THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES

- By Hans Christian Andersen
Font Size
Danish writer (1805–1875) For other uses, see Hans Christian Andersen (disambiguation). Hans Christian AndersenAndersen in 1869Born(1805-04-02)2 April 1805Odense, Funen, Denmark–NorwayDied4 August 1875(1875-08-04) (aged 70)Østerbro, Copenhagen, DenmarkResting placeAssistens Cemetery, Copenhagen (København)OccupationWriterPeriodDanish Golden AgeGenresChildren's literature, travelogueNotable works"The Little Mermaid""The Ugly Duckling""The Snow Queen""The Emperor's New Clothes"SignatureWebsiteHans Christian Andersen Centre Hans Christian Andersen (/ˈændərsən/ AN-dər-sən, Danish: [ˈhænˀs ˈkʰʁestjæn ˈɑnɐsn̩] ⓘ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consisting of 156 stories across nine volumes,[1] have been translated into more than 125 languages.[2] They have become embedded in Western collective consciousness, accessible to children as well as presenting lessons of virtue and resilience in the face of adversity for mature readers.[3] His most famous fairy tales include "The Emperor's New Clothes", "The Little Mermaid", "The Nightingale", "The Steadfast Tin Soldier", "The Red Shoes", "The Princess and the Pea", "The Snow Queen", "The Ugly Duckling", "The Little Match Girl", and "Thumbelina". His stories have inspired ballets, plays, and animated and live-action films.[4] Early life[edit] Andersen's childhood home in Odense Andersen was born in Odense, Denmark, on 2 April 1805. He had a stepsister named Karen.[5] His father, also named Hans, considered himself related to nobility (his paternal grandmother had told his father that their family had belonged to a higher social class,[6] but investigations have disproved these stories).[6][7] Although it has been challenged,[6] speculation suggests that Andersen was an illegitimate son of King Christian VIII. Danish historian Jens Jørgensen supported this idea in his book H.C. Andersen, en sand myte [a true myth].[8] Andersen was baptised on 15 April 1805 in Saint Hans Church in Odense. According to his birth certificate, which was not drafted until November 1823, six godparents were present at the baptism ceremony: Madam Sille Marie Breineberg, Maiden Friederiche Pommer, shoemaker Peder Waltersdorff, journeyman carpenter Anders Jørgensen, hospital porter Nicolas Gomard, and royal hatter Jens Henrichsen Dorch.[citation needed] Andersen's father, who had received an elementary school education, introduced his son to literature, reading him Arabian Nights.[9] Andersen's mother, Anne Marie Andersdatter, was an illiterate washerwoman. Following her husband's death in 1816, she remarried in 1818.[9] Andersen was sent to a local school for poor children where he received a basic education and had to support himself, working as an apprentice to a weaver and, later, to a tailor. At fourteen, he moved to Copenhagen to seek employment as an actor. Having a good soprano voice, he was accepted into the Royal Danish Theatre, but his voice soon changed. A colleague at the theatre told him that he considered Andersen a poet, and taking the suggestion seriously, Andersen began to focus on writing. Jonas Collin, director of the Royal Danish Theatre, held great affection for Andersen and sent him to a grammar school in Slagelse, persuading King Frederick VI to pay part of his education.[10] Andersen had by then published his first story, "The Ghost at Palnatoke's Grave" (1822). Though not a stellar pupil, he also attended school at Elsinore until 1827.[11] He later said that his years at this school were the darkest and most bitter years of his life. At one school, he lived at his schoolmaster's home. There he was abused and was told that it was done in order "to improve his character." He later said that the faculty had discouraged him from writing, which resulted in a depression.[12] Career[edit] Early work[edit] It doesn't matter about being born in a duckyard, as long as you are hatched from a swan's egg "The Ugly Duckling" A very early fairy tale by Andersen, "The Tallow Candle" (Danish: Tællelyset), was discovered in a Danish archive in October 2012. The story, written in the 1820s, is about a candle that does not feel appreciated. It was written while Andersen was still in school and dedicated to one of his benefactors. The story remained in that family's possession until it was found among other family papers in a local archive.[13] In 1829, Andersen enjoyed considerable success with the short story "A Journey on Foot from Holmen's Canal to the East Point of Amager". Its protagonist meets characters ranging from Saint Peter to a talking cat. Andersen followed this success with a theatrical piece, Love on St. Nicholas Church Tower, and a short volume of poems. He made little progress in writing and publishing immediately following these poems, but did receive a small travel grant from the king in 1833. This enabled him to set out on the first of many journeys throughout Europe. At Jura, near Le Locle, Switzerland, Andersen wrote the story "Agnete and the Merman". The same year he spent an evening in the Italian seaside village of Sestri Levante, which inspired the title of "The Bay of Fables".[14] He arrived in Rome in October 1834. Andersen's travels in Italy were reflected in his first novel, a fictionalized autobiography titled The Improvisatore (Improvisatoren), published in 1835 to instant acclaim.[15][16] Literary fairy tales[edit] A paper chimney sweep cut by Andersen Fairy Tales Told for Children. First Collection. (Danish: Eventyr, fortalt for Børn. Første Samling.) is a collection of nine fairy tales by Hans Christian Andersen. The tales were published in a series of three installments by C. A. Reitzel in Copenhagen between May 1835 and April 1837. They were Andersen's first venture into the fairy tale genre. The first installment was a volume of sixty-one unbound pages published 8 May 1835 containing "The Tinderbox", "Little Claus and Big Claus", "The Princess and the Pea" and "Little Ida's Flowers". The first three tales were based on folktales Andersen had heard in his childhood. The fourth was Andersen's creation for Ida Thiele, the daughter of folklorist Just Mathias Thiele, Andersen's early benefactor. Reitzel paid Andersen thirty rigsdalers for the manuscript, and the booklet was priced at twenty-four shillings.[17][18] The second booklet was published on 16 December 1835 and contained "Thumbelina", "The Naughty Boy", and "The Traveling Companion". "Thumbelina" was inspired by "Tom Thumb" and other stories of miniature people. "The Naughty Boy" was based on a poem about Eros from the Anacreontea, and "The Traveling Companion" was a ghost story Andersen had experimented with in the year 1830.[17] Andersen in 1836 The third booklet contained "The Little Mermaid" and "The Emperor's New Clothes", and it was published on 7 April 1837. "The Little Mermaid" was influenced by Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué's Undine (1811) and legends about mermaids. This tale established Andersen's international reputation.[19] The only other tale in the third booklet was "The Emperor's New Clothes", which was based on a medieval Spanish story with Arab and Jewish origins. On the eve of the third installment's publication, Andersen revised the conclusion (in which the Emperor simply walks in procession) to its now-famous finale of a child calling out, "The Emperor is not wearing any clothes!"