THE MOUSE
by Maive Stokes · from Indian Fairy Tales
Adapted Version
Once upon a time, a little mouse was very hungry. He went to a garden. He looked for food. It had a thorny hedge. He went through. The thorns were prickly on his tail. "Ouch!" he cried.
He met a barber. The mouse needed help. "Please help my tail," said the mouse. The barber tried. He cut too much. The tail was short. The mouse was cross. He took the razor and ran.
He met a grass cutter. The grass cutter was working. "Use my razor," said the mouse. The grass cutter used it. The razor broke. "My razor!" cried the mouse. He took the man's blanket and ran.
He met a grain seller. The grain seller was busy. "Use my blanket," said the mouse. The seller used it. The blanket got holes. "My blanket!" cried the mouse. He took all the sugar canes and ran.
He met a sweet seller. The sweet seller smiled. "Use my sugar canes," said the mouse. The seller used them all. "My sugar canes!" cried the mouse. He took all the sweets and ran.
He met some cowherds. The cowherds were poor. "Eat my sweets," said the mouse. The cowherds ate them all. "My sweets!" cried the mouse. He took all their cows and ran.
He met some cooks. The cooks were busy. "Use my cows," said the mouse. The cooks used them all for a wedding. "My cows!" cried the mouse. He asked the groom for money. "No," said the groom.
"Then I take the bride," said the mouse. He went to the bride. The bride was beautiful. "Come with me," he said. The bride was scared. She went with him.
He met some jugglers. "My wife will walk the rope," said the mouse. "She is young." The jugglers said no. The jugglers were skilled. The mouse said yes. The bride walked. She wobbled. She did not fall. A juggler caught her.
The mouse was upset. He was very frustrated. He took the jugglers' wives and their things. He ran away.
The mouse ate and ate. He ate too much. He grew very fat. He could not fit in his door. "Help me," he said. A carpenter came. The carpenter was wise. "You must share your food," said the carpenter. "Then you will not be so fat."
The mouse tried to share. He felt better. He was sorry. He took back all the stolen things. He gave them back. He returned everything. "I am sorry," he said. "I was greedy."
All were happy again. Everyone was friends again. Being greedy makes you and others sad. It is better to share and be kind. The mouse learned to share.
Original Story
THE MOUSE
To notes T HERE was a mouse who wanted something to eat;
so he went to a garden, where many kinds of
grain, and fruit, and cabbages, and other vegetables
were growing. All round the garden the people to whom it
belonged had planted a hedge of thorns, that nothing might
get in. The mouse scrambled through the hedge, but great
thorns pierced his tail, and he began to cry. He came out
of the garden again through the hedge, and on his way
home he met a barber.
“You must take out these thorns,” said he to the barber.
“I cannot,” said the barber, “without cutting off your tail
with my razor.”
“Never mind cutting off my tail,” said the mouse.
The barber cut off the mouse’s tail. But the mouse was
in a rage. He seized the razor and ran away with it. At
this the poor barber was very unhappy and began to cry, for
he had no pice wherewith to buy another.
The mouse ran on and on until at last he came to another
country, in which there were no knives or sickles to cut the
grass with. There the mouse saw a man pulling the grass
out of the ground with his hands.
“You will cut your hands,” said the mouse.
“There are no knives here,” said the man, “so I must
pull up the grass in this way.”
“You must take my razor then,” said the mouse.
[ Pg 102] “Suppose your razor should break? I could not buy you
another,” said the man.
“Never mind if it does break,” said the mouse, “I give
it to you as a present.”
So the man took the razor and began cutting the grass,
and as he was cutting, the razor broke.
“Oh, why have you broken my razor?” exclaimed the
mouse.
“Did not I tell you it would break?” answered the man.
The mouse snatched up the man’s blanket and ran off
with it. The grass-cutter began to cry. “What shall I do?”
said he. “The mouse has carried away my blanket, and I
have not money wherewith to buy another.” And he went
home very sad.
Meanwhile the mouse ran on and on until he arrived at
another country, where he saw a grain merchant chopping up
sugar-canes; only as he had no blanket or cloth to lay the
canes on, he chopped them up on the ground, and so they
got dirty.
“Why do you chop up your canes on the ground?” said
the mouse; “they all get dirty.”
“What can I do?” answered the man. “I have no pice
wherewith to buy a blanket to chop them on.”
“Then why don’t you take mine?” said the mouse.
“If I took yours it would get cut, and I have no money
to buy you another,” said the grain merchant.
“Never mind; I don’t want another,” said the mouse.
