch is no big deal.

[@kennethmitchell6184]

RoScFan. Well not to bring politics into it what do you think the children at the Mexican boarder are thinking ? Being separated from their parents. These fairy tells must seem quite real to them. Except the evil step parent is an orange king bone spur.LMBAO!!!!!

[@kennethmitchell6184]

RoScFan P.S. some of those stories were based on some facts of the time .Remember the which trials of Salem Mass?

[@ahitzaroque890]

the step mother pic at 10:15 looks like she’s ready to talk to your manager

[@laurabradfield8539]

That's Kate Gosselin....... she is from John and Kate plus 8😂

[@thefrenchsocialite4062]

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@beanteen8988]

or take the kids

[@thecrisshow8997]

Lol yea

[@Frog101_Real]

Or try to take your switch or pet for her 6yo and tell you that you're too old for it and you don't deserve it, and say her kid got good grades so he deserves your things.

[@tracesprite6078]

This is a very interesting discussion. Marina Warner has written an interesting book called "From the Beast to the Blonde: On Fairy Tales and their Tellers." She says that many fairy tales were describing situations that people were dealing with in the middle ages. So, for example, there were often severe famines and several fairy tales start this way. Some families may have indeed decided to abandon their children in a desperate bid to survive. Sometimes the children may have found their way into other homes. In addition, women whose husbands had died may have been forced out to live in the forests. In India, in last century, if a woman's husband died, she had to be burned on his funeral pyre. In some African cultures, the women were driven into the forest if their husband died. The idea may have been that, if a woman's husband died, she was to blame for not caring for him well enough. In the Middle Ages, those widows sometimes kept a cat for company but people back then believed animals to be much more intelligent than we do. (In one case, a duck was even put on trial for a crime.) The women probably talked to themselves and their cats out of loneliness, thus attracting the suspicion and dislike of the villagers who suspected them of being witches. Some of those women may have been so hungry that they turned to cannibalism to survive. Others may have been wrongly suspected of cannibalism. The overall reality of the story was that desperate poverty can drive people to desperate measures. The house made of bread was probably pure fantasy but elements of the story would have been based in reality but distorted.

[@feymusings294]

The Indian one is fake....the colonialists saw jauhar, a system for women to self immolate as india was going through brutal island invasions and they were specially barbaric towards the women...doesn't matter alive or dead...in reality even today women aren't even allowed in crematorians much less near a pyre...and incidentally all cases came explosively from a British administered province ...who then gallantly passed a law to prohibit it ...and viola the cases stopped just as suddenly...as if practises like these if they truly existed would stop by a mere law. It was just another tool to mudsling hinduism and convert to christianity.

[@MahiMahi-yu5jo]

The Indian one is British propaganda. Women whose husbands died in the colonial era were severely abused. To avoid becoming victims of sexual and physical abuse, they committed suicide. The Brits then arrested people who did this to make themselves look like heroes, while subjecting this women to brutal, barabaric exploitation.

[@tracesprite6078]

@@MahiMahi-yu5jo How absolutely awful! That is so sad.

[@kimwhatmatters4085]

That’s so weird because women usually marry older me. Or men their age rarely younger and men die faster so this would be the fate of most women.

[@mort_belium6942]

​@@kimwhatmatters4085 this must've been a rarity... probably among a specific tribe... widow inheritance was by far the most common practice in case of a husband's death

[@erinwitcraft9141]

"The Wind, the Wind, the Heavenly Child" is an untranslatable pun...it rhymes in the original German.

[@catherinejustcatherine1778]

With respect, even if it doesn't translate exactly, I am curious what words or ideas is it playing with?

[@erinwitcraft9141]

@@catherinejustcatherine1778 In German, it's "Der Wind, der Wind, Das himmlische Kind." "Wind" and "Kind" rhyme.

