A widower living alone notices his home is mysteriously maintained during his hunting trips. Curious, he discovers a fox entering his house, only to find it transform into a beautiful woman. They marry and live happily until a dispute over the lingering smell of fox causes her to don her fox skin and vanish, leaving him alone once more.
Source:
The Labrador Eskimo
by E.W. Hawkes
[Canada, Department of Mines]
Geological Survey, Memoir 91
Anthropological Series no. 14
Ottawa, 1916
► Themes of the story
Supernatural Beings: The tale features a fox that transforms into a human woman, highlighting interactions with supernatural entities.
Transformation: Central to the narrative is the fox’s ability to change form, symbolizing themes of physical transformation and the fluidity between animal and human realms.
Love and Betrayal: The relationship between the man and the fox-woman evolves into marriage, but ultimately ends in separation due to a misunderstanding, underscoring themes of love and the fragility of trust.
► From the same Region or People
Learn more about Inuit peoples
Once there was a man who had lost his wife and who lived all alone. But every day, when he returned from hunting, he found that everything was in order as his wife would have done. There were no signs of anyone in the house, nor tracks outside. He could not understand it, and decided to find out who was taking care of the house. So, one day, instead of going to hunt, he hid himself a little way from the entrance, where he could observe if anyone went in. Finally he saw a fox enter. He thought that the fox was after his meat, so followed it into the house. What was his surprise to find, on entering, a beautiful woman dressed in skins. On the rack above the lamp hung the skin of a fox. He asked her to marry him, and she became his wife.
► Continue reading…
They lived together for a long time happily, until one day the husband detected a strong odour in the house. He asked her where the smell came from. She replied that it was the odour of the fox, and if he was going to scold her, she would run away. She slipped on the fox-skin and was gone in a moment. The man never saw her again.
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Dreamtime Whispers 