although it's almost better for it to end the way it does-if the mermaid got the prince, the message would read more along the lines of "girls, you must give up all of your own hopes and dreams for the sake of a guy, and it will all be worth it" (of course, as hill points out, the mermaid is also motivated to get an eternal soul and not just a prince, so in that aspect it's actually a happy story. the antler is dried and used in ancient medicine for a health remedy and health maintenance purposes. 