227 – Fireside Fairy Tale: Vaselesa the Beautiful
About this episode
This episode features a retelling of the Russian fairy tale 'Vaselesa the Beautiful,' highlighting its unique elements and the translator's background.
Join me by the fireside to hear the story known as the “Russian Cinderella,” which is funny and strange . . . and has the most unusual fairy godmother I’ve ever heard of. This translation of the Russian fairy tale “Vaselesa the Beautiful” was done by Edith M. S. Hodgetts. Mrs. Hodgetts was born in Russia, though I could not discover the year. As a teen or young adult she moved to England, where she died in 1902. Her most famous book was Tales and Legends from the Land of the Tzar (1890), and the first story in it is “Vaselesa the Beautiful,” in which the Russian Cinderella meets Baba Yaga in the woods, is given the world’s most unusual flashlight, and manages to beat the odds with her especially helpful doll. Other translations will spell the main character’s name as “Vasilisa” or render the title as “Vaselesa the Fair.” These are translator’s choices. I have preserved the original spelling and punctuation from Mrs. Hodgetts’ book so you can see how she wrote her version.
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