מס"ע

 

מרכז סיפורי עם ופולקלור

 

C. F. F

Center of Folktales and Folklore

 

back to main page

Back to folktale corner

The Folktale Corner

     The king's son and the magic ring

Once upon a time there was a king. This king had only one son. The king loved his son and constantly watched over him. He would not let him leave the palace, lest something happen to him, so the king's son spent all his childhood with his parents.

The days turned into months and the nonths became years. The boy grew up and as more he grew up, his curiosity to know what's outside the palace grew as well.

One day the boy heard sounds of turmoil and noise coming from the street below. He looked out of his window and saw two people loudly quarreling. The King's son was curious to know why they were fighting. He left the palace, went down into the street and walked toward the two quarreling people.

"Why are you fighting?" he asked them.

"I found a ring," replied one of them, "And this man tries to steal it from me!"

"An outright lie!" said the second, "I'm the one who found the ring!"

The king's son looked at the ring, wondering: "You are fighting for such a simple ring?"

"Oh no, this is not a simple ring. This is a magic ring. If you put the ring on a man's heart, he'll start to talk and reveal all the secrets he has in his heart!"

"If this is the case," said the king's son, "then people like you should not hold this ring. This ring should be mine! Give me the ring immediately before I throw you into jail!"

He showed them the royal seal he had in his possession` They were frightened and quickly gave him the ring and left.

After that day the desire to know the world outside the palace grew in the heart of the king's son. He began to wander the streets of the capital, met with ministers and judges, as well as with ordinary people, and acquired knowledge and experience.

When the king's son grew up, the king and queen decided that it was time for him to marry. They chose for him a daughter of a nobleman. A royal wedding was arranged to the young couple. When the ceremony was over and the wedding banquet ended, the bride and groom entered into the bridal room.

The king's son turned to his wife: "Listen my love: I must finish some royal letters. Lie down and go to sleep. I'll join you soon."

Did she have any choice? He is the king's son and he decides. The bride went to her bed. The time passes and the king's son does not arrive. Eventually she fell asleep.

Realizing that his wife is asleep, the king's son went to her silently and put the ring on her heart.

Suddenly the bride opened her mouth and began to speak: "What a bastard! We have just married, and he abandons me and deals with his business. Well, let him do what he pleases. I have enough lovers that will satisfy my desires..."

For the king's son it was enough. The next day he announced his parents that he was divorcing his wife.

"What? Why?" His mother asked him.

"I do not like her. She is not good enough for me!"

"My son," said the queen, "You put shame on the royal house!"

But the king's son insisted: "She is not a proper bride. I don't want her!"

All the requests and the pleas of the queen did not help. The king's son did not change his decision and the new bride had to leave the palace.

The queen was worried. She searched and found a new woman for her son and arranged another wedding. But again the king's son checked his wife's thoughts and what he heard was not pleasant to his ears. The next day he told his mother that he expelled this bride too.

 And as in stories, so it is in life too: there is always a third time. The queen found another bride for her son, but her fate was no different than that of the others. The queen gave up and stopped looking for new brides.

But the king's son kept looking for a suitable bride. One day during a trip across the country, the king's son arrived to a small village and there on one path he saw a beautiful girl. By her simple and humble costume he could tell that she is a simple peasant girl, but he noticed that she was keeping her body clean and she was meticoulus about her clothes. She left him the impression of a modest and well educated girl, and he felt that she pulled him with a magic power.

The king's son followed her until he discovered where she lived. He returned to his mother, the queen, and told her: "Mom, I finally found a girl that pleases my heart! She caught me by her magic and my soul is attracted to her. I pray you, go to her parents who are living in this and this village and ask them to marry her to me."

"Wait, wait," said the mother, "Do you know her? Do her parents belong to the aristocracy?"

"No. I saw her only for a short time. She is poor, but I'm in love with her. I decided that only she will be my wife."

"Listen my son," said the mother, "Three times we married you with noble and highborn girls, and you throw out each one of them a day after the wedding, and now you want to take a simple girl from the village? She is not for you. You put shame on us."

"Mom, you should know that if I don't get the girl, I'll expire and die from the agony of my longing for her!"

When she understood that her son is talking from the bottom of his heart and his suffering is very great, she decided once again to respond to his request. She wore her best clothes and accompanied by two women of the court she went to the village and came to the girl's house. She knocked on the door and the girl who was alone in the house opened the door. The queen saw that she lived in a small, but very neat and clean house.

When the girl realized who were the guests that came to her house she was very ashamed. There were no chairs on which she could even seat the guests, only the bed in her room.

The guests accepted her invitation, and at that moment the girl's mother arrived. She was a laundress and she came back from a hard day's work.

The girl came quickly to the door and whispered to her mother: "Mom, a very distinguished guest came to us! Hurry and change your working dress with your best dress before you go in to talk with them."