[20] Danish reviews of the first two booklets first appeared in 1836 and were not enthusiastic. The critics disliked the chatty, informal style and apparent immorality, since children's literature was meant to educate rather than to amuse. The critics discouraged Andersen from pursuing this type of style. Andersen believed that he was working against the critics' preconceived notions about fairy tales, and he temporarily returned to novel-writing, waiting a full year before publishing his third installment.[21] The nine tales from the three booklets were published in one volume and sold for seventy-two shillings. A title page, a table of contents, and a preface by Andersen were published in this volume.[22] In 1868 Horace Scudder, the editor of Riverside Magazine For Young People, offered Andersen $500 for twelve new stories. Sixteen of Andersen's stories were published in the magazine, and ten of them appeared there before they were printed in Denmark.[23] Travelogues[edit] Portrait of Andersen by Franz Hanfstaengl, dated July 1860 In 1851, he published In Sweden, a volume of travel sketches. The publication received wide acclaim. A keen traveler, Andersen published several other long travelogues: Shadow Pictures of a Journey to the Harz, Swiss Saxony, etc. etc. in the Summer of 1831, A Poet's Bazaar, In Spain, and A Visit to Portugal in 1866. (The last one describes his visit with his Portuguese friends Jorge and José O'Neill, who he knew in the mid-1820s while he was living in Copenhagen.) In his travelogues, Andersen used contemporary conventions related to travel writing but developed the style to make it his own. Each of his travelogues combines documentary and descriptive accounts of his experiences, adding additional philosophical passages on topics such as authorship, immortality, and fiction in literary travel reports. Some of the travelogues, such as In Sweden, contain fairy tales. In the 1840s, Andersen's attention returned to the theatre stage, but with little success. He had better luck with the publication of the Picture-Book without Pictures (1840). He started a second series of fairy tales in 1838 and a third series in 1845. At this point Andersen was celebrated throughout Europe, although his native Denmark still showed some resistance to his pretensions. Between 1845 and 1864, Andersen lived at Nyhavn 67, Copenhagen, where a memorial plaque is now placed.[24] Patrons of Andersen's writings included the monarchy of Denmark, the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg. An unexpected invitation from King Christian IX to the royal palace entrenched Andersen's folklore in Danish royalty as well as making its way to the Romanov dynasty when Christian IX's daughter Maria Feodorovna married Alexander III of Russia.[25] Personal life[edit] Søren Kierkegaard[edit] In "Andersen as a Novelist", Søren Kierkegaard remarks that Andersen is characterized as "a possibility of a personality, wrapped up in such a web of arbitrary moods and moving through an elegiac duo-decimal scaled of almost echoless, dying tones just as easily roused as subdued, who, in order to become a personality, needs a strong life-development."[26] Andersen statue at the Rosenborg Castle Gardens, Copenhagen Meetings with Charles Dickens[edit] In June 1847, Andersen visited England for the first time, enjoying triumphant social success. The Countess of Blessington invited him to her parties where many intellectuals would meet, and at one such party he met Charles Dickens for the first time. They shook hands and walked to the veranda, which Andersen noted in his diary: "We were on the veranda, and I was so happy to see and speak to England's now-living writer whom I do love the most."[27] The two authors respected each other's work and as writers, and had in common their depictions of the underclass who often had difficult lives affected both by the Industrial Revolution and by abject poverty. Ten years later, Andersen visited England again, primarily to meet Dickens. He extended the planned brief visit to Dickens' home at Gads Hill Place into a five-week stay, much to the distress of Dickens' family. After Andersen was told to leave, Dickens gradually stopped all correspondence between them, to Andersen's great disappointment and confusion; he had enjoyed the visit and never understood why his letters went unanswered.[27] It is suspected that Dickens modeled the physical appearance and mannerisms of Uriah Heep from David Copperfield after Andersen.[28] Romantic relationships[edit] In Andersen's early life, his private journal records his refusal to have sexual relations.[29][30] Andersen experienced homosexual attraction;[31] he wrote to Edvard Collin:[32] "I languish for you as for a pretty Calabrian wench ... my sentiments for you are those of a woman. The femininity of my nature and our friendship must remain a mystery."[33] Collin wrote in his own memoir, "I found myself unable to respond to this love, and this caused the author much suffering." Andersen's infatuation with Karl Alexander, the young hereditary duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach,[34] did result in a relationship: The Hereditary Grand Duke walked arm in arm with me across the courtyard of the castle to my room, kissed me lovingly, asked me always to love him though he was just an ordinary person, asked me to stay with him this winter ... Fell asleep with the melancholy, happy feeling that I was the guest of this strange prince at his castle and loved by him ... It is like a fairy tale.[31] There is a sharp division in opinion over Andersen's physical fulfillment in the sexual sphere. Jackie Wullschlager's biography maintains he was possibly lovers with Danish dancer Harald Scharff [da][35] and Andersen's "The Snowman" was inspired by their relationship.[36] Scharff first met Andersen when the latter was in his fifties. Andersen was infatuated and Wullschlager sees his journals as implying that their relationship was sexual.[37] Scharff had various dinners alone with Andersen and gifted a silver toothbrush to Andersen on his fifty-seventh birthday.[38] Wullschlager asserts that in the winter of 1861–62, the two men entered an affair that brought Andersen "joy, some kind of sexual fulfillment, and a temporary end to loneliness."[39] He was not discreet in his conduct with Scharff, and displayed his feelings openly. Onlookers regarded the relationship as improper and ridiculous. In his diary in March 1862, Andersen referred to this time in his life as his "erotic period".[40] On 13 November 1863, Andersen wrote, "Scharff has not visited me in eight days; with him it is over."[41] Andersen took this calmly and the two thereafter met in overlapping social circles without bitterness, though Andersen attempted to rekindle their relationship a number of times without success.[42][note 1][note 2][43] According to Wullschlager, "Andersen's diaries leave no doubt that he was attracted to both sexes; that at times he longed for a physical relationship with a woman and that at other times he was involved in physical liaisons with men."[3] For example, Wullschlager quotes from Andersen's diaries: "Scharff bounded up to me; threw himself round my neck and kissed me! .... Nervous in the evening" Five days later he received "a visit from Scharff, who was very intimate and nice". In the following weeks, there was "dinner at Scharff's, who was ardent and loving" [3] The claim that Andersen entertained "physical liaisons" with men has been contested by Klara Bom and Anya Aarenstrup from the H. C. Andersen Centre of University of Southern Denmark. They state "it is correct to point to the very ambivalent (and also very traumatic) elements in Andersen's emotional life concerning the sexual sphere, but it is decidedly just as wrong to describe him as homosexual and maintain that he had physical relationships with men. He did not. Indeed, that would have been entirely contrary to his moral and religious ideas, aspects that are quite outside the field of vision of Wullschlager and her like."