[@catherinejustcatherine1778]

@@erinwitcraft9141 And, um, in German culture, is a rhyme a silliness, sort of like a pun? Note: In European American/ British culture, it takes something sneaky or mischievous to be a pun...one word referencing another meaning because it has more than one, perhaps. Another example, "just in fun"= playfulness "jest in pun"... jest=what a jester does...silliness/humor & pun=sounds like fun, both phonetically & in meaning...[some find puns fun]. Plus, "sounds like"=makes a reference to/suggests...I'm not trying to be pedantic, just hoping to understand more.

[@erinwitcraft9141]

​@@catherinejustcatherine1778 The joke is that it rhymes. Regarding Solo's comment about it being religious, it isn't. "Himmel," or "heaven," in this context, refers to the sky.

[@catherinejustcatherine1778]

@@erinwitcraft9141 Thank you. I appreciate your patient clarification.

[@LittleCuteNekogirl]

Welcome to Germany, were your grandma read you all the original fairytale versions from an old book she had since her childhood when you're about 8. It's somehow quite disturbing and still sweet and wholesome.

[@WhoisKell]

Fräulein Zeppelin I knew the original stories of most of them as well. I am not German, but Dutch and really like fairy tailes in general so I started searching the orgins.. still a lot of people are suprised when I tell them the original stories.

[@linamraz7866]

Fräulein Zeppelin bei uns in Österreich ists genauso! Durfte mit 9 Altdeutsch lernen weil mein Opa wollte dass ich ihm die Bücher vorlese und nicht mehr er mir🙃 great childhood memories

[@mikaylasmith1534]

I learned them when I was 4

[@ladykoiwolfe]

It makes us less fragile. Life could be worse, it could always be worse.

[@ladykoiwolfe]

@Charlie nor did mine. She wasn't cut out to be a mother, let alone a grandmother. Also her husband was terrible, honestly he could only have been worse if he had turned out to be a murderer...... Anyway, I read the stories to myself, the old ones. I read the new ones and thought they were...off.

[@Isimarie]

My grandma had a Grimms book! I'm German, so I was exposed to all of the original versions of the stories. Most were quite brutal tbh Also, in German, "The wind, the wind, the heavenly child" rhymes, if that makes it make any sense xD

[@i.g3085]

Easy Marie me to i was really confused when all of my friends in China started talking about all of those happy endings 😂

[@LolasChannelENJOY]

Ich glaube was ihn verwirrt hat war, dass es als heaven übersetzt wurde wie in der christliche Himmel, weil wir ja im Deutschen nicht zwischen "sky" und "heaven" unterscheiden 🌸

[@stephjovi]

@@i.g3085 looks like most of the world is too used to the Disney versions. Like the innocent sugar coated version of cinderella. In Austria and Germany we all grew up with the real version. The whole bluddy thing

[@HeidiSue60]

I grew up reading original Grimm stories. Greater Klaus and Lesser Klaus is NOT a story that Disney has ever done LOL

[@jasonhurd4379]

'Der Wind, der Wind, das himmlische Kind.'

[@missJazzitup99]

They didn't exactly steal when they took the jewels. It was more like back payment for all of Gretel's hard work, plus punitive damages, and payment for pain and suffering for Hansel. The jewelry should be enough pay for that.

[@spindash64]

Not like the witch was gonna be using it anytime soon, either

[@johannasmith3081]

My grandmother used to tell me this version, but with a stepmother, swan, and the father didn't know. The stepmother told him they had ran away. She told me the "old versions" of most all fairytales. She would be over a hundred year old if she were still alive. I miss listening to her stories.

[@chaelee7025]

Hair line looking clean

[@JonSolo]

lmao

[@TheJetmedix]

NoobGod132 Oh yeah yeah

[@inleviwetrust]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bZephKimfMuNg6c

[@RebelKitty19]

Why does so many people have that profile pic?

[@erebusphxntom4205]

@@RebelKitty19 I thought it was the same person

[@bokovdjemia3697]

"Excuse my language, but she's a total b*tch" Mood

[@juliagabis3077]

@@darkblade4340 dang dude

[@berrimu]

I still dont understand why society made words to use but made words to not use because they are offensive?!