So the man took the blanket, and of course he cut it.
When he had finished chopping up his sugar-canes, he gave
it back to the mouse.
When the mouse saw the blanket was full of holes, he was
very angry indeed with the man, and seizing all the sugar-canes
he ran away with them as fast as he could. The grain
merchant began to cry. “What shall I do?” said he; “I [ Pg 103] have no more sugar-canes.” And he went home very
sorrowful.
Then the mouse ran on and on till he came to another
country, where he stopped at a sweetmeat-seller’s shop.
Now in this country there was no salt and no sugar. And
the sweetmeat-seller made his sweetmeats of flour and ghee
without either sugar or salt, so that they were very nasty.
“Will you give me some sweetmeats for a pice?” said
the mouse to the sweetmeat-seller. “Yes,” answered the
man, and he gave one. The mouse began to eat it and
thought it very nasty indeed.
“Why, there is no sugar in it!” exclaimed the mouse.
“No,” said the man; “we have no sugar in this country.
The few sugar-canes we have are so dear, that poor people
like myself cannot buy them.”
“Then take my sugar-canes,” cried the mouse.
“No,” said the man. “Where should I find the money
to pay you for them? They would be all used in making
sweetmeats.”
“Take them,” said the mouse; “I give them to you.”
The sweetmeat-seller took them and began making sweetmeats
of all kinds, so that he used all the sugar-canes.
“Why have you used all my sugar-canes?” cried the mouse.
“Did not I tell you I should do so?” said the man.
“You are a thief!” cried the mouse, and he knocked
down the sweetmeat-seller, seized all his sweetmeats, and ran
off with them.
“What shall I do now?” cried the sweetmeat-seller. “I
have no money to buy flour and ghee to make more sweetmeats
with; and if I quarrel with the mouse, he will doubtless
kill me.”
Meanwhile the mouse ran on and on till he reached a
country, the Rájá of which had a great many cows—hundreds
of cows. The mouse stopped at the pasture-ground [ Pg 104] of these cows. Now, the cowherds were so poor they could
not buy bread every day, and sometimes they ate bread which
was twelve days old. When the mouse arrived, the cowherds
were eating their bread, and it was very stale and mouldy.
“Why do you eat that stale bread?” said the mouse.
“Because we have no money to buy any other with,”
answered the cowherds.
“Look at all these sweetmeats,” said the mouse. “Take
them and eat them instead of that stale bread.”
“But if we eat them, we must pay you for them, and
where shall we get the money?” said the cowherds.
“Oh, never mind the money,” said the mouse.
So the cowherds took the sweetmeats and ate them all
up. At this the mouse was furious. He stuck a pole into
the ground, and ran and fetched ropes, and tied the cowherds
hand and foot to the pole. Then he took all the cows
and ran off with them.
He ran on and on till he got to a country where there
were no fowls, no cows, no buffaloes, no meat of any kind;
and the people in it did not even know what milk and
meat were. The day the mouse arrived was the day the
Rájá’s daughter was to be married, and a great many people
were assembled together. The Rájá’s cooks were cooking,
but they had neither meat nor ghee.
“Why are all these people assembled together?” said the
mouse.
“To-day is our Rájá’s daughter’s wedding-day, and we are
cooking the dinner,” answered the cooks.
“But you have no meat,” said the mouse.
“No,” said the cooks. “There is no meat of any kind
in our country.”
“Take my cows,” said the mouse.
“No,” said the cooks; “our Rájá could not pay for them;
he is too poor.” (He was only a petty Rájá.)
[ Pg 105] “It does not matter,” said the mouse. “I don’t want
money.”
So the cooks took the cows and the sheep and killed them,
and dressed their flesh in different ways; made pilaus
and curries; they roasted some and boiled some, and gave
it to the people to eat. In this way they made an end of all
the cows.
“Why have you made an end of all my cows?” cried the
mouse.
“Did not we tell you we should make use of them all?”
said the cooks.
“Give me my cows,” said the mouse.
“We can’t. The people have eaten them all up,” said
the cooks.
The mouse was in a great rage. He ran off to the bridegroom,
who was walking near the kitchen, saying to himself,
“Now I will go and fetch my bride.”
“Give me the money for my cows,” cried the mouse to
him. “Your people have eaten them all up, and your cooks
won’t pay me, so you must.”
“What have I to do with your cows?” said the bridegroom.
“I won’t pay you for them.”
“Then if you won’t pay me, your wife’s father must,” said
the mouse.
“Oh, he is too poor to pay for your cows,” said the bridegroom,
“and I won’t.”
