History Literature / EastOfTheSunAndWestOfTheMoon

* FourElementEnsemble: Creator/MercerMayer's retelling of the story has the role of the four winds filled by [[FierySalamander the Salamander]] (fire), [[PlantPerson Father Forest]] (earth), [[SeaMonster the Great Fish of the Sea]] (water) and finally [[TheOldNorthWind the North Wind]] (air).

It's Aarne-Thompson type 425A, the search for the lost husband, [[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/eastsunwestmoon/other.html a type of which there are many variants]]. Compare ''Myth/CupidandPsyche'', ''Literature/TheFeatherOfFinistTheFalcon'' and ''Literature/{{Pintosmalto}}'', and for the GenderFlip ''Literature/SoriaMoriaCastle'' and ''Literature/TheBlueMountains''.

%%Administrivia/ZeroContextExample* NiceJobBreakingItHero: While it's understandable that the bride's parents would feel {{Squick}}ed that she's married a bear/wolf/some other huge and intimidating animal, they often have an iron grip on that IdiotBall when the bride herself isn't carrying it.

It's Aarne-Thompson type 425A, the search for the lost husband, [[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/eastsunwestmoon/other.html a type of which there are many variants]]. Compare ''Literature/TheFeatherOfFinistTheFalcon'' and ''Literature/{{Pintosmalto}}'', and for the GenderFlip ''Literature/SoriaMoriaCastle'' and ''Literature/TheBlueMountains''.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: While it's understandable that the bride's parents would feel {{Squick}}ed that she's married a bear/wolf/some other huge and intimidating animal, they often have an iron grip on that IdiotBall when the bride herself isn't carrying it.

[[caption-width-right:350:[-"[[WakingUpElsewhere She was lying on a small green patch]] in the midst of [[TheLostWoods a dark, thick wood.]] By her side lay the [[MementoMacGuffin self-same bundle of rags which she had brought with her from her own home.]] So when she had rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, [[FantasticAngst and wept till she was weary]], [[TheQuest she set out on her way.]]"-] ]]

The tale, with all related versions, is reckoned to be related to the tale of Eros and Psyche, as re-told in the book ''Literature/TheGoldenAss'' by the author Apuleius, from the Roman era. This version is probably the UrExample of the story. As everyone will understand, the girl has the role of Psyche, while the prince has the role of Eros.

''[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/eastsunwestmoon/index.html East of the Sun and West of the Moon]]'' is a [[UsefulNotes/{{Norway}} Norwegian]] {{fairy tale}} collected by [[Creator/AsbjornsenAndMoe Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jorgen Moe]].

* TooDumbToLive: The bride comes off like this, what with paying ''no attention whatsoever'' to her own husband when he asks her to stick to one little condition. Of course, given the marriage age of that time period (early to mid-teens), the story is often taken as an allegory for most girls' immaturity at that age.
** In other variants, it's the parents who are idiots and they don't have the excuse of being too young to know better. What do you do when your daughter and her (supposed) animal husband arrive for a visit? Spy on them long enough to notice that he's cursed, and what do you know--he's a really handsome man once he's taken off that animal skin! [[SarcasmMode Barging into their room and throwing the pelt into the fire without even explaining yourselves first is going to do]] ''[[NiceJobBreakingItHero wonders]]''.
** Some versions are a bit kinder to the bride. While she does look at her husband at night, she honestly thinks she's helping break the curse (she wasn't told that the curse would break if she didn't look at him for a few more nights, and she was supposedly given a cure by a kindly wise woman, later revealed to be the troll stepmother).

* FourElementEnsemble: Mercer Mayer's retelling of the story has the role of the four winds filled by [[FierySalamander the Salamander]] (fire), [[PlantPerson Father Forest]] (earth), [[SeaMonster the Great Fish of the Sea]] (water) and finally [[TheOldNorthWind the North Wind]] (air).

She sets off to find him and meets a woman and her daughter on the way. This woman gives her a golden apple and lets her borrow a horse. Next, she meets a woman who gives her a golden carding comb. A third woman gives her a golden spinning wheel and tells her that she should go find the east wind who might take her to the place that she seeks. The east wind could not help her as he never blew that far so he tells her to visit the west. After facing the same scenario, she visits the south and finally the north wind. The girl then gives up all of her golden items to the princess in exchange for a night with the prince. On the first two nights, she could not wake him. Eventually the servants tell the prince about the girl and he tosses away the drink -- actually sleeping potion -- from the princess that night. In the end, the girl defeats the trolls (the stepmother and the princess) by washing out the tallow of one of the prince's shirts, because the prince refuses to marry someone unable to do something so simple. The story ends with [[StuffBlowingUp all the trolls exploding]]. Everyone lives happily ever after.

