Hans Christian Andersen

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For other uses of "Hans Christian Andersen", see Hans Christian Andersen (disambiguation).

Hans Christian Andersen

 Photograph taken by Thora Hallager, 1869
Born 2 April 1805
Odense, Funen, Kingdom of Denmark-
Norway
Died 4 August 1875 (aged 70)
Østerbro, Copenhagen, Kingdom of
Denmark
Resting Assistens Cemetery, Copenhagen
place
Occupation Writer
Language Danish
Period Danish Golden Age
Genres Children's literature, travelogue
Notable The Little Mermaid
works
The Ugly Duckling
The Emperor's New Clothes

Signature

Website
Hans Christian Andersen Centre

Hans Christian Andersen (/ˈændərsən/; Danish: [hanˀs ˈkʁæsdjan ˈɑnɐsn̩] ( listen)), often referred
to in Scandinavia as H. C. Andersen (2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875), was a Danish author. Although
a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels and poems, Andersen is best remembered for his fairy
tales. Andersen's popularity is not limited to children: his stories express themes that transcend age
and nationality.

Andersen's fairy tales, of which no fewer than 3381 works[1] have been translated into more than 125
languages,[2] have become culturally embedded in the West's collective consciousness, readily
accessible to children, but presenting lessons of virtue and resilience in the face of adversity for
mature readers as well.[3] Some of his most famous fairy tales include "The Emperor's New Clothes",
"The Little Mermaid", "The Nightingale", "The Snow Queen", "The Ugly Duckling", "Thumbelina", and
many others. His stories have inspired ballets, plays, and animated and live-action films.[4] One of
Copenhagen's widest and busiest boulevards is labeled "H.C. Andersens Boulevard".[5]

Fairy tales and poetry[edit]

Andersen's initial attempts at writing fairy tales were revisions of stories that he heard as a child.
Initially his original fairy tales were not met with recognition, due partly to the difficulty of translating
them. In 1835, Andersen published the first two installments of his Fairy Tales (Danish: Eventyr; lit.
"fantastic tales"). More stories, completing the first volume, were published in 1837. The collection
comprises nine tales, including "The Tinderbox", "The Princess and the Pea", "Thumbelina", "The
Little Mermaid" and "The Emperor's New Clothes". The quality of these stories was not immediately
recognized, and they sold poorly. At the same time, Andersen enjoyed more success with two
novels, O.T. (1836) and Only a Fiddler (1837);[16] the latter work was reviewed by a young Søren
Kierkegaard. Much of his work was influenced by the Bible as when he was growing up Christianity
was very important in the Danish culture.[17]

Painting of Andersen, 1836, by Christian Albrecht Jensen

After a visit to Sweden in 1837, Andersen became inspired by Scandinavism and committed himself
to writing a poem that would convey the relatedness of Swedes, Danes and Norwegians.[18] In July
1839, during a visit to the island of Funen, Andersen wrote the text of his poem Jeg er en Skandinav
("I am a Scandinavian")[18] to capture "the beauty of the Nordic spirit, the way the three sister nations
have gradually grown together" as part of a Scandinavian national anthem.[18] Composer Otto
Lindblad set the poem to music, and the composition was published in January 1840. Its popularity
peaked in 1845, after which it was seldom sung.[18]
Andersen returned to the fairy tale genre in 1838 with another collection, Fairy Tales Told for
Children. New Collection. First Booklet (Eventyr, fortalte for Børn. Ny Samling), which consists of
"The Daisy", "The Steadfast Tin Soldier", and "The Wild Swans".
1845 saw a breakthrough for Andersen with the publication of four translations of his fairy tales. "The
Little Mermaid" appeared in the periodical Bentley's Miscellany, followed by a second volume,
Wonderful Stories for Children. Two other volumes enthusiastically received were A Danish Story
Book and Danish Fairy Tales and Legends. A review that
appeared in the London journal The Athenæum (February 1846) said of Wonderful Stories, "This is a
book full of life and fancy; a book for grandfathers no less than grandchildren, not a word of which
will be skipped by those who have it once in hand."[3]

Andersen would continue to write fairy tales and published them in installments until 1872.[19]

Background
'The Little Match Girl' is possibly one of the saddest holiday stories ever told. This story, by Hans Christian
Andersen, is about a little girl who was sent out to sell matches on New Year's Eve. No one has bought any of
her matches, and so she is afraid her father will beat her if she goes home empty handed. She ends up huddled
in a corner lighting match after match. With each match she imagines a beautiful scene. In one match she sees
her recently deceased grandmother who takes the little girl to heaven with her. In the morning, the little girl is
found frozen to death.

This story is typically pictured occurring in a large, busy city such as Copenhagen since the author is from
Denmark and lived much of his adult life in Copenhagen. The main setting of this story is the corner between
two houses where this little girl sits huddled. More important are the places that this little girl imagines seeing
within each match. This lesson will look at all the settings of the story.

Setting, Physical Location, and Time

This story occurs on New Year's Eve on a particularly cold day. 'Most terribly cold it was; it snowed and was
nearly quite dark.' It appears to be a bustling and busy city since earlier in the day she lost her slippers when
two carriages ran past her quite quickly. After that one slipper 'had been laid hold of by an urchin, and off he
ran with it' and the other could not be found. So we get the feeling that it is a busy city.

This little girl was afraid to go home. Besides, home was not much better than out here in the cold. She would
have a roof over her head but 'the wind still whistled, even though the largest cracks were stopped up with
straw and rags.' And since she would certainly receive a beating (for not selling any matches) once going
home, she decided it would be best to simply curl up between two houses. Here she eventually decided to light
a single match (which turned into several matches) in order to stay warm. With these matches she began to
picture much nicer places.

This setting clearly shows a poor girl. This is a girl out in the cold, but even sitting out in the elements is better
in her mind than going home. This goes to tell us just how bad her home must be.
List of Romantic poets
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Jump to: navigation, search

Main article: Romantic literature in English

The six best-known English authors are, in order of birth and with an example of their work:
 William Blake – The Marriage of Heaven and Hell
 William Wordsworth – The Prelude
 Samuel Taylor Coleridge – The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
 George Gordon, Lord Byron – Don Juan, "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage"
 Percy Bysshe Shelley – Prometheus Unbound, "Adonaïs", "Ode to the West Wind",
"Ozymandias"
 John Keats – Great Odes, "Hyperion", "Endymion"
 Notable female poets include Felicia Dorothea Hemans, Anna Laetitia Barbauld, Charlotte Turner
Smith, Mary Robinson, Hannah More, and Joanna Baillie.