As I've mentioned in previous posts, two themes which strike me: Friendship. Greed.
The friendship between Cookie and King-Lu is a genuine one. The first step is the trust Cookie has in this stranger he discovers, naked in…
As I've mentioned in previous posts, two themes which strike me: Friendship. Greed.
The friendship between Cookie and King-Lu is a genuine one. The first step is the trust Cookie has in this stranger he discovers, naked in the woods. That establishes a dynamic which exists throughout: Cookie trust King-Lu. Since KL is the most entrepreneurial of the two, it makes sense that King is the one who concocts the scheme, i.e., steal milk from Chief Factor's cow to provide a necessary ingredient for the biscuits. It makes sense that King is the one who has the grand vision of moving to California to exploit their newfound wealth and start a business there. Cookie, a simple but earnest soul, buys into KL's vision for the future.
The problem is that in order to bring these visions to reality requires money. And that's where Greed comes in. King-Lu sees how Cookie's skill at baking is an asset. This is key to their plans. KL is also smart or intuitive enough to know that Cookie would have more luck engaging the cow to milk it than himself (KL).
All this is true, but here's where Friendship and Greed intersect creating a negative plot dynamic: Cookie does connect (as a friend) with the cow. It's that connection which leads to their undoing when Chief Factor and Captain note how the cow is extremely friendly with Cookie. Chief Factor puts two and two together to determine that Cookie is the cow's milk thief.
Thus, two friendships -- with King-Lu and the cow -- lead to Cookie's demise.