Tom Thumb (folklore)
Tom Thumb is a fictional character from English folklore, known as one of the earliest published fairy tale figures, first appearing in print in 1621. The story begins with the magician Merlin granting a ploughman and his wife a wish for a son, even one as small as a thumb. Tom, despite his diminutive size, is clever and mischievous, leading to various adventures and misadventures, including encounters with creatures that threaten his life. Over time, Tom becomes a part of King Arthur's court, achieving knighthood, though his story takes a tragic turn when he meets his end battling a spider. The character has inspired numerous adaptations in plays, literature, and film, and has parallels in other cultures' folklore, such as Thumbelina and the Japanese legend of Issun-boshi. While Tom Thumb's tales have often included adult themes, his character has evolved to appeal to children in the 19th century and beyond. The enduring legacy of Tom Thumb highlights themes of cleverness and bravery, suggesting that these traits outweigh physical stature.
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Tom Thumb (folklore)
Tom Thumb is a fictional character originating in English folklore. Stories about Tom Thumb, a tiny boy just a few inches tall, are considered to be the first published fairy tales, initially appearing in print in 1621. Since then, Tom has appeared in many different stories. He has also been featured in a variety of plays and other dramatic performances. In the twentieth century, a number of television shows and movies depicted Tom Thumb. Folk tales from other countries also include the small characters like Tom Thumb, making tiny characters a popular literary trope.
Background
The character of Tom Thumb appears to have existed in oral tradition in England for many centuries. The earliest known depiction of Tom is found in a chapbook, or small printed paper-covered book, entitled The History of Tom Thumbe, the Little. Published in 1621, the book was credited to R.I., also known as Richard Johnson. This work includes some details scholars believe were embellishments not present in the original oral tale. Another early adaptation of Tom Thumb’s adventures is also attributed to Johnson. Tom Thumbe, His Life and Death, was published in 1630. The details thought to be Johnson’s own additions to the folk tale are not present in this version.
A century later, the character’s adventures were adapted once again for a play written by Henry Fielding. The English dramatist created two plays, Tom Thumb and The Tragedy of Tragedies, which had their original runs in 1730 and 1731, respectively. The plays were political and literary satires with plot lines and supporting characters that parodied the works of some of Fielding’s contemporaries. Fielding was the first to include Tom Thumb in a play, but others followed, including 1733’s Opera of Operas: Tom Thumb the Great by English playwright Eliza Haywood.
These early incarnations of the tale and other seventeenth- and eighteenth-century works featuring Tom Thumb were aimed at adult audiences. Some of the earliest tales included violent or graphic descriptions of how Tom escaped some of his adventures, such as being swallowed. In other cases, the authors made heavy use of political and social satire intended for adults. Many of these works also included implications that Tom Thumb’s size and the predicaments he got in had sexual connotations. As a result, it was not until the nineteenth century that Tom Thumb began to appear in literature aimed at children.
Overview
The basic story of Tom Thumb begins when King Arthur’s magician, Merlin, is travelling through a town dressed as a beggar. He is treated kindly by a ploughman and his wife. While enjoying a meal with the couple, Merlin notices that they seem very sad. He asks why and they reply that they have no children. The wife says they would be happy to have a son even if he was no bigger than her husband’s thumb. The idea of a tiny child amuses Merlin, who makes their wish come true.
Tom Thumb remains very small but becomes very clever. He is adored by the fairies and his parents even though he loves to play tricks and get into mischief. This mischievous nature combined with his tiny size, leads Tom into a lot of trouble. His misadventures include being choked by one of his playmates because he’s caught stealing, getting baked into dessert because he’s climbing on the edge of the bowl, and getting eaten by a number of different creatures.
During one of these escapades, a fish that ate him is purchased for King Arthur’s dinner. Delighted by the small boy, Arthur makes him part of his court. Tom is knighted, but the queen becomes very annoyed at all the attention he gets and tries to get rid of him. Eventually, Tom goes back to his parents only to return to Arthur’s court. In the end, he is killed during a battle with a large spider.
While Tom Thumb is one of the most universally known tiny people in folklore, he is not the only one. Thumbelina, a tiny girl child, and Thumbling, another boy child, are both similar to Tom Thumb. Their stories are found in other tales from across Europe. In Japan, the legend of Issun-boshi tells of another tiny boy who goes on adventures, though his tales do not include the mischievous aspects of the Tom Thumb.
The character of Tom Thumb became so well known that the name appears attached to some historical figures and settings as well. The cemetery at Holy Trinity Collegiate Church in Lincolnshire, England, has a gravestone with the name “T. Thumb.” Also inscribed on the stone is “Aged 101, Died 1620,” the year before Johnson’s first book was published. A tiny glove is on display along with a story about an 18-inch tall person who was known by the name Tom Thumb.
In nineteenth century America, showman P.T. Barnum employed a person named Charles Sherwood Stratton. Stratton was born with a form of dwarfism that kept him from growing more than 40 inches tall in adulthood. When he was four years old and just over a foot tall, Barnum hired Stratton and renamed him Tom Thumb. Stratton pretended to be British to enhance the connection to the British folk tale.
In contemporary times, characters based on the Tom Thumb tales appear in many fairy tale collections and adaptations. Some of these depictions are no longer considered politically correct because they are considered insensitive to people with genetic conditions that make them small in stature. However, scholars say that the enduring popularity of the Tom Thumb character is due to the way the character shows that cleverness and bravery are more important in addressing problems than physical size.
Bibliography
“The Grave of Tom Thumb.” Atlas Obscura, 2020, www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-grave-of-tom-thumb-tattershall-england. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020.
“History of Tom Thumb (fairy tale, anonymous, 1621).” Getty Conservation Research Foundation Museum, 2004, getty.edu/cona/CONAIconographyRecord.aspx?iconid=901001611. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020.
“The History of Tom Thumb: English Folktale.” World of Tales, 2019, www.worldoftales.com/European‗folktales/English‗folktale‗25.html. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020.
“The Legend of Issun-boshi.” Public Relations Office Government of Japan, 2009, www.gov-online.go.jp/eng/publicity/book/hlj/html/201408/201408‗09‗en.html. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020.
“Tom Thumb.” The Camelot Project, d.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/theme/tom-thumb. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020.
“Tom Thumb’s Travels.” Whispering Books, whisperingbooks.com/Show‗Page/?book=Fairy‗Tales‗From‗The‗Brothers‗Grimm&story=Tom‗Thumbs‗Travels. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020.
Vallone, Lynne. Big and Small: A Cultural History of Extraordinary Bodies. Yale UP, 2017.
“The Wee-est Little Man That Ever There Was: Who Was the Real Tom Thumb?” Ancient Origins, 16 Sept. 2018, www.ancient-origins.net/history-famous-people/tom-thumb-0010711. Accessed 1 Feb. 2020.