[@emberdreadful5604]

@@berrimu because we're all hypocrites But I could give less of a fuck what people say about my language XD

[@aaishataadamu4890]

Thor: We are free brother Loki: Wait what

[@kaitlinhinch7061]

So the witch died in the oven but then their stepmother died were the stepmother and the witch the same person?!?!?....

[@uglybiscuit13x49]

I just love being a solo cup

[@xavierfletcher7484]

What a good time to be a Solo fan

[@tooktaak1]

You know he shot first?🤭🤫😂

[@ManikiMPACT]

Same XD

[@kratosboy5557]

Same

[@herralfredjc2442]

As a German the Hänsel und Gretel I heard as child, was pretty much the same as the first story, but: - The stepmother hates the children and wanted to get rid of them for some time, she only uses the limited food as a reason, to get rid of them. - Hänsel steels the bread, the moment he overhears the argument between his parents and wants them to starve for planning to abandon them, he plans to use the crumps to find the way home and then survive by eating there parents. (So they are not abandoned twice in the story I heard.) - When wandering blindly threw the forest, they meet some animals, who warn them to never follow a sweet smell, they ignore this warning. - The witch let's Gretel work inside the house while Hänsel has to work outside, when the witch decides she wants to eat Hänsel she locks him into the cage, to feed him until he is fat, Gretel doesn't notice this. Also Gretel is locked in a wardrobe at night so that she can't escape while the witch is asleep. - After a while the two slaves manage to speak with another, while the witch isn't watching over them. (I think she was cleaning up a mess Gretel made.). While speaking Hänsel comes up with a plan to throw the witch into the oven. - The witch notices their little chat and wants to grill Gretel, but Gretel manages to throw her into the oven, by the trick already explained in the video. - They bake the witch and then proceed by making pie out of her, since during the hole time in captivity they were only eating candy and sweet bread (the walls of the house are made of sweet bread) and gotten sick of it. - As soon as they finished eating the witch her house explodes, because the candy was only held together by her magic. - They find a chest of gold under her house take it and go home. - Their stepmother already starved to death, but the father managed to survive (it isn't explained how, but since it fits the theme I'm just going to assume, he ate his wife, I mean everyone else appears to be a cannibal so why shouldn't he.) and they live happily ever after. Some variations I heard included: - The stepmother wanted to eat the children in order to escape starvation and their father rescued them. For some reason in this version Hänsel's plan still includes letting them both starve. - They are to weak to carry the heavy chest and go home emptyhanded, in frustration, but find out that their father managed survive, who agrees to help them carry the chest, if he gets some of the money inside. "Der Wind, der Wind, das himmlische Kind." is a common German saying.

[@herralfredjc2442]

Man, I hope somebody reads this comment.

[@alienalchemist]

The first one is interesting where Hansel and Gretal are cannibals. It reminds of an episode (Season 1, Episode 5) of Disenchantment where H and G are cannibals.

[@alienalchemist]

Where did you heard this story?

[@whtyc]

I’ve heard a version very similar. The part about the animals warning them and not being able to carry the chest. I’ve also heard a version where there are gingerbread boys and girls in the yard of the witch’s gingerbread house, and when H&G kill the witch, her magic is broken and the gingerbread children turn back into real children that had fallen into the same trap as H&G but not escaped. In that version, the witch bakes the kids into the cookies and then eats them, but it takes awhile so she decorated her house with them until she eats them. I love that there are so many different ways to enjoy these stories. And how messed up they are!

[@teresaellis7062]

@@herralfredjc2442 Wow, multiple cannibals in the story. Creepy.

[@michellealfa825]

It's actually pretty awesome that you go through all of the different versions, cultural context and the original plot all at once. Loads of people leave out a loooooot of information. This is great stuff to keep me entertained during the quarantine. Hope you never run out of stories to break down for us!

