Analysis Of Hans Christian Anderson's Fairy Tales: 'The Princess And The Pea'

Hans Christian Anderson’s Fairy Tales: “The Princess and the Pea” Billions and billions of people in the world have had their childhood shaped by the words of a single man from a small European country. He is Hans Christian Andersen, born in Odense, Denmark in the year 1805. From “The Ugly Duckling” to “The Little Mermaid,” his stories filled our lives in the form of the faded pages on books, mother’s gentle voice next to the fireside, colorful Disney animations completed with cheerful songs, and stunning snow-blanketed movie scenes. This essay seeks to discuss this great author in the context of one of his most influential works – “The Princess and the Pea” – by first examining the context of his life, then presenting a brief summary, followed

Anderson’s fairly tales, especially the earlier ones, tend to take on a rather colloquial or “spoken language” voice, and “The Princess and the Pea” is no exception. The entire story is full of brief sentences without complex structures, as well as incomplete structures accompanied by technically incorrect grammar. The usage of exclamation marks (“It was really frightful!”) brings a certain childish excitement to the tone. The last sentence “There, that's a true story.” makes it clear that this is a story meant to be told to someone, by someone, further contributing to the casual style. Interestingly, this is what he was most criticized for when he first published his collection of fairytales – the critics deemed it “naive” and “immature,” and commented that he was backtracking from his earlier adult-oriented and academic work. Little did they know the exact tone that made his stories so approachable for children and adults alike will become one of the most famous storytellers in history. Another unique element to his tone is the hints of satire and playfulness hidden between the masks of exaggeration – such as the ridiculous amounts of featherbeds and mattresses – which also allowed both children and adults to enjoy the story. Children will find the limitless world of imagination and “everything is possible” fascinating, while adults can get a good

“The Princess and the Pea” is such a story that illustrates certain elements that make it so – a simple but magical (in the literary sense) plot, quick but identifiable characters, a tone suitable for both children and adult, and layered themes. His stories have since opened up doors for children’s stories, the physically and culturally boundless possibility of tales, as well as spurred a worldwide interest in the concept of re-telling. With new books, movies, and theater performances coming out each year based on his tales, in addition to technology allowing information to be even more widespread, it is unlikely that Anderson will loose his influence amongst kids and adults alike any time