KidLit Forum

What I find very interesting in this Ft is the fact that morality can be found in nature, in natural elements such as wind, river, soil. This way the natural/primordial elements become magical beings who contribute to the moral development of the protagonist. The story has a circular structure. It begins with a perfect /divine description of the nature (the region was fertile, it never knew famine, the land was prottected by the mountains) that contrast with the morality of the two older brothers, but in the end, the harmony is reestablished (because of his good soul Gluck is able to restore the fertility of the land). Gluck seems to represent the image of the child that in Victorian Age is abused by the rich/ the society who is lead only by consumism, profit, money, mercantile side. Gluck is another image of Oliver Twist, Paul Dombey. Even if he is under the ‘ protection’ of his two older brothers Schwartz and Hans, Gluck is innocent, capable of sacrifice, full of charity and he is able to keep contact with the magical world that protects him. Contrary to this, the other two brothers are unable to decipher the moral values from the visits of the South West Wind and Golden River. Because they are incapable of overcoming the ‘tests’ the two brothers are turned into black stones.

The "holy water" isn't important because it's holy, even if it's stollen or it's bought from a bad priest, but it's holy because it can save lives. Gluck proves his kindness repeatedly, starting with the old man, then the child, and in the end the dog, while his brothers had no mercy for human beings, or even for his own brother(as Schwartz meets first the child, then the old man, and finally his own brother), Gluck has mercy of a thirsty puppy, who appears to be The King of The Golden River. He, then squeezed three drops of dew from a lily into Gluck's bottle, and demonstrates that isn't important the source of water, but the power of sacrifice. These three drops of water make The Treasure Valley fertile once more, and Gluck, the new owner,a rich man who doesn't treat bad the needy that come to his door. This way, although his brothers wanted The Golden River to be made of gold, to make them rich, Gluck demonstrated them that a fertile soil can be the necesary "gold" that made him wealthy...

As you said, Anca the story begins with a beautiful description of Treasure Valley, which in my opinion can be compared with the Garden of Eden " a valley of most surprising and luxuriant fertility...that it was a marvel to every one who beheld it." Too bad that Gluck's elder brothers, Hans and Schwartz, lost this "paradise" and their lives due to their selfishness and greed.
"One who acts well may always expect good."(Giambattista Basile- The She Bear) This quote came to my mind as I was thinking to Gluck, the younger brother, who managed to restore the Treasure Valley's fertility because of his self-sacrifice and his generosity. So, the good always overcomes the evil (at least in fairy tales ).

As I see it, this fairy tale centers the morality issue. It isn‘t only a story about the three brothers and their pursuit for gold. Actually this fairytale centers the human condition.The story underlines the importance of beeing human. The true character of a person can be observed when she is in need, when she deals different situations. I really enjoyed the story and the Gluck‘s reply when he saw the bad condition of that puppy:"poor beastie". The key to his salvation from being transformed into a stone is mercy. This is the solution that can help us keep the humanity alive.The two brothers lost it and payed with their own life.

Schwartz and Huns were the elder brothers, they were ugly, they were farmers, they didn't go to church and they didn't give money to poor people. From the beginning of the FT it is sure who were the negative heroes, they didn't have mercy even for their brother Gluck. I know that brothers love each other, they don't behave like the two elder brothers did. Schwartz went to the Golden River also, he saw his brother there lying almost dead of thirst, and Schwartz started to laugh and asked him if he remembers the prison bar.This is the unusual feature in this FT that brothers hate each other.

Yes, this could be compared with the Garden of Eden, as Ramona Varga said, but it is actually the England before the Industrial Revolution. When the industrialization started, it destroyed this beautiful "Valley", and not only this valley, but also the spiritual "valley" of the individuals. Hans and Swartz best represent the "new man" of Victorian period, a man with the main goal in his life: to make money and no matter how. When the man failed his goals, he spiritually crushes down and starts drinking (like the two brothers). Only the Gluck, who was not thirsty of power and money, was able to regain the lost „Treasure of Valley”. And he was able to regain it because his spiritual „valley” was pure, untouched by the misery of Industrial Revolution.

In the beginning of this FT it is depicted a wonderful place, namely the Treasure Valley where "crops were so heavy, and its hay so high, and its apples so red, and its grapes so blue, and its wine so rich, and its honey so sweet, that it was a marvel to everyone who beheld it". As we can see, its name definitely underlines the valuable aspects of this place and it can be considered a symbolic name. Another significant aspect is the way in which the owners, especially Schwartz and Hans, the two elder brothers, are presented because their descriptions and nicknames predict somehow the plotline, namely it cross our mind that something bad is going to happen to them .
So , I consider that in this work, there are many symbols that have to be deciphered by reader while the plotline is followed in order to understand better its message.