Salvador Dalí

Japanese fairy tales – Shitakiri

The Dalí Japanese fairy tales suite was published by Gerschmann, Stockholm/Yayoi, Tokyo, Japan. The total number of editions made was 300.

Shitakiri (The Tongue Cut Sparrow) is the story of an elderly Japanese couple. The man was a kind-hearted person while the woman always complained, using her tongue to voice negative thoughts. The man was frustrated by this and kept a pet sparrow to bring himself peace. The woman despised the sparrow as she thought it was dirty. After the sparrow ate some of the woman’s starch, she cut out it’s tongue and drove the sparrow away. When the man returned home, he was flustered and upset because the sparrow was missing. Following and argument, the woman showed the man the bird’s tongue and admitted to driving it away. The following day the man searched for the sparrow. When he found it, the sparrow showed him to a beautiful home where the man could now live.