Princess or Monster? This is a song in the primer level of a popular piano method series. The lyrics are:
Once there was a princess. A princess. A princess.
Once there was a princess, a long time ago.
She lived in a castle. A castle. A castle.
She lived in a castle, a long time ago.
Once there was a monster. A monster. A monster.
Once there was a monster, a long time ago.
He lived in a dungeon. A dungeon. A dungeon.
He lived in a dungeon, a long time ago.
My student, Maggie, and I talked about the purpose of the song and what we needed learn. The question came up: Why is the Monster always in the dungeon and the Princess gets
the castle?
Here were all of my questions:
Why can’t a Monster end up in the castle?
What if the Princess had bad spending habits?
What if the Monster saved all of his money and bought a really nice castle? Could he still live there?
Why is the Monster a dude?
Couldn’t the Monster be a hard working college graduate from a nice middle class family?
Could the Prince be a poor money manager and end up renting the castle dungeon from the successful Monster (who earned a degree in Information Technology and not Art History with a minor in Philosophy)?
Maggie looked at me like I was crazy! She put her hand up to stop my questioning and said: The Monster doesn’t have any money. He has to live in the dungeon!
Me: Why?
There was a small moment of silence….
Maggie: ...because he had bad breath and spent all of his money on toothpaste!
Me: *stares off into space and contemplates that she just might be right