The Golden Bracelet
Encyclopedia
The Golden Bracelet is an American fairy tale
from Kentucky, collected by Marie Campbell in Tales from the Cloud Walking Country, listing her informant as Aunt Lizbeth Fields.
It is Aarne-Thompson type 533. Another tale of this type is The Goose Girl
, although The Golden Bracelet differs in several respects, appearing to be derived from a Gaelic variant.
with her own, ugly daughter. The new queen took all the best things for her daughter and would not let the king's daughter go to parties. The king's daughter took pleasure in her golden bracelet that she did not mind, but sat and sewed, and went for walks with her little dog. One day, a strange man rode by and asked what she was doing. As a joke, she said she was making a fine pocket handkerchief for the King of Spain. He told her that he was the King of Spain and she could give it to him; she told him she had to finish it, and it would take a week. After a week, he asked her to marry him; she told him she had to think, and her stepsister also thought about him. The king sent for her, and the stepsister went with her, because it would be improper for her to go alone, and on the way, she stole the golden bracelet and made her promise never to tell a person. Then she
magically changed herself to beautiful and made the king's daughter ugly, though she could not change their characters. The king did not love the stepsister, but felt bound by his word and married her. The little dog had followed the king's daughter, and she told it her story. The old king heard her and told the young king, who got rid of his bride and married the true bride.
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
from Kentucky, collected by Marie Campbell in Tales from the Cloud Walking Country, listing her informant as Aunt Lizbeth Fields.
It is Aarne-Thompson type 533. Another tale of this type is The Goose Girl
The Goose Girl
The Goose Girl is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm. Since the second edition published in 1819, The Goose Girl has been recorded as Tale no. 89....
, although The Golden Bracelet differs in several respects, appearing to be derived from a Gaelic variant.
Plot summary
A dying queen, instead of making her husband promise not to remarry, made her daughter a bracelet of golden thread and her own golden hair. The king remarried, to a womanWicked Stepmother
Wicked Stepmother is a 1989 American comedy film written, produced, and directed by Larry Cohen. It is best known for being the last film of Bette Davis, who withdrew from the project after filming began, citing major problems with the script and the way she was being photographed...
with her own, ugly daughter. The new queen took all the best things for her daughter and would not let the king's daughter go to parties. The king's daughter took pleasure in her golden bracelet that she did not mind, but sat and sewed, and went for walks with her little dog. One day, a strange man rode by and asked what she was doing. As a joke, she said she was making a fine pocket handkerchief for the King of Spain. He told her that he was the King of Spain and she could give it to him; she told him she had to finish it, and it would take a week. After a week, he asked her to marry him; she told him she had to think, and her stepsister also thought about him. The king sent for her, and the stepsister went with her, because it would be improper for her to go alone, and on the way, she stole the golden bracelet and made her promise never to tell a person. Then she
False hero
The false hero is a stock character in fairy tales, and sometimes also in ballads. The character appears near the end of a story in order to claim to be the hero or heroine and is, therefore, always of the same sex as the hero or heroine. The false hero presents some claim to the position. By...
magically changed herself to beautiful and made the king's daughter ugly, though she could not change their characters. The king did not love the stepsister, but felt bound by his word and married her. The little dog had followed the king's daughter, and she told it her story. The old king heard her and told the young king, who got rid of his bride and married the true bride.