Have you ever looked back at story you were told as a kid and wondered why on earth it was told to begin with?

I’ve thought this about the Hans Christian Andersen tale, “The Princess and the Pea.” The girl is discovered to be a princess because she couldn’t handle one little pea under all her mattresses…wouldn’t that show that she’s discontent, inflexible, overbearing, and uppity? Why would those be good characteristics in a girl?  Wouldn’t she be impossible to live with?  If these were defining characteristics of a princess, then why would the prince (and his mother) want to marry a princess?

What other classic children’s stories leave you scratching your head?