Gold trail

On the trail of eternity

6 Snow White - the Prince and the Happy Ending

By on 30 October 2020

Snow White - The Prince and the Happy Ending

The prince found Snow White sleeping with the dwarves and wanted to take her to his castle. Then the princess woke up. Soon after, a wedding was celebrated.

The Prince and the Happy Ending

Brief summary of content and archetypes

Short synopsis from the fairy tale:

The prince came to the dwarf's house to spend the night. He saw the beauty in the coffin on the mountain and his love burned. The dwarves took pity on him and when he promised to love her always, they gave her to him. As he carried the coffin away with his servant, he suddenly stumbled. The shock dislodged the poisonous apple from the princess' throat and she awoke.

Now a splendid wedding was arranged. But the evil queen had to dance in red-hot shoes until she fell down dead.

Symbols and Archetypes:
  • The prince - integration of the masculine parts: He symbolises the positive inner man (animus, drive from love).
  • Stumbling: Weakness, integration of the feminine parts: In the last phase of the hero's journey, the hero experiences an injury. With the experience of weakness, macho masculinity (also that of the woman!) is overcome. Thus the feminine side of the spirit (positive anima as Virgingentleness and pure love) is integrated (see below and The acid test). The weakness of the man touches the heart of the woman.
  • Resurrection: With the loving consciousness ("masculine", prince), the power of action and self-efficacy also awaken to new life.
  • Wedding - union of the loving consciousness (prince) with the unconscious (princess): The Sacred Wedding)
  • The kingdom: kingship in life and self-efficacy.
  • Red-hot shoes - the trial by fire: (egoistic) desire must burst into flames, the ego must die: this is how the power of the "evil queen" is broken. See more at the end of the article.
  • Death of the Evil Queen: Overcoming the Triebesinner dying (of the Egos) and integration of the Shadow.

Liliana's story - still fabulous

The happy ending: The prince and the wedding

Powerlessness and grief: Deep unconsciousness from negativity

Liliana was sad and dejected. She wore the beautiful robes that had been laid out for her and had her hair done.
Again the queen had invited a suitor. He adored Liliana. He was cultured and intelligent, he even made Liliana laugh!
This gave him courage. One day he knelt down before her and said:
- I want you to be my queen! You are so beautiful and so noble. If only I could make you happy...!
But Liliana smiled sadly and remained aloof. However, the queen began to prepare the wedding.

Resurrection (the inner hero/prince: rising for love)

However, Liliana could not forget Johan. She realised: she had to see him again! She had to know ....
The next morning Liliana was woken by a ray of sunlight on her face. A pigeon was sitting on the window sill, cooing. She looked down from the window into the flowering garden and saw the castle fountain glistening, surrounded by the most beautiful flowers.
- I have to go out! she said to herself: It will do me good!

When she opened her wardrobe, she discovered her old trousers and shirt in the far corner. She quickly slipped them on. Then she left her room and went outside via the servants' hallway. She hurried to the stables, where Diamant greeted her with a joyful snort. She quickly put on his bridle, which was hanging on a hook. She did not want to fetch the saddle, because she did not want to meet anyone. She led Diamant out, swung herself onto his back and rode slowly to the gate. When she was outside, she put Diamant into a gallop and sprinted across the plain.

The dwarf house in the forest

Only in the forest did she slow down - the hut ... would she find it again? She let go of the reins in the hope that Diamant would lead her. Sure enough! It wasn't long before she spotted the cottage between the trees. She led Diamant behind the little house. There was a small pond with water lilies in bloom. She dismounted and sat down in the soft grass. Diamond moved away grazing. But suddenly he snorted.

The Prince

Then she heard horse hooves. Through the trees she saw a noble knight approaching. He wore shining robes, a red cloak and sat on a white horse. She wanted to hide, but Diamant neighed. She looked down at herself - the old trousers, the much too wide shirt ...

