Tag Archives: The Little Mermaid

Week 7: Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid

Posted on by
2

I remember being about ten years old when I first read Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid. Needless to say, I was horrified by how different it was from the lighthearted 1989 Disney adaptation so many kids grew up with. It was more graphic, more painful, and, for lack of a better word, more sad.

Andersen’s mermaid does not have a name, whereas I wished to be named Ariel after my favorite Disney princess. The rules of going to the surface are also less restrictive than in the Disney adaptation, as a merperson’s journey to the surface is seen as a coming-of-age ceremony, and after that point, could go to the surface whenever they want rather than being forbidden from ever going up. Ariel’s tail becomes two legs from flashes of light and swirls of smoke, while Andersen’s mermaid mutilates herself by cutting off her tongue to pay the price for her transformation. The presence of the little mermaid’s grandmother and her sisters is noticeably absent from the Disney adaptation, which, in some ways, enhances the little mermaid’s loneliness rather than detracts from it. It’s also notable that the little mermaid experiences pain with every step she takes on her human legs, while Ariel does not seem to suffer any adverse effects of her transformation other than being unable to use her words. The most notable difference between Andersen’s story and the Disney adaptation is that Andersen’s little mermaid does not get her prince charming in the end; all of her sacrifices are rendered useless and go unappreciated because they are unsaid.

Rereading this story as an adult almost made me cry in my living room, especially knowing what I know now about Hans Christian Andersen and his rocky romantic relationships. Because of that, it’s no wonder that mermaids and many mermaid stories are often read through a queer lens, and no wonder that this story is so full of yearning and suffering.

Little Mermaid

Posted on by
3

If I’m being entirely honest, I’ve never been introduced to any adaptation or version of The Little Mermaid, so reading this without any assumptions or biases makes me wonder if my interpretation is any different from that of those who have already seen the movie. Because I haven’t seen the Disney adaptation, I don’t know what is different about the story and the characters. However, I can assume that the Disney version is modernized and may exclude some of the details on death and immortality.

Anderson is a Danish writer, but when I looked him up it seems like many people have questioned his faith because of his views on life and death. After reading the story, I sense that there is definitely some Catholic values of the time showing through. The Catholic Church says that the human soul is immortal. It also preaches that animals are unlike humans because they do not have immortal rational souls. To me, this story really brings out those ideas that Anderson has about the soul and what it means to be alive. In the story, the old dame tells the little mermaid that humans “have a soul that lives eternally”, unlike the soul of the mermaids that just “chamg[es] into foam.” This reveals to readers that Anderson has at least some Catholic values, and he’s letting it show through in the story. Even more than the other stories I see many biblical allusions throughout the story. The Kingdom of Heaven is referenced, among other allusions.

This story also reminds me of an interesting issue that wasn’t as prevalent when the story was written. The little mermaid joins the human world only to feel out of place and like she doesn’t belong but still doesn’t feel accepted in the sea. It’s as if she’s alone and alienated by both sides. This is an issue that I’ve seen (not experienced myself) many times with immigrants the the US. We look at people with ethnic backgrounds and say, “He’s Mexican, she’s Vietnamese”, even when that person may have never been to those countries. Then, when that person goes to the country of their ethnic background, they also don’t feel at home because they’re American. I find this parallel particularly interesting because I doubt it was intended by the author.

The Little Foundling

Posted on by
2

I found the story of The Little Mermaid by Han Chistian Anderson very intriguing, although I cannot compare it to the Disney film because I have never watched it. While reading through the story, I found it had some religious and environmental relevance.

A major religious connection was towards the ending when Ariel became an air entity. At first, I thought she may have been turned in to a Siren, but after reading, “…your own good works may obtain you an immortal soul…thus we shall glide into the Kingdom of Heaven…” I though different (Anderson 130). Although, the “daughters of the air” do not possess an immortal soul like humans, they can obtain one and enter heaven by doing good deeds, similar to what we are taught in Christianity. The story describes the daughters of the air by the following, “Their language was melody, but too ethereal to be heard by human ears, just as no human eye can discern their forms. Though without wings, their lightness poised them into the air.” (129). This description is comparable to that of a ghost’s and given she is in neither heaven nor hell can mean Ariel may be in Purgatory which is present in Catholicism.