The mother accepted her daughter's advice. She washed her face, her hands and legs and put on her holiday clothes. Then she came into the room and exchanged words of greeting according to the custom. She served them for food and drink from the little she possessed, the queen told her: "We ask you to give your daughter as a bride for our prince. Would you agree to do it?"

"Give my daughter as a bride to your son?" wondered the woman, "I was happy if she would be a simple slave in the palace. You give me great honor. Happily and honorably I agree, and I'm sure that my daughter will please your son."

"Very good!" said the queen. She departed from the surprised mother and hurried to the palace to tell her son that the girl whom he chose would be his wife.

Shortly afterwards the girl was brought to the palace and a magnificent and lavish wedding was arranged.

After the banquet ended they went into the wedding room. The king's son turned to his wife: "Listen my love: I must finish some royal letters. Lie down and go to sleep. I'll join you soon."

"With love and respect," replied his wife, "Go and do your job, and I'll wait for you in bed."

The bride went to her bed. Time passed and the king's son did not arrive. Eventually the bride fell asleep.

Realizing that his wife was asleep, the king's son went to her and secretly put the ring on her heart.

Suddenly the bride opened her mouth and began to speak: "What happiness fell on me I'm so fortunate. I was lucky to marry so splendid a groom. The poor one, he has to deal with the kingdom affairs, even on his marriage day, but I will wait patiently until he has time and I'll give up my will for his will. I wish he will be always healthy and that God will bless all his deeds..."

 The king's son was very pleased to hear it. The next day his mother came to him and asked him anxiously: "Well son, do you like your bride?"

"I think I found the perfect bride, the soul of my heart," replied the king's son with a smile on his lips, "I'll wait some more days and then I'll finally decide."

During the next days the king's son checked once again the thoughts of his new wife using the ring, and what he heard pleased him ten times more.

"This is I the bride that God assigned me," he told his mother, "She and no one else. I will live with her the rest of my life, and she will be the queen next to my side when one day I ascend to the throne!"

Since then the king's son and his wife lived a life of happiness and joy. But nothing lasts forever. One night, the king's son came back to the palace very sad. He did not eat or drink and he frowned his face.

"What happened?" His wife asked him anxiously, "What troubles you?"

At first the king's son did not want to share his concerns, but after she pleaded more and more, he finally said: "There is a war in our realm. The enemy comes close and I must go to battle and lead the royal army. I'm so sorry to that I have to leave you alone in the palace."

"Don't be sorry," she said, "do your duty and with the help of the good Lord you will prevail the battle and come back in peace to me. I'll wait for you and pray for your return."

Next day the king's son left his wife and went to war. His wife was seized with sadness. Day after day she sat in the window overlooking the sea and looked into the distance waiting for the return of her beloved.

One day as she sat in the window and watched the waves, her eyes closed and she fell asleep.

At that very morning a boat came ashore with a prince from a distant land. As the boat approached the beach the prince took the binoculars and watched what was happening on the beach. Suddenly his eye caught the sight of the sleeping princess in the palace window. One glance at her face was enough to set the desire in his heart on fire He went ashore and asked who the beautiful girl was, that burned his heart.

Soon he found out that this girl was the young wife of a king's son who had gone to battle and had not yet returned. The prince walked through the city streets thinking of how he could approach her and win her favors. Apparently his thoughts found expression on his face. One of those brushas – wicked and ugly old witches that are found in every city and every state, paid attention to his fallen face and the sadness in his eyes and offered him her service: "Young man," she turned to him, "Why this pale face and what burden lies on your heart?"

"None of your business." he replied, "Leave me alone!" And to get rid of her he gave her a coin.

"I do not need handouts. I just want to help you. Tell me what weighs on your heart. Maybe I can help you."

After many entreaties, the prince shared the secrets of his heart: "I was caught in the fire of my passion for the princess in the palace and I do not know how to find a way to her heart nor how I can win her."

"If that's what's bothering you, remove anxiety from your heart. Give me three gold dinars, and I'll make sure that your desire will be satisfied."

The prince gave her the money, and the old brusha bought some expensive perfumes and scented soaps, bundled them in a nice bundle and then went to the palace and asked to see the face of the princess.

"Who are you?" asked the guards at the gate.

"I am a distant relative of the princess and I want to keep her company and ease her loneliness."

The guards let her in and the princess received her.

"I do not know you." said the surprised princess, "I had no idea of your existence."

"I'm your mother's relative," said the old woman, "but till now I had no chance to meet you because I live in a far away village. I heard you became a princess and now sivce I happened to be in the capital, it came to my mind to visit you and give you a small gift."

"I do not need gifts." Said the princess, I am surrounded by wealth. "

But the old woman begged her to accept the gift. The princess that was kind a person, did not want to offend her, and she received her gift.

