The Three Wishes
by Unknown · from More English Fairy Tales
Adapted Version
Once upon a time, there was a woodman. His name was Jan. He was very poor. Jan worked hard every day. He went to the big forest. He cut down many trees. One day, he found a huge oak tree.
Jan lifted his big axe. He wanted to cut the tree. Then, a small fairy appeared. She was very bright and shining. "Please, stop!" the Fairy said. "Do not cut this tree." Jan was surprised.
Jan was a kind man. He put his axe down. "I will not cut it," he said. The Fairy smiled. "Thank you," she said. "You are very good. I give you three wishes." The Fairy went away.
Jan walked home. He felt very tired. He thought about the Fairy. He thought about the three wishes. He sat by the warm fire. His stomach made a sound. Jan felt very hungry now.
Jan did not think much. "Oh, I wish for food!" he said. "I wish for a black pudding!" It is a yummy sausage. Poof! A long black pudding fell. It came down the chimney. Jan was very surprised.
His Wife came into the room. She saw the black pudding. Jan told her about the wishes. His Wife was very angry. "You are a silly man!" she said. "You wasted a wish!"
His Wife was still very angry. She did not think either. "I wish that pudding was stuck!" she said. "Stuck right on your nose, Jan!" Poof! The black pudding jumped up. It stuck to Jan the Woodman's nose.
Jan had a big black pudding. It was on his nose. He could not see well. His Wife saw it too. "Oh no!" she cried. "This is very bad!" They both felt sad.
Jan pulled the pudding. His Wife pulled too. They pulled very hard. But the pudding stayed stuck. It did not move. "It will not come off!" Jan said.
They had only one wish left. Jan knew what to do. He must use the last wish. "I wish this pudding was off!" he cried. "Off my nose, please!" Poof! The pudding came off.
The black pudding fell. It landed on a dish. The dish was on the table. Jan's nose was clear. They had no gold. They had no fancy clothes. But they had a good supper.
Jan and His Wife ate their supper. It was a good supper. They learned a lesson. Be happy with what you have. Think before you wish!
Original Story
The Three Wishes
Once upon a time, and be sure 't was a long time ago, there lived a poor woodman in a great forest, and every day of his life he went out to fell timber. So one day he started out, and the goodwife filled his wallet and slung his bottle on his back, that he might have meat and drink in the forest. He had marked out a huge old oak, which, thought he, would furnish many and many a good plank. And when he was come to it, he took his axe in his hand and swung it round his head as though he were minded to fell the tree at one stroke. But he hadn't given one blow, when what should he hear but the pitifullest entreating, and there stood before him a fairy who prayed and beseeched him to spare the tree. He was dazed, as you may fancy, with wonderment and affright, and he couldn't open his mouth to utter a word. But he found his tongue at last, and, "Well," said he, "I'll e'en do as thou wishest."
"You've done better for yourself than you know," answered the fairy, "and to show I'm not ungrateful, I'll grant you your next three wishes, be they what they may." And therewith the fairy was no more to be seen, and the woodman slung his wallet over his shoulder and his bottle at his side, and off he started home.
But the way was long, and the poor man was regularly dazed with the wonderful thing that had befallen him, and when he got home there was nothing in his noddle but the wish to sit down and rest. Maybe, too, 't was a trick of the fairy's. Who can tell? Anyhow down he sat by the blazing fire, and as he sat he waxed hungry, though it was a long way off supper-time yet.
"Hasn't thou naught for supper, dame?" said he to his wife.
"Nay, not for a couple of hours yet," said she.
"Ah!" groaned the woodman, "I wish I'd a good link of black pudding here before me."
No sooner had he said the word, when clatter, clatter, rustle, rustle, what should come down the chimney but a link of the finest black pudding the heart of man could wish for.
If the woodman stared, the goodwife stared three times as much. "What's all this?" says she.
Then all the morning's work came back to the woodman, and he told his tale right out, from beginning to end, and as he told it the goodwife glowered and glowered, and when he had made an end of it she burst out, "Thou bee'st but a fool, Jan, thou bee'st but a fool; and I wish the pudding were at thy nose, I do indeed."
And before you could say Jack Robinson, there the goodman sat and his nose was the longer for a noble link of black pudding.
He gave a pull but it stuck, and she gave a pull but it stuck, and they both pulled till they had nigh pulled the nose off, but it stuck and stuck.
"What's to be done now?" said he.
"'T isn't so very unsightly," said she, looking hard at him.
Then the woodman saw that if he wished, he must need wish in a hurry; and wish he did, that the black pudding might come off his nose. Well! there it lay in a dish on the table, and if the goodman and goodwife didn't ride in a golden coach, or dress in silk and satin, why, they had at least as fine a black pudding for their supper as the heart of man could desire.
