👋 Intro

Hello and welcome to this episode of the podcast, "The Mnemonic Memory", where we add a single mnemonic leaf to our Tree of Knowledge.

I’m Jans, your Mnemonic Man, and today's episode will be on the seven dwarves, which are beloved characters from Disney’s 1937 animated classic, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was inspired by the Brothers Grimm fairy tale named Snow White, in their 1812 collection, which was later revised in 1854.

Each dwarf had a distinct personality that contributed to their group’s charm and comic appeal, while their names reflected their defining traits. The seven dwarfs names are as follows: Doc, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, Bashful, Sneezy, and Dopey.

Remarkably, Dopey is the only dwarf who never speaks during the entire movie.

The dwarfs live together in a cottage in the forest, where they work in a diamond mine.

Disruption comes to their orderly lifestyle when Snow White turns up at their house, having fled her jealous stepmother. They quickly grow fond of each other, and live in domestic harmony, until the Evil Queen makes several attempts on Snow Whites life, with a poisoned apple successful. She is believed to be dead until a dashing prince revives her with a kiss (in the original the apple was dislodged), which breaks the spell, and they live happily ever after.

Today’s mnemonic will be on the names of the seven dwarfs.

So, with that being said, we will begin with a summary from Wikipedia.

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Seven_Dwarfs_Disney.jpg
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📖 Wikipedia Summary

The Seven Dwarfs are fictional dwarfs in the 1812 fairy tale Snow White by the Brothers Grimm and other renditions and adaptations.[1]

The Seven Dwarfs live in a tiny cottage and work in the nearby mines. Snow White stumbles upon their house after being told by the Huntsman to flee from the Queen's kingdom.

The Seven Dwarfs return home and immediately notice someone has snuck in, because the house has been cleaned. During their loud discussion, they discover the sleeping Snow White. She wakes up and explains to them what happened.

The Dwarfs take pity on her, saying: "If you will keep house for us, and cook, make the beds, wash, sew, and knit, and keep everything clean and orderly, then you can stay with us, and you shall have everything that you want." They warn her to be careful when alone at home, and to not let anyone in while they are working in the mountains.

When the Queen disguised as an old peddler ties a colourful silk bodice onto Snow White, it causes her to faint. The Seven Dwarfs return just in time and Snow White is saved when the Dwarfs cut the lace.

The Queen comes once again, this time dressed as a comb seller. She gives Snow White a poisoned comb, but the Seven Dwarfs save her again.

The Queen then appears disguised as a farmer's wife and gives Snow White a poisoned apple. Snow White bites into it and falls to the ground, apparently dead. This time, the Seven Dwarfs are unable to revive the girl, because they cannot determine Snow White's physical state and, assuming that she is dead, place her in a glass coffin.

After some time, a Prince traveling through the land sees Snow White. He walks up to her coffin and, enchanted by her beauty, instantly falls in love with her. As the Prince transports her body back to his castle, her coffin is hit hard and a large piece of apple in her throat is released, thus reviving her. The prince then marries Snow White and they "live happily ever after."

Extracted from: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Dwarfs]

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SNOW_WHITE_DISNEY.jpg
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🧠 Memory Mnemonic

The Seven Dwarfs Memory Mnemonic – BiG DDiSSH

(Picture the seven dwarfs all on a big dish with Snow White looking down on them, wondering whether or not to eat them)

1. Bashful

2. Grumpy

3. Doc

4. Dopey

5. Sleepy

6. Sneezy

7. Happy

🔎 Five Fun Facts

1. Walt Disney himself, acted out all the roles in the story to help the animators. He also ensured that live animals were kept on set, to use as a live reference, again to assist the animators.

2. In excess of two million sketches were completed for the film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by 750 artists. This was culled to approximately 250,000 pictures for the movie. It took over two years for Disney’s team to finalize the dwarfs’ looks and movements and to ensure the individuality of each character.

3. The Song “Heigh-Ho” Became an instant classic. It is one of the most recognized Disney tunes ever written. The dwarfs sing this song as they march home from the mine in single file. While the tunes catchy line is “it’s home from work we go.” This is often misunderstood due to the “Mandela Effect” where people recall the line as “it’s off to work we go.”

4. The dwarfs’ names were not in the original fairy tale. In the Brother’s Grimm story, the dwarfs were nameless. Disney’s team came up with over 40 name ideas before settling on the famous seven. Some rejected names included Jumpy, Baldy, and Wheezy. For those who wanted to know who Walt Disney’s favourite dwarf was; well, that was grumpy, who had the most emotional depth despite his sour attitude.

5. Adriana Casalotti was the iconic voice for Snow White. She was a singer and actor and used her operatic vocal talent for the role. Unfortunately, she was later prevented by Walt Disney from getting other voice work to apparently preserve the illusion of the character. Though this is disputed, and she definitely did other work. While on other voices, Lucille La Verne was the voice of both the queen and the witch. She supposedly achieved her gravelly voice of the witch by removing her false teeth.

And we do have a bonus fact, and that fact is, many years after the original movie a play was made of “Snow White” however, this time there was only six dwarfs ……………………… No one was Happy!

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🎓 Three-Question Quiz

Q.1. Apart from Snow White, name another one of Walt Disney’s characters that made the Hollywood Walk of Fame?

Q.2. What decade was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs released?

Q.3. Was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs the first feature-length animated film in history? True or False

Bonus Q. Which dwarf wears glasses and is considered the leader of the group?

🧠 Memory Mnemonic Recap

The Seven Dwarfs Memory Mnemonic – BiG DDiSSH

(Picture the seven dwarfs all on a big dish with Snow White looking down on them, wondering whether or not to eat them)

1. Bashful

2. Grumpy

3. Doc

4. Dopey

5. Sleepy

6. Sneezy

7. Happy

🎓 Three-Question Quiz Answers

Q.1. Apart from Snow White, name another one of Walt Disney’s characters that made the Hollywood Walk of Fame?

A. Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Winnie the Pooh

Q.2. What decade was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs released?

A. 1930s (Dec.21,1937)

Q.3. Was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs the first feature-length animated film in history? True or False

A. True

Bonus Q. Which dwarf wears glasses and is considered the leader of the group?

A. Doc

🔤 Word of the Week

grubstake

[ gruhb-steyk ]

noun

money or other assistance furnished at a time of need or of starting an enterprise.

Example

Walt Disney’s grubstake for the production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs included mortgaging his own house.

Extracted from: [https://www.dictionary.com/]

💡 Memory Tip

For our memory tip today, we will be talking about the mnemonic of Mind Mapping.

Mind mapping is a visual memory technique that organizes information around a central idea using branches, colours, and images. It basically mirrors how the brain naturally makes associations, which helps to improve comprehension and recall.

To create a mind map, start with a main topic in the centre of a page, then draw branches for key themes or categories. By colour coding, using symbols, and drawing, you strengthen memory links and engage both sides of the brain.

Mind maps can be useful in summarizing complex subjects, rather than just reading linear notes.

An example of a mind map could be:

· Central Idea – Healthy living

· Main Branches

1. Exercise – walking & gym

2. Nutrition – protein & vegetables,

3. Sleep – 8 hours & bedtime routine

Add colours and images to enhance the visual aspect and thus recall. See you next week.

👉 Free Memory Mnemonics at:

https://www.themnemonictreepodcast.com

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts:

https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-mnemonic-tree-podcast/id1591795132