The Princess and the Goblin and The Princess and Curdie by George MacDonald
"The Princess and the Goblin" and its sequel "The Princess and Curdie" are children's fantasy novels by George MacDonald that explore themes of bravery, belief, and the unseen forces that guide and protect us. The stories center around Princess Irene and her companion Curdie, a miner's son. In the first book, Irene discovers that her great-great-grandmother, an enigmatic figure, provides her with a magical thread that leads her to safety in times of danger. Meanwhile, Curdie uncovers a plot by a tribe of goblins to kidnap Irene, leading to a series of adventures that highlight his courage and the power of belief.
The sequel continues the narrative with Curdie summoned by the grandmother to assist Princess Irene and her ailing father, the king. As they confront internal treachery and external threats, Curdie, alongside the princess and a peculiar companion named Lina, works to save the kingdom from those who seek to harm it. Together, they face various challenges that test their loyalty and resolve. Ultimately, the stories intertwine personal growth with a fantasy backdrop, emphasizing the idea that true bravery often comes from believing in the extraordinary.
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The Princess and the Goblin and The Princess and Curdie
First published:The Princess and the Goblin (1871) and The Princess and Curdie (1882)
Type of work: Novels
Type of plot: Fantasy—heroic fantasy
Time of work: Undefined medieval
Locale: A fairy-tale country and its capital, Gwyntystorm
The Plot
The title of The Princess and the Goblin fails to mention the hero, Curdie, son of an honest, hardworking miner, and suggests only one goblin, whereas there is a whole tribe of them living under the mountains around the castle where the princess lives. The goblins and their deformed animals emerge only at night from their lairs, frightening passersby but not Curdie or the miners.
The queen being dead, the princess is looked after by her nurse, Lootie. In reality, there is a much more powerful guardian, her great-great-grandmother, who shares the name Irene with the princess. Princess Irene discovers the old lady at the very top of the castle, but no one else believes in her existence, apart from the king, whose occasional visits punctuate the story. The princess is enchanted by the timeless beauty of the woman, who asks to be referred to as her grandmother, and the two form a bond. The grandmother gives the princess a magic ball of thread with a ring attached. It is to be used, she tells the girl, at times of danger.
While working in the mines, Curdie breaks into the goblin quarters and becomes aware of their evil plans. In trying to discover more, he is captured. Irene awakens frightened and follows the thread, which leads her to Curdie. She rescues him, though he believes neither her story about the thread nor that about her grandmother. His mother rebukes him later for his disbelief.
Curdie realizes that the goblins are plotting to kidnap Irene and force her to marry the goblin prince. In trying to trace their tunneling, he is wounded and captured by the castle guards, and his message of the impending invasion is not believed. The grandmother appears to Curdie in prison, healing and releasing him in time to repel the goblins as they break into the castle through its foundations. Irene is finally discovered safe with Curdie’s mother.
The goblins then plan to flood the mine shafts and castle. This plan also is discovered in time to foil it. The goblin quarters are flooded instead, and most of the goblins drown. The king returns, is reunited with Irene, and seeks to reward Curdie. Irene’s kiss, promised earlier in the story, is all he will take for the moment.
In the continuation, The Princess and Curdie, the princess has returned to Gwyntystorm. Curdie still lives with his parents and works as a miner. One day, he shoots and nearly kills a white pigeon but is conscience-stricken at his action. He runs to the old tower of the king’s castle, where he has seen a light flashing. There he rediscovers the princess’ great-great-grandmother, whose bird it is and who heals it.
Later, while he and his father, Peter, are in the mine, a mysterious light appears, leading them farther into the mine shaft. The grandmother reveals herself again and summons Curdie to visit her. When he does, she commissions him to go to Gwyntystorm to help the princess and her father and to take a strange creature, Lina, along as companion.
The journey is a testing time. Lina gathers up forty-nine other deformed creatures in a wood, but these are left behind. On reaching Gwyntystorm, Curdie and Lina are abused by the citizenry, arrested, and thrown into jail. They escape underground and find themselves in the king’s wine cellars. Emerging into the palace, they find it in disarray, with the king sick and the princess nursing him. It transpires that the king is slowly being poisoned by his officials, who plan to seize power for themselves.
Curdie, the princess, and Lina foil various poisoning attempts, restore the king to his right mind, and, with the help of Lina’s creatures, cleanse the palace. The citizens, however, remain hostile to the king, and when a neighboring kingdom attacks, they invite in its army. In a heroic battle, the small loyalist force, assisted by the grandmother (in disguise as a serving maid) and her white pigeons, rout the invaders. Order is restored to the kingdom.
Eventually, the princess and Curdie marry, and they rule the kingdom after the king’s death. After their deaths, however, the city literally is undermined in a mad quest for the gold that lies beneath it. It collapses, disappearing from the face of the earth.