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The king controls justice in this story, and his method of justice is unique. In the proceedings of his lavish arena, he leaves guilt and innocence up to pure chance. The king is said to have a fanciful attitude toward justice, and this method proves it to be true. Rather than put on gladiatorial battles in his arena, he puts on a show in the name of justice. The two doors provide entertainment for his subjects, since no one knows which door will hold the tiger and which will hold the lady. The tiger represents guilt, and the lady represents innocence. This shows the truly barbaric nature of the king’s rule. Ordinarily, justice would be up to the evidence in a trial. In the king’s domain, however, justice is in the hands of chance.

In the case of his own daughter, the king also defers to his flawed and ego-driven system of justice. Though the king has a chance to overthrow his own method of sentencing in order to spare the princess from suffering, he doesn’t let his love for his daughter interfere with his well-established system. This shows a hands-off approach to rule, but it also shows some selfish cunning on the part of the king. If the princess’s lover is killed by the tiger, the king’s problem is solved. But equally, if the young man is married off to another woman, the problem goes away. The king will get his way whatever the outcome of the trial, and his ego remains intact.

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