The old woman said good-bye, but came back the next day and the day after and so on for some days.

One day while talking to her, the old woman turned to her and told her in smooth tongue: "It came to my ear that a handsome prince came to the city. He saw you and was captured by his love to you. You set the fire of love in his heart. This prince is much more than your husband in beauty and richness. He would do for you, anything, as long as you leave your husband and devote yourself to him. My advice to you is that you should accept his courtship. Your husband is on the battlefield and who knows if he will return safe and sound or, God save, fall on the battlefield. You may find yourself widowed at a young age and suffer loneliness for the rest of your life. Avail yourself of the opportunity that rolled at your door! "

The princess realized that she was one of those "mean old women", but she knew that because her husband was not there and there was no one to protect her, she must conduct her actions carefully and choose the way of cunning wisdom.

"Alright," she said to the old woman, "I'm ready to devote myself to him, but before I do it, I want him to prove his love to me by building a magnificent palace for me, near my palace. Near the palace he should plant a large garden surrounded by a high wall and in the garden center he should dug a water pool and fill it with rosewater. On the edge of the pool, all around, I ask him to plant golden carnations unparalleled in their beauty to those which are found in any other garden. And in order that people will not know about our relationship and begin gossiping, he should also carve a tunnel connecting my room with his room. The tunnel should begin at a hidden entrance in the closet in my room and seventy steps should lead away to his room in the palace. "

"I'm sure that the prince will answer all your requests." Said the old woman and hurried to say goodbye to the princess and to deliver the good news.

The prince did not wait even a minute. He hired contractors and workers to begin the work, and as the proverb says: "Kuando la kaza esta yena, presto se aze la sena, "In a house full and rich, soon will be prepared the dish" After a short time the palace was completed and stood standing. In the palace courtyard a garden was planted, with a pool that smelled of roses smell and on the edge of the pool all around there were spectacular golden carnations.

While the prince was occupied building the palace, the princess secluded herself in her room thinking about her husband and the many favors he awarded her. She had strong longing for him, and when the thought about that wicked brusha came to her mind she said to herself: I'll live on and see what will happen in the end.

While she was absorbed in thought the old woman appeared and told her: "All your requests were filled. Now you must fulfill your promise and come at nightfall to the prince's room."

"Certainly," replied the Princess, "Ask him to be ready tonight for my arrival. I'll go downstairs and come to him."

The evil brusha run to the prince and told him happily, "She'll come to you tonight. Get ready for her arrival."

And what do you think happened that night? The princess put on her clogs. She entered the closet and began to walk down the stairs. "Plunk, plunk!" The clogs echoed in the tunnel as she put her feet on the first step. The prince heard the sound of the tapping, waiting impatiently for her arrival, but at that moment the princess cried aloud, as she mimics the voice of the queen: "My bride, my bride, where are you?" And then she replied with her own voice: "Yes, ma'am, I'm coming immediately."

The princess climbed the step and disappeared in her room, and the disappointed prince continued to wait for her for a long time till he realized that his would not come that night and he went to bed with a broken heart.

The second night once again the prince heard her footsteps echo. "Plunk, plunk! Plunk, plunk!" There she is on the second step, but once again the pretended voice of the queen: "My bride, my bride, where are you?"

"I'll be right there, ma'am!" Replied the Princess and climbed back the two steps.

The prince heard those footsteps and the pretended exchange of words. He felt he is going to explode from the intensity of his passion to her, but once again he had to conquer his passion all day long hoping that she will come tonight.

On the third night the prince clung to the door, burning in his desire, lending his ear to hear her footsteps: There she is: "Plunk, plunk, plunk, plunk!" First step, second step, third step, and suddenly the voice of the queen calls her and to his great sorrow, he hears how she comes up the stairs and disappears in her room and there was silence in the tunnel.

The poor prince whose hopes were shattered fell trembling on his bed by the intensity of his emotion, suffering from his unsatisfied desire.

What can I say – the princess could not find a better trick. Night after night she came down the stairs adding each time one more step, raising more and more the desire and then she came back up to her room.

The poor prince felt that in a moment he will die of a broken heart. On the seventieth  night once again he heard in the tunnel the pounding footsteps: "Plunk, plunk! Plunk, plunk! Plunk, plunk." One more step, one more step. Here she comes to the sixty step, here she comes the last step, here she puts her hand on the door handle and turns it. His heart is beating fast, pounding in his chest like a hammer. Soon he will embrace her in his arms ... And once again this damn voice: "My bride, my bride, where are you?" And the princess goes away from him.

And this time his strength failed him. His heart broke and he fell down dead.
The princess heard the thud and imagined what happened. She went downstairs, opened the door and found him lying there dead at her feet. She took the keys of the palace, put his body in a sealed box and returned to her room.