Already the knight stood before her:
- Liliana!
Liliana's heart leapt.
It was HIM! It was Johan!

The stumble

Liliana told of the Queen's machinations and said angrily:
- ... and then she showed me the necklace I had given you and said you had slept with her!
Johan blanched:
- That witch! he exclaimed, then he lapsed into a dark, brooding silence again. Finally he said:
- I had lost the necklace! I was very unhappy when I realised it. It was because of your stepmother. She came just as I was about to ride away. She said some poisonous remarks. I didn't want to listen, but pocketed the little chain and quickly grabbed the reins and gave Domino the spurs. But the chain must have slipped out of my jerkin during the hasty movement. I even came back once to look for it - without success.

Again he was silent, then burst out:
- I would never have slept with her! But she! She tried to seduce me several times! - What do you think of me!!! Over my dead body!!! She lied to you! And even more: when she realised that she couldn't have me, she wanted to sic me on you ...
He spoke the last words very quietly with his head bowed.

The bite in the throat

Liliana shook her head uncomprehendingly. She thought of their last encounter in the cottage when he told her he had to leave. Finally she said:
- I didn't want you to leave. I wanted you to stay. That we stay together.

He nodded, remained silent and still kept his head down. Then she wanted to know:
- Where did you go after you left us?
In her heart she was afraid that he had found someone else.
- I went home, he replied.
Liliana's heart sank. So he had found someone else! That's how it had to be.

The son of the king

But Johan continued and told:
- I am the son of a king. But when my father fell ill, his treacherous advisor, Serpent's Tongue, chased after me and wanted to have me killed. So I fled from my father's castle. - Then, after I left you, I decided to return home and face Snake's Tongue. I found father. He was very weak, but he was still alive. Together with a few people who had remained loyal to him, I managed to expose Snake's Tongue and his evil machinations and chased him away. Father got well again!

Liliana looked at him. Yes, he really did look like a prince! She was confused and could not withstand his gaze. Then Johan knelt down in front of her and said:
- Liliana! I have always thought of you and carried you in my heart! Now I find you here! Will you become my queen?
Now her eyes lit up, she beamed and cried:
- I do!
At this she embraced him stormily.

Wedding

Soon they were married and there was a big party in the castle to which the surrounding kingdoms were also invited.
How great was Liliana's joy when her father also appeared at the feast. The wicked queen was not with him. She had died of heart failure.

The two kingdoms were merged and given to the young couple.

And if they all lived happily ever after.

Comments on this interpretation: The prince and his stumble

The princess activates her inner man (prince) by rising from lethargy and setting out to pursue her dream. She swings herself onto the horse, which symbolises passion.

The prince in the fairy tale has complete integrity, of course. But the childlike "stumble" suggests weakness, namely a misstep. In many human traditions, starting with the Babylonian Gilgamesh epic, the hero's "adventures" also conceal women's stories and thus infidelity towards the wife. (For example, Odysseus encounters countless female figures on his journey, whom man cannot resist, and is finally sent home by the nymph Calypso). The hero's happy return home accordingly means that he returns to his first love. In a broader sense, however, first love again symbolises the pure good ideal of youth, which is regained and for which it is worth giving one's life.

Lilian's story: Rising to love

The Prince

But Matthias fought for me and for our love. He said, "It's a pattern to run away from you, but I don't want you to leave!". He finally managed to get me to go to marriage therapy with him.

The bite of the poisoned apple

This brought out my abandoned inner child who needed comfort and had not received enough love. My anger towards men also came to light, the disappointment about my father who was never there for me, and the hatred towards my uncle who abused me. Matthias wept with me. My heart softened.

Resurrection to love

The next theme was love. I had received little - too little love as a child. I felt: I cannot love. Would I ever be able to love?

"You are wonderful! I love you! Please don't leave me," Matthias had said through his tears. I wept with him, wept also over my buried love. Hope awoke deep inside me, a small spark that began to spread and become a light.

