There Lay the Sleeping Beauty

Tale Summary

This classic tale of Sleeping Beauty follows the story of a young princess whose seven fairy godmothers, gifted her beauty, good thoughts, kindness, the ability to dance like a fairy, sing like a nightingale, and play the harp. However, one wicked old fairy unwelcomingly granted that the child, at the age of 15, would prick her finger on a spindle and fall into a sleep. One of the fairies who had not yet given her gift, granted that the princess would not die but fall into a 100 year sleep. The girl grew up and possessed all the gifts. Eventually, she stumbled upon a spindle, pricked her finger, and she, along with her entire castle and everything inside and out, fell into a sleep. After 100 years, and the son of the new King finds the castle and makes his way up to the chamber in the turret where the Princess lies. As a wise old man said legend had it that she may only be woken by the Prince who will marry her, the young Prince kissed the Princess and she awoke immediately. The rest of the castle and people are restored and the two fall in love. Very soon after, they were married and lived happily ever after.

Fairy Tale Title

The Sleeping Beauty

Fairy Tale Author(s)/Editor(s)

Louey Chisholm

Fairy Tale Illustrator(s) 

Katharine Cameron

Common Tale Type 

Sleeping Beauty

Tale Classification

ATU 410

Page Range of Tale 

pp. 84-88

Full Citation of Tale 

Chisholm, Louey. “The Sleeping Beauty.” In Fairyland: Tales Told Again, illustrated by Katharine Cameron, New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1904, pp. 84-88.

Original Source of the Tale

Charles Perrault

Tale Notes

This Sleeping Beauty tale is concise, easy to read, contains little character development, and is very clean (no gruesomeness).

Research and Curation

Jasmin Breakstone, 2020

Book Title 

In Fairyland: Tales Told Again

Book Author/Editor(s) 

Louey Chisholm

Illustrator(s)

Katharine Cameron

Publisher

T. C. & E. C. Jack and G.P. Putnam's Sons

Date Published

1904

Decade Published 

1900-1909

Publisher City

London
New York

Publisher Country

United Kingdom
United States

Language

English

Rights

Public Domain

Digital Copy

Book Notes

This book contains a preface that introduces a framing narrative, however, the narrative is never addressed again throughout the book. Through the preface, in which a young girl named Sunflower speaks with her mother, we discover that the tales contained within this book are targeted towards children. Sunflower praises her mother’s story telling because she “leave[s] out all the not interesting bits you know and make me understand what the story is all about.”