The connection I made from the story to the environment is also towards the end. One line that caught my attention was, “We fly to warm countries, and fan the burning atmosphere, laden with pestilence, that destroys the sons of man.” (129). During the 19th century, when The Little Mermaid was published (1837), there were many deaths caused by illnesses including Smallpox, Typhus, and Yellow Fever, I’m assessing this would be connected to the “pestilence” mentioned in the quote. Also, the Industrial Revolution was in motion during the time of this publication and had harsh effects on the environment due to the pollution which can be connected to the “burning atmosphere” description. If my assessments are correct, I wonder why Anderson decided to include this in his story, where these wingless air entities that can neither be seen nor heard seems very different than that of a mermaid and human.

The Little Mermaid

Posted on by
1

This week, we finally read an all-time classic, “The Little Mermaid” by Hans Christian Anderson. Some of the main themes I wanted to focus on in this blog post are the ideas of pain being normalized in feminism and also the idea of belonging to a group or place.

The little mermaid is told by an older, wiser mermaid that “pain must suffer pride” because she was wearing uncomfortable clothing. The little mermaid, being youngest of her sisters, grew up watching her siblings enter womanhood feeling equally uncomfortable. This is something that I feel a lot of young women see growing up, which in a way could be conditioning them to accept a life of pain because it’s “normal”. But why is it normal? The little mermaid feels immense pain in her legs every time she takes a step. It is almost as if she is being punished for being curious, in the same way Raymondin was. I’ve noticed that in a lot of the stories we have read in class, people who are curious tend to be punished.

Another interesting thing from the reading is the idea that Mermaids do not have souls while humans do, and they are aware of this. Mermaids are only given souls if “a priest lay his right hand” (pg 144) on them in order to officiate a marriage. This idea taps into the subconscious beliefs that Christianity has planted in both men and women that marriage is a necessity to have a completed life. But there is really nothing natural about marriage, it is a man-made concept. I love this idea because if souls exist, they have absolutely nothing to do with man-made concepts, they’d be natural and work in natural ways. Meanwhile, people are reading these popular stories, and while they may not necessarily believe they need matrimony in order to have a soul, they could potentially unintentionally develop the need to find a partner for marriage in order to truly feel complete.

This reading caught me off guard. I did not expect to enjoy this chapter as much as I did, and I feel that the reason for this is because the ideas of feminism and the symbolism are extremely telling of how society was at the time. It’s interesting to see how much yet how little has changed since then.

Week 7: My First Impression of The Little Mermaid… ever.

Posted on by
1

Hello all!

This week we all read Hans Christian Anderson’s The Little Mermaid. I’m sure many of us had never read the tale before, but I assume plenty of my classmates had watched the animated Disney film of the same name. I have not. The ride at California Adventure is where I’ve had the most interaction with The Little Mermaid; my friend took me on the ride a couple of times because there’s a slope near the beginning of it that keeps you relatively hidden, so we would hit their wax pen and be all goofy for the rest of our visit. You get the gist of the animated film’s story through attraction: Ariel lives under the sea but yearns to be a human, falls in love with a prince, they get married, neptune attends the wedding and everything is happily ever after. I knew the original story was darker, but I had no idea it was as sad and harrowing as it actually was.

Just a couple of things that interest me about the story:

  1. The fact that, in order to gain human legs, she had to give up her tongue is CRAZY. That stacked with the addition of her NEEDING him to marry her or she would die. Physically not being able to explain to the Prince that she was the one who saved him is such a scary predicament – it kinda left a pit in my stomach as I was reading.
  2. I think the note about mermaids dying and turning into seafoam is so neat. I wonder if Anderson came up with that himself or if it was a pre-established detail in the mythology around mermaids at the time. I have the image of a lonely sailor coming across a patch of seafoam in the middle of the sea and telling that to himself to make the monotony of floating in the ocean a little less dreadful.
  3. I was a little confused about the ending. Did she turn into a cloud? Where was the cloud going? Was she to eventually turn back into a mermaid? I’d love to discuss it.

Those were three big takeaways I got from Anderson’s The Little Mermaid. I really enjoyed my reading of it.

