The Little Mermaid and Intro to Child's Literature

The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen

Setting and Characters

Setting: Far from land in the deep sea, where the waters are blue and clear.
The sea is so deep that many church towers piled on top of each other would not reach the surface.
The seabed is filled with strange plants and trees that move with the currents.
Fishes flit among the branches like birds on earth.
The Mer King's Castle: Made of coral with amber windows and oyster shell roofs, each holding a lustrous pearl.
The Mer King is a widower, and his mother keeps house for him.
The grandmother is intelligent but proud, wearing 12 oysters on her tail (nobility wore only six).
The Little Mermaids: Six lovely princesses, the youngest being the most beautiful with a complexion like a rose petal and eyes as blue as the deepest lake.
They have fishtails instead of feet.
They play in the castle's great hall, where flowers grow on the walls and fishes swim freely.
The Park: Around the castle, there is a park with gray, fiery red, and deep blue trees with golden fruits and flame-like flowers.
The earth is fine blue sand, creating an illusion of being suspended in midair.
When the sea is calm, the sun appears like a crimson flower.
Each princess has her own garden.
The youngest mermaid's garden has red flowers to resemble the sun and a marble statue of a boy from a shipwreck.
She also has a pink weeping willow-like tree planted near the statue.

The World Above

The princesses love to hear their grandmother's stories about the world above, including ships, towns, humans, and animals.
The youngest mermaid is fascinated by the fragrance of flowers and the singing birds (referred to as "fishes" by the grandmother).
At 15, the princesses are allowed to swim to the surface to see ships, towns, and forests.
The sisters promise to share their experiences with each other, as the grandmother's stories cannot satisfy their curiosity.
The youngest mermaid longs most to see the world above.
She often looks up through the water at the moon and stars and wonders about the ships and people sailing above.

The Sisters' Visits to the Surface

The oldest sister's loveliest experience was lying on a sandbank in the moonlight, looking at a city with lights that shone like stars and hearing music and church bells.
The second sister saw a beautiful sunset with golden skies and purple and crimson clouds, and a flight of wild swans.
The third sister swam up a river, saw green hills, castles, farms, and children playing in the water, but was frightened by a dog.
The fourth sister stayed in the middle of the ocean and saw dolphins, whales, and ships that looked like gulls.
The fifth sister saw green oceans and huge, glittering icebergs during the winter, climbing on the largest one during a storm with lightning.
As they grew older, the sisters lost interest in the world above and longed for their father's castle.
They would swim to the surface during storms and sing to the sailors about the beauty of the sea, but the sailors couldn't understand them.
The youngest princess would stay below, longing to see the world above and feeling like crying, which mermaids cannot do.

The Little Mermaid's Journey to the Surface

The youngest mermaid turns 15 and is adorned with lilies and oyster clips.
She rises to the surface at sunset and sees a ship with colored lamps and music.
She sees a handsome young prince celebrating his 16th birthday.
Fireworks display frightens her at first but then amazes her.
She is captivated by the prince.

The Storm and the Prince's Rescue

A storm brews, and the ship is wrecked.
The Little Mermaid rescues the prince, who is near drowning.
She holds his head above water and lets the waves carry them to shore.
She lays him on the beach near a cloister or church.
She kisses him and wishes he would live.
Young girls from the building find him, and he smiles at them when he awakens.
The Little Mermaid hides, saddened that the prince does not know she saved him.
She returns home and becomes even more silent and thoughtful.

Longing for the Prince and a Human Soul

The Little Mermaid watches the prince from afar, growing sadder with each visit.
She embraces the statue in her garden that resembles the prince and neglects her flowers.
She eventually shares her secret with her sisters, who tell a friend who knows the prince's origins.
The sisters take her to the prince's castle, made of yellow stone with marble stairs and golden domes.
She watches the prince from a hidden spot, seeing him sail and hearing fishermen praise him.
She longs to live among humans and believes their world is larger than hers.

