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Peder Digre Professor Marianne Stecher-Hansen SCAND 232 - Hans Christian Andersen and the Fairy Tale Tradition 4 March 2010 Our Time is the Time of Fairy Tales
The Place of the Soul in Nature and Modernity

Hans Christian Andersen may be the master of motifs in Romantic literature. In The

Wood Nymph he blends threads of Greek mythology, animistic thoughts from religions of antiquity, and the premise of modernism. These motifs weave together a tale of the dualistic essence of nature and modernity. Andersen utilizes the story of a soul (represented by the wood nymphs journey) to illustrate this dualism. Andersens writing of the life of the wood nymph can be transposed into the development of the human soul, more speciVically the souls place in nature and modernity. The Wood Nymph represents the ephemeralness of the soul, its deep connection with nature, and its place in the approaching age of modernity. Andersen begins the tale by introducing the dualistic elements of modernity,

represented by the Paris Exhibition of 1867, and nature, represented by countryside and the trees that reside there. Andersen has chosen the Paris Exhibition of 1867 as the setting of this story because it was, at the time, the pinnacle of modernity. People travelled to it by steam ships and steam trains, both recent inventions and symbols of modernity. This is a time when travelling to foreign places, places that had previously only been imagined, was possible. The wood nymph (tree spirit), which represents a soul in this tale, also shows the souls connection to nature (as the philosopher Schelling noted Die Natur ist der sichtbare Geist [Nature is the visible spirit]). (J. Andersen 418) Almost immediately in the story,

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the old oak tree is razed by a lightning strike, and the wood nymph says, Everything passes on ... Passes on, like the clouds, never to come again. (Andersen 384) This event and the reaction from the wood nymph is strong symbolism that the Age of Nature is violently passing, leading to the Age of Modernity. The wood nymph begins as an innocent creature, content with her life in the

country (in nature), listening as a child listens to the stories of the old priest. As the wood nymph grows and hears from the mobile creatures of nature about the wonders of Paris, she longs to journey to Paris to be part of the enchantment. A prophecy is presented to the wood nymph by a spark from the moon: You will go to the city of enchantment. There you will take root ... But your lifetime will be shortened ... The tree itself will become a prison for you, you will abandon your husk, abandon your nature, to <ly out and mix with the human beings. Then your years will dwindle ... to a single night. The <lame of your life will be blown out, the trees leaves will wither and vanish, never to come again. (Andersen 386) This prophecy provides the outline for the rest of the tale, but also plays a signiVicant role in symbolism. When Andersen wrote of the soul in this passage, he wrote of it in a very Vleeting manner symbolizing the uncertainty of the human soul in the modern future. In this way, the prophecy is also a warning against straying too far from nature. This is very similar to the theme in the tale The Fir Tree in which the title tree meets its demise sooner rather than later due to its removal from nature. Once the wood nymph has been transplanted to a square in Paris, she is released

from her husk, the tree. This transplantation and release continue the theme of transitioning from the Age of Nature to the Age of Modernity. After being released from the tree, she visits two sites especially full of symbolic meaning: the church and the man- made grottos. When she reaches the church, The wood nymph felt uneasy and alarmed, as

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if she had set foot in a place she should not enter. (Andersen 393) This passage expresses Andersens weariness of the creations of men. Although he was a devout person of faith, he felt that God should be worshipped in the simplicity of nature, experiencing Gods greatness. An example of this occurs when Andersen visits the Holsteinborg estate. Every Sunday he had the choice of the church service or a walk under the vault of the sky, where nature held its own sermon. (J. Andersen 530) Andersen often chose to take a walk and gather bouquets that reminded him of Gods presence in nature. He illustrates the grandeur of nature and the presence of God in nature, once again, in The Bell. The two boys ran to each other and held hands in the great cathedral of nature and poetry. Above them rang the invisible sacred bell, and blessed spirits hovered and danced around them to a jubilant Hallelujah! (Andersen 271) After leaving the church, the wood nymph eventually comes to the grottos, She looked down at the stairs descending into the depths of the earth. They led downward, away from the starry-bright air, away from the sun- gleaming gas Vlames, away from the world of the living. (Andersen 393) When she journeys into the grottos, the human soul is entering into the man-made modernity. In the grottos, the wood nymph meets rats and Vish. The romantic age is over, even in our rats nest. We now have fresh air down here, and petroleum. (Andersen 395) In this passage, even the rats are living in a state of modernity. The wood nymph then Vinds and speaks to the Vish she has heard so much about. However, her words are lost on them. The Vish stared, not understanding a single word. (Andersen 399) The wood nymph, who before had such a deep connection with nature and who could understand the languages of all animals, could no longer communicate with animals once again signaling the transition to modernity.

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After wandering throughout the night beholding many wonders of the Exhibition,

the death of the wood nymph provides a striking climax and to the wondrous journey she had taken. The Virst ray fell on the wood nymph. Her Vigure shone with shimmering colors, like a soap bubble as it bursts, vanishes, and becomes a drop, a tear, that falls to the ground and disappears. Poor wood nymph! A dew drop, nothing but a tear that was shed and then Vled. (Andersen 400) This image of the wood nymphs death leaves no doubt that the wood nymph has perished for eternity. On the ground lay a withered, tattered chestnut blossom. (Andersen 401) These instances of death are Andersens ultimate warning against straying from nature. The connections that Andersen draws between the soul, nature, and modernity are

inVluenced greatly by H.C. rsteds book The Spirit in Nature. It can be implied that, as Andersen entered the modern age, he felt as if society was losing its connection to nature. It can also be implied that although Andersen sees great things in the Age of Modernity, the Age of Nature should not be forgotten and should still remain paramount. Whichever way one may choose to interpret the story, Andersen certainly conveys strong messages about the soul, nature, and modernity.