A brief summary of the rattrap

THE RATTRAP

Selma Lagerlöf

A philosophical rattrap seller

Once there was a man who made rattraps of wire and went around selling them. However, occasionally he had to turn to begging and stealing. He looked at the world with vengeance for being unkind to him. He entertained himself with the idea of the world being nothing but a big rattrap where the riches act as baits to lure and trap people for life.

Crofters thirty kronor bills stolen

One evening the rattrap peddler took shelter in an old mans cottage, who had been a crofter at Ramsjö Ironworks. The amiable and generous man offered him dinner and tobacco. He even showed him the thirty kronor bills, earned by selling his cows milk, kept in a leather pouch that hung near the window. However, the next morning, the rattrap peddler stole the money and made his escape through the forest.

Caught in the big rattrap called world

But as he got lost in the woods, he realised that the thirty kronor bills had been a bait to trap him in the huge rattrap that the world is.

The Ramsjö Ironworks the ironmaster

Nevertheless, he kept walking. Attracted by a regular thumping, he reached the Ramsjö Ironworks, where the blacksmith allowed him to spend the night. Soon, the owner of the mill arrived for a nightly inspection. The ironmaster mistook the peddler for an old acquaintance, Nils Olof (Captain von Stahle). The rattrap seller thought of taking advantage of the opportunity but soon decided against it when he was invited to his home as he feared the discovery of the stolen money.

But the unsuspecting ironmaster wasnt willing to leave the matter. He informed the rattrap peddler how, after the death of his wife and departure of his sons, he was left only in the company of his oldest daughter and that he wished to have company for Christmas. When he had failed to persuade the rattrap peddler, he sent his daughter to bring him home.

The invitation

Edla Willmansson, the shy and modest daughter of the ironmaster, came to persuade the peddler to come to their home for Christmas. By his frightened look, she guessed that the peddler had either stolen something or has escaped prison. So she hinted an assurance that he would be free to leave whenever he wanted. Reassured, he accepted the invitation. However, the idea of being trapped did not leave him. On the way to the manor, he regretted stealing the money from the crofter and once again considered himself caught in the trap.

The change of events for the peddler

The following morning, on Christmas Eve, the ironmaster and his daughter discussed how to help the peddler. The ironmaster planned to help him regain his health and also to assist him in finding a vocation for himself. The peddler was bathed, saved and given a hair-cut. However, when the peddler - in clean suit and shoes - presented himself to his host, the ironmaster was shocked to realise his mistake. He demanded an explanation from the peddler and threatened to hand him over to the sheriff.

Suddenly, the rattrap peddler put forward his idea of the world being a rattrap and that one day even the ironmaster may become caught in it. The ironmaster laughed it off and ordered the rattrap peddler to leave at the earliest.

Edlas intervention

However, before he could actually leave, the daughter intervened. She had been in high spirits that morning thinking of the ways in which she could help the peddler. However, not wanting to express her own feelings, she beseeched her father on the behalf of the rattrap peddler to enjoy just one day at their place. The father finally gave in to his daughters request, hoping that they would not regret the decision later on.

Throughout the day, the rattrap peddler did not utter a word. He merely ate and slept. He had to be woken up for even meals. At the end of the day, when he was told by Edla that he was welcome to return on the next Christmas Eve, he was flabbergasted.

Theft of thirty kronor bills revealed

Next morning, in the church, the ironmaster and Edla were shocked to find that a certain rattrap seller had robbed one of their old crofters. As they returned, the father wondered what all the rattrap peddler would have robbed them of. The daughter, however, felt dejected.

On returning home, they were informed, by the valet, that the man had left empty handed. On the contrary, he had left a package, as a Christmas present, for Edla.

A Christmas gift for Edla

The peddler left a package containing a small rattrap with the three ten kronor bills that he had stolen from the crofter. Along with that he left a letter thanking Edla for her generosity and asking her to return the bills to the crofter. He wrote, The rattrap is a Christmas present from a rat who would have been caught in this worlds rattrap if he had not been raised to captain, because in that way he got power to clear himself. It was signed as Caption von Stahle

FULL SUMMARY OF THE RATTRAP

“The Rat Trap” written by Selma Lagerlof is a short story about an old disheartened beggar and thief who is taken in and shown generosity by a young woman, her kindness changes his bitter attitude about life.

