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To him you must go, and that right quickly. If he can make a king, he can also make an emperor. Emperor I will be, so quickly go. He had to go, but he was quite frightened. The flounder will make an end of the whole thing. With that he came to the sea, but now he found it quite black, and heaving up from below in great waves.
It tossed to and fro, and a sharp wind blew over it, and the man trembled. So he stood there, and said:. So the man went back, and when he got to the door, he found that the whole palace was made of polished marble, with alabaster figures and golden decorations. Soldiers marched up and down before the doors, blowing their trumpets and beating their drums. Inside the palace, counts, barons, and dukes walked about as attendants, and they opened to him the doors, which were of pure gold.
He went in, and saw his wife sitting on a huge throne made of solid gold. It was at least two miles high. She had on her head a great golden crown, set with diamonds, three yards high.
In one hand she held the scepter, and in the other the ball of empire. On each side of her stood the gentlemen-at-arms in two rows, each one a little smaller than the other, from giants two miles high, down to the tiniest dwarf no bigger than my little finger. She was surrounded by princes and dukes. Now I am emperor, I mean to be pope!
Pope you cannot be. There is only one pope in the world. I must be pope this very day. The flounder cannot make you pope. If he can make an emperor, he can make a pope.
I am emperor, and you are only my husband, and you must obey. So he was frightened, and went; but he was quite dazed.
He shivered and shook, and his knees trembled. A great wind arose over the land, the clouds flew across the sky, and it grew as dark as night; the leaves fell from the trees, and the water foamed and dashed upon the shore. In the distance the ships were being tossed to and fro on the waves, and he heard them firing signals of distress. There was still a little patch of blue in the sky among the dark clouds, but toward the south they were red and heavy, as in a bad storm. In despair, he stood and said;.
So back he went, and he found a great church, surrounded with palaces.
He pressed through the crowd, and inside he found thousands and thousand of lights, and his wife, entirely clad in gold, was sitting on a still higher throne, with three golden crowns upon her head, and she was surrounded with priestly state. On each side of her were two rows of candles, the biggest as thick as a tower, down to the tiniest little taper.
Kings and emperors were on their knees before her, kissing her shoe. Still she was not content, and could not sleep for her inordinate desires. The man slept well and soundly, for he had walked about a great deal in the day; but his wife could think of nothing but what further grandeur she could demand. When the dawn reddened the sky, she raised herself up in bed and looked out of the window, and when she saw the sun rise she said:. I will be lord of the universe.
Her husband, who was still more than half asleep, was so shocked that he fell out of bed. He thought he must have heard wrong. He rubbed his eyes and said:.
Learn more about Amazon Giveaway. Her husband, who was still more than half asleep, was so shocked that he fell out of bed. And before her stood princes, and dukes, and earls: In this version, the fisherman is unable to figure out what his last wish is, and says, "I want only for my wife to be happy". This article needs additional citations for verification.
I shall never have another happy moment. Emperor and pope he can make, but that is indeed beyond him. I pray to you, control yourself and remain pope. Then he pulled on his trousers and tore away like a madman. Such a storm was raging that he could hardly keep his feet; houses and trees quivered and swayed, mountains trembled, and the rocks rolled into the sea. The sky was pitchy black; it thundered and lightened, and the sea ran in black waves, mountains high, crested with white foam. He shrieked out, but could hardly make himself heard:. We thank you for your support.
Your email address will not be published. My wife, Ilsebil, will have her own way Whatever I wish, whatever I say. My wife, Ilsebil, will have her own wayWhatever I wish, whatever I say. We would love your thoughts on this story in the comments section below. It may be classified as an anti-fairy tale. There is a poor fisherman who lives with his wife in a hovel by the sea. One day the fisherman catches a fish, which claims to be an enchanted prince, and begs to be set free.
The fisherman kindly releases it. When his wife hears the story, she says he ought to have had the fish grant him a wish, and insists that he go back and ask the flounder to grant her wish for a nice house.
The fisherman returns to the shore but is uneasy when he finds that the sea seems to becoming turbid, as it was so clear before. He makes up a rhyme to summon the flounder, and it grants the wife's wish. The fisherman is pleased with his new wealth, but the wife is not and demands more, and demands that her husband go back and wish that he be made a king.
Reluctantly, he does, and gets his wish. But again and again, his wife sends him back to ask for more and more. The fisherman knows this is wrong but there is no reasoning with his wife. He says they should not annoy the flounder, and be content with what they have been given, but his wife is not content. Each time, the flounder grants the wishes with the words: Eventually, the wife wishes to command the sun, moon and heavens, and she sends her husband to the flounder with the wish "I want to become equal to God". When that final wish is made, the flounder says: And with that, the sea becomes calm once more.
That same year, an animated adaptation with Hans Conreid and June Foray was released for Oscar consideration. A short cartoon based on this story was part of the United States animated television series, Rocky and Bullwinkle Show. The Flounder was replaced by a beautiful mermaid who grants the wishes in exchange for her freedom. Additionally, the wife goes directly from queen to wishing to be a 'goddess'. The mermaid points out to the fisherman that all his wishes have been for his wife, and asks him what he desires.
The fisherman replies that he just wants his wife to be happy, and the mermaid replies, "Go; she is happy. In , the story was given a Spanish-flavored adaptation on the animated cable series, Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child. Edward James Olmos and Julia Migenes provided the voices of the fisherman and his wife.