Little Red-Cap Flashcards
by The Brothers Grimm — tap or click to flip
Flashcard Review
Flashcards: Little Red-Cap
Why is the girl called "Little Red-Cap"?
Her grandmother gave her a red velvet cap that she loved so much she never wore anything else, so everyone called her Little Red-Cap.
What does Red-Cap's mother send her to deliver to her grandmother?
A piece of cake and a bottle of wine, because the grandmother is ill and weak.
What specific instructions does the mother give Red-Cap before she leaves?
Walk nicely on the path, do not run off it, say good morning when she arrives, and do not peep into every corner.
How does the wolf trick Red-Cap into leaving the path?
He points out the beautiful flowers and singing birds in the forest, making her want to gather a fresh nosegay for her grandmother.
How does the wolf gain entry to the grandmother's cottage?
He pretends to be Little Red-Cap bringing cake and wine, and the grandmother tells him to lift the latch because she is too weak to get up.
What does the wolf do after devouring the grandmother?
He puts on her clothes and cap, climbs into her bed, and draws the curtains to wait for Red-Cap.
How are Red-Cap and her grandmother rescued?
A passing huntsman hears the wolf snoring, cuts open his stomach with scissors, and both emerge alive.
What happens to the wolf after Red-Cap and her grandmother are freed?
Red-Cap fills his stomach with heavy stones, and when the wolf wakes and tries to run, the weight causes him to collapse and die.
How is the grandmother characterized at the beginning of the story?
She loves Red-Cap more than anyone and would give the child anything she wanted; she is also ill and weak, living alone in the woods.
What is the wolf's internal strategy when he first meets Red-Cap?
He thinks Red-Cap will be better to eat than the old woman and decides he must act craftily to catch both of them.
Why does the huntsman decide not to shoot the wolf?
He realizes the wolf might have devoured the grandmother and that she could still be saved, so he uses scissors instead of his gun.
How does Red-Cap change between the first and second episodes?
In the second episode, she refuses to be lured off the path by another wolf and goes straight to warn her grandmother, showing she has learned her lesson.
What role does the mother play in the story?
She sets the rules for Red-Cap's journey, warning her to stay on the path and behave properly -- her instructions represent parental guidance that Red-Cap ignores.
How does the story illustrate the consequences of disobedience?
Red-Cap ignores her mother's warning to stay on the path, wanders into the forest, and this delay gives the wolf time to reach the grandmother first and devour them both.
What does the second episode (the second wolf) add to the story's moral message?
It shows that Red-Cap has internalized her lesson -- she stays on the path and, with her grandmother, outwits the wolf entirely, proving wisdom comes from experience.
How does the wolf's charm relate to the theme of deception?
The wolf is polite and friendly rather than openly threatening, demonstrating that real danger often comes disguised as something pleasant and trustworthy.
What does Red-Cap's vow at the end of the first episode reveal about the story's purpose?
She vows never to leave the path again when her mother forbids it, showing the tale functions as a cautionary story about the value of obedience.
Identify the dramatic irony when Red-Cap tells the wolf where her grandmother lives.
The reader understands the wolf's predatory intentions, but innocent Red-Cap does not, freely giving him the exact location of her vulnerable grandmother.
What literary technique is used in the "what big ears / eyes / hands / mouth" exchange?
Repetition with escalation -- each question builds suspense as the disguise unravels, culminating in the wolf's attack.
How does the story use foreshadowing?
The mother's warning to stay on the path and Red-Cap's uneasy feeling upon entering the cottage both hint at the danger before it fully reveals itself.
What narrative function does the parallel structure of two wolf encounters serve?
It creates a contrast between innocence and experience, showing the same character facing a similar threat but responding with the wisdom gained from the first ordeal.
What does "nosegay" mean in the context of the story?
A small bouquet of flowers -- Red-Cap decides to pick one for her grandmother, which is how the wolf lures her off the path.
What is a "league" as a unit of distance in the story?
An old unit of measurement roughly equal to three miles; the grandmother lives half a league (about 1.5 miles) from the village.
What does "appeased his appetite" mean when describing the wolf?
He fully satisfied his hunger -- after swallowing both the grandmother and Red-Cap, the wolf fell asleep in the bed.
Who says "The better to eat you with!" and what happens immediately after?
The wolf says it as the final line of the bedside dialogue, then leaps from the bed and swallows Red-Cap in one bound.
What does the wolf think to himself when he first meets Red-Cap?
"What a tender young creature! what a nice plump mouthful -- she will be better to eat than the old woman. I must act craftily, so as to catch both."
What vow does Red-Cap make after being rescued?
"As long as I live, I will never by myself leave the path, to run into the wood, when my mother has forbidden me to do so."