[@your_mom6127]

conspiracy theory: the seven boys are the seven dwarfs 👌🏼

[@dianheffernan3436]

Must be a Hogwarts thg

[@Thurgoodlucas]

Daaaaamn he got the "let me speak to your manager" stepmother

[@alienalchemist]

Karen took the kids to the deepest part of woods!

[@ahnyisbillingsley3401]

This is now a meme

[@RandomiMies4444]

@@alienalchemist DAMN YOU, KAREN!!

[@tamaraeads3650]

Isn’t it a pic of Kate Gosselin?

[@MemeMan99]

I already know the original but I still want to watch Jon’s video lol

[@TheMarissaCouch]

Ditto

[@sissysovereign1294]

The version with the prince helping them out is actually really interesting! thank you for sharing these different versions with us!

[@justgio6516]

10:10 "They also have a stepmother who hates then" *picture of karen*

[@minthemadnezz200]

That one dislike is their step mom

[@taureansmithpartee]

Damn right. Hate the mom in this story

[@Ella-ps5cn]

Now she has 46 other accounts.

[@Grinnar]

93 accounts now. She's determined.

[@pipbfast]

Wow 115 dislikes she doesnt like this...

[@mrsbigmamayas3765]

🤣🤣🤣💚

[@karinajakobsen8045]

Personaly I find the father to be more wicked than the stepmother. It's HIS children, and he leads them away to die... 2 times....

[@drizzle452]

Absolutely! The weak simp father is the Judas while the stepmother/witch are models of the devil in the Judeo-Christian archetype. He was sold the world only to lose his soul... think about it this way: if you were the children, who would you resent more in the end? It’s those we love most that can hurt us the most

[@Lily_of_the_Forest]

Karina Jakobsen yep he was more concerned about pleasing the stepmother so he could have sex instead of saving his children. Penis-driven instead of responsibility-driven. He brought those children into the world so they are his responsibility until they are self-sufficient. The stepmother is nasty for using her feminine wiles to manipulate the father. Both rotten.

[@dilbertjunkmail]

From my experience, Men are easily manipulated by women and more focused on their livelihood traditionally leaving kids to be raise by their wives. That doesn't work well now in that the Evil step mother always gets the kids kicked out until she has everything and the kids nothing. The father always wakes up too late to save his family or his assets. Been there, never trust a strange women with your kids!

[@Lily_of_the_Forest]

dilbertjunkmail yep! Be picky when it comes to a co-parent. Choose a stepmom who loves your children like her own. Goodhearted women like that exist. Don’t be distracted by the hot, manipulative women. The goodhearted women won’t catch your eye. You’ll have seek them out. They are often volunteering for their local community.

[@zerosaber257]

He's a simp. Never be a weak simp to your wife or this will happen.

[@melelavaka3485]

The past few days i've been watching the messed up origin series on your channel and it's so addicting to watch and hear different versions from all across the world! I love the series!

[@alyssiataylor546]

Witch: Ayo, who tf eating my house? H&G: Uhh.... God?

[@normalguyjo]

I believe the Zach and Cody version is the best one

[@rach3092]

Arthur has a pretty funny version too

[@jailit7653]

Unoriginal Content Creator now your talking

[@jovette1966]

Unoriginal Content Creator KAKYOIN!?

[@cheyannelecamp226]

that was the first one i thought about

[@callmeluis1655]

Yup

[@DarthCrax]

Cuz Gretel ain't no chump

[@ivoneray1472]

My grandmother was a great storyteller ! I grew up listening to all kinds of fairy tales and I loved it! She didn't read them from a book, she knew the stories by heart. I actually heard the stories you mentioned in the video, separately, and till today I never thought they were somehow related to each other. That's pretty cool!

[@garbageman9145]

the stepmother was the witch brah, and the swan was the kids OG mom

[@bryttanirobinson3420]

Underated comment, the stop mom was indeed the witch 👌

[@Cuddles287]

Der Wind, der Wind, das himmlische Kind!

