The Corpse Bride - Halloween Special - Jewish fairy tale 19th century | | radio play “The Finger”

Summary

In this eerie and humorous tale, a young man preparing to propose to his beloved accidentally marries a corpse bride after performing an ill-advised wedding ritual. While camping with his best friend, the groom places a ring on a skeletal branch and recites vows, unwittingly binding himself to the ghostly bride. As they seek advice from the village rabbi, the corpse bride relentlessly claims her rights, forcing the groom to confront his supernatural marriage. In a bittersweet resolution, the groom's intended wife compassionately honors the bride's lost dreams, ensuring the corpse bride’s memory lives on in a tale of love, loss, and unexpected unions.

Takeaways

• 😀 A young groom-to-be practices his proposal with his friend, humorously using a branch as a stand-in for the bride.
• 😀 The groom, nervous about his proposal, seeks advice from his friend, who encourages him to practice the vows until they're memorized.
• 😀 After the groom performs his proposal with the branch, a rotting corpse rises from the ground, claiming him as her husband.
• 😀 The Corpse Bride, still in her tattered wedding dress, demands her wedding night, forcing the groom and his friend to flee in panic.
• 😀 The groom and his friend seek guidance from a rabbi, who is surprised by their bizarre story and the arrival of the Corpse Bride at his door.
• 😀 The rabbi's other colleagues are called in to deliberate, eventually confirming that the groom's vow to the Corpse Bride is legally binding.
• 😀 The young woman the groom intended to marry is devastated upon seeing the Corpse Bride, which leads to an emotional confrontation.
• 😀 The rabbi and other rabbis ultimately conclude that the Corpse Bride's marriage claim is valid, but the groom cannot fulfill her demands.
• 😀 The Corpse Bride shares her tragic backstory of being abandoned and slain on her wedding day, causing the young woman to feel sympathy for her.
• 😀 In the end, the young woman promises to live out the Corpse Bride's unfulfilled dreams, leading to the Corpse Bride’s peaceful departure.
• 😀 The Corpse Bride’s grave is visited by generations of the groom’s family, ensuring her memory is never forgotten.

Q & A

Why did the groom and his friend camp outside the village the night before the proposal?

The groom and his friend camped outside the village to ceremoniously bid farewell to bachelorhood. They spent the night drinking, laughing, and joking before the groom would propose to the woman he loved the next day.

What mistake did the groom and his friend make that led to the summoning of the Corpse Bride?

In a drunken state, the groom and his friend performed a mock marriage by placing a ring on a branch sticking out of the ground and reciting wedding vows. Unknowingly, the branch was actually the skeletal arm of a deceased woman, which caused the Corpse Bride to rise from the grave and claim the groom as her husband.

How did the Corpse Bride react to the groom's initial attempt to escape?

The Corpse Bride was determined and followed the groom relentlessly, demanding her rights as his wife. She called after him, insisting that he had performed the wedding ceremony and placed the ring on her finger, making her his bride.

What did the rabbi initially think of the groom’s story?

The rabbi was initially skeptical and amused, dismissing the groom's story as absurd. However, when the Corpse Bride herself appeared in the rabbi's house, he was forced to take the situation seriously.

How did the rabbi and the other rabbis handle the situation with the Corpse Bride?

After some deliberation, the rabbis concluded that the groom's actions—placing the ring on the Corpse Bride's finger, reciting the vows, and dancing around the branch—constituted a valid marriage. However, they also ruled that the dead could not claim the living, offering a resolution to the situation.

Why did the Corpse Bride cry at the end of the story?

The Corpse Bride cried because of the deep sorrow she felt over her tragic past. On her wedding day, she had been abandoned by her fiancé and slain by another man. Her life and dreams were taken from her, and she was buried in isolation, never getting the chance to live a fulfilled life.

How did the young woman, the groom’s true love, react to the Corpse Bride’s story?

The young woman, moved by the Corpse Bride's sorrow, approached her with compassion. She promised to live out the bride’s dreams, bearing children and living a full life in her stead, ensuring that the Corpse Bride would not be forgotten.

What was the Corpse Bride’s final gesture before she faded away?

Before fading away, the Corpse Bride placed the wedding ring in the young woman’s hand, symbolizing the passing of her unfulfilled dreams to the living woman. She then whispered a final message, saying she would be waiting on the other side.

What moral lessons can be drawn from the story of the Corpse Bride?

The story teaches lessons of compassion, empathy, and the importance of honoring the past. It shows how understanding and kindness can bring peace even to the most tragic situations, and that unfulfilled dreams should be respected and carried forward by those who are able to live them out.

What impact did the Corpse Bride’s story have on future generations?

The story of the Corpse Bride was passed down through generations, ensuring that her memory was never forgotten. Her tale taught future generations about the importance of love, duty, and compassion, with her grave becoming a site of remembrance where people would visit and reflect on her story.