There was a poor man who sold rat-traps and earned his livelihood. His income from the traps was not enough. So he also begged and stole petty things at times. He was not a born thief as no man is. Necessity compelled him in the petty thieving. He used to sleep at night in the houses of people if someone allowed him or some places like factories like Ramsjo Iron-Works. Once an idea struck him that the world is like a rat-trap full of temptations to trap men. If a man is tempted by the baits of wealth, power, etc. he is trapped like a rat in a rat trap. The man selling rat-traps lived a poor life without enough food or shelter. So he looked upon the world in the light of his own sufferings. Once he took shelter in the house of a man who was the crofter in Ramsjo Iron-Works. The man was lonely without any family. He welcomed the rat-trap man as he would get rid of his loneliness at least for a night.

The crofter told him about his life and showed him the thirty kronor that the crofter had kept near the window. Initially he was happy to get the money but very soon the rat trap began to work. He feared detection and avoided the highway. He walked through the forest and lost his way there. He then saw the forge of the Ramsjo Iron-Works and went there to spend the night near the forge. At that time, the iron-master, the owner of the factory, came in. The iron-master by mistake thought him to be his old friend, Nils Olof, with whom he had served in the regiment. To help his friend fallen on bad days, he invited the peddler to his house. The rat-trap man or peddler realized that the iron-master was making a mistake but he did not correct him in the hope that he might help him a little.

But he did not like to go into his house as he feared that he might be exposed and detected. But the kind-hearted daughter of the iron-master Edla Willmansson was too compassionate and loving to be resisted. She suspected even that the man might have committed some crime. But she ignored that and thought that the man, always haunted by fear and security, must have lived a miserable life. She wanted to give him at least a night’s peace and security. She assured the peddler that in her house, he would be safe from ant interference and he would be free to leave anytime. She persuaded him to be her guest on the Christmas Eve. The genuine compassion of Edla gave the man a sense of peace and security. He slept all the while as if he wanted to make up for the sleepless nights he had spent throughout his life.

He ate the Christmas delicacies. The daughter gave him the suit that he was given to wear and she invited him to the next Christmas and assured him of secrecy and security. The rat-trap man was overwhelmed. The next morning, he left the manor house. But before leaving, he left the packet containing the thirty kronor of the crofter. He wrote a letter to Edla asking her to return the money to the crofter. He wrote that she had treated him with respect as if he was a real captain. She had treated him as a man and not as a thief. That genuine regard had induced him to be a better man and giving up stealing. Thus, the genuine compassion and kindness of Edla changed the life of a thief and turned him to a better man.

FULL SUMMARY

“The Rat Trap” written by Selma Lagerlof is a short story about an old disheartened beggar and thief who is taken in and shown generosity by a young woman, her kindness changes his bitter attitude about life.

There was a poor man who sold rat-traps and earned his livelihood. His income from the traps was not enough. So he also begged and stole petty things at times. He was not a born thief as no man is. Necessity compelled him in the petty thieving. He used to sleep at night in the houses of people if someone allowed him or some places like factories like Ramsjo Iron-Works. Once an idea struck him that the world is like a rat-trap full of temptations to trap men. If a man is tempted by the baits of wealth, power, etc. he is trapped like a rat in a rat trap. The man selling rat-traps lived a poor life without enough food or shelter. So he looked upon the world in the light of his own sufferings. Once he took shelter in the house of a man who was the crofter in Ramsjo Iron-Works. The man was lonely without any family. He welcomed the rat-trap man as he would get rid of his loneliness at least for a night.

The crofter told him about his life and showed him the thirty kronor that the crofter had kept near the window. Initially he was happy to get the money but very soon the rat trap began to work. He feared detection and avoided the highway. He walked through the forest and lost his way there. He then saw the forge of the Ramsjo Iron-Works and went there to spend the night near the forge. At that time, the iron-master, the owner of the factory, came in. The iron-master by mistake thought him to be his old friend, Nils Olof, with whom he had served in the regiment. To help his friend fallen on bad days, he invited the peddler to his house. The rat-trap man or peddler realized that the iron-master was making a mistake but he did not correct him in the hope that he might help him a little.

