presidentnerd:

Ilanonima replied to your post:
“I should probably do some writing when I get…

What do you think about 12 Dancing Princesses? It’s my fave and no one ever talks about it

HOO BOY YOU’VE OPENED THE DOOR PREPARE FOR THE FLOOD SON

CRACKS KNUCKLES 

Hm, yeah, no ever really talks about it, but I wouldn’t feel too bad about that. Some of the more fascinating folklore tales and fairytales aren’t really put in a spot light often–for example, one of mine is the Armless Maiden, and the Twelve Dancing Princesses is one of my sisters (yaaay for having the same taste). Why exactly it isn’t talked about is. Hm.

If I’d have to take a guess here, it’s probably because it’s not your normal range of fairytale. It’s not very old–you’d be hard press to find anything beyond the 1600s–though it does span several different countries over its short life time. Where it picked up orally no one’s sure but given how it’s more often a tale popular in Eastern Europe, I’d say you’d get your best bet from there (don’t quote me on that, though; thing one about most fairytales is that there’s no real way to say ‘hey this one came from here’ unless you have a blunt example like the Little Mermaid) 

Another reason could be that it doesn’t fit into any fairytale archtype or in the Aarne–Thompson system–the motif it most resembles is ‘the princess in the shroud’ but not enough to be put under it. Dancing Princesses doesn’t come close to a lot of fairytale motifs and that throws a lot of people off–including me but I think that’s what makes it so fascinating

cause within normal fairytale practice, the princess(es) are usually made off to be the main character and purely good, but fuck here the girls are shrouded in an enigma at best but rebellious as fuck at worse which is KIND OF WILD LIKE GUYS THIS WAS PUT IN THE VICTORIAN VERSION OF THE GRIM

TEENAGER REBELLION WASN’T A BELOVED TROPE BACK THAN FOR KIDS

Like these girls did not give a fuck. They tricked their father, drugged their suitor, potentially escaping years of dutiful marrying (I’ve read versions where the eldest sister is reaching UNATTRACTIVE age of being single for back then), and going off into the night to dance with a bunch of dudes in a magic castle

and like how did they figure that shit out? When? Why not marry these twelve princes if you like that too much (or do you guys just love the side booty too much)

I gotta say, by the way, that there’s no way the ‘dancing in the night under the cover darkness with a bunch of magical princes’ isn’t some how symbolism for sex in someway. Like. Look. I’ve read a lot of fairytales and there is just a lot of shit that always leads back to other shit. Whether or not that shit is TRUE is one thing of course but still. I’d have to sit down and read into Dancing Princesses some more but if I’d have to take my best guess as what the hidden symbolism behind that is, it’s sex–if not young women exploring their sexual nature without the barriers of society or guardianship hindering them

either way again WILD BECAUSE VICTORIAN’S WERE LIKE WHOA WHAT probably

but then again if that is the cause, then I’m not surprised why all the unwed sisters at the end of the story are cursed (or maybe it’s the princes? Different endings say different things) 

Moral of the story? Don’t go dancing with strange dudes in strange underground magic castle girls what the fuck save room for JESUS

the princesses do interest me a lot, though. Collectively, they don’t seem to show remorse for what thy’re doing and for whatever reason, this nightly ritual is so important they fell the need to drug men to keep it going. They are almost malicious in their actions for something presented innocently as a ‘dance’ with this magic beings. Are they bewitched them selves? I mean. Maybe. The princes could be faeries–faeries switch it up with whether they’re nice or not in more stories but usually assume their assholes–which is why THEY are bewitched at the end of the story. 

Could be that the girls just don’t want to get married and enjoy these pretend balls–preferring to instead stay in that inbetween sweet stop between childhood and adulthood where they are attractive enough to be desired but not withheld for exploring that because they are wed.

Could be that their witches and the princes are their creations that they work on every night but I think that one’s just me

either way, the story doesn’t give much up before or after the soldier shows and I think it wants to keep its secret. For such a cute sounding story, it’s almost insidious in nature

I love this, honestly, this is literally everything I could have wanted.

For some interesting takes on the story that I’ve read, Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George (technically I’ve only read the 3rd in this series but it was good) and The Princess Curse by Merrie Haskell are both excellent.

Also just adding to things, I have a book of tales that was originally my grandfather’s – beautifully illustrated, each tale in an art style reminiscent of its area – that I read over and over again as a child and Twelve Dancing Princesses is in it.

I think in that version it is the princesses who were punished, though I’d have to look again.