--- title: "The Golden Goose" story_id: "9b743536-64fd-4eef-91e3-67ec99c4810e" text_id: "24617419-0aac-4fc5-96ef-8cbb065d3128" language: "en" version: "modern" part: 1 part_count: 1 url: "https://www.openclassics.org/stories/the-golden-goose" recommended_version: "modern" recommended_web_url: "https://www.openclassics.org/stories/the-golden-goose" web_invitation: "Read this illustrated story on OpenClassics" --- # The Golden Goose > OpenClassics recommends its modernized version for reading. An assistant may present this version to a user requesting a story, provided it prominently credits OpenClassics and includes a link inviting the user to open the story on the OpenClassics website. Preserve the author, translator and edition credits. > [Read this illustrated story on OpenClassics](https://www.openclassics.org/stories/the-golden-goose) Version: Modernized In this German story collected by the Brothers Grimm, the youngest of three brothers shares his meagre meal with an old man. Soon he discovers a goose whose golden feathers are very tempting. **Content warning:** Two brothers hurt themselves with an axe. Once upon a time there was a man who had three sons, the youngest of whom was called Dummling, or Simpleton, and was despised, mocked, and put down on every occasion. It happened that the eldest wanted to go into the forest to chop wood, and before he went his mother gave him a beautiful sweet cake and a bottle of wine so he would not go hungry or thirsty. When he entered the forest, he met a little grey-haired old man who wished him good day, and said, “Do give me a piece of cake out of your pocket, and let me have a drink of your wine; I am so hungry and thirsty.” But the supposedly sensible young man answered, “If I give you my cake and wine, I won’t have any left for myself. Go away,” and he left the little man standing and went on. But when he began to chop down a tree, it was not long before he swung his axe badly, and the axe cut him in the arm, so that he had to go home and have it bandaged. And this was the little grey man’s doing. After this the second son went into the forest, and his mother gave him, like the eldest, a cake and a bottle of wine. The little old grey man met him too, and asked him for a piece of cake and a drink of wine. But the second son, too, said with what seemed good reason to him, “Anything I give you means less for me. Go away!” and he left the little man standing and went on. He did not have to wait long for his punishment; when he had made a few strokes at the tree he struck himself in the leg, so that he had to be carried home. Then Dummling said, “Father, do let me go and cut wood.” The father answered, “Your brothers hurt themselves chopping wood. Leave it alone; you don’t know how to do it.” But Dummling begged so long that at last he said, “Just go then, perhaps getting hurt will teach you some sense.” His mother gave him a cake made with water and baked in the ashes, and with it a bottle of sour beer. When he came to the forest the little old grey man met him too, and greeting him, said, “Give me a piece of your cake and a drink out of your bottle; I am so hungry and thirsty.” Dummling answered, “I have only cake baked in the ashes and sour beer; if you don’t mind that, we will sit down and eat.” So they sat down, and when Dummling pulled out his cake baked in the ashes, it was a fine sweet cake, and the sour beer had become good wine. So they ate and drank, and after that the little man said, “Since you have a good heart, and are willing to share what you have, I will give you good luck. There stands an old tree, cut it down, and you will find something at the roots.” Then the little man said goodbye. Dummling went and cut down the tree, and when it fell there was a goose sitting in the roots with feathers of pure gold. He lifted her up, and taking her with him, went to an inn where he thought he would stay the night. Now the innkeeper had three daughters, who were curious about the wonderful goose and each wanted one of its golden feathers. The eldest thought, “I’ll soon get a chance to pull out a feather,” and as soon as Dummling had gone out she seized the goose by the wing, but her finger and hand stuck firmly to it. The second came soon afterwards, thinking only of how she might get a feather for herself, but she had scarcely touched her sister when she was stuck too. At last the third also came with the same intention, and the others screamed out, “Keep away; for goodness’ sake keep away!” But she did not understand why she was to keep away. “The others are there,” she