Donkey-skin by Charles Perrault
Donkey-Skin, by Charles Perrault: A king and queen have a beautiful daughter named Donkey-Skin. The king promises to give her hand in marriage to any man who can guess her name within a year's time. Many suitors try, but none succeed until a poor, simple man named Jack comes along and correctly identifies her as "Donkey-Skin." The king is angry at Jack for not following the traditional ways of guessing a woman's name, but Jack convinces him to keep his promise by revealing that he has fallen in love with Donkey-Skin. The couple marries and lives happily ever after.
By Charles Perrault · First published 1697 · Genre: Fairy Tales, Fantasy, Children's literature · 6,620 words
First lines
Once upon a time there was a King, so great, so beloved by his people, / and so respected by all his neighbours and allies that one might / almost say he was the happiest monarch alive. His good fortune was / made even greater by the choice he had made for wife of a Princess as / beautiful as she was virtuous, with whom he lived in perfect / happiness. Now, of this chaste marriage was born a daughter endowed / with so many gifts that they had no regret because other children were / not given to them.
What this Textopian page supports
Donkey-skin is listed on Textopian as a short story by Charles Perrault, dated 1697 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Short story
- Author: Charles Perrault
- Date: 1697 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Fairy Tales, Fantasy, Children's literature, French literature
- Length: 6,620 words
- Structure: 1 section, 52 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Standard (8th-9th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for Donkey-skin by Charles Perrault
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
- Passage-specific claims should cite the exact /read/ URL for the relevant chapter or paragraph
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Genres
- Fairy Tales — The story of 'Donkey-skin' is a classic fairy tale by Charles Perrault, with hallmark elements of the genre such as magical creatures and a moralistic theme.
- Fantasy — The story include an array of fantastical elements including a magical donkey and a fairy godmother, aligning it with the fantasy genre.
- Children's literature — 'Donkey-skin', like many of Perrault's stories, is typically targeted towards children, featuring a simple plot and moral teachings common in children's literature.
- French literature — Charles Perrault, being a French author, situates 'Donkey-skin' as an important work in the context of French literature.
Tags
fairy tale · folklore · magic · transformation · identity · family · abandonment · courage · perseverance · love · sacrifice · royalty