--- title: "The White Duck" story_id: "fedadaa2-7225-440c-9ac9-4b594c33d554" text_id: "9739ef02-e3ca-4773-ad7d-d78f0f1b03b2" language: "en" version: "modern" part: 1 part_count: 1 url: "https://www.openclassics.org/stories/the-white-duck" recommended_version: "modern" recommended_web_url: "https://www.openclassics.org/stories/the-white-duck" web_invitation: "Read this illustrated story on OpenClassics" --- # The White Duck > 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-white-duck) Version: Modernized A prince goes on a long journey. His young wife stays at home until a woman invites her into the garden. The woman is a witch: she turns the princess into a white duck and takes her place. The princess raises three little ones by the stream, but the witch is still nearby. This Russian tale tells how a mother tries to protect her children. **Content warning:** This tale contains a stillborn child, the murder of children and a violent execution. ![Illustration](https://www.openclassics.org/api/illustrations/2dbc595b-8cea-47ff-9b9e-2a3e7c05aa32) A powerful, mighty Prince married a thrice-lovely Princess. He had not yet had time to gaze at her, not yet had time to speak to her, not yet had time to listen to her, when he had to leave on a long journey. He left his young wife in the hands of strangers. The Princess wept many tears, and the Prince offered many comforting words. He advised her not to leave her lofty terem, her private rooms, not to have anything to do with bad people, not to listen to evil tongues, and not to keep company with unfamiliar women. All this the Princess promised to do. The Prince departed, and she shut herself up in her own room. ![Illustration](https://www.openclassics.org/api/illustrations/fc8d47d5-4b15-4cfa-893e-2dbe03fc8b6f) There she sat, and never went out. Whether a long time or a short time had passed does not matter, but one day she was sitting by her little window, bathed in tears, when a woman passed by the window. She seemed simple and kindly. She leaned her elbows on her crutch, rested her chin on her hands and spoke to the Princess in a coaxing, caressing voice: “Darling little Princess, why are you always fretting? Please come out of your terem and take a look at God’s beautiful world. Or come down into your little garden among the sweet green plants and chase away your sorrow!” For a long time the Princess refused. She did not even want to listen to the woman’s words. But at last she thought, “There can be no harm in going into the garden. Crossing the brook is another matter.” But she did not know that this woman was a witch, and had come to ruin her because she envied the Princess’s happiness. So the Princess went with her into the garden, and listened to her cunning, coaxing words. And in the garden, from beneath the mountain, trickled a stream of crystal-clear water. “What do you say now,” said the woman, “the day is very hot and the sun is burning with all its might. But this darling little stream is so cold, so refreshing. Listen to it babble! Why shouldn’t we bathe here?” “Ah, no, no! I won’t,” said the Princess; but she thought to herself, “But why not? There can be no harm in having a bath!” So she slipped off her little sleeveless dress, and bounded into the water. As soon as she had bathed, the witch struck her on the shoulder and said, “Swim about now as a white duck!” But the witch immediately dressed herself in the Princess’s robes, adorned herself and put on makeup, and sat in place of the Princess in the terem to await the Prince. And as soon as the little dog began to bark and the little bell began to tinkle, she rushed out to meet him. She threw her arms around his neck, kissed him and caressed him. The Prince was so overjoyed that he was the first to stretch out his arms towards her. He never noticed that it was not his wife, but an evil witch who stood before him. Meanwhile the poor duck, dwelling in the bright stream, laid eggs and hatched her young. Two were lovely, but the third was stillborn. Her babies grew up into little children. ![Illustration](https://www.openclassics.org/api/illustrations/9c93cf66-18b6-4275-9962-deb3b358b40f) She brought them up. They began to walk along the stream, catch goldfish, collect bits of rags, sew themselves coats, run up the banks and look at the meadows. But the mother said: “Oh! don’t go there, my children. The evil witch lives there. She ruined me, and she will ruin you!” But the children didn’t listen to their mother. One day they played in the grass, and the next day they ran after ants. They went further and further, and so got into the Prince’s courtyard. The witch recognized them by