A few days later news reached the palace: the king's son overcame the enemy and won the battle. The enemy was defeated in war and now the prince made his way home.

When the prince entered the city, a magnificent reception was arranged. Celebrations were held throughout the entire city and the biggest celebration was held at the palace court. The princess received her husband who came back safely from the battlefield, with hugs and kisses. In the evening they went to bed. The king's son waited until his wife was deeply asleep and then he put the ring on her chest, and listened attentively to the words that came from her mouth.

The words came from the lips of the princess: "What a pity, the poor guy! He wasted all his property on me and now he had also lost his life and what came out of it?"

"Aha!" thought the king's son, "she betrayed me!"

He put the ring once again on her heart and heard the words that penetrated like a dagger into his heart: "My poor lover, rest in peace ..."

When daylight came the king's son got up from sleep, grabbed his wife without saying a word, and droved her away from the palace with only her nightdress on her body.

When his mother heard what happened, she flayed his actions poignantly: "How stupid you are to do that? The poor one! Where shall she turn and what shall she do after you threw her into the street? Is there no mercy in your heart? What is her sin and what is her crime? She was a good woman and faithful to you all these years. Why are you so cruel to her? "

But the king's son did not bother to reply. He left her and went back to deal with the kingdom business.

And the princess that was thrown into the street for no fault on her side – what did she do? Where did she go?

She entered the palace that was built for her by her lover, took menswear and disguised as a man. With this dress she roamed freely in the city streets and with the money that she found in the palace she acquired jewelry and precious stones, brought them to her new home and opened a jewelry store right in front of the palace. There she sold to all comers, pearls, gemstones, bracelets, Nose-rings and jewelry of all kinds.

One day when the king's son went out of his palace he saw for the first time the new palace that was built near his palace with its jewelry store.

He asked his mother: "Who is the owner of the new palace that was built here in my absence?"

"This is the palace of the handsome prince who came here from the sea and built his palace here." She replied.

The king's son curiosity arose. The next day, he entered the shop and begun to converse with the prince.

His disguised wife who impersonated as the prince, talked with him willingly: "I like your city and I enjoy living in it. I have enough money. I opened the shop to amuse myself and to chatter with the buyers."

They kept talking about world affairs and the king's son enjoyed very much the conversation with the handsome prince who answered wisely all his questions.

Something in the prince's appearance and his good manners attracted him very much.

"Mom," he told his mother on his return to the palace, "today I visited the shop of the new prince who settled here. He is so gentle and he has beautiful face and my conversation with him was so exhilarating. His dress is very neat and elegant and his smile captivated my heart. I suspect that he is not a man but a woman!"

"It is very easy to find out such a thing," said his mother, "invite him to dinner at your palace and let him slice the bread. If he puts the bread on his chest to slice it, he is a woman, but if he puts it on the table as men are used to, then no doubt he's a man. Moreover, the recent days were very rainy and the roads are full of mud. Watch him when he comes. If he steps with his muddy boots on the carpets without any thought, it is a man, but if, entering your palace he removes his boots then probably he is a woman."

And who heard their conversation? The wife of the king's son, who passed through the tunnel and put her ear on the closet door in the palace.

Next day the king's son went to the prince's shop and invited him to dine with him.  The prince gladly accepted his invitation. At the appointed time he came to the palace of the king's son, trampled on the carpets with his muddy boots without hesitation and soiled them with patches of mud. When they sat at the table and the king's son asked him to slice the bread, he did it swiftly as a man. The Queen was convinced that he is a man, but the prince insisted: "My heart tells me that he is a woman not a man!"

"If this is so then go and visit him in his palace," she replied, "When you enter his room, carefully check if there are women's clothes there. If you see only men's clothes all over the place without order, you can be assured that this is a man. Then ask him to accompany you go to the clothes market and bring him purposely to the lane in which women's clothing and jewelry are displayed. If you see that he is attracted by the clothes and the jewelry, then he is a woman, but if he rushes to get away then you are mistaken and your new friend is a man. And if still you are not convinced, invite him to spend the night at your palace. I will spread fresh rose petals on the bed and cover them with a sheet. If I find out in the morning that the leaves had withered during the night, it is a sure sign that he is a woman, but if they remain fresh, no doubt he's a man."

I do not have to tell you that the princess eavesdropped to this conversation too.

The next day the king's son went to visit in the prince's palace. The latter received him warmly as usual: "Welcome. I was just intending to invite you to visit my house, and but you came on your own initiative."

The king's son looked around and saw the prince's clothes scattered everywhere, on the bed, on the sofa and on the chairs. There was no sign of a woman's clothing or makeup.

"I would like you to come with me to make shopping in the market" said the king's son to the prince, "I need a new coat."

The prince accompanied him willingly. They passed on their way across the women's clothing and jewelry stores. The prince walked quickly and did not shoot glance even once at the goods which were displayed there.

