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The Heart of Princess Joan

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Illustration by Walter Crane for "The Heart of Princess Joan," depicting Joan realizing Prince Michael is her beloved.

“The Heart of Princess Joan” is a 19th century fairy tale that was published in 1880 as part of the collection The Necklace of Princess Fiorimonde and other Stories. This was the second of three published collections of fairy tales by popular children’s writer of the day, Mary de Morgan. Illustrations for the stories were provided by Walter Crane.

About the Author

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Born in 1850 into an intellectual and creative British family, Mary de Morgan perfected her literary style by telling uniquely crafted fairy tales to the children of family and friends, who included the Burne-Jones, Morrises, and the Kiplings.[1] [2] [3] In fact, “The Heart of Princess Joan” is dedicated, with the other stories in the collection to her nephews and nieces.[4] James Fowler remarks that “she seems to represent a full flowering of the Victorian fairy-tale genre…”[5]

Plot Summary

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This fairy tale opens with a wealthy King and Queen. The Queen was prideful and disdained the fairies. When the Queen had a baby girl named Joan, the fairies stole her heart. So, Joan grew up to be the most beautiful girl in the land, but loved nobody. In the neighbouring country, there lived a Prince named Michael – the most gracious man of all. He came across a picture of Joan in an old wizard’s tower, and asked for her hand in marriage. The wizard warned him to avoid Joan, but Michael ignored him. Despite his love for Joan, he disguised himself as a beggar and went to see what was wrong with the Princess. He found she was cold-hearted and ruthless. He spoke to Joan’s mother, the Queen, and learned about her missing heart. He told the Queen he would save Joan by retrieving her heart. If he were not to return in seven years, Joan could marry someone else. The wizard learned of these plans and gave Michael a special piece of glass. If he followed the blood-red star through the glass, he would be led to Joan’s heart.

Michael traveled for ages, across land and water. His boat eventually drifted into some land which housed a castle he could not enter. Beside the castle there were an old man and a snake. The old man agreed to show Michael the way into the castle if he agreed to be his slave until the snake hatched its eggs; Michael agreed. Years passed and Michael became angry. He attempted to destroy the eggs but was not successful. As he cried, his tears fell upon the eggs and the shells cracked open. Michael found his way into the castle and vowed to accept nothing else but the heart of his beloved. A fairy of many disguises encouraged Michael to eat enchanted food, but he was never fooled, since he could see who she really was through his piece of glass. Finally, the fairy gave him the heart of Joan along with some magical words to repeat when seeing her. When Michael returned, he laid eyes on the Princess, repeated the words, and the heart in his hand fluttered into Joan’s chest. She immediately recognized Michael, insisted they get married, and kissed him in front of all to see. They were wed and the people were happy. “For now we are sure of a good King,” the people said. “See, he has already shown what he can do. Surely no one else could ever have found the heart of Princess Joan.” [6]

1880 Release Announcement in the Times

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“Ready this day, extra fep., 8 vo., 6s, The Necklace of Princess Fiorimonde, and other Stories, By Mary de Morgan. With 25 Illustrations by Walter Crane. Also an edition on large paper, the illustrations on India paper, limited to 100 copies.”[7]

Literary Review

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Although de Morgan’s stories, including “The Heart of Princess Joan,” have a somewhat folk-like feel, they are original and recorded in a style similar to that of Hans Christian Anderson.[8] [9] This might be due to the fact that they were told to children before their final form was decided on and published.[10] [11] This story in particular draws on the themes of enduring love and personal sacrifice, which are manifested by the hero, Prince Michael; these are reoccurring theme in de Morgan’s stories. [12] Although de Morgan’s fairy tales usually comment on Victorian culture, of which she was a part, there is a lack of scholarly discussion about such parallels in “The Heart of Princess Joan.”[13] De Morgan’s stories are also said to “question the value of wealth and power.”[14] This is clearly seen in “The Heart of Princess Joan” when Prince Michael is tempted by the sumptuous appearance of the Yellow Fairy’s castle, which in truth, turns out to be actually as hideous and grotesque as the fairy herself.[15]


