The Word in Focus with Dr Larry Taylor

The Grimm Brothers’ version of Sleeping Beauty begins with these words:

In times past there lived a king and queen, who said to each other every day of their lives, “Would that we had a child!” and yet they had none. But it happened once that when the queen was bathing, there came a frog out of the water, and he squatted on the ground, and said to her: “Thy wish shall be fulfilled; before a year has gone by, thou shalt bring a daughter into the world.”

Although not explicitly stated, the implication is that this royal couple was childless because the queen was barren. She is bathing one day, apparently in a pond, when a frog rises and foretells the birth of their daughter. Why a frog? 

Frogs begin as a jellied mass of eggs in a pond. Their initial stage as tadpoles is aquatic, then they metamorphize into amphibians that can live on land as well as in water. They are amazing hoppers and swimmers. Frogs help control the insect population. As tadpoles, they eat algae, helping control algal contamination. As frogs, they are an important food source for a variety of birds, animals, and fish. Frogs are important indicators of the health of the ecosystem. 

In the Hebrew Bible, frogs are among the non-kosher unclean animals. A massive plague of them was one of the judgments called forth by Moses against Pharoah. 

Another frog meets another princess in The Frog Prince. In the Grimm Brothers’ version, the spoiled princess throws the frog against a wall and the prince is released from his spell. In older versions, the frog sleeps on her pillow and is transformed in the morning. And, in modern versions, she kisses it.

In ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, frogs symbolized fertility. In classical antiquity, frogs were associated with fertility, harmony, and licentiousness. Indo-European mythology links frogs with disease, death, and the underworld.

Frogs – blessings, beneficial, curses, cursed, unclean, forbidden, delicacies, up from below, capable of total transformation from one kind of creature into another, too often unloved or even despised, hidden princes, prophets. Frogs may symbolize evil spells or spiritual transformation. 

The frog in Sleeping Beauty is helpful. It brings a joyous prophecy to a queen and king who desperately want a child. And the daughter they get is endowed with every imaginable good gift – kindness, understanding, gentleness, insight, intelligence, beauty, and so on. Here, the frog seems to represent divine foreknowledge. It arises from the cleansing baptismal waters with tidings of joy, much like the angel to the shepherds in the Christmas story. Perhaps it also brings healing to the queen so she can conceive, or perhaps that comes from the magical waters.

The tale continues. The baby is born. The king and queen put on a great banquet and invite 12 of the 13 wise women in the kingdom. They leave one out because they only have 12 golden plates. Everything apparently has to be harmonious and ordered. The first eleven wise women bestow magical gifts on the baby, then the one who was not invited shows up and pronounces that she’ll die on her 15^th birthday. The last wise woman softens the curse by saying she won’t die; she’ll just sleep for 100 years. 

Twelve, not thirteen, wise women are invited to the feast. Twelve apostles, twelve tribes of Israel, twelve foundations in New Jerusalem. Twelve – a nice even number. They fit nicely around the table. It’s balanced. But someone is left out, and is jealous. Why not get another plate and invite them all? How’d they decide which one to leave out? Havoc comes to their entire kingdom because of their inhospitality. In contrast, Jesus welcomes all who labor and are heavy laden; the gates of New Jerusalem never close; the mystery of the gospel is that all are welcome. In ancient Neareastern culture, hospitality is essential. 

This king is the original snowplow parent. He tries to clear every obstacle so his precious daughter encounters no difficulties in life. The prophecy said she’d prick her finger on a spindle at age 15, so the king orders every spindle burned. Now that seems rather stupid. How are people supposed to spin yarn, make cloth, clothe themselves?

Another dumb move – when Rosamond (that’s her name) turns 15, rather than being nearby to protect her, the king and queen are on a trip somewhere. Rosamond explores the castle, climbs a high tower, and discovers an old woman spinning. Rosamond touches the spindle, pricks her finger (not sure how you do that on a spindle), and she and the entire kingdom fall into a state of suspended animation. The fire stops cooking; all the pigeons, horses, and dogs fall asleep. Oh, by the way, the king and queen got back just in time to fall asleep on their thrones. Gradually, the castle is overgrown with thick briars until you can’t tell it was ever there. A number of hapless princes try to fight through the briars, get stuck and die.

