"The Little Mermaid": a summary. "The Little Mermaid" - a fairy tale by G. H. Andersen

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

The tale of the great Danish storyteller Hans Christian Andersen "The Little Mermaid" has long become world famous and popular, despite its sad ending. It is loved and known in most countries of the world, although the fact that it was written for children sometimes causes great doubts, the plot is too serious and difficult.

Summary of the fairy tale "The Little Mermaid" by Andersen

The little mermaid is a fish-girl who lives in the depths of the sea. Her father is a widower king of the sea, who, in addition to the main character of the tale, has 5 more older daughters. Our Little Mermaid is the youngest, most beloved and most defenseless daughter of her father. The fullness of the experiences of the girl will not be able to convey a summary. The little mermaid is very eager to see the unknown world of people. When a young girl turns 15, she is allowed to go upstairs, where people live, not fish, and look at the world that hitherto seemed unknown to her and as if even non-existent.

And this child goes upstairs, and ironically she has to become an eyewitnessshipwreck in which a young and handsome prince perishes. The little mermaid cannot be indifferent and indifferent, she, of course, rushes to his aid and saves him. What will the summary of the fairy tale "The Little Mermaid" by Andersen tell us next?

Continuation. Prince Charming

The fact that the prince is indeed beautiful is not a proven fact at all, but the young and ardent heart of the sea maiden perceives him in this way, because in an instant it lights up with love for the young man. Let's explore the summary further. "The Little Mermaid" says that the young prince, unfortunately, does not know the name of his savior, because she is forced to hide in the depths of the sea. But even there she does not find a place for herself, grieving from love for the prince and coming to the understanding that she cannot even live without him. That's when the idea of a sea witch comes into her little head, which has considerable power and can, no doubt, help her grief.

The little mermaid goes to the sea witch, and she - lo and behold! - agrees to help her, but with considerable conditions. Namely: she demands in return the voice of the Little Mermaid, which is beautiful, like a fresh stream. In addition, the sea witch sets a very short time for the girl to win the heart of her hero, otherwise she will die at sunset, turning into sea foam.

The little mermaid among people

And now the sea maiden in an instant turned from a fish-man into a real person. Unfortunately, the summary does not allow describing her feelings. The little mermaid wasinvited by the prince to the palace. It would seem, what else could a young girl wish for, because now she was next to her lover! However, her love did not find a reciprocal feeling. The young man did not love her, but treated her like a friend. And on top of all the troubles of the poor Little Mermaid, he is also marrying a princess from a neighboring kingdom.

Love and its highest manifestation - self-sacrifice - is presented in the fairy tale "The Little Mermaid". The summary of the tale cannot get around this main idea of the story of the sea girl. She sacrifices herself in the name of love. Her love does not require anything for herself, she wants to see her loved one happy. She is not selfish and does not demand a reciprocal feeling from her beloved.

The end of the fairy tale

Our summary is coming to an end. The little mermaid will die if the prince does not love her. However, the sisters, who love the girl immensely, agree with the sea witch that their sister's salvation is possible if she kills the prince. They persuade the Little Mermaid, but she does not agree. Her love is selfless, she is ready to give everything, even her life, so that the prince she loves lives and is happy. In the end, this is what happens. The girl dies, the prince remains alive, not even suspecting how close he was to possible death, and the Little Mermaid saves him twice.

The Little Mermaid turns into the abyss of the sea, from where she came and where she had to go, having lived 300 years. However, her life ends at the age of only 15,but over the years she has shown a true example of courage, generosity and self-sacrifice. The summary of the book "The Little Mermaid" will always lead the reader to an understanding of what lies behind these words, which are the ideal of true love. Therefore, we can say that this fairy tale was written not so much for children as for adults, although it will also be useful for children to understand real feelings.

Mermaid cartoon

The world famous animation company "W alt Disney" in 1989 shot its 28th cartoon filmed at this studio. The world storyteller Hans Christian Anderson was chosen as the author by the animators. "The Little Mermaid", a summary of which was presented above, was taken as the basis for creating the plot. A fairy tale with a tragic ending would hardly be a great success, and in general, children do not like unhappy endings to stories. Therefore, the creators of the cartoon modified the main plot by changing the ending.

In the cartoon, the handsome prince no longer treats the mute girl as a friend, on the contrary, from the very beginning she attracts his male attention, he reaches out to her, but in his soul he harbors the memory of his savior and her wonderful voice, which he heard on the shore. The cartoon ends, as one would expect from the very beginning, happily, evil is defeated, and good is rewarded. This cartoon has long won the love of millions of boys and girls, and children and adults still enjoy watching it.

Conclusion

Summary of the story "The Little Mermaid"can serve as an example of what love should be and how rare that kind of love is found.

In Denmark, the Little Mermaid is recognized as a symbol of the state, and monuments to her can be repeatedly found on the streets of this country. Despite the fact that the great storyteller wrote many worthy tales, it is the image of the Little Mermaid that is the first thing that comes to mind when his name is mentioned. Many girls are brought up on this image, transferring it later to their future family life. One can, of course, argue about whether this is good. Many will say that you need to remember at least a little about yourself, otherwise who will take care of you? However, it was precisely by her self-sacrifice that the Little Mermaid (a brief summary of the tale shows this) became famous throughout the world and remained in the hearts of millions of people who read this work.