The Six Swans

Guys, can you hurry up? I'm burning, here.

Today, we're meandering back toward the known path with this story. The Six Swans is a fairy tale that has a female protagonist who does more than look pretty. There are several stories like this in the world's folktales, thank goodness. Go ahead and read this story here.

As usual, we do have the moral that if you look pretty, things will turn out well for you. It was because the princess looked so nice that the king in that land took her away to marry her. It is interesting to note that we are not told how she feels about this marriage until nearly the end of the story when she calls the king "dearest husband", and we just have to take it on faith that she means this genuinely. She also has three children and she didn't die in childbirth, so it's a win all around.

However, let's look at the other side of this. This princess got what she needed through hard work. She was too afraid to tell her father that her stepmother had bewitched her brothers, but she went after them. On her own. Once they tell her the way to set them free, she gets to work right away. This is a princess. She could have come home and gotten someone else to do it, or gotten the king to make her stepmother do it as punishment for transforming the boys in the first place. She takes personal responsibility for this quest and starts making shirts out of flowers. She's got six years to do this, which makes me wonder how well preserved the flowers would be, but I assume part of the spell keeps them in good enough shape to make a garment. She is dedicated enough not to speak, even when her mother-in-law accuses her of eating her own children. I'm impressed by our protagonist's dedication, but also very confused by the mother-in-law. How did she decide on cannibalism, of all things, as the way to defame her daughter-in-law?

In the end, we learn one overwhelming truth: don't give strangers your necklace, or they'll want everything else you have too.

Have a story you want me to talk about? Leave me a comment below! It doesn't have to be a Grimm fairy tale. I'll be expanding to the folk tales of other cultures soon.