Rumpelstiltskin

Rumpelstiltskin Text

There is a bragging miller who is poor. He also has a beautiful daughter (mother is never mentioned -- not even her death). The poor miller brags to the king that his daughter can spin straw into gold -- notice that the king does not ask why the miller is still poor. The point is that the king is very, very greedy. So, he puts her to the test. Notice, too, that the daughter apparently does not put up much of a fight about this.

The king puts her into a room full of straw and tells her to spin it into gold. This is test #1. She must spin gold. She must succeed -- otherwise, why the story? Rumpelstiltskin, who may be a goblin, steps in, making a bargain. Altogether, this happens 3 times, each time a test. All of these tests help to build the tension in the story, and each bargain is more significant than the previous -- eventually leading up to her first born child.

As readers, we figure that she will never determine Rumpel's real name. And that is quite curious. Why his name? His name is certainly unusual. That may not be the point. It is his name. He knows she will never figure out what his name is (!). It's a bargaining chip. He knows he can't lose.

Why does / would Rumpel stomp the ground? Why does / would he fall through the crack he makes?

Is this the way the story should end?