“Then if I am not paid, I will take away your bride,” said
the mouse; and he ran off and carried away the bride.
The Rájá was very angry at this; but the mouse ran on
and on with his wife (so he called the Rájá’s daughter) till
he came to another country.
Now, on the day he arrived in it there were going to be
grand sights and fun to please its Rájá. Some jugglers and
rope-dancers were going to perform.
[ Pg 106] “Take my wife and let her walk on the rope; she is young,
and your wives are old,” said the mouse to the rope-dancers.
“No,” they answered, “for she does not know how to
walk on a rope and carry at the same time a wooden plate
on her head. She would fall and break her neck.”
“But you must take my wife,” said the mouse. “She
won’t fall; she is young, and your wives are old. You really
must take her.”
So the rope-dancers took her, much against their will, and
when she began to walk on the rope with the wooden plate
on her head, she fell and died.
“Oh, why have you killed my wife?” cried the mouse.
“Did we not tell you she would fall and kill herself?”
answered the rope-dancers.
The mouse seized all the jugglers’ and rope-dancers’ wives,
and the things they used in dancing and juggling, and ran
off with them. Then the rope-dancers and jugglers began
to cry, and said, “What shall we do? Our wives and our
property are all gone!”
Meanwhile the mouse ran on and on until he came to
another country, where he got a house to live in. And he
ate a great deal, and grew so fat that he could not get through
the door of his house.
“Send for a carpenter,” said he to the rope-dancers’ and
jugglers’ wives, “and tell him to cut off some of my flesh.
Then I shall be able to get into my house.”
The women sent for a carpenter, and when he came the
mouse said to him, “cut off some of my flesh, then I shall
be able to go into my house.”
“If I do,” said the carpenter, “you will die.”
“No, I shan’t die,” said the mouse. “Do as I bid
you.”
So the carpenter took his knife, and cut off some of the
mouse’s flesh.
[ Pg 107] “Oh, dear! oh, dear!” cried the mouse; “how it does
hurt! What can I do to make it stop paining me?”
“You must go to a certain place, where a particular kind
of grain grows, and rub the grain on your wounds. Then
they will get quite well,” said the carpenter.
So the mouse ran off to the place to which the carpenter
had told him to go, and rubbed his wounds with the grain.
This gave him such pain that he fell down and died.
The rope-dancers’ and jugglers’ wives went home to their
husbands with all the things the mouse had carried away,
and they all lived happily ever after.
Told by Karím.
[ Pg 108]
Story DNA
Moral
Unchecked greed and a sense of entitlement can lead to a destructive cycle of taking from others, ultimately resulting in one's own downfall.
Plot Summary
A mouse, angered by a barber cutting his tail, steals a razor and embarks on a destructive journey. He repeatedly 'gives' items to people, only to become enraged when they use them as intended, leading him to steal increasingly valuable possessions from them, including a blanket, sugar-canes, sweetmeats, and cows. His escalating aggression culminates in the abduction and accidental death of a Rájá's daughter. Finally, the mouse, grown fat and demanding, forces a carpenter to cut his flesh, and dies from the resulting pain, allowing his victims to reclaim their stolen property and live happily.
Themes
Emotional Arc
aggression to self-destruction
Writing Style
Narrative Elements
Cultural Context
Maive Stokes collected these tales in India during the British Raj, reflecting local folklore and storytelling traditions.
Plot Beats (14)
- A mouse, seeking food, gets thorns in his tail while entering a garden.
- A barber, asked to remove the thorns, cuts off the mouse's tail, enraging the mouse who then steals the barber's razor.
- The mouse gives the razor to a grass-cutter, who breaks it, prompting the mouse to steal the grass-cutter's blanket.
- The mouse gives the blanket to a grain merchant, who cuts it, leading the mouse to steal all the merchant's sugar-canes.
- The mouse gives the sugar-canes to a sweetmeat-seller, who uses them all, causing the mouse to assault the seller and steal all his sweetmeats.
- The mouse gives the sweetmeats to poor cowherds, who eat them all, leading the mouse to tie them up and steal all their cows.
- The mouse gives the cows to cooks preparing for a wedding, who kill and eat them all, causing the mouse to demand payment from the bridegroom.
- When the bridegroom refuses to pay for the cows, the mouse abducts the Rájá's daughter (the bride).
- The mouse forces the Rájá's daughter to perform a dangerous tightrope act with jugglers, despite warnings, and she falls and dies.
- Enraged by her death, the mouse steals the jugglers' wives and property.
