Household Tales · Chapter
The Drummer explained
A drummer, having rescued a king's daughter from a witch on a glass-mountain, forgets her after kissing his parents on the right cheek.
What happens
A drummer, having rescued a king's daughter from a witch on a glass-mountain, forgets her after kissing his parents on the right cheek. He prepares to marry another maiden chosen by his parents, while the true bride uses a wishing-ring to create three magnificent dresses (sun, moon, stars) and trades each for a night outside his door. On the first two nights, a sleeping draught prevents him from hearing her pleas, but on the third night he pours out the wine, hears her call, and remembers his vow. He then acknowledges her as his true bride, and the real wedding is celebrated.
Themes in this chapter
Promises and Their Consequences
The drummer's forgotten promise to the king's daughter leads to a crisis of fidelity, resolved only when he remembers his vow.
Magic and the Supernatural
The wishing-ring enables the princess to create dresses and the maiden to complete impossible tasks, driving the plot.
Virtue Rewarded and Vice Punished
The faithful princess is rewarded with marriage, while the witch is defeated and the false bride is compensated but loses the groom.
Characters to notice
- the drummer
The protagonist who forgets his true bride after kissing his parents on the right cheek, but ultimately remembers her and marries her.
- the princess
The king's daughter rescued from the witch; she uses a wishing-ring to create dresses and reclaims her betrothed.
- the maiden
The beautiful maiden who helps the drummer complete impossible tasks by using her wishing-ring.
- Unknown
The witch who sets the drummer three impossible tasks; she is thwarted by the maiden's magic.
Key passages
“Drummer, drummer, I pray thee hear! Hast thou forgotten thou held me dear? That on the glass-mountain we sat hour by hour? That I rescued thy life from the witch's power? Didst thou not plight thy troth to me? Drummer, drummer, hearken to me!”
The princess calls out to the drummer, reminding him of their time together on the glass-mountain and his promise to marry her.
This repeated plea is the key moment that eventually restores the drummer's memory.
“He sprang up, took the King's daughter by the hand, and led her to his parents' bed. 'This is my true bride,' said he; 'if I marry the other, I shall do a great wrong.'”
The drummer, now remembering, declares the princess as his rightful bride and rejects the arranged marriage.
This resolution affirms the theme of promises and their consequences.