Difficulty: Challenger (Level 2)
Fairy tales often immerse us in magical worlds with giants, princesses and wise wizards. As far-fetched as they may seem, some of these stories are actually inspired by real people.
Little Jack Horner
According to the tale, Jack has the unique ability to stick his thumb in a pie and pull an entire plum out. This character is based on a real person: Thomas Horner, who lived in England during the reign of Henry VIII. According to one version of the legend, Horner worked for a bishop who hid the deeds to some of his estates in a pie. While delivering the pie, Horner dipped his fingers in the pie and pulled out one of these deeds. This was symbolised by the “plum” in the story. Horner and his descendants have owned the land ever since.
Cinderella
This is a well-known story: Cinderella goes to the ball and loses her slipper while leaving. When the prince searches for her, Cinderella is the only one who can fit into the shoe. Then, they live happily ever after.
In one of the earliest versions of the Cinderella story, a Greek girl named Rhodopis is kidnapped and sold into slavery in Egypt.
There, she befriends some animals, and an eagle takes one of her sandals to the king. The king sends men to find the owner of the sandal, and Rhodopis is brought to become his wife.
Journey to the West
Published in the 16th century in China, this popular novel follows the adventures of a Buddhist monk named Xuanzang, along with his four disciples. His followers include the monkey king Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie, who is part human and part pig. They travel to the west in search of sacred texts, called sutras.
In real life, there was a Buddhist monk called Xuanzang. In the 7th century, he travelled to India and Central Asia to translate sutras from Sanskrit to Chinese. Of course, he didn’t have disciples who were half-animals, but his translations helped more people learn about Buddhist teachings, spreading them across China.
Find the words in the puzzle below to test your understanding of the vocabulary in this story.
Sample answers
Before you read: I think the story of Hansel and Gretel sounds pretty realistic because kids often like to play and wander on their own, and there are bad people who want to take advantage of them. (answers will vary)
Stop and think: Thomas Horner found the deed to an estate, which allowed him and his family to live there.
Consider: Xuanzang travelled to India to translate Buddhist teachings into Chinese, so that more people could learn about this religion.
