Little Snow White
《白雪公主》是德国著名童话集《格林童话》之中的经典之作。故事讲述了一个可爱美丽的公主因为受到继母迫害而被迫逃到森林，偶遇善良的七个小矮人，最后在他们帮助下，克服了继母的诅咒，找到真爱的王子。那么，白雪公主为何受到继母的虐待呢？
Once upon a time in the middle of winter, when the snowflakes (雪花) were falling like feathers from the sky, a Queen sat at a window sewing, and the frame (框架) of the window was made of black ebony (乌木).
While she was sewing and looking out of the window at the snow, she pricked (扎) her finger with the needle, and three drops of blood fell upon the snow. And the red looked pretty upon the white snow, and she thought to herself, “Oh, I wish I could have a child as white as this snow, as red as this blood, and as black as the wood of this frame!”
Soon afterwards she had a little daughter with skin as white as snow, and cheeks as red as blood and hair as black as ebony, and she was therefore called Snow White. But when the child was born, the mother died.
About a year later the King married another woman who was very beautiful. She was so proud of her beauty that she could not bear anyone to be prettier than herself. She had a wonderful mirror, and she used to go to it and say, “Tell me, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of us all?”
Then it would reply, “You are the fairest, Lady Queen.”
Then she was satisfied, for she knew that the mirror spoke the truth.
Now Little Snow White grew prettier and prettier and when she was seven years old, she was more beautiful than the Queen. One day when the Queen asked her mirror, “Tell me, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of us all?”
It replied, “Lady Queen, you are fairer than all who are here, but more beautiful is Snow White, as I think.”
Then the Queen was shocked, and turned yellow and green with envy (忌妒). From that hour, whenever she looked at Snow White, she hated the little girl so much.