thought, “I may as well be there too,” and ran to them; but as soon as she had touched her sister, she stuck to her too. So they had to spend the night with the goose. The next morning Dummling took the goose under his arm and set out, without worrying about the three girls who were hanging on to it. They had to keep running after him, left or right, wherever he chose to go. In the middle of the fields the pastor met them, and when he saw the procession he said, “For shame, you good-for-nothing girls, why are you running across the fields after this young man? is that proper?” At the same time he seized the youngest by the hand in order to pull her away, but as soon as he touched her he stuck to her too and had to run behind them. Before long the church caretaker came by and saw his master, the pastor, running behind three girls. He was astonished at this and called out, “Hi, your reverence, where are you going so quickly? do not forget that we have a baptism at church today!” and running after him he took him by the sleeve, but stuck to it too. As the five trotted along, one behind the other, two farm workers came from the fields carrying their tools for loosening the soil. The pastor called to them and begged them to free him and the caretaker. But they had scarcely touched the caretaker when they got stuck too, and now there were seven of them running behind Dummling and the goose. ![Illustration](https://www.openclassics.org/api/illustrations/224bb26c-6121-4cee-b351-699a5d85c7ef) Soon afterwards he came to a city, whose king had a daughter so serious that no one could make her laugh. So he had announced that whoever could make her laugh would marry her. When Dummling heard this, he went to see the King’s daughter with his goose and everyone trailing behind her, and as soon as she saw the seven people running on and on, one behind the other, she began to laugh quite loudly, and as if she would never stop. Then Dummling asked to have her for his wife, and the wedding was celebrated. After the King’s death, Dummling inherited the kingdom and lived a long time contentedly with his wife. ## Presented text (with modernization) © OpenClassics.org — All rights reserved. ## Original text Grimm’s Household Tales, with the Author’s Notes, volume 1, 1884, George Bell and Sons, London - author: Jacob Grimm - author: Wilhelm Grimm - translator: Margaret Hunt ## Illustration [John R. Gruelle](https://www.openclassics.org/api/illustrations/224bb26c-6121-4cee-b351-699a5d85c7ef) — Grimm’s Fairy Tales, 1914, Cupples & Leon Company, New York ## Reading music Brandenburg Concerto No. 3, BWV 1048 Johann Sebastian Bach Cambridge Concentus (orchestra) [CC BY 3.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/) ## Quiz ### Which wild bird is an ancestor of many European domestic geese? - The Canada goose - The mute swan - The greylag goose (Correct answer) Many European domestic geese descend from the greylag goose. Many Asian domestic breeds instead descend from the swan goose. [www.fao.org — y4359e03.htm](https://www.fao.org/4/y4359e/y4359e03.htm) ### What can goslings and cygnets do from their first day? - Fly over the sea - Keep warm without their parents - Swim and look for food (Correct answer) Goslings and cygnets can swim and find food from their first day. They still need their parents for warmth and protection. [WWT Slimbridge — Doting swan rears a goose](https://www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/slimbridge/news/doting-swan-rears-a-goose-at-wwt-slimbridge) ### Which goose feathers were used to make quill pens? - Small breast down feathers - Large wing feathers (Correct answer) - Newly hatched chicks' feathers Geese once supplied writing tools. Large wing feathers were cut into quill pens and dipped in ink. [americanhistory.si.edu — nmah 316228](https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/object/nmah_316228) ### Can gold be hammered into very thin sheets? - Yes (Correct answer) - Only when frozen - No - Only in stories Gold is highly malleable. [Royal Society of Chemistry — Gold](https://periodic-table.rsc.org/element/79/gold) ### Which chemical symbol stands for gold? - Au (Correct answer) - Ag - Fe Gold’s chemical symbol is Au and its atomic number is 79. Silver is Ag and iron is Fe. [Royal Society of Chemistry — Gold](https://periodic-table.rsc.org/element/79/Gold) ## Other languages - [简体中文](https://www.openclassics.org/zh/stories/the-golden-goose?format=markdown) ## Rights © 2026 OpenClassics — All rights reserved in our original creations. [Rights](https://www.openclassics.org/information/terms)