But he did not like to go into his house as he feared that he might be exposed and detected. But the kind-hearted daughter of the iron-master Edla Willmansson was too compassionate and loving to be resisted. She suspected even that the man might have committed some crime. But she ignored that and thought that the man, always haunted by fear and security, must have lived a miserable life. She wanted to give him at least a night’s peace and security. She assured the peddler that in her house, he would be safe from ant interference and he would be free to leave anytime. She persuaded him to be her guest on the Christmas Eve. The genuine compassion of Edla gave the man a sense of peace and security. He slept all the while as if he wanted to make up for the sleepless nights he had spent throughout his life.

He ate the Christmas delicacies. The daughter gave him the suit that he was given to wear and she invited him to the next Christmas and assured him of secrecy and security. The rat-trap man was overwhelmed. The next morning, he left the manor house. But before leaving, he left the packet containing the thirty kronor of the crofter. He wrote a letter to Edla asking her to return the money to the crofter. He wrote that she had treated him with respect as if he was a real captain. She had treated him as a man and not as a thief. That genuine regard had induced him to be a better man and giving up stealing. Thus, the genuine compassion and kindness of Edla changed the life of a thief and turned him to a better man.

A rattrap peddler went around selling small rattraps. His clothes were in rags. His cheeks were hollow. He had the look of a starved man. He made wire traps. He begged the material from stores and big farms. Sometimes he resorted to begging and a little stealing to survive. The world had never been kind to him. He had no home, no shelter.

The peddler led a lonely life. One day while he was thinking about his rattraps, an idea struck him. He thought that the world itself was a rattrap. As soon as anybody touched it, the trap closed on them. He was amused to think of some people who were already trapped, and some others who were trying to reach the bait in the trap. It was a cold evening in December. He reached a cottage on the roadside. He knocked at the door and asked for a night’s shelter. The owner of the cottage was a lonely old crofter. He wanted someone to talk to. He welcomed the peddler. He gave the peddler hot porridge to eat, and tobacco to smoke. Then they played cards. The crofter was generous as well as trustful. He told the peddler that he had a cow and sold her milk to a creamery. He also told him that he received thirty kronor as payment the previous month. Then he took down a pouch and showed him the money. Then he put the money back in the pouch and hung it on a nail in the window frame.

After a while he heard regular thumping of a hammer’s strokes. He knew the sound was coming from Ramsjo Ironworks. He stood up and walked in the direction of the sound. He opened the gate of the ironworks and went into the forge. The owner came on his nightly rounds and noticed the ragged wretch near the furnace. The ironmaster looked intently at the peddler’s face. He felt sure that the peddler was one of his old regimental comrades, Captain von Stable who had fallen on evil days. He invited the peddler to go home with him for Christmas. But the peddler was alarmed. He thought it was risky for him to accept the offer. He firmly declined it. The ironmaster went home.The ironmaster sent his daughter Edla to persuade the peddler to come home. She spoke gently to him. The peddler felt confidence in her and agreed to go with her. On the way he was sorry to have stolen the crofter’s money that had put him in a trap.

The ironmaster was happy to have his old regimental comrade under his roof. He planned to feed him well and give him some respectable work. The servant cut the peddler’s hair, shaved him ad bathed him. The peddler appeared wearing one of the ironmaster’s fine suits. But when the ironmaster looked at him in daylight, he felt that he had made a mistake. The peddler was not captain von Stable. He thought that the man had deceived him. He even thought of handing him to the sheriff. The peddler said that he had not pretended to be what he was not. He had not been willing to go to the ironmaster’s house. Even then he was willing to put on his rags and leave. He also told the ironmaster that the world was a rattrap, and he himself might one day be tempted by a big bait and get caught in the trap. The ironmaster told him to leave at once. Edla did not like her father’s asking the poor peddler to leave. She thought it was unfair to turn away the man whom they had invited. She wanted to have the joy of entertaining a homeless wanderer on Christmas Eve. She stopped the peddler and her father agreed to it.

The Story Of the Rat Trap in the Farm House