Reflection on Stories These Three Wishes and The Third Wish

Let’s say, one day, you’re granted three wishes. Your first two wishes were used wisely, but you killed yourself using the third one. Or, let’s say you get three wishes, and you died before you could use the third one. Well, in the stories, “These Three Wishes”, and, “The Third Wish”, both of these things happened. And as you can see, they have similarities and differences. One of the main differences between these two stories is how both characters died. In “Those Three Wishes”, Melinda Alice killed herself by wishing herself dead.
According to the story she quotes, “I wish I were dead. ” (Gorog 124). In “The Third Wish”, Mr. Peters died from old age, and didn’t get to use his third wish. “In the morning Mr. Peters was found peacefully dead in his bed with a smile of great happiness on his face. ” (Aiken 107). For these reasons, the stories differ. Another difference between these two stories is the personalities of the two characters. Melinda Alice was a clever, but cruel girl who thought of no one but herself. For example, in the story it quotes, “No, she was lever, even witty. ” (Aiken 122). But, Mr. Peters was a kind and loving man. He even offered to use one of his wishes on his new wife, and turn her back into the swan that she originally was.
In the story, Mr. Peters quotes, “Then shall I use my second wish to turn you back into a swan again? ” (Aiken 105). There are also similarities between these stories. They have very important morals to them. In “Those Three Wishes”, the moral is, “Be careful what you wish for. ” Melinda Alice saying, “I wish I were dead. (Aiken 124) maybe wasn’t the best thing to do. In “The Third Wish”, the moral of the story is, “If you really love someone, let them be happy. ” Mr. Peters showed this by offering his wife one of his three wishes. Getting wishes is not all what it’s cracked up to be. Yes, it’s fun to wish for everything that we want in life but, sometimes, they can cause more trouble than needed. And we don’t want to end up in a mistake that we can’t turn around.

Comparison/Contrast Essay: “Those Three Wishes” “The Third Wish” Jordan M. Beard 8-04 September 16, 2010