The tale, with all related versions, is reckoned to be related to the tale of ''Amor and Psyche'', as re-told in the book ''Literature/TheGoldenAss'' by the author Apuleius, from the Roman era. This version is probably the UrExample of the story. As everyone will understand, the girl has the role of Psyche, while the prince has the role of Amor.

For a modern novel version, see ''Literature/{{East}}'' by Edith Pattou or ''Literature/{{Once Upon a Winters Night}}'' by Dennis L. [=McKiernan=]. There is also one that adds in some Inuit legends into the mix called ICE by Sarah Beth Durst.

* {{Animorphism}} / InvoluntaryShapeshifting: The result of a {{Curse}} placed upon the prince by his WickedStepmother.
* BeastAndBeauty: For a while.
* BigFancyCastle: Where the bear takes her.

* {{Curse}}
* CurseEscapeClause

* DoggedNiceGuy: The groom, who is always described as treating his bride extremely well when they get to his palace--servants to tend to her every need, great food, etc. This is a strange variant in that he already ''has'' the girl; she's just repulsed by his animal appearance.
* EarnYourHappyEnding: And how!

* InvoluntaryShapeshifting
* ItWasAGift

* VillainessesWantHeroes: The troll bride.

* WickedStepmother
* YoungestChildWins: The bride is the youngest child in [[MassiveNumberedSiblings a very large and poor family.]]

It's Aarne-Thompson type 425A, the search for the lost husband, [[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/eastsunwestmoon/other.html a type of which there are many variants]]. Compare Literature/TheFeatherOfFinistTheFalcon and Literature/{{Pintosmalto}}, and for the GenderFlip ''Literature/SoriaMoriaCastle'' and ''Literature/TheBlueMountains''.

A number of famous illustrated versions of this fairy tale have been published, including by [[http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/633668.East_of_the_Sun_and_West_of_the_Moon Mercer Mayer]], among others. All of the versions are [[ContinuitySnarl slightly different]]. Do not confuse with the Creator/HarukiMurakami book ''Literature/SouthOfTheBorderWestOfTheSun''.

'''''[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/eastsunwestmoon/index.html East of the Sun and West of the Moon]]''''' is a [[UsefulNotes/{{Norway}} Norwegian]] {{fairy tale}} collected by [[Creator/AsbjornsenAndMoe Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jorgen Moe]].

It involves a white bear that offers to take the youngest child to fix a family's poor situation. They accept and the bear takes the young girl to a castle where a man slept in the same room as her at night in the dark. As such, she could not see who it was. When she was homesick she was allowed to go home with one condition: She is not allowed to stay with her mother alone. Of course, the young girl doesn't listen and takes a magical candle from her mother. When she returned to the castle, she was able to see the face of the man that has been visiting her bed at night -- who was actually the bear. After a [[WhatTheHellHero what have you done moment]] he gets taken away by his [[OurTrollsAreDifferent troll]] stepmother to marry a troll princess. Before leaving, he tells her that he will be at a land East of the Sun and West of the Moon.

* DisproportionateRetribution: poor girl makes one mistake, then must trek all over Scandinavia to right it.

It involves a white bear that offers to take the youngest child to fix a family's poor situation. They accept and the bear takes the young girl to a castle where a man slept in the same room as her at night in the dark. As such, she could not see who it was. When she was homesick she was allowed to go home with one condition: she is not allowed to stay with her mother alone. Of course, the young girl doesn't listen and takes a magical candle from her mother. When she returned to the castle, she was able to see the face of the man that has been visiting her bed at night - who was actually the bear. After a [[WhatTheHellHero what have you done moment]] he gets taken away by his [[OurTrollsAreDifferent troll]] stepmother to marry a troll princess. Before leaving, he tells her that he will be at a land East of the Sun and West of the Moon.

She sets off to find him and meets a woman and her daughter on the way. This woman gives her a golden apple and lets her borrow a horse. Next, she meets a woman who gives her a golden carding comb. A third woman gives her a golden spinning wheel and tells her that she should go find the east wind who might take her to the place that she seeks. The east wind could not help her as he never blew that far so he tells her to visit the west. After facing the same scenario, she visits the south and finally the north wind. The girl then gives up all of her golden items to the princess in exchange for a night with the prince. On the first two nights, she could not wake him. Eventually the servants tell the prince about the girl and he tosses away the drink - actually sleeping potion - from the princess that night. In the end, the girl defeats the trolls (the stepmother and the princess) by washing out the tallow of one of the prince's shirts, because the prince refuses to marry someone unable to do something so simple. The story ends with [[StuffBlowingUp all the trolls exploding]]. Everyone lives happily ever after.