The Brothers Grimm’s Fairy Tale, ‘Hansel and Gretel’

Small children persevere and return home in this dark fairy tale.

Hansel and Gretel in front of the witch’s house. An illustration by Otto Kubel. Public Domain

Life sometimes feels like a dark forest. Yet in their fairy tale, “Hansel and Gretel,” the Brothers Grimm show that, with faith, darkness can be overcome.

Little Hansel and Gretel live near a great forest with their father and stepmother. The family falls upon hard times, and food is in short supply. The evil stepmother persuades the father to abandon the children in the forest to save on food.