Page:A Study of Fairy Tales.djvu/300

276 The plot of the tale is very pleasing as it easily arranges itself into a simple drama of three acts:—

The tale possesses an appeal to the emotions, we want Puss-in-Boots to accomplish whatever scheme he invents, and we want the Miller's son to win the Princess. Its appeal to the imagination is an orderly succession of images, varied and pleasing. The invention of Puss and his successful adventures make the tale one of unusual interest, vivacity, and force. The transformation of the Ogre into a Lion and again into a Mouse, and the consequent climax of Puss's management of the Mouse, bring in the touch of the miraculous. A similar transformation occurs in Hesiod, where the transformed Metis is swallowed by Zeus. This transformation may be produced by a witch, when the help of another is needed, as in Beauty and the Beast and in Hansel and Grethel; or the transformation may come from within, as in this case when the Ogre changes himself into a Mouse, or when a man changes himself into a Wolf. A situation which parallels the theme of Puss-in-Boots occurs in The Golden Goose where Dummling gets as his share only a goose, but having the best disposition makes his fortune out of his goose. Grimm's Three Feathers also contains a similar motif. D'Aulnoy's White Cat, the feminine counterpart of Puss-in-Boots, is a tale of pleasing fancy in which the hero wins the White Cat, a transformed Princess, who managed to secure for him, the youngest son, the performance of all the tasks his father had set for him.