- The mouse grows very fat and cannot fit through his door, so he demands a carpenter cut off some of his flesh.
- The carpenter cuts the mouse, causing great pain, and advises him to rub a special grain on the wound.
- The mouse rubs the grain on his wound, which causes him such intense pain that he dies.
- The jugglers' wives return to their husbands with their retrieved property, and they all live happily ever after.
Characters
The Mouse ★ protagonist
Initially of normal size, later grew so fat he could not get through a door. Had a tail that was cut off.
Attire: None, as an animal.
Demanding, easily angered, vengeful, acquisitive, persistent, ultimately self-destructive.
Image Prompt & Upload
A young anthropomorphic mouse with soft gray fur and bright curious eyes, wearing a tiny adventurer's vest over a white shirt, brown trousers, and small boots. It stands upright with a determined expression, one paw resting on its hip. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Barber ○ minor
None mentioned.
Attire: Period-appropriate barber attire (implied, not explicit).
Compliant, easily distressed.
Image Prompt & Upload
A middle-aged man with a kind, weathered face and a neatly trimmed mustache, wearing a crisp white barber's apron over a simple collared shirt and dark trousers. He stands proudly, holding a pair of gleaming silver scissors in one hand and a fine-toothed comb in the other, a gentle smile on his lips. His hair is short and tidy, and he has a few distinguished gray hairs at his temples. He is positioned in a clean, well-lit barbershop with a classic red-and-white striped pole visible to his side. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Grass-Cutter (Man pulling grass) ○ minor
None mentioned.
Attire: Simple, functional clothing for manual labor (implied, not explicit).
Cautious, honest, easily distressed.
Image Prompt & Upload
A middle-aged man with weathered skin and a tired expression, wearing a faded straw hat, a loose linen shirt with rolled-up sleeves, and patched trousers. He is bent over, pulling long grass with his bare hands, his posture showing effort and weariness. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Grain Merchant ○ minor
None mentioned.
Attire: Simple, practical clothing for a merchant (implied, not explicit).
Practical, cautious, easily distressed.
Image Prompt & Upload
A middle-aged man with a sturdy build and a kind, weathered face, holding a small woven basket overflowing with golden wheat grains. He wears a simple but well-made linen tunic in a natural beige color, belted at the waist with a leather cord, and sturdy brown trousers. His dark hair is slightly tousled, and he has a thoughtful, appraising expression as he looks down at the grains in his basket. He stands in a relaxed posture, one hand resting on his hip. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Sweetmeat-Seller ○ minor
None mentioned.
Attire: Simple clothing for a vendor (implied, not explicit).
Compliant, easily intimidated, fearful.
Image Prompt & Upload
A young boy of about ten years old with a cheerful, gap-toothed smile stands beside a small, colorful wooden cart laden with glass jars of bright candies, honeycomb, and spun sugar. He wears a slightly oversized, flour-dusted brown tunic with a stained leather apron, his messy straw-blond hair peeking out from under a floppy felt cap. One hand rests on the cart's wheel, the other holds out a small paper cone filled with sugared almonds. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Rájá's Daughter (The Bride) ○ minor
Young.
Attire: Wedding attire (implied, not explicit).
Passive, victimized.
Image Prompt & Upload
A young woman of royal bearing, around eighteen years old, with a serene and gentle expression. Her long, dark hair is intricately braided and adorned with tiny pearls and white flowers, flowing over her shoulders. She wears a magnificent wedding gown of pure white silk with delicate gold embroidery along the neckline and sleeves. A sheer, floor-length veil is pinned to her hair with a jeweled circlet. She stands gracefully, one hand lightly touching a bouquet of white lotus flowers, the other holding the edge of her flowing skirt. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Carpenter ○ minor
None mentioned.
Attire: Work clothes, carrying a knife (implied, not explicit).
Cautious, obedient, knowledgeable.
Image Prompt & Upload
A middle-aged man with a sturdy build, wearing a leather apron over a simple linen shirt and trousers. His sleeves are rolled up, revealing strong forearms. He holds a wooden mallet and chisel, focused on carving a piece of oak on a workbench. His hair is short and peppered with grey, and he has a calm, concentrated expression. He stands in a well-lit carpenter's workshop. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Rope-Dancers' and Jugglers' Wives ◆ supporting
Described as 'old' by the mouse.
Attire: Attire suitable for performers' wives, possibly with some juggling/dancing props.
Cautious, obedient, resourceful.