Published Collections by Mary de Morgan

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References

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  1. ^ Carpenter, Humphrey and Mari Prichard. The Oxford Companion to Children’s Literature. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1984. 145.
  2. ^ Fowler, James. “The Golden Harp: Mary de Morgan’s Centrality in Victorian Fairy-Tale Literature.” Children’s Literature 33 (2005): 224-236. Project Muse. John Hopkins University Press. 4 Feb. 2013. http://muse.jhu.edu.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/journals/childrens_literature/v033/33.1fowler.html. 224-225.
  3. ^ Crawford, Alan. “Morgan, William Frend De (1839–1917)”. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, (Oct 2009). http://www.oxforddnb.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/view/article/32779. 4 Feb 2013.
  4. ^ De Morgan, Mary. “The Heart of Princess Joan.” The Necklace of Princess Fiorimonde and Other Stories. Edinburgh: R.&R. Clark, 1880. 79-130. David Edwards and Josephine Paolucci, Comp. The Project Gutenberg. 25 Feb. 2012., http://www.gutenberg.org/files/38976/38976-h/38976-h.htm#front.1 Feb 2013. Page V.
  5. ^ Fowler, James. “The Golden Harp: Mary de Morgan’s Centrality in Victorian Fairy-Tale Literature.” Children’s Literature 33 (2005): 224-236. Project Muse. John Hopkins University Press. 4 Feb. 2013. http://muse.jhu.edu.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/journals/childrens_literature/v033/33.1fowler.html. 224.
  6. ^ De Morgan, Mary. “The Heart of Princess Joan.” The Necklace of Princess Fiorimonde and Other Stories. Edinburgh: R.&R. Clark, 1880. 79-130. David Edwards and Josephine Paolucci, Comp. The Project Gutenberg. 25 Feb. 2012., http://www.gutenberg.org/files/38976/38976-h/38976-h.htm#front.1 Feb 2013.
  7. ^ “The Times Column of New Books and New Editions.” Times [London, England] 29 Oct. 1880:10. The Times Digital Archive. Web. <http://find.galegroup.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/ttda/infomark.do?&source=gale&prodId=TTDA&userGroupName=ubcolumbia&tabID=T003&docPage=article&searchType=BasicSearchForm&docId=CS168214365&type=multipage&contentSet=LTO&version=1.0>. 6 Feb. 2013.
  8. ^ Carpenter, Humphrey and Mari Prichard. The Oxford Companion to Children’s Literature.Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1984. 145.
  9. ^ Fowler, James. “The Golden Harp: Mary de Morgan’s Centrality in Victorian Fairy-Tale Literature.” Children’s Literature 33 (2005): 224-236. Project Muse. John Hopkins University Press. 4 Feb. 2013. http://muse.jhu.edu.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/journals/childrens_literature/v033/33.1fowler.html. 224.
  10. ^ Fowler, James. “The Golden Harp: Mary de Morgan’s Centrality in Victorian Fairy-Tale Literature.” Children’s Literature 33 (2005): 224-236. Project Muse. John Hopkins University Press. 4 Feb. 2013. http://muse.jhu.edu.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/journals/childrens_literature/v033/33.1fowler.html. 225.
  11. ^ Cott, Jonathan, ed. “Mary De Morgan.” Beyond the Looking Glass: Novels, Stories & Poetry from the Victorian Era. New York: Stonehill Publishing, 1973. 162.
  12. ^ Fowler, James. “The Golden Harp: Mary de Morgan’s Centrality in Victorian Fairy-Tale Literature.” Children’s Literature 33 (2005): 224-236. Project Muse. John Hopkins University Press. 4 Feb. 2013. http://muse.jhu.edu.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/journals/childrens_literature/v033/33.1fowler.html. 225.
  13. ^ Fowler, James. “The Golden Harp: Mary de Morgan’s Centrality in Victorian Fairy-Tale Literature.” Children’s Literature 33 (2005): 224-236. Project Muse. John Hopkins University Press. 4 Feb. 2013. http://muse.jhu.edu.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/journals/childrens_literature/v033/33.1fowler.html. 226.
  14. ^ Lurie, Alison, ed. “Mary de Morgan.” 445. The Oxford Book of Modern Fairy Tales. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993.
  15. ^ De Morgan, Mary. “The Heart of Princess Joan.” The Necklace of Princess Fiorimonde and Other Stories. Edinburgh: R.&R. Clark, 1880. David Edwards and Josephine Paolucci, Comp. ‘‘The Project Gutenberg.’’ 25 Feb. 2012., http://www.gutenberg.org/files/38976/38976-h/38976-h.htm#front.1 Feb 2013. 117-120.
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