Why Is Iron John's Key Under the Mother's Pillow?

Shaan Puri retells the opening of Robert Bly's Iron John story. The prince is a good boy headed for the throne: he dresses properly for court, says please and thank you, and listens to his parents. A golden ball, a gift from his father and his favorite toy, stands for the boy's vitality and life energy. The ball rolls into Iron John's cage. Iron John will give it back only if the boy lets him out.

The boy has no key. Iron John says the key to the cage is under the mother's pillow. Robert Bly says that for every good boy, the key to the wild man sits where the mother rests her head at night, among her hopes and dreams for him. Mothers do not dream of a young boy becoming a pirate or a wild man. They want something safe and proper. The boy steals the key and lets Iron John out. Iron John returns the ball and turns toward the forest. The boy fears the palace will kill him for setting the wild man loose. Iron John will not go back in the cage. He tells the boy that the boy is the one who is trapped, says the boy may live in a palace but Iron John knows far greater riches, sets the boy on his shoulders, and carries him out to the forest.

Chapter one ends there. Shaan Puri asks what the ending means, and the lesson stays on chapter one: in life there are three types of men, good boys, wild men, and great kings.