Image Prompt & Upload
Three young women with agile builds stand close together, their expressions confident and slightly mischievous. One has tightly braided auburn hair and wears a fitted, patchwork tunic of emerald green and gold over leather leggings, her hands resting on a coil of thick, braided rope at her hip. Another, with a short, dark bob, is dressed in a vibrant, sleeveless top and billowing trousers of deep blue, juggling three polished wooden clubs in a silent, frozen arc. The third, her blonde hair in a high ponytail, wears a simple, sturdy leotard of burgundy with a short, layered skirt, her posture poised as if mid-balance. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
Locations
Thorn-hedged Garden
A garden where many kinds of grain, fruit, cabbages, and other vegetables were growing, surrounded by a hedge of thorns.
Mood: Initially promising, then painful and frustrating
The mouse attempts to get food, gets his tail pierced by thorns, and loses his tail.
Image Prompt & Upload
At twilight, a secluded garden bursts with life, its rows of golden wheat, heavy-headed cabbages, and clusters of ripening berries glowing in the last embers of sunset. The entire plot is encircled by a towering, impenetrable hedge of blackthorn, its twisted branches forming a dense wall studded with sharp, silvery thorns that catch the fading light. A soft, ethereal mist clings to the fertile soil between the plants, and the air is still and quiet. The color palette is a rich contrast of deep greens, earthy browns, and the warm golds of the harvest, set against the dark, menacing silhouette of the protective thorn barrier. The scene is a magical, slightly eerie, and perfectly preserved pocket of cultivated nature. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
Country without Knives or Sickles
A country where there were no knives or sickles to cut grass, leading people to pull grass out with their hands.
Mood: Resource-scarce, industrious
The mouse gives his razor to a man cutting grass, who then breaks it, leading the mouse to steal his blanket.
Image Prompt & Upload
Golden hour light bathes a vast, rolling meadow where knee-high grass grows wildly in dense, tangled waves. The untamed blades, a mix of emerald green and sun-bleached gold, are partially uprooted in patches, revealing dark soil beneath. Scattered clusters of white daisies and purple clover dot the landscape. In the distance, a small thatched-roof cottage with a smoking chimney sits beside a winding dirt path, its garden similarly overgrown. The sky is a soft gradient of peach and lavender, with a few wispy clouds. The atmosphere is peaceful yet slightly wild, a land where nature is gently unruly, no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
Sweetmeat-seller's Shop
A shop in a country where there was no salt and no sugar, and sweetmeats were made of flour and ghee, tasting very nasty.
Mood: Unappetizing, lacking
The mouse exchanges his sugar-canes for sweetmeats, then steals all the sweetmeats when the seller uses all the canes.
Image Prompt & Upload
A dusty, sun-bleached wooden shop front in a barren, colorless village under a harsh midday sun. The sign is faded. Through the open doorway, shelves hold pale, lumpy mounds of flour-and-ghee sweetmeats on dull metal trays. The air seems thick with the smell of rancid fat. Outside, the cobblestone street is empty, leading to parched fields under a pale, washed-out sky. No vibrant colors, no lush vegetation, only the harsh light on dusty surfaces and unappetizing food. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
Pasture-ground of the Rájá's Cows
A large pasture-ground belonging to a Rájá with hundreds of cows, where poor cowherds ate stale and mouldy bread.
Mood: Impoverished, rural
The mouse gives sweetmeats to the cowherds, then ties them to a pole and steals all the cows.
Image Prompt & Upload
Late afternoon sun casts long golden shadows across a vast, rolling pasture of impossibly green grass dotted with hundreds of white and brown cows. A worn dirt path winds through the field towards a distant, opulent palace with shimmering domes on the horizon. In the foreground, a weathered wooden fence leans slightly, beside a rough-hewn stone trough. Scattered near the fence are a few stale, dark crusts of bread on a faded cloth, overlooked by the grazing herd. The air is hazy and warm, filled with a peaceful, golden light. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration
Mouse's House
A house where the mouse lived and grew so fat he could not get through the door.
Mood: Confining, painful
The mouse, having grown too fat, has a carpenter cut off some of his flesh, leading to his demise.
Image Prompt & Upload
A tiny, round stone cottage nestled in a sun-dappled forest clearing at golden hour. The thatched roof is slightly askew, and the small wooden door is conspicuously blocked from the inside by a bulging, overstuffed shape. The path to the door is littered with giant, discarded acorn shells and crumbs of cheese. Warm, amber light spills from a crooked window, illuminating a cozy, cluttered interior visible through the glass. The surrounding moss and wildflowers are lush and oversized. Atmosphere is whimsical, abundant, and slightly humorous. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
