The Frog Prince by Paul Meyerheim The Pig King
"The Pig King" and "The Frog Prince, or Iron Heinrich" both have
specific animals as the creature of love interest, and both animals are ugly,
disgusting creatures. There is similarity between the first two daughters’
reactions to the pig and the princess’s reaction to the frog, as in they all
react with disgust. The third daughter in "The Pig King", however, is accepting
of her husband’s beastly appearance. This is the reason for the difference in
transformation of the beasts—whereas the love of the Pig King’s wife is
what frees him from his evil spell, it is only when the princess in "The Frog
Prince" hurls the frog against a wall is he turned back into a human. The Frog
Prince’s transformation is also different than the Pig King’s because his is instantaneous,
and leaves nothing behind. He’s thrown against a wall, turned into a handsome
prince, the end. The Pig King, however, changes back into his pig skin the
morning after he first sheds it. And so he continues for several days—sleeping as
a human each night, then becoming a pig again each morning, until the princess’s
parents burn his pig skin, thus completely releasing him from the spell.
I can’t decide which I story I like better. I find it funny
that the princess just throws the frog against a wall, and I find it even
funnier that this is what breaks the spell he’s under. But I enjoy the fact the
youngest daughter in "The Pig King" is completely fine with letting a muddy pig crawl
all over her and sleep in her bed. I guess because it goes against the idea that women must be prim and proper.
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