Tom Thumb (fictional character)

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Tom Thumb is the protagonist in a classic English fairy tale set during the reign of King Arthur. He also appears among the tales collected by the Brothers Grimm in Germany as "Thumbling", as "Le Petit Poucet" in France and in other variations throughout much of Europe.

The story[edit]

The English fairy tale begins with an account of Merlin the wizard. The magician, who appeared as a beggar, arrived at the door of a farmer and his wife who took him in and fed him. Noticing that the couple was unhappy, Merlin asked about the source of their woes. The farmer's wife replied that they had no children; she said that she would be the happiest person in the world if she had a son, even if he were no bigger than her husband's thumb.

Amused by this thought, Merlin sought out the fairy queen and told her of the woman's wish. Soon thereafter, the woman gave birth to a son who was exactly the size of her husband's thumb. This boy was regaled with presents by the fairies and the fairy queen named him "Tom Thumb." Tom became very clever as he got older but he never grew any larger.

Tom had many adventures and learned a great many tricks. For instance, one day his mother took him with her when she went to milk the cow. Fearing that Tom might get lost, she tied him to a thistle but when she was not looking, the cow took the thistle into her mouth and Tom along with it. Tom jumped about until the cow opened her mouth and he could leap out into his mother's apron.

In another incident, Tom's father made him a whip of straw so that he could drive the cattle, but while in the field, Tom slipped and fell into a ditch. A bird then scooped him up and dropped him into the sea where he was swallowed by a fish. This fish was caught and sent to be prepared for King Arthur. Tom jumped out as the cook was preparing the fish to the astonishment of everyone and the diminutive hero soon became a favorite of the king.

Tom had further adventures at court, where he performed tricks for the king and rode about on a trained mouse. The queen became jealous, however, and accused Tom of having dishonored her. The king sent for him, but little Tom escaped by riding away on the back of a butterfly. He was eventually caught and placed in a mouse trap to await his execution but he escaped with the intervention of a cat and regained the king's favor.

Unluckily, Tom was bitten by a poisonous spider and quickly died. The king and his court were very sorry and erected a marble monument over his grave.

Grimm's fairy tales[edit]

The Brothers Grimm recounted two stories about a boy named "Thumbling" in their collection of fairy tales, which share a number of common plot themes with the English story of Tom Thumb.