When the king's son finished his purchases he, invited the prince to come and stay at his palace. This proposal was also accepted gladly by the prince.

After the meal the king's son led the prince into one of the palace rooms. The impersonated prince locked the door from inside. Then she crumpled up the sheet to create the impression that someone slept there at night, but she did not lay down on it. Instead she lay on the carpet and spent the night there. Several times during the night she sprayed water on the rose petals from a bottle that she had brought with her. At morning she said goodbye to the king's son and then she went to her palace and hurried up the stairs of the tunnel to hear what the king's son says his mother.

The king's son told his mother about his visit at the prince palace and the way he behaved in the market The queen in her turn told him I that the rose petal had stayed fresh even though the prince slept on them all night. "Had he been a woman," she said, "the leaves would wither leaves, but if you are not convinced yet, invite him to visit the bathhouse with you. There naked truth will be revealed ..."

The next day the king's son visited again at the prince's shop.

"I'm on my way to the bathhouse," he said "I thought to invite you to accompany me. This is a clean and elegant bathhouse and you'll have a great fun."

"An excellent proposal," the prince replied, "I'll join you happily. It is a long time since I visited a bathhouse that would be my cup of tea."

They went together to the bathhouse. When they got there they met high-ranking people, judges and ministers. While the king's son was talking to his friends, the prince rushed to wash his face his hands and his feet and then dried himself donned his hat and sat down. When the king's son was ready to come into the bathroom, he offered his friend to take off his clothes and go with him to the bathhouse.

"I'm sorry." The prince said "while you were talking with your friends, I had washed and now after I dried myself, there is no point that I would go there again."

So once again the attempt of the king's son to discover the secret of the prince failed.

The king's son returned to the palace and told his mother what happened.

"No doubt you are mistaken, my son, if the prince was woman he would not dare go with you to the bathhouse, but you can make one last attempt: go to his home at dawn and surprise him. Look what is the state of the house. If you find there disorder, dishes in the sink and dirt on the floor, then it is a sure sign that he is a man. A woman would not dare to go to bed before arranging the house and washing the dishes."

The son listened to his mother's advice. The next day at dawn he went to visit at the prince's home. The prince received him dressed with nightshirt. Obviously he'd just got up from sleep. The floor was filthy and the sink full of dirty cutlery.
"I apologize for the dirt and the disorder. I have just got up and I had not time to wash and clean. Maybe we'll tour the palace garden. I hate to the idea to let you in an untidy room."

He led the king's son into the garden. The king's son was surprised by the extraordinary beauty of the garden. The smells that came out of the rosewater pool, and the many flowers around, intoxicated his senses. He particularly admired the golden carnations that he had not seen in any other gardens. He was going to pick one of them, but the prince stopped him: "These flowers are intended to beautify the garden and emphasize the beauty of the pool. You can look at a flower but you must not touch it or pick it."

The king's son pleaded with the prince to let him pick one flower, but the prince refused imperiously to his request.

The king's son felt discouraged. "If you do not let me pick the flower, I'll die here before your eyes!" He said.

At that moment the prince took off his hat, ruffled his long golden hair, and let them surf on his the neck and his shoulders.

"My husband," she said, "You, a king's son, humiliated yourself in front of me for one flower, and I, who comes from a simple family, caused a beautiful prince who courted me, to lose his life and his palace in his trying to seduce me, without even looking at his face. You drove me out of your palace with no inquiry and no questioning and threw me on the street without thinking twice. It was my luck that this unfortunate prince left me his palace, otherwise where could I go? "

At that moment the princess fell down and fainted. The king's son recognized her as his wife for whom he was secretly yearning. He sprayed rosewater on her from the pool and she awaked. Then he carried her in his arms to his palace where he confessed to her about the magic ring he had in his possession and about the reason that caused him to divorce her.

"If it is so," said the Princess, "then I will not come back to you, and be your wife, unless you give me this damn ring and let me throw it into the depths of the sea."

The prince filled the demand. The ring sank and was lost in the deep and with it all the feelings of jealousy in the king's son heart. Loyalty and love filled their hearts and peace and tranquility came back to dwell at their home.

They were blessed with joy and grace, and their happiness illuminates our face.

 

The king's son and the magic ring – the mirror language of a feminine folktale

Yoel Perez

 

The Jewish-Spanish folktale "The magic ring and the king's son" was recorded by the researcher Moshe Atyas as he heard it in Ladino from an anonym informant in his youth. Atyas wrote the tale from his memory and formulated it in Hebrew, in a sophisticated language far from the style of the traditional storyteller. So I allowed myself to formulate the story anew in a spoken language, but staying faithful to the text that was brought in his book "The Golden Feather." This book contains twenty stories from his legacy and was published in 1976, three years after his death.

