Household Tales · Chapter
The Pink explained
A queen, childless, is promised a son with the power of wishing.
What happens
A queen, childless, is promised a son with the power of wishing. The son is born, but the cook steals him and frames the queen, who is imprisoned in a tower. The son grows up, discovers the truth, and with the help of a maiden, transforms the cook into a poodle. He returns home, reveals his identity, rescues his mother, and the cook is punished. The queen dies peacefully, the king dies of grief, and the son marries the maiden.
Themes in this chapter
Transformation and Redemption
The cook is transformed into a poodle as punishment, and the maiden is transformed into a pink flower for protection.
Virtue Rewarded and Vice Punished
The virtuous queen and maiden are ultimately rewarded, while the wicked cook is punished by being torn apart.
Promises and Their Consequences
The queen's wish for a child leads to both joy and tragedy, and the cook's betrayal leads to his downfall.
Characters to notice
- the young King
The queen's son, who possesses the power of wishing and eventually reveals the truth.
- the maiden
The girl wished for by the prince; she refuses to kill him and is later transformed into a pink flower.
- the servant
The old cook who steals the prince and frames the queen; he is transformed into a poodle and later executed.
- the Virgin Mary
Referenced as the angel who brings the prophecy of the son's birth.
- Unknown
The queen, who is imprisoned and later dies after being freed.
Key passages
“Then an angel from heaven came to her and said, 'Be at rest, thou shalt have a son with the power of wishing, so that whatsoever in the world he wishes for, that shall he have.'”
An angel tells the queen she will have a son who can wish for anything.
The prophecy sets the story in motion.
“Then the King's son wished for one, and she immediately stood before him, and was more beautiful than any painter could have painted her.”
The prince wishes for a beautiful companion, and a maiden appears instantly.
Demonstrates the power of wishing.
“Thou shalt become a black poodle and have a gold collar round thy neck, and shalt eat burning coals, till the flames burst forth from thy throat.”
The prince curses the cook to become a poodle that eats burning coals.
The cook's punishment is both magical and gruesome.