Story DNA
Moral
Be careful what you wish for, and appreciate what you have.
Plot Summary
A poor woodman spares an old oak tree and is granted three wishes by a fairy. Dazed, he returns home and carelessly wishes for a black pudding for supper. His wife, furious at his folly, impulsively wishes the pudding onto his nose. After struggling to remove it, the woodman uses his final wish to take the pudding off his face, leaving them with no riches but a fine supper and a lesson learned about hasty desires.
Themes
Emotional Arc
hope to frustration to resignation
Writing Style
Narrative Elements
Cultural Context
This tale reflects common folk beliefs about fairies and the dangers of making wishes without careful thought, often found in European folklore.
Plot Beats (11)
- A poor woodman goes into the forest to cut down a large oak tree.
- Before he can strike, a fairy appears and begs him to spare the tree.
- The woodman agrees, and the fairy grants him three wishes as a reward.
- The woodman, still dazed, returns home and sits by the fire, feeling hungry.
- Without thinking, he wishes for a link of black pudding, which immediately appears down the chimney.
- His wife is furious at his foolishness for wasting a wish on something so trivial.
- In her anger, she wishes the black pudding were stuck to her husband's nose.
- The black pudding instantly attaches itself to the woodman's nose, much to their dismay.
- They both try to pull it off, but it is firmly stuck.
- Realizing they have only one wish left, the woodman quickly wishes for the black pudding to come off his nose.
- The pudding detaches and lands on a dish, leaving them with no riches but a good supper.
Characters
The Woodman (Jan)
A sturdy, broad-shouldered man of average height, with hands calloused and rough from years of felling timber. His frame is strong and accustomed to hard labor, suggesting a life lived outdoors.
Attire: Practical, worn peasant clothing suitable for a woodcutter in a European forest setting. This would include a coarse wool or linen tunic in earthy tones (brown, grey, forest green), sturdy breeches tied at the knee, and thick leather boots. He would carry a leather wallet and a simple wooden bottle for water.
Wants: To provide for himself and his wife through honest labor, and later, to rectify his mistakes and enjoy a good meal.
Flaw: Lack of foresight and impulsiveness, leading him to waste his wishes on trivial things.
He begins the story with a stroke of luck but through his own and his wife's impulsiveness, he wastes the magical opportunity, ultimately learning a lesson about the value of simple contentment.
Simple-minded, kind-hearted, easily dazed, somewhat impulsive, content with simple pleasures.
The Goodwife
A practical, sturdy woman of average height and build, reflecting a life of household chores and perhaps some farm work. Her posture is likely upright and efficient.
Attire: Simple, practical peasant clothing typical of a European housewife. This would include a long, plain linen or wool dress in muted colors (grey, brown, cream), a sturdy apron, and perhaps a simple head covering like a coif or kerchief. Her shoes would be practical, like clogs or sturdy leather flats.
Wants: To manage her household, to express her frustration with her husband's foolishness, and to have a good meal.
Flaw: Her sharp tongue and impulsiveness, which leads her to make a foolish wish.
She begins as a supportive wife, then becomes critical and impulsive, ultimately sharing in the consequences of their wasted wishes but still enjoying the simple pleasure of a good meal.
Practical, sharp-tongued, easily exasperated, critical, somewhat impulsive.
The Fairy
Ethereal and delicate, appearing as a small, luminous being. Her form is graceful and light, suggesting she is not entirely of the physical world.
Attire: Flowing, translucent garments that seem to be woven from light or mist, in soft, natural colors like pale green, white, or silver. There might be subtle, natural embellishments like leaves or dew drops.
Wants: To reward kindness and uphold the balance of nature, to grant wishes as a form of payment for a good deed.
Flaw: None explicitly stated, but her power is limited to granting wishes, not controlling their outcome.
Appears briefly to set the plot in motion, then vanishes, her role fulfilled.
Benevolent, grateful, wise, mysterious, observant.
Locations
Great Forest
A dense, ancient forest with towering, old oak trees, where the woodman goes daily to fell timber.
Mood: Mysterious, ancient, slightly foreboding but also a place of daily labor and unexpected magic.
The woodman encounters a fairy who grants him three wishes after he spares an old oak tree.
Woodman's Cottage Interior
A humble, cozy, and somewhat rustic German-style cottage interior, centered around a blazing hearth, with simple furnishings.
Mood: Warm, domestic, initially peaceful but quickly turning chaotic and humorous.
The woodman and his wife use their three wishes, leading to the magical appearance of black pudding and its unfortunate attachment to the woodman's nose.