Audio File
https://librivox.org/the-little-mermaid-by-hans-christian-andersen
New insights:
We found out that the ship split into two, we questioned if the force of the wind was that strong, since this is an extreme event that took place within a matter of seconds. Extreme cases of lightning occurred and made us questioned if this really happened, or if this could’ve been just a hallucination. The ship sinking could’ve been an illusion since these events just happened randomly, this also could’ve been foreshadowing what ended up happening later in the story.
Additionally, right before the storm, it stated that “the sea was calm, and the air mild and fresh”, but how is that possible? Right before a storm, let alone one that could destroy a whole ship, you can always tell it’s coming. Maybe from the slight wind coming from one direction or larger waves than usual, but none of this seems to happen. Again, making it seem like the storm was just an illusion to the little mermaid.
https://www.theodysseyonline.com/little-mermaid-analysis
Looking for a pattern/emerging theme that relates to us:
The longing to fit in easily moves to the themes of unrequited love. We are at a point in our lives where we are figuring out who we are, putting our paths into stone, yet learning different routes that could lead to a new adventure, but we question ourselves constantly whether we should pursue them or not.
What we thought:
My initial reaction to the fairy tale “The Little Mermaid,” was that this was going to be exactly what we were always taught about the Little Mermaid: the perfect ending and beginning. The woman falls madly in love with the man, and the while Romeo and Juliet scene comes into play. However, this story is grimmer and darker, since the Prince does not give his love and play games with the little mermaid. There was no hope for the little mermaid since her garden could’ve been a representation of her life, since the beginning, it was vibrant, and had flavorful colors. However, when she got with the prince, the garden became deader and grimmer.
How did the characters face a hard time?
The little mermaid had to adjust living on legs. She put herself in a state of becoming uncomfortable, as she is the most vulnerable since she put herself in that position. This decision also affects her family because now they are in a constant state of worrying, since who is that gullible? She’s the youngest, so her parents are bound to be more depressed that she abandoned them. One of the problems we face that relates to being in a situation, where you want to complete something, but you can’t, since you get tired and jump into madness. That is exactly what we are facing in college currently, since we have exams, tests, and presentations we must perform. However, one will become quickly tired and turn to madness in a position like this one.
Talk about the fear of this writing and how it relates to us:
The fear of losing the people you love is an enormous fear that we sometimes must face. The little mermaid loses her life and her family loses their daughter, which relates to us because we must leave our families for college. Our parents are no longer with us, so we constantly fear of what will happen to them. Our parents are also afraid, since this is the first time where they are separated from us.
https://www.shmoop.com/hans-christian-andersen/little-mermaid.html
What comment is being made about the human condition?
A common that is being made on the human condition, in the prince’s case, when he finds the little mermaid, he is infatuated with her. However, when he finds the slave girl who has a lovely voice, his infatuation for another woman arises. And when he meets the princess from the other country he falls in love with he and dumps the little mermaid. This shows us that, as we are humans, when we find a shiny object to have, we will keep it in our path. However, when we find a shinier one, we throw the old one away. We do not care if the old one is scratched or bruised, we just throw it away as we move on with our daily routines. We just move on and do not care one single bit.
Epiphany:
Love is a choice, not a feeling is the epiphany that we have embarked upon. Most of us tend to focus on falling in love and using the feeling to determine the duration of our relationship. Look at the relationship between the little mermaid and the prince. She’s the only one to fall in love, however, the prince chooses another girl knowing how she feels about him. The duration of this relationship does not last long because only one person has made the choice to fall in love. The relationship trembles and falls because the prince had chosen another person.
Conclusion (step 6):
In the beginning, it gives a description about what life is like under the sea. The sea life is just as vibrant as the surface, with all the colors they’ve used so far. In the third paragraph, it begins a description of the characters: the sea kings, princesses, etc. It gives a description of the palace life, characters, and design of rooms, and how the mermaids live their own sophisticated lives. It also tells you about what it’s like when each princess, when becoming of age experiences when they go to the surface world. Each sister experiences something wonderfully new and they It’s also building up to when the little mermaid can finally go to the surface.
The second part was when the little mermaid first saw the ship and the people aboard it. One of them being a young prince, which was “the most beautiful of them all, with large black eyes.” When she tried to get a close look, the prince came out of the cabin and startled her. So, she went down and back up in the water looking at the prince, trying to get a closer look at the him. There was a big party since it was the prince’s birthday which frightened her at times because of all the people. She waited there to see what would happen. They ship’s crew blew out all the lanterns and it was pitch black until a storm came which completely broke and sunk the ship. She ended up saving the prince’s life by floating to him ashore, but that was also when she figured out that she could not bring the human down with her since he’s human. This led to a moment of realization between the fine line of mermaids and humans cut off.
Thirdly, the little mermaid seeks a way to visit the prince on land. She understands that because she is a mermaid, she cannot walk on land. So, she goes to the witch of the sea and requests that the witch grants her legs. However, in return, the witch demands that she has the little mermaid’s voice in exchange for her legs. There is also a down-feature for the little mermaid to have legs. Essentially, she will be struck with an everlasting feeling of having a sword stabbed through her legs and each time she walks, she would feel as if stepping on shards of glass. The little mermaid complies, and the wish is bestowed upon the little mermaid. Then, the little mermaid is washed up on the land with her gorgeous legs found by the prince himself.
In conclusion, the little mermaid questions the prince about whether he loves her or not. His reply is “yes, you are most dear to me.” He tells her about a memory he has when he was younger and how a young girl saved him. The little mermaid realizes that it was her, who saved him when he was younger. Her hopes that she and him will be forever continuing to grow. However, he speaks about marrying another girl because it’s best for the kingdom. The little mermaid’s sisters miss her even more. The next morning, the princess arrives, and the little mermaid is curious to see who this mysterious woman is only to receive heartbreak, when the prince thinks that it was the princess whom saved him when he was younger. The same evening, the prince and the princess are set to be wed, and the little mermaid feels a greater pain, when her tender feet was being pierced with daggers. She realized this was the last evening of her life. Until her sisters arose out of the waters with a knife, saying, use this dagger to kill the prince, and you shall live. The little mermaid could not do it, since she was still in love with the prince. She turns around to give one last glance at the prince, then turns into foam. The little mermaid begins to experience meeting new creatures, who call themselves the daughters of the air. They say that, “your suffering and your loyalty has raised you up into the realm of airy spirits, and now in the course of 300 years, you may earn by your good deeds, a soul that will never die.”
Now, in the epiphany of the story is all about choice when it comes to love. The little mermaid stares at the prince from underneath the water. However, little did she know, she betrayed her own true love, and that is her family. Sometimes, we all do foolish things to get the things we think we need. Imagining that there is always a void to fill within ourselves will always make us feel empty and pathetic. Instead of feeling this void in ourselves, we need to exchange that void with the fact of being grateful and sympathetic towards the world and what it has gave us. Focusing on the positives more than the negatives will always keep us a float, although, if the prince had also fallen in love with the little mermaid just as she had then this could have been a story of how love is able to transcend across species. But this is not the case love was a choice, the prince was a tramp because he kept thinking with his lower half. He seems incapable of genuinely loving someone because he focused on the looks and not the person that they were.
