Billy Ray Blog #4

The fairy tales I am choosing to discuss and compare/contrast are the Frog King and the Pig King. The two tales are very similar, but they are also very different in their own ways. The main similarity between the two is the focus on the aspect of sex and violence. In the Pig King, the pig prince kills the first two sisters offered to him as a bride, which is where we see the violence in this tale. This is after the prince is in bed with the girls, so it is assumed that the pig wants the bride for his sexual needs too, which the girls are obviously disgusted by until we reach the third sister (who happily agrees to be with the prince). 
 
In the Frog King, sex and violence are seen again. This is when the frog tells the girl to put him in his bed. The girl is disgusted at the thought of “lying next to” the frog, so she throws him against the wall (a violent act) which turns him into a handsome prince. These two tales are different in a few ways. One, being that one tale (Pig King) is about a girl being nice enough to beneath the pig skin, which ends up benefiting her. While on the other hand, the other tale is about a girl who is at first repulsed by the thought of having to be with this animal, until she throws him against a wall which reveals his true form. 
 
I liked the Frog King tale more, because the woman fought back. In the first tale, we know that the first sister plans to kill the king in his sleep. I’m not saying this justifies the prince's actions of murdering her, but I am simply mentioning it to say she was going to fight back. However, in the Frog King, the girl throws him against the wall as soon as they get into her room. I like the revolt against the arranged marriages because I feel as though they’re very unfair. The girl does benefit from throwing the frog against the wall though, since the frog then becomes a prince.

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