[44] Wullschlager in fact argued that, because of moral and religious ideas of his time, Andersen could not be open about his homosexual relationships. Andersen also fell in love with unattainable women, and many interpret references to them in his stories.[45] At one point, he wrote in his diary: "Almighty God, thee only have I; thou steerest my fate, I must give myself up to thee! Give me a livelihood! Give me a bride! My blood wants love, as my heart does!"[46] A girl named Riborg Voigt was the unrequited love of Andersen's youth. A small pouch containing a long letter from Voigt was found on Andersen's chest when he died, several decades after he first fell in love with her. Other disappointments in love included Sophie Ørsted,[citation needed] the daughter of the physicist Hans Christian Ørsted; and Louise Collin,[citation needed] the youngest daughter of his benefactor Jonas Collin. One of his stories, "The Nightingale", was written as an expression of his passion for Jenny Lind and was the inspiration for her nickname, the "Swedish Nightingale".[47] Andersen was shy around women and had extreme difficulty proposing to Lind. When Lind was boarding a train to go to an opera concert, Andersen gave Lind a letter of proposal. Her feelings towards him were not the same; she saw him as a brother, writing to him in 1844: "farewell ... God bless and protect my brother is the sincere wish of his affectionate sister, Jenny".[48] It is suggested that Andersen expressed his disappointment by portraying Lind as the eponymous antihero of The Snow Queen.[49] Death[edit] Andersen at Rolighed: Israel Melchior (c. 1867) In early 1872, at age 67, Andersen fell out of his bed and was severely hurt; he never fully recovered from the resultant injuries. Soon afterward, he started to show signs of liver cancer.[50] He died on 4 August 1875, in a country house called Rolighed (literally: calmness) near Copenhagen, the home of his close friends, the banker Moritz G. Melchior and his wife.[50] Shortly before his death, Andersen consulted a composer about the music for his funeral, saying: "Most of the people who will walk after me will be children, so make the beat keep time with little steps."[50] His body was interred in the Assistens Kirkegård in the Nørrebro area of Copenhagen, in the Collin family plot. In 1914, the headstone was moved to another cemetery (today known as "Frederiksbergs ældre kirkegaard"), where younger Collin family members were buried. For a period, his, Edvard Collin's, and Henriette Collin's graves were unmarked. A second stone has been erected, marking Andersen's grave, now without any mention of the Collin couple, but all three still share the same plot.[51] At the time of his death, Andersen was internationally revered, and the Danish government paid him an annual stipend for being a "national treasure".[52] Legacy[edit] Archives, collections and museums[edit] The Hans Christian Andersen Museum or H.C. Andersens Hus, is a set of museums/buildings dedicated to Hans Christian Andersen in Odense, Denmark, some of which, at various times in history, have functioned as the main Odense-based museum for the author. The Hans Christian Andersen Museum in Solvang, California, a city founded by Danes, is devoted to presenting the author's life and works. Displays include models of Andersen's childhood home and of "The Princess and the Pea". The museum also contains hundreds of volumes of Andersen's works, including many illustrated first editions and correspondence with Danish composer Asger Hamerik.[53] The Library of Congress Rare Book and Special Collections Division was bequeathed an extensive collection of Andersen materials by the Danish-American actor Jean Hersholt.[54][55] Arts and entertainment[edit] Postage stamps, Kazakhstan, 2005 Film and television[edit] La petite marchande d'allumettes (1928; in English: The Little Match Girl), film by Jean Renoir, based on "The Little Match Girl". The Ugly Duckling (1931) and its 1939 remake of the same name, two animated Silly Symphonies cartoon shorts produced by Walt Disney Productions, based on The Ugly Duckling. Andersen was played by Joachim Gottschalk in the German film The Swedish Nightingale (1941), which portrays his relationship with the singer Jenny Lind. The Red Shoes (1948), British drama film written, directed, and produced by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, based on "The Red Shoes". Hans Christian Andersen (1952), an American musical film starring Danny Kaye that, though inspired by Andersen's life and literary legacy, was not meant to be historically nor biographically accurate; it begins by saying, "This is not the story of his life, but a fairy tale about this great spinner of fairy tales." The Snow Queen (1957), a Soviet animated film based on The Snow Queen, by Lev Atmanov of Soyuzmultfilm, a faithful depiction of the fairy tale that garnered critical acclaim.[56][57] The Emperor's New Clothes (Carevo novo ruho), a 1961 Croatian film, directed by Ante Babaja. The Wild Swans (1962), Soviet animated adaptation of The Wild Swans, by Soyuzmultfilm. The Rankin/Bass Productions-produced fantasy film, The Daydreamer (1966), depicts the young Hans Christian Andersen conceiving the stories he would later write. The Little Mermaid (1968) 30-minute faithful Soviet animated adaptation of The Little Mermaid by Soyuzmultfilm. The World of Hans Christian Andersen (1968), a Japanese anime fantasy film from Toei Doga, based on the works of Hans Christian Andersen. Andersen Monogatari (1971), a Japanese animated anthology series produced by Mushi Production. The Pine Tree (c. 1974), 23 minute film in colour, commentary by Liz Lochhead.[58] Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid (1975) Japanese anime film from Toei, faithfully based on The Little Mermaid. The Little Mermaid (1976) Czech fantasy film based on The Little Mermaid. The Wild Swans (1977), Japanese animated adaptation of The Wild Swans by Toei. Thumbelina (1978), Japanese anime film from Toei based on Thumbelina. The Little Mermaid (1989), an animated film based on The Little Mermaid, created and produced at Walt Disney Feature Animation in Burbank, California. Thumbelina (1994), an animated film based on "Thumbelina", created and produced by Sullivan Bluth Studios, Dublin, Ireland One segment in Fantasia 2000 is based on "The Steadfast Tin Soldier", alongside Shostakovich's Piano Concerto No. 2, Movement 1: "Allegro". Hans Christian Andersen: My Life as a Fairytale (2003), a British made-for-television film directed by Philip Saville, a fictionalized account of Andersen's early successes, with his fairy stories intertwined with events in his own life.[59][60] The Fairytaler (2003), Danish-British animated series based on several Andersen fairy tales. The Little Matchgirl (2006), an animated short film by the Walt Disney Animation Studios directed by Roger Allers and produced by Don Hahn. The Snow Queen (2012), a Russian 3D animated film based on The Snow Queen, the first film of The Snow Queen series produced by Wizart Animation.[61] Frozen (2013), a 3D computer-animated musical film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios that is loosely inspired by The Snow Queen. Ginger's Tale (2020), a Russian 2D animated film loosely based on The Tinderbox, produced at Vverh Animation Studio in Moscow.