The Desire for an Immortal Soul

The Little Mermaid asks her grandmother if humans live forever since they don't drown.
Her grandmother explains that humans die but have immortal souls that rise to the sky, while mermaids live for 300 years and then become foam on the ocean without rising again.
The Little Mermaid is saddened by her lack of an immortal soul and would give up her long life for one day as a human with a chance at eternal life.
Her grandmother says that a man must love her more than his own parents, marry her, give her his soul while keeping his own but that humans find fishtails ugly and have no sense.

The Court Ball and Decision to Seek the Sea Witch

A court ball is held in the castle with glass walls, oyster shells, and colorful fish.
The Little Mermaid sings beautifully but cannot forget the prince and her lack of a soul.
She decides to seek the sea witch to help her become human.

The Journey to the Sea Witch

The Little Mermaid swims toward the turbulent maelstrom where the sea witch lives, a place she has never been before.
The seabed is gray and naked, and the waters twist and turn in a whirlpool.
She crosses the bubbling mudflats to reach the sea witch's palace.
The witch's house is in a forest of giant polyps, half plant and half animal, resembling snakes with slimy arms.
The polyps grasp anything they can reach, including drowned humans and mermaids.
She comes to a slimy open place where the witch has built her house out of bones of drowned soldiers.
The witch lets a toad eat from her mouth and calls eels her little chickens.

The Sea Witch's Deal

The sea witch knows what the Little Mermaid wants and calls her stupid for wanting it.
The witch agrees to give her a potion to turn her tail into legs so that she can become human. The potion must be taken before sunrise.
The potion will cause intense pain, like swords through her body, when the little mermaid drinks it, and every step she takes will feel like walking on knives.
If she fails to win the prince's love such that his every thought is of her and they do not marry, she will become foam on the ocean.
The witch demands the little mermaid's beautiful voice as payment.
The Little Mermaid agrees despite the consequences.
The witch says after she loses her voice, the little mermaid must use her beautiful body, graceful walk and lovely eyes to capture the prince's heart.
The witch prepares the potion in a cauldron that she scrubs with eels. The witch cuts her chest and lets her blood drip into the vessel.
The brew hisses as though crocodiles were crying. The potion is clear and pure.

The Price and the Return Journey

The witch cuts out the Little Mermaid's tongue as payment.
The witch gives her a potion to ward off the polyps when returning through the forest.
Fearfully, the polyps drew away when they saw that she was carrying what she was carrying in her hands. The potion sparkled as though it was were a star.
She returns safely through the forest, the bog, and the maelstrom.
She takes flowers from each of her sisters' gardens and throws kisses toward the palace.
The Little Mermaid drinks the potion on the lowest marble stairs of the prince's castle.
It feels as if a sword were piercing her body, and she faints.

Becoming Human

When the sun rises, she wakes with burning pain.
The prince finds her and is curious about who she is and how she had got to the beach.
She had the most beautiful little slender legs.
She couldn't talk. So she covered herself with her hair.
She cannot speak and looks sadly at him with her blue eyes.
He takes her to his castle, and every step feels like walking on sharp knives, but she endures it.
She walks gracefully, and everyone marvels at her light movements.
She is dressed in royal clothes but remains mute.

Life in the Prince's Castle

Slave girls sing for the prince and his family.
The Little Mermaid is sorrowful, knowing she once sang more beautifully.
She dances gracefully, captivating everyone, especially the prince.
The prince called her his little foundling.
She is allowed to sleep in front of his door.
She accompanies him on horseback rides through the forest but her feet bled a lot.
At night, she cools her burning feet in the sea, thinking of her sisters.

Family Visits and the Prince's Affection

Her sisters visit her at night, singing sadly and telling her of their sorrow.
Her grandmother and father also appear, stretching their hands towards her but not daring to come close.
The prince grows fond of her but loves her as a child, not as a potential wife.
He said you were the dearest to me, for you have the kindest heart of them all. You are devoted to me, and you look like a young girl I once saw and will probably never see again. I was in a shipwreck she saved my life.

