Excerpt:
"It was so terribly cold. Snow was falling, and it was almost dark. Evening came on, the last evening of the year. In the cold and gloom a poor little girl, bareheaded and barefoot, was walking through the streets."
First published 1845.
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Sharon M. Himsl
Writer/Author. Blogging since 2011.
Published with Evernight Teen:
~~The Shells of Mersing
Andersen was such a master storyteller. What a gift he was to the world.
ReplyDeleteHi! I love this writer too, always have.
ReplyDeleteI read this story quite a bit when I was young and I have come to the conclusion that he must have had bi polar disorder:) this poor math girl dies frozen in the snow, the pretty Christmas tree, so happy to be brought out only to find out he is thrown into the fire and the little mermaid has to endure unbearable pain having legs to be near the man she loves only to find out he loves another and she dies but at least she doesn't become just foam on the water. Anderson did have some issues:)
ReplyDeleteWow I am hardly an authority but you did spark my curiosity, Birgit. Online I see he was widely criticised in his own time too. One feminist site also criticizes his depiction of women and more. Did not see anything on being bipolar (how could we know?), but his personal life was indeed dark as a child and adult, which gave him some rather unique perspectives. In his defense, (London scholar) Lundskær-Nielsen said that by being an outsider, Andersen was able to see more than others. “He noticed differences in social classes in minute detail and different ways. He could comment on social norms from a distance. He helped readers open their eyes to new perspectives.” He continued ...“You see different layers of meaning and with several audiences in mind." (adult and children)
DeleteI'm still a fan. One of my all time favorites is The Ugly Duckling. His works are still played out on the stage and in movies. My grandkids still talk about Frozen. Maybe Hollywood will do a more realistic view of this writer. We can always hope. Thanks for your comment!
Easily one of my favorite Andersen stories!
ReplyDeleteHi Heather. Nice to see again!
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