One hundred years pass. Another prince shows up, hears a story about the overgrown castle, and decides to give it a try. As he approaches, the briars turn into flowers and open wide for him. He finds Rosamond, gives her a kiss and everybody and everything wakes up. And, of course, he and Rosamond marry and live happily ever after.

Except for the frog and the wise women, no one in this tale has control over much of anything. Fate just happens to them. 

There are few men in the story – the king, the princes, an old guy talking to the last prince – that’s about it. The story is filled with women – queen, Rosamond, 13 wise women, an old woman spinning. 

Is the castle covered with briars symbolic of the queen’s infertility? Do the briars transforming into flowers and opening up for the prince symbolize sexuality? 

We have images of death – infertility, the curse of the 13^th wise woman, 100 years of suspended animation, thorns covering the castle, would be suiters impaled.

But we also have images of rebirth, new life, transformation – a prophesying frog, the birth of Rosamond, the blessings of 12 wise women, Rosamond’s 15^th year, her quinceañera, her entrance into womanhood, an old woman creating thread, briars suddenly becoming flowers and opening wide, a gentleman’s kiss, Rosamond’s marriage, the curse overcome, images of springtime and joy.

What is the fairy tale trying to tell us? That the fates will eventually bring about happiness? That we have no control over our destinies (unless you’re a prince who happens to show up at the right time)? That you can’t protect your kids from life? Invite everyone to dinner? Buy enough place settings? Bathe in ponds? Listen to frogs?  

What makes art really art (and fairy tales are art) is that it holds as many interpretations as there are patrons. Take a hundred people and expose them to the same paintings, poems, symphonies, operas, or literature, and, if it is really good art, there will be nearly 100 impressions. 

So, what does Sleeping Beauty mean to you? 

No one knows where the tale originated. A version dating to the Middle Ages has been uncovered, but it also hints at being pre-Christian. There’s no christening of the baby, no mention of clergy or church or God. Everything seems directed by fate. There’s little of free will in it. 

It’s also dominated by powerful wise women. 

Twelve is a significant number in fairy tales and apocalyptic literature. 

It is filled with sexual images (which is why Freudians love it) – closed off briars opening up as scented flowers; Rosamond bleeds on her 15^th birthday; her mom, the queen is bathing naked when the frog shows up. 

It’s filled with how not to be a parent – burn all the spindles, then take a trip on your daughter’s quinceañerawhen her death was prophesied to occur.

When I project my Christocentric religiophilosophical worldview onto the tale, it speaks to me of new life – a metamorphized egg/tadpole/frog offers a prophecy, an infertile couple has a daughter, 11 out of 13 wise women give her depth of character, on old woman spins thread (a creative act), briars become flowers, a kingdom of death is filled with love and life.

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If you’d like to read the tale for yourself, here it is:

Sleeping Beauty (Little Briar Rose)

A fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm

In times past there lived a king and queen, who said to each other every day of their lives, “Would that we had a child!” and yet they had none. But it happened once that when the queen was bathing, there came a frog out of the water, and he squatted on the ground, and said to her: “Thy wish shall be fulfilled; before a year has gone by, thou shalt bring a daughter into the world.”

And as the frog foretold, so it happened; and the queen bore a daughter so beautiful that the king could not contain himself for joy, and he ordained a great feast. Not only did he bid to it his relations, friends, and acquaintances, but also the wise women, that they might be kind and favourable to the child. There were thirteen of them in his kingdom, but as he had only provided twelve golden plates for them to eat from, one of them had to be left out.

However, the feast was celebrated with all splendour; and as it drew to an end, the wise women stood forward to present to the child their wonderful gifts: one bestowed virtue, one beauty, a third riches, and so on, whatever there is in the world to wish for. And when eleven of them had said their say, in came the uninvited thirteenth, burning to revenge herself, and without greeting or respect, she cried with a loud voice: “In the fifteenth year of her age the princess shall prick herself with a spindle and shall fall down dead.” And without speaking one more word she turned away and left the hall. Every one was terrified at her saying, when the twelfth came forward, for she had not yet bestowed her gift, and though she could not do away with the evil prophecy, yet she could soften it, so she said: “The princess shall not die, but fall into a deep sleep for a hundred years.”