The Prince's Impending Marriage

The prince is to marry a neighboring king's daughter.
The Little Mermaid must become his wife to gain an immortal soul, or she will turn into sea foam after his marriage.
The prince tells her he must see the princess but won't be forced to marry her because she not the girl in the temple. He will marry the Little Mermaid.
He kisses her and dreams of human happiness and an immortal soul.

The Voyage to the Neighboring Kingdom

The prince and the Little Mermaid sail to the neighboring kingdom.
The Little Mermaid watches the sea at night, seeing her family and the ocean world below.
Her sisters appear, looking sorrowful, and she waves to them, trying to show she is happy.

Meeting the Princess

They arrive in the neighboring kingdom, and the prince meets the princess.
It's the girl from the temple. It is you, exclaimed the prince. You are the one who saved me when I lay half dead on the beach.
The Little Mermaid realizes she is the girl he loves and he is going to marry.
The Litlle Mermaid kisses his hand, as with his kiss brings her death and she would be lost forever.

The Wedding and the Sisters' Sacrifice

The wedding ceremony takes place with music and celebrations.
The Little Mermaid holds the bride's train, knowing she will die that night and lose everything.
She tries not to have a bad attitude because she loves the price and wants to see him happy.
The bridal couple boards the prince's ship for their wedding night.
The Little Mermaid dances, remembering her first time above the waves.
She knows this is her last night to see the prince, breathe the same air, and look at the stars.
Her sisters rise from the sea with shorn hair, having given it to the sea witch in exchange for a knife to save her life.
They tell her to kill the prince with the knife, and his blood on her feet will turn her into a mermaid again with three hundred years to live.
Our grandmother mourns. She too has no hair. Hers is falling out from grief. Kill the prince and come back to us. Hurry.
The Little Mermaid turns and looked at the sky. She glanced at the sharp knife, and once more, she looked down at the Prince. He moved a little in his sleep and whispered the name of his bride. Only she wasn't in his thoughts.

The Little Mermaid's Sacrifice and Transformation

The Little Mermaid kisses the prince's forehead and throws the knife into the sea, turning the waves red. (The last chance she has at life, she throws it away because of her selfless act).
She throws herself into the sea and feels her body turning into foam.
She sees hundreds of airy transparent forms, the daughters of the air. These figures are not seen by the human eye.
The daughters of the air explain that she can earn an immortal soul through good deeds.
The Little Mermaid sees the prince and princess searching for her.
She kisses the bride's forehead and smiles up at the prince.

The Daughters of the Air and the Path to Redemption

The Little Mermaid joins the daughters of the air and learns about their mission to do good deeds.
For every good child they find and report to God, they get a year off of serving God.
For every bad child they find and report to God, they get a day added to their serving time. Its only by doing good that they may be saved.
The story ends with a moral message about earning salvation through good deeds.

Intro to Child's Literature

Childhood Defined

Prior to the seventeenth century, children were considered miniature adults.
Children were expected to work from a young age.
John Locke:
- Enlightenment thinker and philosopher.
- Pioneered the idea that children and adults are separate beings in different stages of development.
- Tabula Rasa (Blank Slate):
  - Refers to a child's mind as blank between 0-12 years old.
  - Ideas can be transferred to them and will stay with them into adulthood.

Emergence of Children's Literature

Stories and folktales have always existed, but literature specifically designed for children developed in the late 1600s following the Enlightenment.
Original Purposes:
- To prepare children for adulthood and their responsibilities.
- To establish social and cultural norms and expectations.

Characteristics of Children's Literature

Shorter and easier to understand stories.
Straightforward lessons and morals.
Themes relate to things kids would understand at an early age, such as:
- Responsibility
- Trust
- Honesty
- Manners
- Not talking to strangers
- Safety