The Little Mermaid

Posted on by
1

Reading the original story of The Little Mermaid when I grew up with the 1989 Disney version, I can see some major contrasts between the plot and tone. In Andersen’s story, there is a more melancholic tone to the story and it shows themes of sacrifice and consequences of the desire for love. Similar to the Disney film, the little mermaid sacrifices herself to be with the prince, but she doesn’t end up with him and she dissolves into sea foam instead. She makes a choice of selflessness and sacrifice. Throughout this story, there’s less emphasis on the little mermaid’s actual personality and more just the fact that she is longing for an eternal soul. I wouldn’t consider the end of the story a tragic ending because she earns an immortal soul from making the right decisions and choosing not to be selfish.

The Disney version of the little mermaid is more fairytale like and lighthearted, but the two stories still definitely share some characteristics. Andersen’s tale focuses on themes of sacrifice, redemption, and the pursuit of a soul, while Disney’s version emphasizes themes of love, self-discovery, and personal agency. Disney’s obviously was written for a broad audience of families and children so their goal was to entertain and lift the spirits of their viewers. While the central plot remains similar, with the Little Mermaid sacrificing herself for the prince, the Disney version provides a more definitive and conventionally happy ending where love triumphs over adversity, and the protagonist is rewarded with her happily ever after. Disney’s story has a clear moral message and universal appeal, while Andersen’s can be perceived in varying perspectives. The differences in tone and thematic focus between Andersen’s original tale and Disney’s adaptation reflect the distinct intentions of the authors. Andersen’s was written with different intentions as it provided moral lessons and social commentary. I see his story as a cautionary tale about the consequences of sacrificing ones self for the sake of love or ambition. Andersen used his story to explore deeper philosophical and existential themes, rather than just for mere entertainment purposes. I think it is so interesting for me to learn about the original story versus the adaptation that I grew up with. I hope we see more of this in our future readings!

Week Seven: The Little Mermaid

Posted on by
Reply

After reading Hans Christian Andersons version of the Little Mermaid, I was very intrigued with the similarities and differences of the Disney movie. I would say that most of the plot was pretty similar, minus the ending and other small details. One concept that intrigued me a lot was the relationship between the Prince and the Little Mermaid. In Hans depiction of it, as the mermaid had no voice or song, she was mute, and the Prince looked at her more as a pet than a lover. One line in the story states “The prince declared that he would never part with her, and she obtained leave to sleep on a velvet cushion before his door.” (page 144) I thought this description was quite interesting, as he gives her permission to sleep outside his door basically on a fancy dog bed. This takes away the little mermaids morality and quite literally turns her into his pet. Their relationship is quite interesting in the story, as he views her as his “little foundling” and pet, but says if he was inclined to marriage it would be with her. This dynamic threw me off just because of how he refers to her in adoration but also disrespect. As he says he never wants her to leave his side, yet he called her his little foundling and his “dumb child.” This could be his way of showing his affection, but it is also clear that he has romanic feeling for the girl who saved him form his death, and even though the mermaid is she, he could never love her. Another aspect of this version of the Little Mermaid that surprised me was how it ended with her death, and her becoming sea foam. The witch didn’t become the new bride, nor did the mermaid end up with the prince. It was a bittersweet ending, as instead of saving herself and killing the prince, she sacrificed herself to the Ocean, sort of facing the consequences she got herself into. I appreciated the non-cliche ending, but it was also sad to see how the prince ended up happy and the little mermaid did not because he didn’t love her or give her his immortal soul. This goes back to the question: Why did she need a man for her happiness and life? This is a repeating question I find myself asking almost after every story or tale we read. Almost all the women depicted in these stories long for a human man and a human love, to save them. I think this goes back to show the idea of the patriarchy even now, and the stereotypes put on love and happiness. Not only do women have the expectation of sacrificing earthing for a husband or family, but also the idea of how the Little mermaid was looked at as a pet, not another human being.