instinct, and ground her teeth with rage. But she acted kindly, called the children into the outbuilding, fed them well, gave them a drink and put them to bed. She ordered her people to light a fire in the courtyard, put a kettle on it and sharpen their knives. The two brothers went to sleep. But the stillborn one did not sleep at all: he listened and saw everything. Their mother had told his brothers to carry him against their chests to keep him warm. In the night the witch came to their door and said: “Are you asleep, little children, or not?” Then the stillborn one answered for his brothers: “We do not dream in dreams, but think in our thoughts that you want to kill us all! The fires of maple branches are blazing, the kettles are boiling, and the steel knives are being sharpened.”—“They are not asleep,” said the witch. She went away from the door, walked about and walked about, then went to the door again: “Are you asleep, children, or are you not?” And the stillborn one again screeched from beneath the pillow in place of his brothers: “We do not dream in dreams, but think in our thoughts that you want to kill us all; the fires of maple branches are blazing, the kettles are boiling, and the steel knives are being sharpened.” “How is it that it is always one and the same voice?” thought the witch; “I’ll just have a peep.” She opened the door very, very softly, looked in, and saw both the brothers sleeping soundly. Then she killed the pair of them. In the morning the white duck began seeking and calling her children, but her darling children did not come to her calling. Her heart sensed that something was terribly wrong. She shuddered and flew off to the Prince’s courtyard. In the Prince’s courtyard, as white as little white kerchiefs, as cold as little cold split fish, the brothers lay all in a row. She flew down, threw herself upon them, fluttered her little wings, flew round and round her little ones, and cried with a mother’s voice: “Kra, kra, my darling loveys! Kra, kra, my little doveys! I brought you up in woe and fears, I nourished you with grief and tears, I had no sleep the dark night through, No food was sweet because of you.” And the Prince heard the lament, called the witch to him, and said: “Wife, have you heard this thing, this unheard-of thing?”—“You are only imagining it! Hi! my serving-men, drive this duck out of the courtyard for me!” They began driving her out, but she flew round and round, and again said to her children: “Kra, kra, my darling loveys! Kra, kra, my little doveys! The old, old witch your ruin has been, The old, old witch, that cruel snake, That cruel snake that lurks unseen; Your father from you she did take, Your father dear, my husband true; Us in the running stream she threw. She changed us into ducks so white, And prospers as if wrong were right!” The Prince felt that there was something wrong here, and he cried: “Bring that white duck here to me!” They all hurried to carry out his command, but the white duck flew round in a circle, and none could catch her. At last the Prince himself went out onto the balcony. She flew onto his hands and fell at his feet. The Prince took her carefully by her little wing, and said: “White birch-tree stand behind me, and beautiful young woman stand before me!” Then the white duck returned to her former shape, the thrice-lovely Princess. She taught them how to find a little bladder used as a pouch, holding water of life and water of speech in a magpie’s nest. She sprinkled her children with the water of life, and they shuddered. Then she sprinkled them with the water of speech, and they began to speak. And the Prince suddenly found himself surrounded by his family, all alive and well. They all lived together and lived happily, choosing good and avoiding evil. But the witch, by the Prince’s command, was tied to the tail of a horse and dragged across the open steppe. Not a trace or a memory of her remained. ![Illustration](https://www.openclassics.org/api/illustrations/9a972f90-e0ff-483d-91e9-91c8697f5d2c) ## Modernization notes - cut up the whole lot of us!