[62] The Little Mermaid (2023), a live-action film based on The Little Mermaid created and produced by Walt Disney Pictures . Literature[edit] Andersen's stories laid the groundwork for other children's classics, such as The Wind in the Willows (1908) by Kenneth Grahame and Winnie-the-Pooh (1926) by A. A. Milne. The trope of inanimate objects, such as toys, coming to life (as in "Little Ida's Flowers") would later also be used by Lewis Carroll and Beatrix Potter.[63][64] Music[edit] Hans Christian Andersen (album), a 1994 album by Franciscus Henri. The Song is a Fairytale (Sangen er et Eventyr), a song cycle based on fairy tales by Hans Christian Andersen, composed by Frederik Magle. "Atonal Fairy Tale",[65] track with music composed by Gregory Reid Davis Jr. and Smart Dad Living reading the fairy tale "The Elfin Mound" by Hans Christian Andersen. Stage productions[edit] For opera and ballet see List of The Little Mermaid Adaptations Little Hans Andersen (1903), a children's pantomime at the Adelphi Theatre. The Nightingale (1914), an opera by Igor Stravinsky.[66] Sam the Lovesick Snowman at the Center for Puppetry Arts, a contemporary puppet show by Jon Ludwig inspired by "The Snow Man".[67] Striking Twelve, a modern musical take on "The Little Match Girl", created and performed by GrooveLily.[68] Once Upon a Mattress, a musical comedy based on Andersen's work "The Princess and the Pea".[69] Awards[edit] Hans Christian Andersen Awards, prizes awarded annually by the International Board on Books for Young People to an author and illustrator whose complete works have made lasting contributions to children's literature.[70] Hans Christian Andersen Literature Award, a Danish literary award established in 2010. Andersen's fable "The Emperor's New Clothes" was inducted in 2000 into the Prometheus Hall of Fame for Best Classic Fiction.[71] Events and holidays[edit] Andersen's refreshed gravestone at Assistens Cemetery in the Nørrebro district, Copenhagen Andersen's birthday, 2 April, is celebrated as International Children's Book Day.[72] The year 2005, designated "Andersen Year" in Denmark,[73] was the bicentenary of Andersen's birth, and his life and work were celebrated around the world. In Denmark, a well-attended show was staged in Copenhagen's Parken Stadium during "Andersen Year" to celebrate the writer and his stories.[73] The annual H.C. Andersen Marathon, established in 2000, is held in Odense, Denmark. Monuments and sculptures[edit] Seated bronze (1880) by sculptor August Saabye (1823–1916) can be seen in the Rosenborg Castle Gardens, Copenhagen, Denmark.[4] Seated bronze (1896) with a swan beside, a statue by the Danish sculptor Johannes Gelert (1852–1923), at Lincoln Park, Stockton Drive near Webster Avenue, Chicago, United States.[74] Seated bronze (1956), a statue by sculptor Georg J. Lober (1891–1961) and designer Otto Frederick Langman, at Central Park Lake in New York City, opposite East 74th Street (GPS 40°46′28″N 73°58′04″W / 40.7744306°N 73.9677972°W / 40.7744306; -73.9677972). The seated bronze of Andersen upon a granite bench was erected on the author's 150th birthday.[75] It includes a bronze duck representing the book The Ugly Duckling.[75][76] Seated bronze (1965) was erected in Copenhagen City Hall Square (Rådhuspladsen), facing H. C. Andersens Boulevard, Copenhagen, Denmark, made by Henry Luckow-Nielsen.[77] Bronze bust (2004), a replica of the 1865 bust by Herman Wilhelm Bissen (1798–1868), at Observatory Hill, Millers Point, Sydney, Australia,[78] was officially unveiled by HRH Crown Prince Frederik and HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark in March 2005, on Andersen's bicentenary.[79] It was to replace the 1955 bust erected in Phillip Park, Sydney; although found missing by 1984.[79] Seated bronze (2005), in the Plaza de la Marina in Málaga, Spain, by José María Córdoba. Standing bronze (2005) was erected in Hviezdoslavovo námestie, Bratislava, Slovakia, and was designed by Tibor Bártfay to mark the bicentennial.[80] Statue in Central Park, New York commemorating Andersen and The Ugly Duckling Statue in Odense being led out to the harbour during a public exhibition Statue in Solvang, California, a city built by Danish immigrants. Statue in Bratislava, Slovakia Portrait bust in Sydney unveiled by the Crown Prince and Princess of Denmark in 2005 Places named after Andersen[edit] H. C. Andersens Boulevard, a major road in Copenhagen formerly known as Vestre Boulevard (Western Boulevard), received its current name in 1955 to mark the 150-year anniversary of the writer's birth.[81] Hans Christian Andersen Airport, a small airport servicing the Danish city of Odense. Instituto Hans Christian Andersen, a Chilean high school located in San Fernando, Colchagua Province, Chile. Hans Christian Andersen Park, Solvang, California. CEIP Hans Christian Andersen, a primary Education School in Malaga, Spain.[82] Theme parks[edit] In Japan, the city of Funabashi has a children's theme park named after Andersen.[83] Funabashi is a sister city to Odense, the city of Andersen's birth. In China, a US$32 million theme park based on Andersen's tales and life opened in Shanghai's Yangpu district in 2017.[84][85] Construction on the project began in 2005.[86] Other honours[edit] The flatworm Collastoma anderseni (family: Umagillidae), an endosymbiont from the intestine of the sipunculan Themiste lageniformis (lit. 'Formed like a Lagenum'), was named after Andersen. Works[edit] Further information: Hans Christian Andersen bibliography Andersen's fairy tales include: "The Angel" (1843) "The Bell" (1845) "Blockhead Hans" (1855) "The Elf Mound" (1845) "The Emperor's New Clothes" (1837) "The Fir-Tree" (1844) "The Flying Trunk" (1839) "The Galoshes of Fortune" (1838) "The Garden of Paradise" (1839) "The Goblin and the Grocer" (1852) "Golden Treasure" (1865) "The Happy Family" (1847) "The Ice-Maiden" (1861) "It's Quite True" (1852) "The Jumpers" (1845) "Little Claus and Big Claus" (1835) "Little Ida's Flowers" (1835) "The Little Match Girl" (1845) "The Little Mermaid" (1837) "Little Tuk" (1847) "The Most Incredible Thing" (1870) "The Naughty Boy" (1835) "The Nightingale" (1843) "The Old House" (1847) "Ole Lukoie" (1841) "The Philosopher's Stone" (1858) "The Princess and the Pea" (1835) "The Red Shoes" (1845) "The Rose Elf" (1839) "The Shadow" (1847) "The Shepherdess and the Chimney Sweep" (1845) "The Snow Queen" (1844) "The Snowman" (1861) "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" (1838) "The Storks" (1839) "The Story of a Mother" (1847) "The Sweethearts; or, The Top and the Ball" (1843) "The Swineherd" (1841) "The Tallow Candle" (1820s) "The Teapot" (1863) "Thumbelina" (1835) "The Tinderbox" (1835) "The Traveling Companion" (1835) "The Ugly Duckling" (1843) "What the Old Man Does is Always Right" (1861) "The Wicked Prince" (1840) "The Wild Swans" (1838) The Hans Christian Andersen Museum in Odense has a large digital collection of Hans Christian Andersen papercuts,[87] drawings,[88] and portraits.[89] See also[edit] Kjøbenhavnsposten, a Danish newspaper in which Andersen published one of his first poems. Pleated Christmas hearts, invented by Andersen. Vilhelm Pedersen, the first illustrator of Andersen's fairy tales. List of The Little Mermaid Adaptations Vasili Eroshenko Explanatory notes[edit] ^ While on holiday, for example, Andersen and Scharff were forced to spend the night in Helsingør. Andersen reserved a double room for them both but Scharff insisted upon having his own. ^ Andersen continued to follow Scharff's career with interest, but in 1871, an injury during rehearsal forced Scharff permanently from the ballet stage. Scharff tried acting without success, married a ballerina in 1874, and died in the St. Hans asylum in 1912. Citations[edit] ^ "Fairy tales". H.C. Andersen Centret. ^ Wenande, Christian (13 December 2012). "Unknown Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale discovered". The Copenhagen Post. Archived from the original on 14 December 2012. Retrieved 15 December 2012. ^ a b c Wullschläger 2000, p. 388 ^ a b Bredsdorff 1975 ^ "Life". SDU Hans Christian Andersen Centret. Retrieved 10 June 2021. ^ a b c Rossel 1996, p. 6 ^ Askgaard, Ejnar Stig. "The Lineage of Hans Christian Andersen". Odense City Museums. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. ^ Jørgensen 1987 ^ a b Rossel 1996, p. 7 ^ "Hans Christian Andersen – Childhood and Education". Danishnet.com. Retrieved 17 November 2023. ^ "H.C. Andersens skolegang i Helsingør Latinskole". H.C. Andersen Information (in Danish). Retrieved 2 April 2010. ^ Wullschläger 2000, p. 56. ^ Stockmann, Camilla (12 December 2012). "Local historian finds Hans Christian Andersen's first fairy tale". Politiken.dk. Retrieved 17 November 2023. ^ "Premio e Festival Andersen di Sestri Levante". Andersen Premio e Festival (in Italian). Retrieved 17 November 2023. ^ Murray, Christopher John (13 May 2013). Encyclopedia of the Romantic Era, 1760–1850. Routledge. p. 20. ISBN 978-1-135-45579-8. ^ Sjåvik, Jan (19 April 2006). Historical Dictionary of Scandinavian Literature and Theater. Scarecrow Press. p. 20. ISBN 978-0-8108-6501-3. ^ a b Wullschläger 2000, p. 150 ^ Frank & Frank 2004, p. 13 ^ Wullschläger 2000, p. 174 ^ Wullschläger 2000, p. 176 ^ Wullschläger 2000, pp. 150, 165 ^ Wullschläger 2000, p. 178 ^ Rossel, Sven Hakon, Hans Christian Anderson, Writer and Citizen of the World, Rodopi, 1996 ^ "In the footsteps of Andersen". Visitcopenhagen.com. Archived from the original on 25 July 2008. Retrieved 2 April 2010. ^ Кудряшов, Константин (25 November 2017). "Дагмар — принцесса на русской горошине. Как Андерсен вошёл у нас в моду". aif.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 20 December 2020. ^ Kierkegaard, SørenHG (5 October 2009), Andersen as a Novelist: with Continual Reference to His Latest Work: Only a Fiddler, Princeton University Press, pp. 61–102, doi:10.1515/9781400832309-008, ISBN 978-1-4008-3230-9, retrieved 18 November 2023 ^ a b "H.C. Andersen og Charles Dickens 1857". H.C. Andersen Information. 31 March 2012. Retrieved 17 November 2023. ^ Alexander, Doris (1991). Creating characters with Charles Dickens. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press. pp. 78–81. ISBN 978-0-271-00725-0. ^ Lepage, Robert (18 January 2006). "Bedtime stories". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 July 2006. ^ Garfield, Patricia (21 June 2004). "The Dreams of Hans Christian Andersen" (PDF). p. 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 March 2012. Retrieved 19 August 2020. ^ a b Booth, Michael (2005). Just As Well I'm Leaving: To the Orient With Hans Christian Andersen. London: Vintage. pp. Pos. 2226. ISBN 978-1-44648-579-8. ^ Crawford, Frederick, ed. (1891). Hans Christian Andersen's Correspondence with the Late Grand-Duke of Saxe-Weimar, Charles Dickens, Etc., Etc. Dean & Son. ^ Hurley, Nat (2014), Reimer, Mavis; Ali, Nyala; England, Deanna; Unrau, Melanie Dennis (eds.), "The Little Transgender Mermaid: A Shape-Shifting Tale", Seriality and Texts for Young People, Critical Approaches to Children's Literature, London: Palgrave Macmillan, p. 270, doi:10.1057/9781137356000_14, ISBN 978-1-137-35600-0, retrieved 18 November 2023 ^ Pritchard, Claudia (27 March 2005). "His dark materials". The Independent. Archived from the original on 14 March 2007. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ "The Timetable Year by Year". H.C. Andersen Centret. Retrieved 22 July 2006. ^ Wullschläger 2000, pp. 373, 379 ^ "Hans Christian Andersen: The Life of a Storyteller". Gay & Lesbian Review Worldwide. 1 November 2001. Archived from the original on 2 September 2019. Retrieved 10 June 2009. ^ "Andersen's Fairy Tales". The Advocate. 26 April 2005. Archived from the original on 2 September 2019. Retrieved 10 June 2009. ^ Wullschläger 2000, pp. 387–389 ^ Andersen 2005, pp. 475–476 ^ Andersen 2005, p. 477 ^ Wullschläger 2000, pp. 392–393 ^ Andersen 2005, pp. 477–479 ^ Bom, Anne Klara; Aarenstrup, Anya. "Homosexuality". H.C. Andersen Centret. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ Hastings, Waller (4 April 2003). "Hans Christian Andersen". Northern State University. Archived from the original on 23 November 2007. Retrieved 15 December 2012. ^ Sørensen, Lise. "The Tales of Hans Christian Andersen". Scandinavian.wisc.edu. Archived from the original on 12 March 2012. Retrieved 2 April 2010. ^ Oldrup, Thomas (2 July 2014). "H.C. Andersen og Jenny Lind". Altomhistorie.dk. Archived from the original on 25 August 2016. ^ "Sangerinden Jenny Lind 1820 – 1867". H.C. Andersen Information. Retrieved 2 April 2010. ^ Connelly, Charlie (27 October 2021). "Jenny Lind: The very modern career of a 19th century superstar". The New European. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ a b c Bryant, Mark (1997). Private lives : curious facts about the famous and infamous. London: Cassell. p. 3. ISBN 978-0-304-34923-4. ^ "Historien om H.C. Andersens gravsted på Assistens Kirkegård i København". H.C. Andersen Information (in Danish). Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ "Hans Christian Andersen". Biography. A&E Networks. 2 April 2014. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ "HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN MUSEUM". SolvangCA.com. Archived from the original on 29 November 2010. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ "Jean Hersholt Collections". Library of Congress. 15 April 2009. Retrieved 2 April 2010. ^ "Billedbog til Jonas Drewsen". American Memory: Remaining Collections. 15 April 2009. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ Crowther, Bosley (14 April 1960). "Screen: Disney ala Soviet: The Snow Queen' at Neighborhood Houses". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 22 November 2020. ^ Weiler, A. H. (7 June 1959). "BY WAY OF REPORT; Soviet 'Snow Queen,' Other Animated Features Due – 'Snowman's' Story". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 22 November 2020. ^ "PINE TREE, the". Moving Image Archive. National Library of Scotland. ^ Moore, Frazier (6 September 2002). "Upcoming TV schedules focus on events of 9/11". Chillicothe Gazette. p. 13. ^ Greenhill, Pauline (2015). "'The Snow Queen': Queer Coding in Male Directors' Films". Marvels & Tales. Vol. 29, no. 1. pp. 110–134. ISSN 1521-4281. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (2 June 2012). "Russian Animation on Ice". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 22 November 2020. ^ Abate, Antonio Maria (22 June 2020). "Annecy 2020, Ginger's Tale, recensione, un principe da salvare". Cineblog (in Italian). Retrieved 22 November 2020. ^ Sherry, Clifford J. (2009). Animal Rights: A Reference Handbook (Illustrated reprint ed.). Bloomsbury Academic. ISBN 978-1-59884-191-6. ^ "Ledger Legends: J. M. Barrie, Beatrix Potter and Lewis Carroll". Barclays. 23 November 2018. Retrieved 30 May 2020. ^ Smart Dad Living (22 August 2020), It Is What It Isn't, Too!, retrieved 18 November 2023 ^ H. Colin Slim Stravinsky Collection (2002). Annotated catalogue of the H. Colin Slim Stravinsky collection : donated by him to the University of British Columbia Library. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Library. ISBN 978-0-88865-221-8. ^ Ludwig, Jon. "Sam the Lovesick Snowman'". Center for Puppetry Arts. Archived from the original on 3 February 2009. Retrieved 2 April 2010. ^ Blankenship, Mark (13 November 2006). "Striking 12". Variety. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ Ross Griffel, Margaret (2013). Operas in English: A Dictionary (Revised ed.). Scarecrow Press. p. 393. ISBN 978-0-8108-8325-3. ^ "Hans Christian Andersen Award". International Board on Books for Young People. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ "Prometheus Awards". Libertarian Futurist Society. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ "International Children's Book Day". International Board on Books for Young People. Retrieved 17 December 2012. Since 1967, on or around Hans Christian Andersen's birthday, 2 April, International Children's Book Day (ICBD) is celebrated to inspire a love of reading and to call attention to children's books. ^ a b Brabant, Malcolm (1 April 2005). "Enduring Legacy of Author Andersen". BBC News. Retrieved 17 December 2012. ^ "The Hans Christian Andersen Statue". Skandinaven. 17 September 1896. Archived from the original on 4 September 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2015. ^ a b "Hans Christian Andersen". CentralPark.com. Retrieved 6 February 2024. ^ "Hans Christian Andersen". Central Park Conservancy. Retrieved 6 February 2024. ^ "The statue of H. C. Andersen at the City Hall Square". VisitCopenhagen. Retrieved 6 February 2024. ^ "Foreigners: Hans Christian Andersen". Monument Australia. Retrieved 6 February 2024. ^ a b "Hans Christian Andersen". City of Sydney. Retrieved 6 February 2024. ^ "Hans Christian Andersen Statue". Atlas Obscura. 22 September 2022. Retrieved 6 February 2024. ^ "H. C. Andersens Blvd. · Copenhagen, Denmark". Google Maps. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ "Centro". Colegio Andersen. Archived from the original on 1 August 2020. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ "H.C. Andersen Park". Tourist Site "FUNABASHI Style". Retrieved 12 April 2017. ^ Fan, Yanping (11 November 2016). "安徒生童话乐园明年开园设七大主题区" [Andersen fairy tales opening next year to set up seven theme areas]. Sina Corp. Archived from the original on 13 April 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2017. ^ Short, Morgan (15 December 2017). "Grim Fairy Tales: A Trip to Andersen Park". SmartShanghai. Retrieved 18 November 2023. ^ Zhu, Shenshen (16 July 2013). "Fairy-tale park takes shape in city". Shanghai Daily. Retrieved 12 April 2017. ^ "Papercuts by Hans Christian Andersen". Odense City Museums. Archived from the original on 8 March 2014. Retrieved 23 May 2023. ^ "Drawings by Hans Christian Andersen". Odense City Museums. Archived from the original on 25 May 2015. Retrieved 23 May 2023. ^ "Portraits of Hans Christian Andersen". Odense City Museums. Archived from the original on 8 March 2014. Retrieved 23 May 2023. General bibliography[edit] Andersen, Hans Christian (2005a) [2004]. Jackie Wullschläger (ed.). Fairy Tales. Tiina Nunnally. New York: Viking. ISBN 0-670-03377-4. Andersen, Jens (2005) [2003]. Hans Christian Andersen: A New Life (Illustrated ed.). New York, Woodstock, and London: Duckworth Overlook. ISBN 978-0-71563-361-8. Binding, Paul (2014). Hans Christian Andersen : European witness. Yale University Press. Bredsdorff, Elias (1975). Hans Christian Andersen: the story of his life and work 1805–75. Phaidon. ISBN 0-7148-1636-1. Retrieved 4 April 2012. Stig Dalager, Journey in Blue, historical, biographical novel about H.C. Andersen, London: Peter Owen, 2006; Toronto: McArthur & Co., 2006. Frank, Diane Crone; Frank, Jeffrey (2004) [2003], The Stories of Hans Christian Andersen, London: Granta Books, ISBN 978-1-86207-712-6 Gosse, Edmund William (1911). "Andersen, Hans Christian" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 1 (11th ed.). pp. 958–959. Jørgensen, Jens (1987). H.C. Andersen: en sand myte (in Danish) (2nd ed.). Hovedland. ISBN 978-87-7739-017-3. Roes, André, Kierkegaard en Andersen, Uitgeverij Aspekt, Soesterberg (2017) ISBN 978-94-6338-215-1 Ruth Manning-Sanders, Swan of Denmark: The Story of Hans Christian Andersen, Heinemann, 1949 Rossel, Sven Hakon (1996). Hans Christian Andersen: Danish Writer and Citizen of the World. Rodopi. ISBN 90-5183-944-8. Stirling, Monica (1965). The Wild Swan: The Life and Times of Hans Christian Andersen. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc. Terry, Walter (1979). The King's Ballet Master. New York: Dodd, Mead & Company. ISBN 0-396-07722-6. Wullschläger, Jackie (2000). Hans Christian Andersen: The Life of a Storyteller. London: Allen Lane. ISBN 0-713-99325-1. Zipes, Jack (2005). Hans Christian Andersen: The Misunderstood Storyteller. New York and London: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-97433-X. External links[edit] Hans Christian Andersen at Wikipedia's sister projects Media from CommonsQuotations from WikiquoteTexts from WikisourceTextbooks from WikibooksTravel information from Wikivoyage Works by or about Hans Christian Andersen at Internet Archive Works by Hans Christian Andersen at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks) The Story of My Life (1871) by Hans Christian Andersen in English The Orders and Medals Society of Denmark has descriptions of Hans Christian Andersen's Medals and Decorations. Hans Christian Andersen at IMDb vteHans Christian AndersenBibliographyShort story collections Fairy Tales Told for Children. First Collection. (1835–1837) Fairy Tales Told for Children. New Collection (1838–1841) New Fairy Tales. First Volume (1843–1845) Short stories "The Angel" (1843) "Blockhead Hans" (1855) "The Elf Mound" (1845) "The Emperor's New Clothes" (1837) "The Fir-Tree" (1844) "The Flying Trunk" (1839) "The Galoshes of Fortune" (1838) "The Garden of Paradise" (1839) "The Goblin and the Grocer" (1852) "Golden Treasure" (1865) "The Ice-Maiden" (1861) "Little Claus and Big Claus" (1835) "The Little Match Girl" (1845) "The Little Mermaid" (1837) "The Most Incredible Thing" (1870) "The Nightingale" (1843) "Ole Lukoie" (1841) "The Princess and the Pea" (1835) "The Red Shoes" (1845) "The Shadow" (1847) "The Shepherdess and the Chimney Sweep" (1845) "The Snow Queen" (1844) "The Snowman" (1861) "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" (1838) "The Story of a Mother" (1847) "The Sweethearts; or, The Top and the Ball" (1843) "The Swineherd" (1841) "The Tallow Candle" (1820s) "The Teapot" (1863) "Thumbelina" (1835) "The Tinderbox" (1835) "The Travelling Companion" (1835) "The Ugly Duckling" (1843) "What the Old Man Does is Always Right" (1861) "The Wicked Prince" (1840) "The Wild Swans" (1838) Novels The Improvisatore (1835) O.T (1836) The Two Baronesses (1848) Plays, operas Little Kirsten (1846) When the Spaniards Were Here (1865) Poems and songs Barn Jesus i en krybbe lå Danmark, mit fædreland Hist hvor vejen slår en bugt Other works Christine's Picture Book (art book) Works inspired by Andersen's life and works Hans Christian Andersen (1952) The Daydreamer (1966) The World of Hans Christian Andersen (1968) Andersen Monogatari (1971) The Fairytaler (2002–2003) Hans Christian Andersen: My Life as a Fairytale (2003 miniseries) Young Andersen (2005 serial) Related Hans Christian Andersen Museums Pleated Christmas hearts International Children's Book Day Hans Christian Andersen Award Hans Christian Andersen Literature Award Category vteRomanticismCountries Denmark England (literature) France (literature) Germany Japan Norway Poland Russia (literature) Scotland Spain (literature) Sweden (literature) Movements Ancients Bohemianism Coppet group Counter-Enlightenment Dark Düsseldorf School German Historical School Gothic revival