[@nothankyou7209]

Cuddles287 heh?

[@BreathlessStares]

@@nothankyou7209 It's the German version of ''the wind the wind , the heavenly child''

[@danamuller5016]

hansel and gretel IS german

[@katiet3470]

“Oh hey a house made of candy and a creepy witch!” “Wanna go in?” “Definitely.” Children are idiots sometimes

[@deathserpent9747]

They didnt see the witch until after they started eating the house

[@katiet3470]

DeathSerpent Fair enough

[@deathserpent9747]

@@katiet3470 besides she won them over with pancakes.

[@katiet3470]

A valid point

[@joliax1646]

she was 2 faced. she kept a nice old grandma facade... until she could lure them in and reveal she was a witch

[@rachelwakerley8617]

Gotta say, I've really been enjoying watching your channel during this lockdown xxx

[@madisonbrungardt9966]

I found your Greek Mythology explained last Monday and it made it soooo easy to understand and now I’m just obsessed

[@chrisisagirlsname98]

Looks like I checked KZbin at the perfect time

[@EMORW]

Christine Campion I did not. 😞

[@jessicarichard9358]

Me too

[@FloridasYesteryear]

I heard that in some versions the stepmom is the witch.

[@anthonyfox585]

BeyondTourism I always thought that when I was a little kid

[@brucealanwilson4121]

There is a version where the witch and the stempmother are sisters; the witch sent her sister out to find a widower with children the right age.

[@brucealanwilson4121]

Sometimes in the opera the same soprano does both the Mother and the Witch. (Although not uncommonly the Witch is sung by a tenor in drag.)

[@apebeats6631]

I'm really overjoyed by your appreciation of these classic tales. Kudos Mr. Solo.

[@lavenderotaku2481]

I actually heard a version of Hansel and Gretel where there was a big connection between the witch and the stepmother, being that the evil witch was actually Hansel and Gretel’s step-aunt. I always liked to think that because both women were apparently witches (as it was later revealed in that story) that the Woodcutter’s wife was connected to her sister somehow and died when the two children defeated the Candy-house witch.

[@kimtaetaebts5972]

i just found out about this Chanel, like he is seriously very underrated. this deserves at least 1 million subs

[@tororu8627]

True

[@JonSolo]

thank you so much for saying this :)

[@theneighborskid5433]

FR THO HE DESERVES IT

[@grell5108]

Please say subscribers, I beg you. I was very confused when you said he deserved a million "subs". Also, I had a good laugh. Just don't say your a "sub" or else people may get the wrong idea. Sincerely, A sub.

[@nessaoku4215]

@@grell5108”sub”

[@adelia988]

My stepfather treated me like I was vermin , so it’s not always step Mothers

[@istoleyourlatte]

Adelia Hammond I hope you won’t let that effect you, stay strong happy 😊

[@nicolemarie9875]

Sorry you experienced that . I’m sure you’re a great person :)

[@Caprizonica]

It's stepparents in general. Since man used to spend more time away, children would spend more time with stepmothers but the thing is, a lot of people don't like children, specially if they're not theirs.

[@shadowrmidnight]

Sorry about that How are you holding up?

[@stevematson4808]

Then to hell with him I hope you kicked him in the balls

[@lollipopsland]

I appreciate all the effort you've gone to to make these videos i love them all

[@spielewoelfchen]

"The wind, the wind, the heavenly child" is a direct translation from the German original "Der Wind, der Wind, das himmlische Kind". ...I believe it Was just used because it rhymes.

[@melvinshine9841]

Considering the Hansel and Gretel version most are familiar with involves child abandonment, imprisonment, threats of cannibalism, and burning someone alive in an oven, that Nin and Nel version is tame by comparison. That Little Thumb story is all kinds of fucked up, though. That ogre's wife tried to nice and effectively lost everything.

