Why was the gingerbread man burnt? Was that in the original fairy story?

I kind of thought it was a message to Sherlock because Moriarty said he was going to "burn" him.

I think the burnt gingerbread man motif is a mixture from the original fairy tale, where the children eat gingerbread they are breaking  off the witch's house and the fact that the witch is finally burnt.
Additionally this gingerbread man shows Sherlock that "I'll burn you..." is imminent.

Yes – I KNEW there was a fairytale thread – though it's rather ancient by now.
Here are my recent thoughts on this topic:

Our "story teller" Moriarty (motto: "make believe", see Kitty's flat) admits that he loves fairytales: "I read it in the paper, so it must be true. (somehow this inverse conclusion reminds me of: "Look, I'm in shock – I've got a blanket!") I love newspapers … fairy tales … and pretty grim/Grimm ones too."
He sees himself playing the villain role: "Every fairytale needs a good old-fashioned villain", and states that he definitely isn't "on the side of the angels" which is "boring" and "ordinary" (properties he attributes to Sherlock).
But – "stayin' alive" is also boring for him: "It's just …staying!"
So, Moriarty, the fairy tale lover, definitely has a problem, maybe a "final" problem:

What about "…happily ever after"?

I don't remember a single fairy tale where the villain is rewarded with that.
So, Moriarty doesn't have to worry about surviving.
It's up to Sherlock to complete his story. But no – not by his suicide! After all, those being "on the side of the angels"
don't do that.(Even the prince in Rapunzel didn't commit suicide though it looked like it!)

As Moriarty had introduced the fairy tale topic at an early stage of Reichenbach (see the tea party at 221B) Sherlock had enough time to make preparations. ("Glad you chose a tall building…nice way to do it.")

To me, Sherlock's appearance on the cemetery stands for the very last fairytale sentence:
"…and they lived happily ever after."

Note: In the original German Grimm fairytales the last sentence would be:
"...und wenn sie nicht gestorben sind, dann leben sie noch heute."
It's like "…and if they hadn't died by now they're still alive today."
In this case...that hits the nail, doesn't it?

Davina wrote:

I agree with almost everything you say above. The only, slight, problem I have is with the suicide part. I would have thought that it would have been unlikely with all these these Maerchen in that they were written down at a time when suicide was regarded as a crime, with those who killed themselves buried outside of sanctified ground and denied a place in Heaven. This would explain completely the lack of suicide by the Heroes of the stories. In modern times, however, an updating would allow for the suicide of the Hero to save his friends as few, if any, people have the view that was once held of suicide as an act. Good Old Fashioned Villains, however, frequently die in the Maerchen, whether it be a wolf or a witch, for example.

Yes, of course you're right about the suicide thing, Davina.
Suicide was a crime, condemned by the Church, at the time the Grimm brothers collected those fairy tales. (And later on as well - just remember Goethe's Werther!) There are still societies who consider suicides (even the attempt) to be crimes.

I was just fascinated by the Rapunzel motif "Prince in despair jumps off a high tower - and survives."
I can't think of another fairytale where that is to be found.

Bump! Since people keep mentioning this thread. As if by magic...here it is! I've read too many Fairy Stories, me!

Davina wrote:

Yes Rapunzel is a curious tale all round isn't it. Doesn't the Prince lose his sight from the thorns he falls into? I seem to remember The Seven Swans is peculiar as well...I think I'm going to have to re-read that...where is my copy of the Grimm tales? I also need to re-read The Gingerbread Man.

Yes, he does lose his sight and strays around until comes back and recognises Rapunzel's singing voice. Her tears fall into his eyes and so he's healed. (Wonder how they'd use Martin in that  ). I find all the fairy-tale allusions absolutely fascinating. And the apple is reminds me of the biblical symbol of temptation.

I just saw at Google that we have "200 years of Grimm's Fairy tales" today.

https://www.deutschland.de/en/node/1879

Last edited by Mattlocked (December 20, 2012 7:22 pm)

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