 Wedding and the Kingdom

Today I am grateful that Matthias did not leave me alone, but that we could walk this path together. Today I stand on a different ground. Our relationship also has a new, stronger basis. There is more closeness, more trust, love and respect between us. I am grateful for my life and I look forward to the years when Matthias and I can enjoy the fruits we have gained.

The need had grown in me to reconcile with my parents. So I contacted them and invited them. It came to a very deep, touching meeting. After I had told my story, including how Matthias had helped me, father had tears in his eyes.

Stumble

Finally, Father said:
- I am so happy that you took this step and invited us. I have not been a good father to you, I have let you down many times. I am sorry. The thing is: I wasn't a good husband to Alexandra either. She may not have always made it easy for me, but it wasn't okay for me to be unfaithful to her. It led to a separation. I had a bad feeling, but at some point I realised that we had to reconcile. That's when she got back in touch with me. It wasn't easy, but today I am so grateful that she forgave me! And I look forward to spending the rest of my days with her.

Trial by fire

Alexandra nodded. After a while she looked at me and said:
- Thank you for inviting me too. I know I was often hard and unfair to you. I am sorry for that. But there was so much pain and anger in me. They also led me to separate from your father. But at some point I realised that I didn't want to go on living like that and that I was responsible for whether I was happy or not. So I got in touch with your father again. I am grateful that I was able to let go of my bitterness and I am very happy that we have come together again.

Now she too had tears in her eyes. She looked at me uncertainly. I took her hands in mine and said:
- Thank you! It is good. I am glad that you are happy. So are we!

I looked at Mattias, who put his arm around me lovingly.

Snow White's hero's journey over seven mountains, overview:

Snow White's Hero's Path over 7 Mountains

Wholeness - New Life and Ascension to the Spirit

The ego is overcome

The evil queen must dancein red-hot shoes until she drops dead. The feet symbolise the sexual organs (e.g. in the Greek tragedy Oedipus the King, which means "swell foot"). Sexuality has a lot to do with power. The spirit of power with its desire must be overcome in the trial by fire.

  • The man's trial by fire is to let his desire burst into flames and return to his partner. The dying of the ego is his asking for forgiveness and humbly bearing her wrath.
  • The woman's trial by fire means letting go of fiery burning pains in the soul and the desire for revenge, forgiving the man and accepting him again.

Both "torments of fire", male sexual desire as well as female emotional negative desire, have to be endured, "danced through" or "eaten out" until the human being can take no more and is finally ready to "die", that is, to give his ego and identity to power in death.

Intergenerational couple dynamics

"The prince marries the princess" is a symbol for the holy wedding. It means:

  • Wedding of the young couple
  • Reconciliation of the mature couple
  • Union of masculine and feminine parts in the human being itself
  • Union of the loving consciousness ("father", spirit) with the unconscious ("mother", living matter)

In the interpretation of the traditions, the figures can therefore usually be reduced to four archetypes: father, mother, daughter and son. These four can in turn be reduced to two archetypes: man and woman.

(For on the way to wholeness and maturity the human being passes through both stages: daughter/son and wife/man; see Human Wholeness, 3-in-1).

Individuation: Wholeness achieved

C.G. Jung called the human path to wholeness the process of individuation. Man and woman can both ultimately be reduced to an individual, which unites both male and female in itself. The word "individual" means: "the indivisible". This is the goal for the human being: Wholeness, unity in love. What cannot be divided cannot disintegrate. Therefore, it cannot be attacked by death. The body of a human being can indeed disintegrate, but his soul is spiritual and becomes "undivided" through love and reconciliation.

And because they have died (in life itself), they live forever.


Write a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked with *.

Top

Subscribe to newsletter

We respect your email privacy

Subscribe to newsletter

You have successfully subscribed to the newsletter

There was an error while trying to send your request. Please try again.

Goldspur will use the information you provide on this form to be in touch with you and to provide updates and marketing.