week 6 reading notes: twenty-two goblins - part a

This unit consists of a many short stories that are linked to the main characters we are introduced to in the Introduction. I really liked this unit because, as a reader, I was also in the king's position, in which I was given the opportunity to solve the riddle. *Side note: I would've failed if I were the king.

Goblin artwork by Armandeo64. Web Source: Wikimedia Commons

"The Girl, Her Husband and Her Brother" link to story

• Names of the characters are unusual; maybe do name changes
• Why did White, the husband, want to sacrifice himself to the goddess? 
• Important event: Lovely's brother and husband both cut their heads off; the goddess decides she will do favor and bring them back to life; Lovely mistakenly puts the wrong heads on both bodies; she does not know what to do/which "should" be her husband
• The king says the body with her husband's head on it should be recognized as her husband
• It would be interesting to tell the story from Lovely's point of view
• Kind of gives me Freaky Friday vibes

"The Three Delicate Wives" link to story

• Plot of the story: the king has three wives, who are all extremely delicate and sensitive. They end up physically harmed because of their delicacy. He doesn't understand why and considers it an inconvenience. So, he arranges for doctors to "fix" the wives. They basically live happily ever after.
• The king tells the goblin that the wife who bruised by the noises of pestles is the most delicate.
• Maybe retell the story where the king chooses among three potential women to be his wife? 
• Or tell the story from the king's point of view

"The Three Lovers" link to story

• Plot: three men fall in love with woman named Coral; she cannot choose one of them without hurting the other two, so the men just stayed and admired her; one day, she died of a sickness. The men all separated and lived their own life. Eventually, the man that became a monk acquired a book of magic spells that would bring Coral back to life. He has to go back to where she was buried to do so. Coral comes back to life, more radiant than ever. Each of the men believe what they did while she was dead was the reason she came back to life. 
• The king tells the goblin that the man who lived in the cemetery and slept with Coral's ashes deserves to be her husband because he did what a lover would do. 
• An alternative ending could be that once Coral comes back to life, she still doesn't choose any of the three men. 
• I think a fun story would be to use the storyline, but have some kind of competition. Coral actually chooses one winner in a competitive setting. 

Bibliography: These stories are from Twenty-Two Goblins, translated by Arthur W. Ryder.