Big Mouse And Little Hare Microfiction by Janosch

“Big Mouse and Little Hare” is a very short story from a collection out of Germany in the early 1980s. Janosch (that’s a pen name) was an influential author in Germany, mainly for his prolific contribution to school journals. (Sometimes the ‘big name’ authors aren’t actually the most widely read. That was certainly the case in 1980s New Zealand when I was growing up.)

The point I’d like to make here is that even microfiction follows the seven steps of story.

big-mouse-and-little-hare janosch

STORY STRUCTURE OF BIG MOUSE, LITTLE HARE

SHORTCOMING

The hare is so weak and thin that he can’t attract a same-species mate.

DESIRE

He wants to get married.

OPPONENT

The illustration shows us that the opponent is the big fat mouse.

BIG STRUGGLE

‘he caught’

Off the page we have the scene where the small hare overcomes the big mouse.

ANAGNORISIS

The reader realises something along the lines of ‘Every Jack Has His Jill’ even if you have to think outside the box in your choice of mate.

NEW SITUATION

‘neither of them regretted their marriage in the least’

Home » Big Mouse And Little Hare Microfiction by Janosch
CONTEMPORARY FICTION SET IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND (2023)

On paper, things look fine. Sam Dennon recently inherited significant wealth from his uncle. As a respected architect, Sam spends his days thinking about the family needs and rich lives of his clients. But privately? Even his enduring love of amateur astronomy is on the wane. Sam has built a sustainable-architecture display home for himself but hasn’t yet moved into it, preferring to sleep in his cocoon of a campervan. Although they never announced it publicly, Sam’s wife and business partner ended their marriage years ago due to lack of intimacy, leaving Sam with the sense he is irreparably broken.

Now his beloved uncle has died. An intensifying fear manifests as health anxiety, with night terrors from a half-remembered early childhood event. To assuage the loneliness, Sam embarks on a Personal Happiness Project:

1. Get a pet dog

2. Find a friend. Just one. Not too intense.

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