Hop o' My Thumb is a fairy tale written by Charles Perrault. The story is about seven boys who were abandoned in the woods by their poor father. Brothers found a house where a cannibalistic giant lived and they were trapped.
The smallest of the boys, called Hop o' My Thumb tricked the giant, led the boys out, and when the giant almost caught them, he stole his magic boots. With these a whole new life for the family becomes possible.
This fairy tale is not among best known-ones, but it's closest German relative Hansel and Gretel is. Let's take a look at Hop o' My Thumb. Here are the ten most important facts:
Were you already familiar with Hop o' My Thumb?
Yes, that's true, frankbeswick. This is exactly the point where fairy tales use the character of the giant - big, loud, powerful person in one's life - in many cases this is one's father. And by the way, fathers often posses shiny objects and other displays of power.
The biblical account of Goliath's height might have been exaggerated. A few years ago I read a comment by a bible scholar who estimated Goliath's height as six foot three.Big even for our time, but as men then were smaller than they are now this height would have been gigantic. But still, a giant is someone substantially bigger than you are, so for David Goliath was a giant.
You are right, blackspanielgallery. For that reason they are perfect representation of the evil part of the figure of father in fair tales. Have you heard about the theory claiming Goliath had a pituitary gland disease causing hormonal imbalance, gigantism and bad eyesight? It's called acromegaly.
Giants are often associated with evil, perhaps caused by the offspring of the Watchers in old texts, and continued with Goliath.