| Squirrel Nutkin | |
|---|---|
 | |
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Real Name |
Nutkin |
|
First Appearance |
The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin (1903) |
|
Original Publisher |
Frederick Warne & Co. |
|
Created by |
Beatrix Potter |
Origin[]
Squirrel Nutkin is a little red squirrel who lives in a Wood at the Edge of a Lake with his brother, Twinkleberry. He is spunky and mischievous and loves to play. He loves to dance, skip, sing riddles, and goof off. Squirrel Nutkin is different from other squirrels because he lost his tail during a struggle with Old Brown.
Squirrel Nutkin, his brother, Twinkleberry, and all the other little decide to gather nuts on Owl Island. They sleeve the Wood at the Edge of a Lake, build rafts, and sail to the island. When they arrive, the squirrels present an offering of three fat mice as a gift for Old Brown. While the other squirrels respectfully ask Old Brown for permission to gather nuts from his island, Nutkin chimes in and tells Old Brown a riddle, but the owl pays no attention to him and instead shuts his eyes and falls asleep. The little squirrels fill their sacks with nuts and sail back home to the Wood at the Edge of a Lake in the evening.
The next day, the little squirrels decide to go back to Owl Island to gather more nuts, taking a fat mole as an offering. This time, Old Brown is asleep so Nutkin starts dancing up and down and pokes Old Brown with a nettle while singing another riddle. Old Brown wakes up and takes the mole inside the Hollow Oak Tree, shutting the door right in Nutkin's face. While the other squirrels gather nuts, Nutkin decides to gather oak-apples and play marbles on a beech stump while watching Old Brown's door.
On the third day, Twinkleberry and six other squirrels wake up early in the morning and go fishing at the lake to catch minnows to give to Old Brown. Nutkin does not go fishing for minnows but he tags along and goes to Owl Island with the other squirrels anyway. Once again, he playfully tells Old Brown a riddle.
The next day, the squirrels go back to Owl Island, this time taking six fat beetles as their offering. Nutkin decides to pick robin's pincushions off a briar bush and sticks them full of pine needle pins while the other squirrels are hard at work gathering nuts.
The following day, the squirrels take an offering of honey for Old Brown and Nutkin begins skipping and singing another riddle. While the other squirrels gather nuts, Nutkin sits on a rock and plays a game of ninepins with a crabapple and fir cones.
On the sixth day, the squirrels go back to Owl Island and take an egg in a rush basket as an offering for the owl. Like always, Nutkin begins dancing around and singing riddles--he starts singing his riddles louder than ever before. He leaps onto Old Brown's head. Old Brown captures him, puts him in his pocket, and takes him inside the Hollow Oak Tree.
Once inside, Old Brown picks Nutkin up by his tail and intends to skin him. Nutkin tries to get free and struggles so hard that his little tail breaks in two. He manages to run up the stairs and escape through the attic window but, sadly, he has lost his tail.
Public Domain Appearances[]
All published appearances of Squirrel Nutkin from before January 1, 1930 are public domain in the US.
Some notable appearances are listed below:
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin, by Beatrix Potter (1903)
Notes[]
- One commentator has likened Squirrel Nutkin's impertinent behaviour to that of the rebellious working-class of Potter's own day, and another commentator has noted the tale's similarities to pourquoi tales and folk tales in its explanations of Squirrel Nutkin's short tail and characteristics of squirrel behaviour.