Frightened Mouse

My telling of an Indian folk tale

 

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I heard this tale many years ago from an Indian teller. I regret that I no longer recall his name, nor the way he told the story. My version has simply evolved. After publishing this recording, a Storytell friend tells me the story is known as “The Hermit and the Mouse”, found in the Hitopadesha, a 12th century Sanskrit collection of fables and tales. (Many thanks, Sowmya.)

As a type, it is a chain story, common in many different cultures. The Grimms’ “Von dem Fischer un syner Fru” (“The Old Woman who lived in a Vinegar Bottle”) or the title story I tell on the teaching video The Strongest of Them All are other examples.

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For those who are teachers: Telling stories in the classroom: basing language teaching on storytelling