Week 7: The Victorian Standard – The Little Mermaid

Posted on by
1

For this week’s reading, I really enjoyed learning the story of the “The Little Mermaid.” Being such a big fan of the original 1989 movie, I found it quite interesting reading the story for the first time and seeing the continuous theme from both the movie and the original story about the fascination of the unknown from both the merpeople and humans. Being such a big theme in a lot of the past readings we have done, the fascination of the unknown was definitely prevalent in the reading, “What struck her as the most beautiful was that the flowers of the earth should shed perfumes, which they do not below the sea; that the forests were green, and that the fishes amongst the trees should sing so loud and so exquisitely that it must be a treat to hear them” (Penguin, page 110). Not yet being able to go above the water till she is fifteen the little mermaid throughout the whole story, “Longed after all these things, just because she could not approach them,” I am very fascinated by this idea because humans as well do this in attempts to understand certain things (Penguin, page 111). As well, their fascination is conveyed the constant use of similes and metaphors when describing the land above which furthers the idea of the fascination of the unknown. Humans and Mermaids, since they are half human, share this quality of curiosity which can thus continue the argument that mermaids ( and thus the environment) should be treated equally as they are part human as well. But a quote that stood out to me, that can argue as much as mermaids are half human, they yet are still not seen or treated as equal because “Mermaids have no tears, and therefore suffer all the more,” and this emphasis that though the upper half of their bodies are of human description, they do not carry the emotion or “soul” that humans contain since they are not able to display their emotions fully because they cannot abide on land (Penguin, page 113). 

Week 7: The Little Mermaid

Posted on by
1

Reading The Little Mermaid this week for the very first time was a real jaw dropper. Growing up this was one of if not the only Disney movie that I would constantly watch on replay and eventually became my favorite movie ever, so to wrap my head around this story for the first time is difficult. Noticing how the story I read and what I know of the movie stayed consistent for the most part, there was a dramatic change in the endings to both story and movie. There was no happily ever after in the original story, but instead there was an ultimatum for the little mermaid to either prioritize and pick herself or to continue to prioritize a man whom she did not know.

There was a point in the story in which really resonated with me as it reflects the idea of today’s society. The moment in which the grandmother had told her that “Our souls are not immortal.” (page 117) and then proceeds to describe the only way in which to obtain a soul is by making sure a man was fully committed to you but also only deeply in love with you is very hard to believe. This section to me made me truly realize that even in stories involving mermaids and the sea, men still found a way to have some sort of control over females and mermaids. The little mermaid went to an extreme extent to be with a man who did not know her but also that she was not certain that would love her, just to ultimately take that risk for him. At the end of the story in which she is given a final chance to pick herself over the prince, she still does not do so as she still puts him over herself even though he was already married to someone else at this point. This idea goes back to last week’s discussion as how it is perceived that women cannot be complete without a man. There is a saying that goes around and is frequently said which is “my life never started until I met you” which I believe applies to the story of The Little Mermaid as she had made it known that she preferred living on land with the prince since it did not compare to living down in the ocean with her family. I believe it also shows in a way how women in toxic relationships can be easily influenced to leave behind what they know, their background, family, and entire lives all for a single man who they have known for not so long. Reflecting on this story and comparing it to the world we live in today, truly puts into perspective that as time goes on, men will still be perceived as having more power and control over women.

Week 7: The Little Mermaid and Her Grandmother

Posted on by
2

This week I found the Little Mermaid story to be intriguing and brought back a handful of childhood memories. The main portion I want to dive into is when the grandmother is explaining the difference between humans and merpeople and their souls. She says, “unless a human being loved you so dearly that you were more to him than either father or mother; if all his thoughts and his love were centered in you, and he allowed the priest to lay his right hand in yours, promising to be faithful to you here and hereafter: then would his soul glide into your body, and you would obtain a share in the happiness awaiting human beings” (Bacchilega, Brown, Page 119). I had a few thoughts about what this excerpt could mean with the first being that I believe the author is suggesting that mermaids (or more specifically women) cannot be whole/complete unless they have their male counterpart to provide and care for them. This has been a recurring theme across the mermaid stories we have read so far, especially when considering Melusine. However at the same time I find this ironic because merpeople seem to have other-worldly powers, wouldn’t the man become complete with marrying into power versus the other way around? My second thought–especially after the introduction stating that after a mermaid loses her tail and gains feet that it is a symbol of sexual maturity–is that maybe she will gain a soul after making herself sexually available for a human (or more specifically the prince). My third attraction to this quote is the importance of comparing romantic love versus familial love. I personally have never considered or seen those to be in the same boat, but rather as two separate concepts. I think it would be weird to love your significant other the same way you love your parents, but I guess it’s more so the concept of holding the other in your thoughts and heart at all points of the day. I am interested as to if this was published before or after the romantic era to have a better understanding on views of love at the time.