Romance & The Frog as Lover

The Frog King is an odd tale since it relies on an act of violence. The princess is so irritated by the frog, she throws him against a wall. 

Then, instead of saying, "Hey, what the--no, I don't want to marry you!" the prince/king is relieved and pledges his troth. 

On the one hand, the tale seems to be a lecture about the benefits of keeping one's promise. The princess must stand by her agreement to the frog when she said he could live with her should he rescue her golden ball from the well. But again, the good behavior is undermined when the princess loses her temper, determines not to keep her agreement, and doesn't get punished.

Robin McKinley presents a short story in which the prince-frog-heir is enchanted by his evil brother; the prince and princes together ultimately conquer the evil brother. It is a decent rendering and answers the question, "Uh, why do these people want to have anything to do with each other?"

Another oddity about the tale is the add-on, "Iron John," which suggests to fans of M/M romance that neither the prince nor princess care all that much about each other. The marriage is one of convenience. The prince's true lover? The servant who mourned him so much, he bound iron bands around his chest. It seems only fair that such faithfulness should be rewarded. 

Of course, if fairy tales are any guide, faithfulness = romance, though present in many tales, is far less common than one would imagine.