"The Maiden Without Hands" by Grimm

In “The Maiden Without Hands” by the Brothers Grimm, a miller, through a bargain with the devil, chops off the hands of his beautiful daughter in order to save himself.  Consumed with guilt, but more concerned with his own safety, he asks his daughter for forgiveness, which she freely gives, though she realizes she can no longer live with her parents.  She sets out on her own. 

            Grimm’s fairy tale spotlights the fact that the loss of one’s hands, especially at the hands of a parent, makes a compelling symbolic statement.  A father, one of the two people a child should be most able to trust, the principle authority figure in a young girl’s life, the person who should be her staunchest protector, performs the act that horribly disfigures his own daughter.  Without hands, the daughter no longer has the very mechanisms that allow her to control and manipulate her world.  Without hands, she loses her self-worth and becomes vulnerable, and she must now exist at the mercy of others.  With the loss of her hands, she cannot work, she cannot perform simple tasks, she cannot care for others effectively, and thus she becomes the embodiment of disability. 

            In the tale, the maiden travels to a garden where a king sees her and immediately falls in love with her.  He has silver hands made for her.  He later goes to battle and leaves her in the care of his mother.  Shortly after his departure, she gives birth to a son, whom she names “Pain-bringer.”  Through a series of unfortunate misunderstandings, the maiden, now a queen, and her son are forced to leave the protection of the king’s castle.  She wanders and eventually comes to a safe house where she remains for many years.  Here, she is so good and pious and happy that her arms grow back.  Essentially, Grimm’s message is that, through suffering, her disability can be overcome. 

            Eventually, the king finds his queen, though he does not recognize her with flesh and blood hands.  He remembers the silver hands he had made for her.  He does not recognize her without her disability.  He, possibly, associates her only with her disability, what he remembers as her defining feature.  

            The most interesting part of this fairy tale is how it represents notions about disability.  It implies that, if one waits long enough, and through suffering and good deeds, one will be rewarded.  One will triumph over severe adversity and overcome any disability.  One’s disability will disappear and only goodness will replace it.  Oh, were it only that simple.