Synopsis by William Disbro, created from: In The Ever After Beyond the Hero Classic Stories of Men in Search of Soul, by Allan B. Chinen, originally published by Jeremy Tarcher/Putnam Books, 1993.
A mighty king had goat ears and hid them in his crown but whenever he had a haircut the barber discovered the secret. When asked how he looked after the haircut the barbers always replied: "handsome, except for the goat's ears." And the king always killed the barber to keep the secret.
Then a young barber, after the haircut, decided not to mention the ears and he was rewarded with gold but after awhile he became wasted away from the secret he held inside. He was told to dig a deep hole in the woods and shout out the secret into the hole. He did this and reeds grew on that spot of earth. One day children cut the reeds to make flutes and as they blew on them out came the words: "The King has goat ears." Soon the whole community heard about this and the king confronted his barber: "How dare you reveal my secret! Prepare to die!" But the barber explained he had told no one and told of the hole in the earth and the king traveled to the reeds and cut his own flute and blew on it. The words "The King has goat ears!" came flowing through the reed. The children's stories were true and even the earth knew of the king's secret. The king smiled and was relieved his secret was out. Everyone could laugh at his ears and still obey his laws.
Dr. Chinen carefully explains the symbolism involving shame carried by an older powerful man being saved by a young man who is a player in getting the king to confront his shame. The hair that must be cut, the goat's ears, the hole dug into the earth relate to wildness that stand as alternatives to the patriarchal ideal of manhood. Are alternatives helpful? Necessary? How much influence of the wildness?
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