The louse and the flea
by Brothers Grimm
The Bug and the Flea
Bug and Flea are best friends. They live in a tiny house. Today they make soup!
But oh no! Bug slips. She falls in the soup. She bumps her leg. "Ow!" Bug cries. "Ow, ow, ow!"
Flea is so sad. She cries and cries. Big tears fall down.
Door sees Flea cry. "Why do you cry, Flea?" "Bug fell in the soup!" "She bumped her leg!"
"Oh no!" says Door. Door swings back and forth. Creak, creak, creak.
Broom sees Door swing. "Why do you swing, Door?" "Bug fell in the soup." "Flea cries. So I swing."
"Oh no!" says Broom. Broom sweeps very fast. Sweep, sweep, sweep.
Cart sees Broom sweep. "Why do you sweep, Broom?" "Bug fell in the soup." "Flea cries. Door swings." "So I sweep."
"Oh no!" says Cart. Cart rolls very fast. Roll, roll, roll.
Tree sees Cart roll. "Why do you roll, Cart?" "Bug fell in the soup." "Flea cries. Door swings." "Broom sweeps. So I roll."
"Oh no!" says Tree. Tree starts to shake. Her leaves fall down. They fall like rain. Shake, shake, shake.
Girl sees Tree shake. "Why do you shake, Tree?" "Bug fell in the soup." "Flea cries. Door swings." "Broom sweeps. Cart rolls." "So I shake."
"Oh no!" says Girl. She drops her water jug. Splash! Water goes all over.
Pond sees the big splash. "Why drop your jug, Girl?" "Bug fell in the soup." "Flea cries. Door swings." "Broom sweeps. Cart rolls." "Tree shakes. So I drop it."
"Oh no!" says Pond. Pond makes a big SPLASH! Water flies up high. They all get very wet. They look at each other. Then Bug starts to laugh. Ha, ha, ha! Flea laughs too. Door and Broom laugh. Cart and Tree laugh. Girl laughs too. They sit in the warm sun. They dry off side by side. Bug's leg feels better now. She hugs Flea tight.
And the next day, they made soup again.
Original Story
The louse and the flea A fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm A louse and a flea kept house together and were brewing beer in an egg-shell. Then the little louse fell in and burnt herself. On this the little flea began to scream loudly. Then said the little room-door: "Little flea, why art thou screaming?" – "Because the louse has burnt herself." Then the little door began to creak. On this a little broom in the corner said: "Why art thou creaking, little door?" – "Have I not reason to creak? The little louse has burnt herself, The little flea is weeping." So the little broom began to sweep frantically. Then a little cart passed by and said: "Why art thou sweeping, little broom?" – "Have I not reason to sweep? The little louse has burnt herself, The little flea is weeping, The little door is creaking." So the little cart said: "Then I will run," and began to run wildly. Then said the ash-heap by which it ran: "Why art thou running so, little cart?" – "Have I not reason to run? The little louse has burnt herself, The little flea is weeping, The little door is creaking, The little broom is sweeping." The ash-heap said: "Then I will burn furiously," and began to burn in clear flames. A little tree stood near the ash-heap and said: "Ash-heap, why art thou burning?" – "Have I not reason to burn? The little louse has burnt herself, The little flea is weeping, The little door is creaking, The little broom is sweeping, The little cart is running." The little tree said: "Then I will shake myself," and began to shake herself so that all her leaves fell off; a girl who came up with her water-pitcher saw that, and said: "Little tree, why art thou shaking thyself?" – "Have I not reason to shake myself? The little louse has burnt herself, The little flea is weeping, The little door is creaking, The little broom is sweeping, The little cart is running, The little ash-heap is burning." On this the girl said: "Then I will break my little water-pitcher," and she broke her little water-pitcher. Then said the little spring from which ran the water: "Girl, why art thou breaking thy water-jug?" – "Have I not reason to break my water-jug? The little louse has burnt herself, The little flea is weeping, The little door is creaking, The little broom is sweeping, The little cart is running, The little ash-heap is burning, The little tree is shaking itself." "Oh, ho," said the spring, "then I will begin to flow," and began to flow violently. And in the water everything was drowned, the girl, the little tree, the little ash-heap, the little cart, the broom, the little door, the little flea, the little louse, all together. * * * * *