The tale is clearly a feminine story, even though it is opened with the life-story of the king's son and his marriage to four women, the protagonist of the tale is ultimately the peasant girl that he takes as a wife. This girl has to manage with the life at the king's court.

Three male figures appear in the story: the king, the king's son and the foreign prince who tries to seduce the heroine.

The number of female figures is greater and includes the heroine of the story, her mother the laundress, the queen and the brusha – the wicked old woman.

Let us look first at the male characters. The king almost does not play a role in the story. He is mentioned at the beginning as the one who prevents his son to go out to the world without his supervision and once again when he decides together with the queen to marry him. The first episode reflected a very common motif in adolescence folktales – the oedipal motif – the process of growing up and the revolting against the father's authority, the struggle for independence. After the second mention the king disappears completely from the plot. When the son goes to battle, leaving his wife alone, the king does not appear. In such a way the storyteller creates a situation in which the young princess is forced to cope on her own with the foreign prince's seduction.

The second male character, the king's son, drives the plot. The king's son comes of age. He makes decisions, but many of them are hasty decisions. His advisor is his mother who accompanies him at every step. She indeed lectures him for his wrong decisions and supports him in his attempts to discover the secrets of the princess, but her influence is limited. She can not force him to listen to her, and she cannot oppose his actions.

The third figure is the figure of the foreign prince. He appears here in the role of the seducer of the princess who tries to catch her in his net and pays for it with his life. After his death, the princess takes his place, and skillfully plays the male character.

What can we say about the feminine characters? The queen is an active figure, but with limited power, being a woman who lives in a typical patriarchal society.

The laundress, the princess's mother, is also drawn as a humble and powerless figure.

The figure that deviates from the usual conventions of feminine behavior is the brusha. The brusha (bruja in Spanish) is a general name for both: a witch and a wicked old woman who behaves like a witch. She is perceived as a negative quarrelsome figure, who undermines the foundations of society. She stands on her own and obeys no one.

Now that we had a short glance at the minor characters, let us look deep into the heroine's actions. The plot of the story takes place in a patriarchal society, a society where decision makers are men. Women in patriarchal society have a definite place: they are supposed to behave according to the established patterns of behavior that fixed for them by men. The heroine of our story is no exception. As a woman she is very limited in her possibilities and her actions. Only when she disguises as a man she can take action.

In a patriarchal society woman should be always under the patronage of someone; in her youth a girl is under the patronage of her parents and she leaves that patronage only when she gets married. Then, she enters her husband's custody. Independent woman has no place in a patriarchal society. Women who are their own master are perceived as a threat to the social order and are crucified by it. When the heroine of the story is cast from the palace, she finds herself in an impossible situation, a situation of a woman without means that nobody sponsors her.

So in what way then can women successfully cope with the difficulties that the masculine society creates?

They use four ways:

A. Using cunning.

B. Exploiting the weaknesses of men with whom they cope.

C. Using the feminine charms – both corporal and erotic.

D. Reliance on women fraternity and women solidarity.

We will try to show how the heroine of the story makes use in each one of these means.

At the beginning of the story the heroine is in a disadvantageous position. Her fresh husband has two advantages: first he belongs to the aristocracy, while she is a peasant girl, and second he is holding a ring that allows him to discover her secrets, a ring that he already used previously when he decided to expel his three previous wives next to their wedding day.

Our heroine finds her way to the kingdom because of her character: she is modest, she keeps her clothes clean and she blindly obeys her husband's whims. So in the beginning of the story she plays the ideal female stereotype set by male society, and finds the way to her husband's heart. She succeeds where her predecessors failed.
Later in the story, the king's son, her husband and her protector, leaves the palace, and she finds herself in the dangerous situation of a defenseless woman (we have seen already that the male figure in the palace, the king, does not appear at all).

Even her secludedness in the palace does not protect her from the impact of men. Even sitting in the window and watching the sea is enough for letting herself being revealed to the danger of desecration of her innocence by a stranger.

In the Book of Samuel there was written about Michal, Saul's daughter: "And it was so, as the ark of the Lord came into the city of David, that Michal the daughter of Saul looked out at the window." (II Samuel Chapter VI Verse 16) The exact Hebrew words were not "looked out" but "she was reflected" or "she was overlooked", that is to say, she had not only look out but let herself to be seen by others.

It was enough for the sages of the Talmud to blame her in misconduct. They said about her that she was not just a passive observer, but she caused others to look at her.

Our heroine did not even do this. She only looked out, but it was enough to arouse the attention of the seducer. Furthermore, when the king's son looked out of his window to see what happens in the street, this act heralded the beginning of his independence as a man, his entry into life outside. When the princess looked out from her window, she endangered herself as a woman. It is also interesting to compare the thoughts of the princess as she overlooks the sea and the thoughts that are passing in the foreign prince's head when he observes her at that moment from his ship: The princess looks away wistfully and expectantly, waiting for her husband's return. However the foreign prince looks at her and the thoughts that are passing in his mind are thoughts of seduction and lust.

