Wild Men make great kings

The "Wild Man" stories present an interesting contradiction. The wild man is perceived to be wild, untamed, and uncivilized, and therefore is not to be trusted. However, it eventually is revealed that the wild man is a kingly figure, and rewards the young boy who assists him with a kingdom of his own. The reader is supposed to be wary of the wild man, but at the same time understands that he is more than a simple beast. He embodies certain characteristics that are intended to be positive in a masculine sense, while simultaneously serving as an unknown and untrustworthy character.

Especially in the shorter of the two versions, the wild man is portrayed as a drunk, and it is his "despicable" desire for alcohol that ultimately leads to be captured in the first place. The puritan writers of the story clearly intend his alcoholic consumption to be a vanity, an aspect of his character that the audience will despise. However, he is ultimately revealed to be a king, albeit one under an unexplained spell, which explains his drunken behavior.

The wild man is a contradiction precisely because he is intended to be admired and distrusted simultaneously. Although it is not apparent at the outset that he is a king, his bearing combined with the audience's knowledge of fairy-tale types leads one to understand that there is more to him than meets the eye.