The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi
CHAPTER XVII: Pinocchio Will Not Take His Medicine
In 1883 Carlo Collodi wrote the novel The Adventures of
Pinocchio. It’s the story of a woodcarver named Geppetto
who makes a wooden puppet. The puppet, who Geppetto
names Pinocchio, is very naughty and gets into trouble all
the time. In the passage below Pinocchio has been given coins that he is suppose to take to Geppetto. Before he can get
home, he has an adventure where he is injured. The Fairy with the Turquoise Hair has rescued him and has made
him take medicine to get well.
“And the four pieces—where have you put them?”
asked the Fairy.
“I have lost them!” said Pinocchio, but he was telling a
lie, for he had them in his pocket.
He had scarcely told the lie
when his nose, which was
already long, grew at once
two inches longer.
“And where did you lose
them?”
“In the wood near here.”
At this second lie his nose
went on growing.
“If you have lost them in
the wood near here,” said
the Fairy, “we will look
for them and we shall find
them: because everything
that is lost in that wood is
always found.”
“Ah! now I remember all
about it,” replied the puppet, getting quite confused; “I
didn’t lose the four gold pieces, I swallowed them whilst
I was drinking your medicine.”
At this lie his nose grew to such an extraordinary length
that poor Pinocchio could not move in any direction. If he turned to one side he struck his nose against the
bed or the window-panes, if he turned to the other he
struck it against the walls or the door, if he raised his
head a little he ran the risk of sticking it into one of the
Fairy’s eyes.
And the Fairy looked at him
and laughed.
“What are you laughing
at?” asked the puppet, very
confused and anxious at
finding his nose growing so
prodigiously.
“I am laughing at the lie you
have told.”
“And how can you possibly
know that I have told a lie?”
“Lies, my dear boy, are found
out immediately, because
they are of two sorts. There
are lies that have short legs,
and lies that have long noses.
Your lie, as it happens, is one
of those that have a long nose.”
Pinocchio, not knowing where to hide himself for
shame, tried to run out of the room; but he did not
succeed, for his nose had increased so much that it
could no longer pass through the door.