George MacDonald

The Princess and the Goblin George MacDonald

One of the most successful and beloved of Victorian fairy tales, George Macdonald's The Princess and the Goblin tells the story of young Princess Irene and her friend Curdie, who must outwit the threatening goblins who live in caves beneath her mountain home.

From the get-go the narrator explains that to be a princess means to be a proper girl, or prince in the case of a boy. He basically equates royal titles as meaning someone is of good character.

The narrator makes a point of noting that some royal princesses are not true princesses due to character flaws. I liked what he was getting at. Anyways, he uses this discussion to begin telling us about Princess Irene.

Eight-year-old Princess Irene lives a lonely life in a castle in a wild, desolate, mountainous kingdom, with only her nursemaid, Lootie, for company. Her father, the king, is normally absent, and her mother is dead.