In order to cope with her new situation as a defenseless woman she is forced to turn to guile: demanding from the lover impossible demands. And once again, pay attention to the fact that here is once more a mirror reflection: her cunning against the cunning of the brusha, who finds a way to enter the palace and win the princess's faith, by presenting herself as a relative bringing her presents. Our princess, who is well-versed in cunning ways, does not fall in her net and immediately identifies her intentions. The gifts that the brusha brings to the princess are perfumes and soaps. She tries to influence her and intoxicate her senses through smell. Later we will see that the princess uses a similar trick – rosewater pool – to intoxicate her husband to dull his senses.

But even when she presents her demands to the lover, it includes not only the construction of the palace but also the establishment of a very special garden with rosewater pool and golden carnations. She does not know yet if he can build the palace at all before her husband's return, but she is planning ahead and thinks about the future.

According to the Talmudic sages, Abigail, David wife, "seduced in her mention", because she hints to David that he should not forget her when he becomes a king and when she herself gets rid of Naval, her husband, and that he would marry her:

"And it shall come to pass, when the Lord shall have done to my lord according to all the good that He hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee prince over Israel… And when the Lord shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thy handmaid."

In this context, a popular proverb is placed in the mouth of Rabbi Nahman: "The duck lowers his head [to find the nearest grains], but his eyes look forwards [to find more grains]", that is to say, the duck walks with his head down but his eyes are looking far and wide to find other things. Abigail behaves like this and so also our heroine – both plan their actions. According to another version the proverb that was quoted by Rabbi Nachman was, "Woman, along with conversation [works with the] – spindle", that is to say; women know how to use time and take maximum advantage of it – talking and the same time working. This proverb also may adjust somewhat our heroine. Presenting the princess as one who plans her steps well in advance, emphasizes her characteristics as a woman. However her husband, the king's son makes all the way reckless spontaneous decisions without thinking about the future. It seems that here we encounter the same manly and feminine stereotypes that are common in a patriarchal society and determine the gender status of each one of the genders within it.

When the princess finds out that her lover was able to meet all her demands she is using a new trick: taking advantage of the weaknesses of the man who courts her. For seventy nights she is increasing more and more the fire of passion burning in his heart. Every day she is pouring oil on the fire while she is reinforcing his passion, until he reaches the breaking point and dies of a broken heart. The storyteller is weaving marvelously the story as he is describing with a master hand the flip-flops echo in the tunnel, echo that is maddening the lover's mind.

With the death of the lover she has to deal with a new problem, how to hide his body and win his palace, and she finds solutions to these problems too.

She does not know what her future holds. She is also not aware of the existing of the magic ring of her husband. At this point of the story she is not sure yet whether she would have a use in the palace, the garden and the tunnel. Taking the keys is just another security measure she takes in case something goes wrong.

And although her husband returned safely from the battlefield, she did not yet reach the state of tranquility. She remained loyal to her husband and she grappled bravely and cunningly with her lover. But she has pangs of conscience because the keeping of her virtue and innocence keeping her loyalty to her husband cost her lover' life and property. She feels guilty, but she keeps her emotions in her heart. She has no idea that her husband can find out her heart secrets.

In the next episode, after it seems to her that her troubles had ended, she falls once again "from a high mountain to a deep pit". And once again she has to deal with the most dangerous situation of a woman's life in patriarchal society: life without means of support, without a male sponsor who can protect her. At this point she discovers a new resourcefulness: in order to survive in a hostile and dangerous manly world, she must impersonate as a man. From her point of view this is an ideal solution: She prepared in advance the means that can help her to do this, but the task is not simple at all: she has to adopt a male identity. The king' son who meets her admires the wisdom of the false prince, his beauty and his nice manners, but unconsciously he feels that something is wrong.

The storyteller suggests to us here that with all her goodwill she can not play the role perfectly. Her feminine qualities betray her. There seems to be here more comprehensive statement: in the perception of patriarchal society each of the genders has a definite role and definite behavior that separate between them and perpetuate the gap. Any attempt to cross the lines is a threat to the status quo. Impersonation is only a temporary solution.

Moreover, the prince is assisted by his mother's feminine knowledge. Here we see once more the reflection: there is an analogy to the actions of the foreign prince who was assisted by the female figure of the brusha. The princess is dealing not only with her husband's instincts, but with whole set of tests offered to her husband by another woman, the mother of her husband and his ally. She is deceiving both because she knows how to use the means at her disposal: the same tunnel that allowed her to defeat her lover she uses now in a different way, to fool her husband.

