The Snow Queen

Danish author Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875) penned poems, essays, and travelogs, but he is best known for his literary fairy tales. Written primarily for a young audience, these stories offer psychological and moral outlooks and lessons across a wide range of characters and plotlines. In addition to “The Snow Queen,” Andersen also wrote “The Little Mermaid,” made famous for a modern-day audience by the Walt Disney movies. As in the Disney films, the titular mermaid falls in love with a human and trades her voice for legs, but in Andersen’s story, the mermaid does not win her love’s affection. Rather, she is turned to foam, and her sisters mourn her. Unlike other popular fairy tales that deliver the anticipated happy ending, “The Little Mermaid” explores the pitfalls of wishing for things one doesn’t have and of making deals with the proverbial devil.

Another of Andersen’s noteworthy stories is “The Princess and the Pea,” which revolves around a prince who struggles to find a suitable wife and a bedraggled maiden who claims she is a princess. To test the maiden, a single pea is placed under 20 mattresses and feather beds; it is believed that only a true princess will be able to feel the pea and not be able to sleep.