—the → kill us all! The: Exceptional softening for children: the threat to kill all the children remains, but the graphic detail of cutting up their bodies is omitted. The historical wording is preserved in the original. - cut up the whole lot of us; → kill us all;: Exceptional softening for children: the threat to kill all the children remains, but the graphic detail of cutting up their bodies is omitted. The historical wording is preserved in the original. - fastened to the tail of a horse and dragged away over the open steppe. The fowls of the air picked her flesh, and the wild winds of heaven scattered her bones, and there remained not a trace or a memorial of her behind. → tied to the tail of a horse and dragged across the open steppe. Not a trace or a memory of her remained.: The horse, the dragging and the punishment remain, so the ending retains its course. The birds eating her flesh and the scattering of her bones are omitted in the modern version for children. - its young; two were fair, but the third was still-born, and her → her young. Two were lovely, but the third was stillborn. Her: Stillborn means born dead. Bain describes this child that way, although he later listens and speaks. This unexplained contradiction in the retained edition is preserved; the story does not describe him being brought back to life at this point. ## Presented text (with modernization) © OpenClassics.org — All rights reserved. ## Original text Russian Fairy Tales from the Skazki of Polevoi, 1901, A. H. Bullen, London - collector: P. Polevoi - translator: R. Nisbet Bain ## Illustration [Ivan Bilibin](https://www.openclassics.org/api/illustrations/2dbc595b-8cea-47ff-9b9e-2a3e7c05aa32) — Сестрица Аленушка и братец Иванушка. Белая уточка, 1903, Expedition for the Preparation of State Papers, Saint Petersburg [Ivan Bilibin](https://www.openclassics.org/api/illustrations/fc8d47d5-4b15-4cfa-893e-2dbe03fc8b6f) — Сестрица Аленушка и братец Иванушка. Белая уточка, 1903, Expedition for the Preparation of State Papers, Saint Petersburg [Ivan Bilibin](https://www.openclassics.org/api/illustrations/9c93cf66-18b6-4275-9962-deb3b358b40f) — Сестрица Аленушка и братец Иванушка. Белая уточка, 1903, Expedition for the Preparation of State Papers, Saint Petersburg [Ivan Bilibin](https://www.openclassics.org/api/illustrations/9a972f90-e0ff-483d-91e9-91c8697f5d2c) — Сестрица Аленушка и братец Иванушка. Белая уточка, 1903, Expedition for the Preparation of State Papers, Saint Petersburg ## Reading music The Seasons, Op. 37a — June: Barcarolle Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Peter Bradley-Fulgoni (piano) [CC BY-NC-ND 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) ## Quiz ### In the old Russian house described by Bain, what was a terem? - The women’s apartments (Correct answer) - A stable for horses - An underground pantry Bain explains this Russian word in a note to his translation: a terem meant the apartments occupied by women. It is a real historical term, even though the spell that traps the princess belongs to the fairy tale. [Project Gutenberg — Russian Fairy Tales, The White Duck, note 1](https://www.gutenberg.org/files/34705/34705-h/34705-h.htm#xd20e1152) ### How soon can newly hatched mallard ducklings be ready to leave their nest? - After a whole year - Within their first day (Correct answer) - Only after their first month Mallard ducklings hatch covered in down and can be ready to leave the nest within about 13–16 hours. Unlike the magical children in the story, real ducklings remain ducklings as they grow. [Cornell Lab of Ornithology — Mallard identification](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Mallard/id) ### Which bird family includes magpies? - The duck family - The owl family - The crow family (Correct answer) Magpies belong to the crow family, also called corvids. Crows, rooks and jackdaws are among their relatives. The story gives a magpie’s nest a magical role, but the bird itself is very real. [RSPB — Magpie](https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/magpie) ### Why do birds regularly tidy their feathers with their beaks? - To keep their feathers in good condition (Correct answer) - To turn feathers into scales - To stop their wings from growing This grooming is called preening. It helps keep feathers properly arranged and in good condition. The structure and care of feathers help birds stay warm and keep water out. [Cornell Lab of Ornithology — Everything You Need To Know About Feathers](https://academy.allaboutbirds.org/feathers-article/) ### Which real tree is known for its silvery-white, papery bark? - The olive tree - The silver birch (Correct answer) - The palm tree The silver birch has pale, papery bark, though older bark can become dark and cracked. The white birch named in the spell has a real-world counterpart; turning a duck into a princess is the magical part. [Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew — Silver birch](https://www.kew.org/plants/silver-birch) ## Other languages - [Français](https://www.openclassics.org/fr/stories/the-white-duck?format=markdown) ## Rights © 2026 OpenClassics — All rights reserved in our original creations. [Rights](https://www.openclassics.org/information/terms)