And if we mentioned the queen, we should look at her reaction to the expulsion of the princess from the palace. Here we can see the place of women fraternity and women solidarity in the story; though she stands beside her son and supports him, she can not avoid scolding at him and fuming athis behavior. We know nothing about the relationship between the queen and her daughter-un-law, but now in a state of crisis, pity for the poor bride is emerging in her heart. She pities the girl that had been thrown into the street through no fault of her hand. She as a woman knows how hard may be the life of a woman thrown onto the street and she feels sorry for her. She makes a lot of efforts to persuade her son to reconsider his decision, and when he can not resist her implorations, he just runs away from her room and leaves without saying anything.

In this part of the story we meet all the stereotypical features that the patriarchal society ascribes to each one of the genders in order to emphasize the separation between them: the way of cutting bread, the different attention to fellowman property – stepping on the carpets with dirty boots instead of removing them, order and cleanliness, the test of the rose petals that supposed to be a "scientific" objective test of gender, and later the walking near the market stalls that exhibit feminine items – dresses and jewelry – that should arouse the curiosity and draw the glances of the prince if he is indeed an impostor.

Similar tests are known to us from the Midrash about the relationship between King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. In one of the riddles presented by the Queen of Sheba to Solomon, she asks him to tell the difference between men and women, and this is what the Midrash says:

Another example did [the Queen of Sheba], she brought him young children, the same sight, the same height and the same dress, and she told him: "tell the females from the males." He hinted his servants to bring walnuts and almonds and to disperse them before them. Males who were not embarrassed took them in their clothes; females who were embarrassed took them in their scarves. So he said: "These are males and those are females!" she said to him: "My son, you are very smart." (Midrash of Proverbs chapter A)

Here comes a new peak in the plot: an invitation to the bath-houses. The princess gets out of it by her cunning.

The final test that is supposed to differentiate between men and women is the test of the house cleaning. It is expected from a woman to keep her house clean and unlike a man not postpone the housework for the next day. This test allows our storyteller to pass the stage of the plot from the palace to the garden. At the beginning of the story the princess enchanted the king's son by her nice manners, her cleanliness and her clean clothes. Later she captured the heart of the foreign prince solely by her visage.

Until that point she actually used the natural features of her beauty and her character. Even in the description of her meeting with the evil brusha, the storyteller informs us that she kindly consented to accept her gifts in order not to insult her. In her meeting with the king's son in the jewelry store she once again enchants the king' son with the charming suavity of her conversation, though she plays the role of man.

It seems that her good character does not allow her to play the game till its very end. In the episode that occurs in the garden near the rosewater pool, she intoxicates her husband's heart and dulls his senses through the smell rising from the pool. It seems as if she repay him here for the rose petals test that she did to him.

And then comes the moment of truth. At the right moment she exploits his weakness – his willingness to humiliate himself in front of her just to cause her to let him pick the flower. She casts the truth at his face and makes the obvious comparison between his behavior and her behavior.

It seems that the exposal of the secret about the death of her lover is for her a therapeutic act that allows her to get rid of her guilt, though it is done unconsciously. In any case her excitement at this moment is so intense that she loses her consciousness and faints at his feet. The king's son sprays rosewater on her face to revive her, as she sprayed water on the rose petals to prevent them from fading. The fainting of the girl has also another meaning: The effort to play the masculine role requires self-discipline and exertion of all her forces. It seems that this moment is a breaking point for her: She sacrificed so much to keep her honor and loyalty, while her husband was ready to abase himself for a flower. The storm of emotions that takes control of her while she is listening to his words causes her to lose her consciousness.

But maybe it is a trick? Maybe she is so afraid from the moment of the discovery that she uses the last means that is available to her in order to arouse his sympathy and compassion and she stages fainting? Once again, this behavior is often attributed to women. Of course one can interpret this act in both ways, but I tend to think that this is not an act of cunning, but a sign of her intense excitement.

One cannot ignore the symbolism of the garden, the pool and the carnations. Garden and pool had always symbolized the female body. The prohibition of picking the flower symbolizes the prohibition of harming a woman's innocence: one can look at but not touch, let alone pick. And of course there is the clear erotic symbol of the tunnel – the penetration and the regression.

The confession of the woman is pulling her husband's confession. Within the mutual reconciliation, he reveals his secret – the secret of the ring that had given him an advantage all the way, a secret that he did not share even with his mother. The consent of the king's son to allow her to throw the ring into the sea completes her victory: within her limits as a woman she had reached the point of spiritual equality between them. She is still the obedient woman and he is still the dominant man, but for all that something was changed.

We see therefore how in this remarkable feminine story all the tools that allow a woman to find her place in a manly world are demonstrated: cunning, exploiting of man's weaknesses, using her erotic physical charm, and the assistance provided by women fraternity and women solidarity.