Reading Notes: Twenty-Two Goblins Readings A & B

Twenty-Two Goblins translation by Arthur Ryder

Introduction:
Goblins in this sense inhabit the bodies of the dead.
I like this sentence: "A brave mans heart is harder than a diamond and nothing makes it tremble."
The Three Lovers:
The Goblin is telling this story to the king as they are returning to the monk.
There is a mother who punishes her child by burning him alive. Thankfully, the father is a magician and is able to bring him back to life-- I'm curious. Is this something that happens often to the little boy?
The goblin ends his story with a riddle. Which of the three lovers deserves to be the wife of the beautiful Coral? The king answers the riddle correctly and the Goblin vanishes back to the tree from which the body was hanging.
Brive, Wise, Clever:
The goblin is telling this story to the king on their second trip from the sissoo tree. This story is also a riddle. The goblin asks the king, "Which man, the clever, wise, or barrage one, deserves marriage to Moonlight?" The king answers that the brave man deserves the girl. He is correct and the goblin vanishes back to the tree.
The Girl, Her Husband, and Her Brother:
This story is told by the goblin to the king on their third trip. Essentially the riddle asks whether it is what is in the head or body that makes a person. The king answers that it is the head. He is correct and the goblin vanishes again.
Food, Women, Cotton:
This story follows the same pattern as before.
The Four Scientific Suitors:
"Discouragement never enters the brave heart of a resolute man"
The Three Delicate Wives:
The king successfully answers another of the goblin's riddles. This one was about the delicacy of three wives.
The Snake's Poison:
The king answers another riddle, and the goblin disappears again.
The Girl and the Thief:
This is a cool story about redemption and love at first sight.
The General's Wife:
A girl is so beautiful it causes the king to faint.
This is reminiscent of David and Bathsheba except in the circumstances of this story, the king does not cave to his desires. Instead, the king chooses to waste away from the unfulfilled passion.
The Four Brothers:
The king is extremely patient with the goblin's antics.
The Old Hermit:
The king is wise and resilient
Father and Son, Daughter and Mother:
The king cannot answer a riddle, so he remains silent. This impresses the goblin.
The goblin now tells the king why the monk, Patience, has enlisted the help of the king. The monk wishes to sacrifice the king to the goblin to win kingship over the fairies. The goblin warn the king to trick the monk so that he can gain the magic instead of the monk.

The Three Delicate Wives. Source: the UnTextbook