The Sleeping Beauty
Once upon a time there was a Queen who had a beautiful baby daughter. She invited all the fairies in the kingdom to the christening, but unfortunately forgot to invite one of them, who was a bit of a witch as well. She came anyway, but as she passed the baby’s cradle, she said:
“When you are sixteen, you will injure yourself with a spindle and die!”
“Oh, no!” screamed the Queen in horror. A good fairy quickly chanted a magic spell to change the curse. When she hurt herself, the girl would fall into a very deep sleep instead of dying.
The years went by, the little Princess grew and became the most beautiful girl in the whole kingdom. Her mother was always very careful to keep her away from spindles, but the Princess, on her sixteenth birthday, as she wandered through the castle, came into a room where an old servant was spinning.
“What are you doing?” she asked the servant.
“I’m spinning. Haven’t you seen a spindle before?”
“No. Let me see it!” The servant handed the girl the spindle… and she pricked herself with it and, with a sigh, dropped to the floor.
The terrified old woman hurried to tell the Queen. Beside herself with anguish, the Queen did her best to awaken her daughter but in vain. The court doctors and wizards were called, but there was nothing they could do. The girl could not be wakened from her deep sleep. The good fairy who managed to avoid the worst of the curse came too, and the Queen said to her,
“When will my daughter waken?”
“I don’t know,” the fairy admitted sad ly.
“In a year’s time, ten years or twenty?” the Queen went on.
“Maybe in a hundred years’ time. Who knows?” said the fairy.
“Oh! What would make her waken?“ asked the Queen weeping.
“Love,” replied the fairy. “If a man of pure heart were to fall in love with her, that would bring her back to life!”
“How can a man fall in love with a sleeping girl?” sobbed the Queen, and so heart-broken was she that, a few days later, she died. The sleeping Princess was taken to her room and laid on the bed surrounded by garlands of flowers. She looked very beautiful with her sweet face.
The good fairy said to herself,
“When she wakens, who is she going to see around her? Strange faces and people she doesn’t know? I can never let that happen. It would be too painful for this unfortunate girl.”
So the fairy cast a spell; and everyone that lived in the castle – soldiers, ministers, guards, servants, ladies, pages, cooks, maids and knights – all fell into a deep sleep.
“Now,” thought the fairy, “when the Princess wakes up, they too will awaken, and life will go on from there.” And she left the castle. Not a sound was heard in the castle, nothing moved except for the clocks, but when they too ran down, they stopped, and time stopped with them. Not even the faintest rustle was to be heard, only the wind whistling around, not a single voice, only the cry of birds.
The years sped past. The trees around the castle grew tall. The bushes became thick, the grass invaded the courtyards and the creepers spread up the walls. In a hundred years, a dense forest grew up.
Now, it so happened that a Prince arrived in these parts. He was the son of a king in a country close by. Young, handsome and melancholy, he sought in solitude everything he could not find in the company of other men: serenity, sincerity and purity. Wandering on his trusty horse he arrived, one day, at the dark forest. He was adventurous, so he decided to explore it. It was difficult to get through, for the trees and bushes grew in a thick tangle. A few hours later, he was about to turn his horse and go back when he thought he could see something through the trees… He pushed back the branches… Wonder of wonders! There in front of him stood a castle with high towers. The young man stood in amazement,
“I wonder who this castle belongs to?” he thought.
The young Prince rode on towards the castle. The drawbridge was down and, holding his horse by the reins, he crossed over it. Immediately he saw the inhabitants draped all over the steps, the halls and courtyards, and said to himself,
“Good heavens! They’re dead!” But in a moment, he realised that they were sound asleep. “Wake up! Wake up!” he shouted, but nobody moved. Still thoroughly astonished, he went into the castle and again discovered more people, lying asleep on the floor. A little later the Prince reached the room where the beautiful Princess lay fast asleep. For a long time he stood gazing at her face, so full of serenity, so peaceful, lovely and pure, and he felt spring to his heart that love he had always been searching for and never found. Overcome by emotion, he went close, lifted the girl’s little white hand and gently kissed it…
At that kiss, the princess quickly opened her eyes, and wakening from her long long sleep, seeing the Prince beside her, murmured:
“Oh, you have come at last! I was waiting for you in my dream. I’ve waited so long!”
At that moment the spell was broken. The Princess rose to her feet and the whole castle woke up too. Everybody rose to their feet and they all stared round in amazement, wondering what had happened. When they finally realised, they rushed to the Princess, more beautiful and happier than ever.
A few days later the Prince and Princess got married. They lived happily ever after, as they always do in fairy tales, not quite so often, however, in real life.
Exercises
1. Answer the questions.
1. Whom did the Queen invite to the christening?
2. What did the fairy who was a bit of a witch as well say passing the baby’s cradle?
3. What happened on the Princess’s sixteenth birthday?
4. Was it possible to waken the Princess?
5. Why did the Queen die?
6. What happened when the good fairy cast a spell?
7. What did the Prince look like?
8. Why did the Prince decide to explore the forest?
9. What happened when the Prince kissed the princess?
10. Did the whole castle wake up too?
2. True or False?
1. The queen invited all the wizards in the kingdom to the christening.
2. A good fairy quickly chanted a magic spell to change the curse.
3. On her sixteenth birthday the Princess pricked herself with the spindle.
4. The sleeping Princess was taken to the highest tower in the castle and laid on the bed.
5. After the sleeping Princess was taken to her room everybody left the castle.
6. The Prince was young, handsome and melancholy.
7. The Prince wasn’t very much surprised when he saw the castle.
8. The Prince at first thought that the inhabitants of the castle were dead.
9. After the Prince kissed the Princess she opened her eyes.
10. One year later the Prince and Princess got married.
3. Translate into English:
пригласила на крестины, уколоться веретеном, прошли годы, бродить по замку, чистое сердце, влюбиться, с разбитым сердцем, незнакомые лица, верный конь, чудо из чудес, в изумлении.
4. Put these sentences in the right order.
1. The sleeping Princess was taken to her room and laid on the bed surrounded by garlands of flowers.
2. The fairy cast a spell; and everyone that lived in the castle – soldiers, ministers, guards, servants, ladies, pages, cooks, maids and knights – all fell into a deep sleep.
3. The queen invited all the fairies in the kingdom to the christening, but unfortunately forgot to invite one of them, who was a bit of a witch as well.
4. One day it happened that a Prince arrived in these parts.
5. The years went by, the little Princess grew and became the most beautiful girl in the whole kingdom.
6. The Prince and Princess got married and they lived happily ever after.
7. Once upon a time there was a Queen who had a beautiful baby daughter.
8. The princess pricked herself with the spindle and, with a sigh, dropped to the floor.
9. The good fairy said that only love of a man with pure heart could bring the Princess back to life.
10. When the prince kissed the sleeping princess she quickly opened her eyes.
5. Complete the table with the past forms of the verbs from the text.
be (быть) ____________
have (иметь) ____________
forget (забывать) ____________
come (приходить) ____________
say (сказать) ____________
hurt (повредить) ____________
grow (расти) ____________
become (становиться) ____________
see (видеть) ____________
take (брать) ____________
lay (лежать, положить) ____________
fall (падать) ____________
leave (покидать, оставлять) ____________
spread (распространять(ся)) ____________
hear (слышать) ____________
think (думать) ____________
stand (стоять) ____________
ride (ехать верхом) ____________
rise (поднимать(ся)) ____________
