The Frog King

Most of us at one time or another have heard the story of the Princess and the Frog. The details of the story we hear may change, but the core is always the same. Princess kisses a frog, (usually begrudgingly) and he turns into a handsome prince, and they all live happily ever after. 
              When reading the Frog King, this was the story I was expecting. However, like many of the Fairy Tales I loved as a child, the actual story was much different. And the meaning of it I find strangely warming in this time of unrest in America. 
                We start with a little princess who is playing with a gold ball at a pond. The ball falls into the gross water, and she becomes upset. However, a frog offers to get the ball for her at a price. He does not want her gold or jewels; he only wants to be with her forever. The Princess agrees, however when she is given back her ball her runs away, not keeping her end of the deal. 
 Later that night at dinner the Frog knocks, and the king hearing what the princess promised forces her to keep the promise. The frog then demands that he eat next to her, and be carried to her room. It is there, in her room, after he asks to sleep next to her, that in her anger she throws the frog against the wall. As he hits the ground, he becomes a handsome prince. 
                The next morning, the prince’s faithful servant, having heard he was human (again), arrives to take the two off to be married and live in the prices kingdom. As they go, the servant is overjoyed that his prince is back.
 This, of course, is a very short synopsis of the story. As I read about it and learned more, I was stuck with how timely it is. Most scholars agree that the story is about the awakening of sexuality and maturity. The girl at first is innocent, playing with a ball.  She makes a promise, and then (because frogs are gross) does not want to be near him.[1] To most this represents as an allegory the coming of age when boys and girls go from having cooties, to being desired. They know there is a difference but not sure what yet.
 The king, however, forces the princess to keep her promise, and it is when the thought of being intimate (sleeping with the frog on her pillow) that she gets upset and standing her ground gets rid of the frog.[2] This gives the idea that women are not objects to be bossed around and owned by men (or frogs). It is at this point that the frog is no longer gross but in fact a handsome man, showing the acceptance of womanhood.[3] 
                This is all great stuff! But I would like to point out three things (that to most scholars may not be the intended meaning of the story, but to me are very much relevant truths).

Your Word has great Power
                At the start of the story, the Princess is very selfish and, in all honesty, immature. She makes a promise to someone who is offering to help her. However, she did not thoroughly think over what she was saying. The frog was asking for a lifetime commitment; the girl was simply concerned about getting her ball back.
                Our words and promises have great power. Often we may say something in passing and not understand the full impact that it is going to have on those around us, or even to ourselves. I have often said things then not followed through, or even worse, said things and then regretted later that day that I said them. Words impact the way people see us and interact with us. Too often we treat words will little respect, much like the princess did. Saying whatever we feel, when we feel it, and not realizing the impact we may have. Social Media is an amazing way to connect and grow in relationships, yet our words matter and the ease of which we can express ourselves in the virtual world does not change the fact that words demand our reverence. 

Some things are out of our Control
                The princess made a foolish choice in the promise she made. However, in the story, there were many things out of her control: the ball going in the pond, the frog showing up at her home, her father telling her she had to keep her promise, the frog wanting to eat and sleep with her (she had no control over his wishes). However, while things may be out of our control, how we respond is very much within our control.
                As a daughter, the princess chooses to trust and obeys her father. The princess also decides to stands up for herself, when the frog threatens to tell her father to get his way. In perhaps the darkest moment of the fairy tale, she chooses to throw the frog. She has already agreed to allow the frog to live with her, and while she does not enjoy it or want to spend a lot of time with him, when he threatens her she stands up for herself.  
                 We are always in control of how we respond, even when the situation is out of our control. The princess while not understanding the promise she made, obeys the wisdom and authority of her father, (most likely out of respect). She also chooses not the be pushed around by the frog, who uses her respect to try and get his way. Life will throw at us things we do not enjoy. Situations that we cannot avoid. However how we respond to those situations, is always in our control. We must remember that because it is not the situation that will be judged, but how we responded to the situation. 
             Respond positively, and you will be remembered as a person of Character, who is strong, good willed, and growing. Respond negatively, and you could be viewed as bitter, whiny, weak of character, or worse of these a hypocrite to not be trusted.

Character is a powerful thing
             This is perhaps the number one thing that stood out to me. The character of the frog. He is kind to the Princess from the start, offering to help her. Afterwards, when he arrives at her home he does not scold her, he only asks for her to keep her promise. There is only one moment in which he does not shine, and that is when he threatens to tell her father. (I will make a person note here that this is one moment in many. And like in life we often have one wrong moment is a series of good.) The greatest thing that speaks of his character though is his servant. Who is over joyed to see him again.
    You don’t become overjoyed for nothing. You become overjoyed when something great has happened, and when you become overjoyed for a person, it is because that person is great. If we learn nothing else from this story, we learn that our Character greatly impacts people. The Frog Kings’ Character was so great, and kind that his servant came first thing in the morning to see his long missing master.
        His character is such that the princess gets her ball back. It is such that she is willing to leave and live with him forever.
Our Character much like our words changes one's Character. However, we see it in the princess. She changes from being selfish to following and obeying her promise, to willfully wanting to be with the king. Her character changed by the actions she took. 
          Again, granted, this story is about the awakening of sexual desire. However, I think the truth of our words having power, how we are reacting to things out of our control, and Character, are also very active elements here. And ones that in all times we should ask our self, what type of person am I being? And what is the impact that is having on people around me? Perhaps if we looked in the pound would we see a Frog of noble and loving Character, or a princess who is spoiled and immature in need of growth?


[1] Christine Natale, “The Frog King, or the Frog Prince,” The Wonder of Childhood, http://thewonderofchildhood.com/2011/... (accessed 1/20/2017).

[2]JulieDanielson,“Annotations,” Blane, http://blaine.org/jules/annotations.html (accessed 1/20/2017).

[3] The Wonder of Childhood.