[@brittanywalker4792]

That's actually a common fairytale trope, where the giant/ogre has a very helpful, kind, and compassionate wife. It may actually stem from the idea that ogres sometimes stole away women to rape them and make them cook and clean.

[@INTRUZIVE]

Who else loves the fact that the stepmother didn’t die immediately but instead died a slow and painful death

[@raven3067]

She deserves it.

[@random...3723]

Not me:(

[@random...3723]

But ehhhh! Death is death....

[@elavke5441]

How do you know that? I only heard she died

[@just-someonek129]

@@elavke5441 the witch and the stepmother are the same person, I believe? so they died the same way.

[@evermore-1574]

I love that A Story Dark and Grimm uses such a niche version of the story, it makes so much more sense *why* the prince and fish lady were included now.

[@carberyroe]

I really love all the videos you have up loaded Jon! Thank you so much for the time, effort and reasurch you have put into each one! They are all wonderful! xx Stay safe and well :o)

[@yourbiologicaldaddy9784]

“Children stories” they Said...

[@sarahglover4241]

"they're innocent" they said

[@FluttercordFOREVER]

“Perfect for before bedtime” they said...

[@dansattah]

If you grow up in Europe, they are not "messed up" but simple moral lessons. 😊

[@necrothescistt8164]

And then Japan comes in with black lagoon and messes them up even more.

[@fatimabangura2583]

"Innocent" they said

[@hannahnoelle7689]

Honestly, I love Jon's explanations the best because of his episodes have a sense of humor.

[@stephanieandstephenvanzant6741]

I love the Origins of stories, music, words, sayings, Nursery Rhymes, ect. Thank you for your vids!

[@diferlee5615]

Finally a youtuber settling and sincer thanks man keep it up

[@moatiny4431]

Yay! I finally know the origins of the story with the character I was named after.............. What were my parents thinking?

[@almasandoval1326]

Army?💜😂

[@jessicaable5095]

Which were u named after?

[@animemv1946]

I’d like to know that too... Wait is it Ella?

[@moatiny4431]

@@jessicaable5095 I was named after Gretel. Ironically, I have a cousin 1 year younger whom they decided to name Hansel.

[@ladynikkie]

@@moatiny4431 you should show your parents this video let's see how they'll react

[@glitteree]

here in germany we pretty much grow up with all the messed up originals by the grimms and even hans christian andersens so its always fascinating to see someone elses point of view to those tales we know so well :) i even live where the grimms were born so all those fairytales were a huuuge part of my childhood. thats why i love your videos, theyre so well researched and super accurate!

[@vannhelsin2434]

All the grimms tales came from Germany and found their way around the world thanxs to germany brothers grimms

[@KaiHung-wv3ul]

I think the Thirty Years War and the other wars in Germany during the 1500s to 1700s really provided ample supplies of tragedy and horror for these storytellers to work with.

[@saracowles-makin396]

Excellent! Way to dive in to a fascinating subject. Great energy! The extra illustrations and information are super interesting. You ought to cite the books/illustrators at the bottom of the pix, maybe?

[@DennisCNolasco]

Super in-depth research on this Jon. I haven't heard of the Italian version before this.

[@BlackKnight413]

My dad told me the actual story when I was 4 Same with the Rapunzel story. You’d think that would scar a kid but i dunno I was chill

[@nachtegaelw5389]

Black Knight 413 with the brambles scratching the prince’s eyes out? Best.

[@lisacox3750]

Not to be mean but being realistic. It really isn’t surprising that at 4 the stories had no affect. It is well-known small children are narcissistic. Small children rarely have the concept of how things affect other people that have nothing to do with them.

[@BlackKnight413]

Lisa Cox ok..?

[@Lycan4]

Even as a kid, I was always interested in the origins of things. If I found out a movie was based off of a book, I found and read the book. If I found out that a book was based off of an earlier version, I looked up the earlier version. Even if the stories were brutal, it didn't matter much to me. I just liked learning about the origin stories, so to speak, of my favorite movies and books.