Hudson River School Indianism Jena Lake Poets Nationalist Nazarene movement Neo Pre Sturm und Drang Post Purismo Transcendentalism Ukrainian school Ultra Wallenrodism Themes Blue flower British Marine Gesamtkunstwerk Gothic fiction Hero Byronic Romantic Historical fiction Mal du siècle Medievalism Noble savage Nostalgia Ossian Pantheism Rhine Romantic genius Wanderlust Weltschmerz White Mountain art WritersBrazil Abreu Alencar Alves Assis Azevedo Barreto Dias Guimarães Macedo Magalhães Reis Taunay Varela France Baudelaire Bertrand Chateaubriand Dumas Gautier Hugo Lamartine Mérimée Musset Nerval Nodier Staël Germany A. v. Arnim B. v. Arnim Beer Brentano Eichendorff Fouqué Goethe Brothers Grimm Günderrode Gutzkow Hauff Heine Hoffmann Hölderlin Jean Paul Kleist Küchelbecker Mörike Novalis Schwab Tieck Uhland GreatBritain Barbauld Blake C. Brontë E. Brontë Burns Byron Carlyle Clare Coleridge de Quincey Keats Maturin Polidori Radcliffe Scott Seward M. Shelley P. B. Shelley Southey Wordsworth Poland Fredro Krasiński Malczewski Mickiewicz Norwid Potocki Słowacki Portugal Castelo Branco Castilho João de Deus Dinis Garrett Herculano Soares dos Passos Serbia Jakšić Kostić Njegoš Radičević Stojadinović-Srpkinja Zmaj Spain Bécquer Rosalía de Castro Espronceda Gutiérrez Saavedra Zorrilla Russia Baratynsky Batyushkov Karamzin Lermontov Pushkin Tyutchev Vyazemsky Zhukovsky USA Bryant Cooper Emerson Hawthorne Irving Longfellow Lowell Poe Other Abovian Alfieri Andersen Baratashvili Botev Chavchavadze Eminescu Foscolo Frashëri Geijer Grundtvig Heliade Isaacs Lenau Leopardi Mácha Manzoni Maturin Oehlenschläger Orbeliani Prešeren Raffi Runeberg Shevchenko Topelius Vörösmarty Wergeland MusiciansAustria Bruckner Czerny Hummel Mahler Schubert Thalberg Wolf Czechia Dvořák Moscheles Reicha Smetana Voříšek France Adam Alkan Auber Berlioz Fauré Halévy Méhul Onslow Saint-Saëns Germany Beethoven Brahms Bruch Kalkbrenner Loewe Marschner Fanny Mendelssohn Felix Mendelssohn Meyerbeer Moszkowski C. Schumann R. Schumann Spohr Strauss Wagner Weber Italy Bellini Busoni Cherubini Donizetti Paganini Rossini Spontini Verdi Russia Glinka Medtner Mussorgsky Rachmaninoff Rimsky-Korsakov Rubinstein Scriabin Tchaikovsky Serbia Hristić Konjović Mokranjac Stanković Other Bennett Berwald Chopin Elgar Field Franck Grieg Joachim Liszt Moniuszko Paderewski Sibelius Sor Philosophers Belinsky Berchet Burke Carlyle Chaadayev Coleridge Constant Emerson Fichte Goethe Hazlitt Hegel Khomyakov Lamennais Larra Maistre Mazzini Michelet Müller Novalis Quinet Rousseau Schelling Schiller A. Schlegel F. Schlegel Schleiermacher Senancour Snellman Staël Thoreau Tieck Wackenroder Visual artists Aivazovsky Bierstadt Blake Bonington Bryullov Chassériau Church Constable Cole Corot Dahl David d'Angers Delacroix Edelfelt Friedrich Fuseli Gallen-Kallela Géricault Girodet Głowacki Goya Gude Hayez Janmot Jones Kiprensky Koch Lampi Leutze Martin Michałowski Palmer Porto-Alegre Préault Révoil Richard Rude Runge Saleh Scheffer Stattler Stroy Tidemand Tropinin Turner Veit Ward Wiertz Related topics Coleridge's theory of life German idealism Opium and Romanticism Romantic ballet Romantic epistemology Romantic poetry Romanticism and economics Romanticism and the French Revolution Romanticism in science Bacon Evolution theory Wanderer above the Sea of Fog ← Age of Enlightenment Modernism → Category Associated subjects vteHans Christian Andersen's "Thumbelina" (1835)Films The Daydreamer (1966) Thumbelina (1978) Thumbelina (1992) Thumbelina (1994) The Adventures of Tom Thumb and Thumbelina (2002) Barbie: Thumbelina (2009) Television Thumbelina: A Magical Story (1992 Japanese anime) Oyayubihime (1999 Japanese TV film) Related Hans Christian Andersen (film) Tom Thumb vteHans Christian Andersen's "The Princess and the Pea" (1835)Films The Princess and the Pea (2001) The Princess and the Pea (2002) Other Once Upon a Mattress (1959 musical) Princess and the Pea (2003 board game) vteHans Christian Andersen's "The Little Mermaid" (1837)Films The Little Mermaid (1968) Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid (1975) The Little Mermaid (1976 Czech film) The Little Mermaid (1976 Russian film) The Little Mermaid (1989) The Little Mermaid (2018) The Little Mermaid (2023) Television Adventures of the Little Mermaid (1991) The Idle Mermaid (2014) The Little Mermaid Live! (2019) Other Statue List of adaptations Disney franchise The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning Stage musical The Little Mermaid Jr. (stage musical) Kingdom Hearts II Ariel Ursula Once Upon a Time "Ariel" The Lure The Mermaid Rusalka (opera) Puella Magi Madoka Magica vteHans Christian Andersen's "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" (1838)Stage The Steadfast Tin Soldier (ballet) Literature "Tin Soldier" (1974) Baltimore, or, The Steadfast Tin Soldier and the Vampire (2007) Songs "Heavy on My Heart" (2005) "Instant Crush" (2013) Related Fantasia 2000 Piano Concerto No. 2 vteHans Christian Andersen's "The Ugly Duckling" (1843)Films The Ugly Duckling (1931) The Ugly Duckling (1939) Downhearted Duckling (1953) The Ugly Duckling (1956 Russian) The Daydreamer (1966) The Ugly Duckling and Me! (2006) Other Honk! (1993 musical) Ugly Duckling (2009 play) The Ugly Duckling (audiobook) Ugly duckling theorem Ugly Duckling fountain (fountain) vteHans Christian Andersen's "The Nightingale" (1843)Adaptations The Nightingale (1914 opera) Le chant du rossignol (1917 poem/ballet) The Emperor's Nightingale (1949 film) The Nightingale (1979 film) The Nightingale (1981 film) Nightingale (1982 musical) The Nightingale (2002 children's picture book) Other The Nightingale casting controversy vteHans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen" (1844)Films The Snow Queen (1957) The Snow Queen (1967) The Snow Queen (1986) The Snow Queen (1995) The Snow Queen's Revenge (1996) Snow Queen (2002) The Snow Queen (2005) The Snow Queen (2005 anime) The Snow Queen (2012) The Snow Queen 2 (2014) The Snow Queen 3: Fire and Ice (2016) The Snow Queen: Mirrorlands (2018) The Snow Queen & The Princess (2022) Literature The Snow Queen (1980) The Wizard of London (2005) The Snow Queen (2008) Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy (2014) Operas The Snow Queen (King) Die Schneekönigin (Albrecht) The Snow Queen (Abrahamsen) Other The Snow Queen (video game) The Fairytaler (The Snow Queen Parts 1 and 2) Disney's Frozen Frozen (2013) Frozen II (2019) Once Upon a Time season 4 Kingdom Hearts III (2019) vteHans Christian Andersen's "The Little Match Girl" (1845)Films The Little Match Seller The Little Match Girl (1928) Stories from a Flying Trunk La vendedora de rosas The Little Match Girl (1987) Resurrection of the Little Match Girl The Little Matchgirl (2006) Short stories "Match Girl" "Matchless: A Christmas Story" Other Striking 12 The Little Match Girl Passion vteHans Christian Andersen's "The Red Shoes" (1845)Films The Red Shoes (1948) The Wearing of the Grin (1951) The Red Shoes (2005) Musicals The Red Shoes (1993) Hot Feet (2006) Other The Red Shoes (1993 album) "The Red Shoes" (2013 song) The Red Shoes (2016 ballet) Portals: biography children's literature Denmark poetry Authority control databases International FAST ISNI VIAF WorldCat National Norway 2 Chile Spain France BnF data Catalonia Germany Italy Israel Finland Belgium United States Sweden Latvia Japan Czech Republic Australia Greece Korea Croatia Netherlands Poland Portugal Vatican Academics CiNii Artists KulturNav MusicBrainz RKD Artists Te Papa (New Zealand) ULAN People Deutsche Biographie Trove Other Historical Dictionary of Switzerland RISM SNAC 2 IdRef

THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES

"Mannequin 1" by David Kemp is licensed under CC by 2.0.

1 Many years ago there was an Emperor so exceedingly fond of new clothes that he spent all his money on being well dressed. He cared nothing about reviewing his soldiers, going to the theatre, or going for a ride in his carriage, except to show off his new clothes. He had a coat for every hour of the day, and instead of saying, as one might, about any other ruler, "The King's in council," here they always said, "The Emperor's in his dressing room."

2 In the great city where he lived, life was always gay. Every day many strangers came to town, and among them one day came two swindlers. They let it be known they were weavers, and they said they could weave the most magnificent fabrics imaginable. Not only were their colors and patterns uncommonly fine, but clothes made of this cloth had a wonderful way of becoming invisible to anyone who was unfit for his office, or who was unusually stupid.

3 "Those would be just the clothes for me," thought the Emperor. "If I wore them I would be able to discover which men in my empire are unfit for their posts. And I could tell the wise men from the fools. Yes, I certainly must get some of the stuff woven for me right away." He paid the two swindlers a large sum of money to start work at once.

4 They set up two looms and pretended to weave, though there was nothing on the looms. All the finest silk and the purest old thread which they demanded went into their traveling bags, while they worked the empty looms far into the night.

5 "I'd like to know how those weavers are getting on with the cloth," the Emperor thought, but he felt slightly uncomfortable when he remembered that those who were unfit for their position would not be able to see the fabric. It couldn't have been that he doubted himself, yet he thought he'd rather send someone else to see how things were going. The whole town knew about the cloth's peculiar power, and all were impatient to find out how stupid their neighbors were.

6 "I'll send my honest old minister to the weavers," the Emperor decided. "He'll be the best one to tell me how the material looks, for he's a sensible man and no one does his duty better."

7 So the honest old minister went to the room where the two swindlers sat working away at their empty looms.

8 "Heaven help me," he thought as his eyes flew wide open, "I can't see anything at all." But he did not say so.

9 Both the swindlers begged him to be so kind as to come near to approve the excellent pattern, the beautiful colors. They pointed to the empty looms, and the poor old minister stared as hard as he dared. He couldn't see anything, because there was nothing to see. "Heaven have mercy," he thought. "Can it be that I'm a fool? I'd have never guessed it, and not a soul must know. Am I unfit to be the minister? It would never do to let on that I can't see the cloth."

10 "Don't hesitate to tell us what you think of it," said one of the weavers.

11 "Oh, it's beautiful - it's enchanting." The old minister peered through his spectacles. "Such a pattern, what colors!" I'll be sure to tell the Emperor how delighted I am with it."

12 "We're pleased to hear that," the swindlers said. They proceeded to name all the colors and to explain the intricate pattern. The old minister paid the closest attention, so that he could tell it all to the Emperor. And so he did.

13 The swindlers at once asked for more money, more silk and gold thread, to get on with the weaving. But it all went into their pockets. Not a thread went into the looms, though they worked at their weaving as hard as ever.

14 The Emperor presently sent another trustworthy official to see how the work progressed and how soon it would be ready. The same thing happened to him that had happened to the minister. He looked and he looked, but as there was nothing to see in the looms he couldn't see anything.

15 "Isn't it a beautiful piece of goods?" the swindlers asked him, as they displayed and described their imaginary pattern.

16 "I know I'm not stupid," the man thought, "so it must be that I'm unworthy of my good office. That's strange. I mustn't let anyone find it out, though." So he praised the material he did not see. He declared he was delighted with the beautiful colors and the exquisite pattern. To the Emperor he said, "It held me spellbound."

17 All the town was talking of this splendid cloth, and the Emperor wanted to see it for himself while it was still in the looms. Attended by a band of chosen men, among whom were his two old trusted officials the ones who had been to the weavers he set out to see the two swindlers. He found them weaving with might and main, but without a thread in their looms.

18 "Magnificent," said the two officials already duped. "Just look, Your Majesty, what colors! What a design!" They pointed to the empty looms, each supposing that the others could see the stuff.

19 "What's this?" thought the Emperor. "I can't see anything. This is terrible!

20 Am I a fool? Am I unfit to be the Emperor? What a thing to happen to me of all people! Oh! It's very pretty," he said. "It has my highest approval." And he nodded approbation at the empty loom. Nothing could make him say that he couldn't see anything.

21 His whole retinue stared and stared. One saw no more than another, but they all joined the Emperor in exclaiming, "Oh! It's very pretty," and they advised him to wear clothes made of this wonderful cloth especially for the great procession he was soon to lead. "Magnificent! Excellent! Unsurpassed!" were bandied from mouth to mouth, and everyone did his best to seem well pleased. The Emperor gave each of the swindlers a cross to wear in his buttonhole, and the title of "Sir Weaver."

22 Before the procession the swindlers sat up all night and burned more than six candles, to show how busy they were finishing the Emperor's new clothes. They pretended to take the cloth off the loom. They made cuts in the air with huge scissors. And at last they said, "Now the Emperor's new clothes are ready for him."

23 Then the Emperor himself came with his noblest noblemen, and the swindlers each raised an arm as if they were holding something. They said, "These are the trousers, here's the coat, and this is the mantle," naming each garment. "All of them are as light as a spider web. One would almost think he had nothing on, but that's what makes them so fine."

24 "Exactly," all the noblemen agreed, though they could see nothing, for there was nothing to see.

25 "If Your Imperial Majesty will condescend to take your clothes off," said the swindlers, "we will help you on with your new ones here in front of the long mirror."

26 The Emperor undressed, and the swindlers pretended to put his new clothes on him, one garment after another. They took him around the waist and seemed to be fastening something that was his train as the Emperor turned round and round before the looking glass.

27 "How well Your Majesty's new clothes look. Aren't they becoming!" He heard on all sides, "That pattern, so perfect! Those colors, so suitable! It is a magnificent outfit."

28 Then the minister of public processions announced: "Your Majesty's canopy is waiting outside."

29 "Well, I'm supposed to be ready," the Emperor said, and turned again for one last look in the mirror. "It is a remarkable fit, isn't it?" He seemed to regard his costume with the greatest interest.

30 The noblemen who were to carry his train stooped low and reached for the floor as if they were picking up his mantle. Then they pretended to lift and hold it high. They didn't dare admit they had nothing to hold.

31 So off went the Emperor in procession under his splendid canopy. Everyone in the streets and the windows said, "Oh, how fine are the Emperor's new clothes! Don't they fit him to perfection? And see his long train!" Nobody would confess that he couldn't see anything, for that would prove him either unfit for his position, or a fool. No costume the Emperor had worn before was ever such a complete success.

32 "But he hasn't got anything on," a little child said.

33 "Did you ever hear such innocent prattle?" said its father. And one person whispered to another what the child had said, "He hasn't anything on. A child says he hasn't anything on."

34 "But he hasn't got anything on!" the whole town cried out at last.

35 The Emperor shivered, for he suspected they were right. But he thought, "This procession has got to go on." So he walked more proudly than ever, as his noblemen held high the train that wasn't there at all.

Current Page: 1

GRADE:5

Word Lists:

Swindler : a person who uses deception to deprive someone of money or possessions

Loom : an apparatus for making fabric by weaving yarn or thread.

Weaver : a person who weaves fabric.

Unfit : (of a thing) not of the necessary quality or standard to meet a particular purpose

Emperor : a sovereign ruler of great power and rank, especially one ruling an empire

Pattern : a repeated decorative design

Bandy : (of a person's legs) curved so as to be wide apart at the knees

Weave : form (fabric or a fabric item) by interlacing long threads passing in one direction with others at a right angle to them

Canopy : an ornamental cloth covering hung or held up over something, especially a throne or bed

Procession : a number of people or vehicles moving forward in an orderly fashion, especially as part of a ceremony or festival

More...

Additional Information:

Rating: A Words in the Passage: 900 Unique Words: 485 Sentences: 120
Noun: 292 Conjunction: 147 Adverb: 77 Interjection: 23
Adjective: 126 Pronoun: 214 Verb: 285 Preposition: 151
Letter Count: 6,528 Sentiment: Positive / Positive / Positive Tone: Conversational Difficult Words: 216
EdSearch WebSearch
Questions and Answers

Please wait while we generate questions and answers...

Related Passages:

Related Passages

Ratings & Comments

Write a Review
5 Star
0
0
4 Star
0
0
3 Star
0
0
2 Star
0
0
1 Star
0
0
0

0 Ratings & 0 Reviews

Report an Error