Characters
The Louse ◆ supporting
Small, parasitic insect, likely grey or brown
Unfortunate, clumsy
The Flea ★ protagonist
Small, parasitic insect, known for jumping
Emotional, reactive, sorrowful
The little room-door ◆ supporting
A small, wooden door, part of a room
Empathetic, reactive
The little broom ◆ supporting
A small broom, likely made of straw or bristles with a wooden handle
Empathetic, reactive, frantic
The little cart ◆ supporting
A small, wheeled cart, possibly wooden
Empathetic, reactive, wild
The ash-heap ◆ supporting
A pile of ashes, likely from a fire
Empathetic, reactive, furious
The little tree ◆ supporting
A small tree with leaves
Empathetic, reactive
The Girl ◆ supporting
A young woman carrying a water-pitcher
Attire: Simple peasant dress, carrying a water-pitcher
Empathetic, reactive, destructive
Locations
Louse and Flea's House
A small dwelling where a louse and a flea kept house together, containing a room-door and a corner where a broom is kept.
Mood: Initially domestic, then filled with sudden grief and escalating distress.
The louse burns herself in the egg-shell, initiating the chain reaction of grief and destruction.
Area outside the House
The immediate vicinity outside the house, where a little cart passes by and an ash-heap is located.
Mood: Initially mundane, quickly becoming chaotic and destructive.
The cart and ash-heap react to the escalating distress, contributing to the chain of events.
Area near the Ash-heap
An outdoor setting adjacent to the burning ash-heap, where a little tree stands and a girl approaches with a water-pitcher.
Mood: Increasingly frantic and destructive, leading to a sense of impending doom.
The tree shakes off its leaves and the girl breaks her pitcher in response to the unfolding tragedy.
The Spring
A natural spring from which water flows, where the girl comes to fetch water.
Mood: Initially a source of life, it becomes the ultimate instrument of destruction, leading to a tragic, all-encompassing end.
The spring begins to flow violently, drowning everyone and everything, bringing the story to its catastrophic conclusion.
Story DNA
Plot Summary
A louse accidentally burns herself while brewing beer with a flea. The flea's loud grief triggers a chain reaction of sympathetic, increasingly dramatic actions from various inanimate objects and a girl, each explaining their behavior by recounting the growing list of preceding events. This escalating sympathy culminates in a spring flowing violently, drowning all the characters and objects involved in the tragic, cumulative sequence.
Themes
Emotional Arc
calm to chaos
Writing Style
Narrative Elements
Cultural Context
This is a cumulative tale, a common form in oral traditions, often used for entertainment or as a memory aid. The Grimm brothers collected such tales as part of German folklore.
Plot Beats (17)
- A louse and a flea are brewing beer in an egg-shell.
- The louse falls into the beer and burns herself.
- The flea begins to scream loudly in grief.
- The room-door asks the flea why she is screaming, and the flea explains the louse's death.
- The door begins to creak in sympathy.
- A broom asks the door why it's creaking, and the door explains the chain of events.
- The broom begins to sweep frantically in sympathy.
- A cart asks the broom why it's sweeping, and the broom explains the chain of events.
- The cart begins to run wildly in sympathy.
- An ash-heap asks the cart why it's running, and the cart explains the chain of events.
- The ash-heap begins to burn furiously in sympathy.
- A tree asks the ash-heap why it's burning, and the ash-heap explains the chain of events.
- The tree begins to shake off its leaves in sympathy.
- A girl asks the tree why it's shaking, and the tree explains the chain of events.
- The girl breaks her water-pitcher in sympathy.
- A spring asks the girl why she broke her pitcher, and the girl explains the chain of events.
- The spring begins to flow violently, drowning everyone and everything involved.