Now the king, being desirous of saving his child even from this misfortune, gave commandment that all the spindles in his kingdom should be burnt up. The maiden grew up, adorned with all the gifts of the wise women; and she was so lovely, modest, sweet, and kind and clever, that no one who saw her could help loving her. It happened one day, she being already fifteen years old, that the king and queen rode abroad, and the maiden was left behind alone in the castle. She wandered about into all the nooks and corners, and into all the chambers and parlours, as the fancy took her, till at last she came to an old tower. She climbed the narrow winding stair which led to a little door, with a rusty key sticking out of the lock; she turned the key, and the door opened, and there in the little room sat an old woman with a spindle, diligently spinning her flax.

“Good day, mother,” said the princess, “what are you doing?” – “I am spinning,” answered the old woman, nodding her head. “What thing is that that twists round so briskly?” asked the maiden, and taking the spindle into her hand she began to spin; but no sooner had she touched it than the evil prophecy was fulfilled, and she pricked her finger with it. In that very moment she fell back upon the bed that stood there, and lay in a deep sleep.

And this sleep fell upon the whole castle; the king and queen, who had returned and were in the great hall, fell fast asleep, and with them the whole court. The horses in their stalls, the dogs in the yard, the pigeons on the roof, the flies on the wall, the very fire that flickered on the hearth, became still, and slept like the rest; and the meat on the spit ceased roasting, and the cook, who was going to pull the scullion’s hair for some mistake he had made, let him go, and went to sleep. And the wind ceased, and not a leaf fell from the trees about the castle. Then round about that place there grew a hedge of thorns thicker every year, until at last the whole castle was hidden from view, and nothing of it could be seen but the vane on the roof.

And a rumour went abroad in all that country of the beautiful sleeping Rosamond, for so was the princess called; and from time to time many kings’ sons came and tried to force their way through the hedge; but it was impossible for them to do so, for the thorns held fast together like strong hands, and the young men were caught by them, and not being able to get free, there died a lamentable death.

Many a long year afterwards there came a king’s son into that country, and heard an old man tell how there should be a castle standing behind the hedge of thorns, and that there a beautiful enchanted princess named Rosamond had slept for a hundred years, and with her the king and queen, and the whole court. The old man had been told by his grandfather that many king’s sons had sought to pass the thorn-hedge, but had been caught and pierced by the thorns, and had died a miserable death. Then said the young man: “Nevertheless, I do not fear to try; I shall win through and see the lovely Rosamond.” The good old man tried to dissuade him, but he would not listen to his words. For now the hundred years were at an end, and the day had come when Rosamond should be awakened. When the prince drew near the hedge of thorns, it was changed into a hedge of beautiful large flowers, which parted and bent aside to let him pass, and then closed behind him in a thick hedge. When he reached the castle-yard, he saw the horses and brindled hunting-dogs lying asleep, and on the roof the pigeons were sitting with their heads under their wings. And when he came indoors, the flies on the wall were asleep, the cook in the kitchen had his hand uplifted to strike the scullion, and the kitchen-maid had the black fowl on her lap ready to pluck.

Then he mounted higher, and saw in the hall the whole court lying asleep, and above them, on their thrones, slept the king and the queen. And still he went farther, and all was so quiet that he could hear his own breathing; and at last he came to the tower, and went up the winding stair, and opened the door of the little room where Rosamond lay. And when he saw her looking so lovely in her sleep, he could not turn away his eyes; and presently he stooped and kissed her.

And she awaked, and opened her eyes, and looked very kindly on him. And she rose, and they went forth together, and the king and the queen and whole court waked up, and gazed on each other with great eyes of wonderment. And the horses in the yard got up and shook themselves, the hounds sprang up and wagged their tails, the pigeons on the roof drew their heads from under their wings, looked round, and flew into the field, the flies on the wall crept on a little farther, the kitchen fire leapt up and blazed, and cooked the meat, the joint on the spit began to roast, the cook gave the scullion such a box on the ear that he roared out, and the maid went on plucking the fowl.

Then the wedding of the Prince and Rosamond was held with all splendour, and they lived very happily together until their lives’ end.