A woman’s influence (Part 1)

A woman once said, “Beauty is more important than brains because men can see better than they can think.” True or not, allow me to share an amusing fictional story that emphasizes one aspect of a woman’s influence over a man.

Young King Arthur was ambushed and imprisoned by the monarch of a neighboring kingdom. The monarch could have killed him but was moved by Arthur’s youth and ideals. So the monarch offered him his freedom, as long as he could answer a question. Arthur would have a year to figure out the answer, and if after a year he still had no answer, he would be put to death. The question? What do women really want? To young Arthur, it seemed an impossible query. But, since it was better than death, he accepted the monarch’s proposition to have an answer by year’s end.

He returned to his kingdom and began to poll everyone, but no one could give him a satisfactory answer. Many people advised him to consult the old witch, for only she would have the answer. But the price would be high, as the witch was famous throughout the kingdom for the exorbitant prices she charged.

The last day of the year arrived, and Arthur had no choice but to talk to the witch. She agreed to answer the question, but he would have to agree to her price first. The old witch wanted to marry Sir Lancelot, the most noble of the Knights of the Round Table and Arthur’s closest friend! Young Arthur was horrified. She was hunchbacked and hideous, had only one tooth, smelled like sewage, made obscene noises, etc. 

He refused to force his friend to marry her and endure such a terrible burden. But Lancelot, learning of the proposal, said nothing was too big of a sacrifice compared to Arthur’s life. Hence, a wedding was proclaimed, and the witch answered Arthur’s question thus: What a woman really wants, she answered, is to be in charge of her own life.

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