[@mabelchescas.z8999]

Fairytales were originally intended for everyone, not specifically children.

[@granky_]

I was about to go to sleep but I guess I can watch another video

[@MamaMOB]

It's Jon Solo. You HAVE to watch it!

[@inleviwetrust]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bZephKimfMuNg6c

[@dianavonteichman]

I always tell myself that

[@That80sGuy1972]

I love the Grimm brothers. Thanks for also digging up THEIR sources and contrast that to their work, digging into the foundation (pre-Grimm stories) of what I consider the foundation (Grimm stories) of all the stories that came after them.

[@daliaflanders6598]

I keep asking myself "what were these authors thinking when they wrote these books.....for children"......??? Pretty messed up!! Excellent video!

[@cooperminion825]

I find it interesting how out of all the fairy tales this one has been the least sugar coated

[@stephjovi]

I guess it's hard to do. If you'd sugar coat it there's nothing left. They're abondened by their parents they kill the witch. If you leave that out what's left?

[@justwaiting5744]

"Sugar coated"? Don't tell me that wasn't intentional.

[@jasonhurd4379]

In the opera, the story is softened somewhat. There is no wicked stepmother; the children's mother sends them out to pick strawberries in a fit of anger when they misbehave. Also, the witch isn't, properly speaking, a cannibal: her oven magically turns children into gingerbread, which she eats.

[@kakashikage9483]

Is there a messed up Origins of Jack & Jill? If not, I’m just saying man... im curious!! Lol

[@winddragon4920]

It all began when Adam Sandler was born..

[@SomePerson_Online]

Kashi Kage “Jack and Jill went up the hill and Jill came back with a baby” *CoUgHs*

[@fancydarlin1]

I gotchu! "Jack and Jill went up the hill, each with a buck and a quarter. Jill came down with $2.50! The f*cken ho!" ~By Ford Fairlane

[@markuhler2664]

@@fancydarlin1 Andrew Dice Clay, a classic. "The Little Boy Blew - he needed the money." Wonder which category that falls into on Arne-Thompson Tale Type Index?

[@kakashikage9483]

Laurie Conway Lol, you’re goofy 😂

[@elvazamora79]

I truly enjoyed this video!!

[@cain8088]

I used to love watching this channel couple years ago and I am glad to be back watching this channel.

[@tiyanimakahi]

Could you please do the messed up origins of The Big Bad Wolf? I'm still confused on what the woodsman really did to the wolf and I know the best person who can explain it is you... PRETTY PLEASE!...

[@koreywilliams1755]

That red Riding Hood and he already did it

[@hinatasexyhyuga55]

You want him to do one on the Big bad Wolf alone? He's done Red Riding hood and the Three little pigs already.

[@taureansmithpartee]

@@hinatasexyhyuga55 So true. Love how he told Red Riding Hood. That is my favorite story of all time

[@hinatasexyhyuga55]

@@taureansmithpartee I LOVED THAT ONE TOO. I dont really have a favorite but that one would come close of I did.

[@Frog101_Real]

Yes! Are they all connected or different? If they are the same one, then this man has done many crimes.

[@JackKirbyFan]

I cannot believe how much I enjoyed this. Fascinating history. Thanks

[@oliversherman2414]

I love your channel keep up the great stuff!

[@bonnitaclaus2286]

Wayback in the dark ages, 1960’s when I was in school. One of my classmates brought a book to school. It was large and very very led. What are the teacher was given the book, it was a Translation of the Brothers Grimm fairytales. It was a very very early book and I do not believe it was printed in the US spot in England. (This I do not remember well). Our teacher read a few stories to us, it was a real shock. He also showed the illustrations, also a shock. Nose is cut off, I plucked out my birds, Sharp knives and all kinds of terrifying images. They definitely not nursery stories if you want to keep your sanity and sleep well at night. I remember at the end of the day our teacher read the book up and some paper, and told the young man that he better get it home and back in his fathers collection. Because if he was caught he probably would not be seen at school again.

[@Deborah-hc8nf]

I read those stories, and I didn't lose any sleep at night. I read them when I was maybe... Nine-ish? I'm twelve now, that would be three years ago, which sounds about right to me.

[@omelfisromero8669]

We are free brother, the witch will trouble us no more Who else thought that was funny just me ok 😂

[@nothankyou7209]

I thought it was funny 😁

[@youtubeaccount6625]

Why I don't get it

[@jasonhurd4379]

It's the way he said it, in a stilted, heroic-type voice.

[@terra_the_nightingale135]

youtube account “Thor talking to Loki”

[@rachelmays3768]

Me too

[@Pjazerlazer]

Yo this channel is dope, Subbed

[@shaai4332]

Big fan keep up the good work 😃

[@gisellenicole1018]

Hahaha Kate Gosseling with her frickin “speak to the manager” haircut 😂

[@louise-yo7kz]

The Original K!

[@kristophrobin]

I heard that the premise of the story was grounded in sad and practical reality - during great famines, people did leave their children to die in abandoned areas because they couldn't kill them outright but knew that they basically could birth new children if the famine passed.

[@faithharris6320]

U simmerize story excellent good job!

[@isabelrose616]

His edits/the pics and vids he uses are so funny I’m already a fan😂😂

[@camerrill]

Jon Solo, I love this channel! Please do a video on all the times Disney has killed off the mother. It confuses me so that Walt had an obsession with dividing families, but Disney is still seen as a "family- friendly" Enterprise.

[@bulinandi4414]

True

[@b.f.2461]

Um, it’s an essential part of “kid has wild adventures that no competent parent would allow.”

[@SavageEcaterina]

There is a theory from I believe “The old men” (the animators who worked with walt) that Walt killed the mothers in his stories to reflect how his story telling killed his mother. He bought her a house and she died of carbon monoxide poison. Apparently he was very close with his mom and her death indirect at his hands really broke him.

[@kimwhatmatters4085]

I think they do it as a lazy way to develop the characters and/or make the story make sense

[@kimwhatmatters4085]

I think they do it as a lazy way to develop the characters and/or make the story make sense

[@collegemaster5683]

you forgot about "Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters" that movie was _BADASS_ !

[@moonlightflame7350]

What is that

[@lryuzaki1192]

Lol That movie was so dumb and forgettable...

[@Hope-vj6tr]

Ooo is it on Netflix???

[@ashtonwolf3514]

I loved That Movie

[@keishamurrell3095]

Wow!! I remember that Little Thumb story. 😊 Thanks

[@Angel-xu3ul]

Wish I would’ve found this channel sooner I love this kind of stuff 💕

[@patriciaikeda2608]

OK I am so weirdly addicted to your videos... at 10am.. oh I will check it out 2pm....just one more

[@aliciamata00]

Bruh it said 1 minute and I pushed it so fast I thought I hurt my thumb

[@barneyrubble736]

i just found your channel. awesome job, great research, and great presentation. I'll be catching up on your posts now. :)

[@christineforbesforbes2324]

Great interpretation well done

[@someone9137]

No one: *Me at 2am binge watching this series*

[@drvren030]

hansel and gretel scared the living hell out of me as a child.... 15 years later, and this video does not help

[@glennallen2605]

Hi Jon! 53-y/o guy here. My parents sold their 100-acre farm outside Binghamton, NY, about a year ago & I rescued The Encyclopedia of Knowledge (1898-1913) from the burn barrel, & am still going thru it. From what I remember, the H&G story there was much longer after they escaped the witch, tho I don't remember the details. It involved a prince, & that somehow or other Greta ended up marrying him (& somehow Hansel & a deer helped). If I still have it I'll send it to you, but I'm pretty sure I trashed it as I didn't think I'd ever reference it again, & it was months b4 I found your very excellent channel. Oh well.

[@dpskidd]

Your video actually help me with my school work