H.C. Andersen centret

The Hans Christian Andersen Centre

Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales (Open Online Course)

Introduction

Explore the fairy tale world of Hans Christian Andersen – the inspiration behind The Little Mermaid and Frozen – with this free online course.
Read full course discription at Future Learn

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coursefiles.zip

#Wheres Hans?

Where do Hans Christian’s fairy tales pop up in contemporary culture?
To celebrate the start of The Hans Christian Andersen Centre’s free online course ‘Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales’ we’re challenging you to spot where his famous tales and morals pop up in modern day culture.
You may not believe it but Hans Christian Andersen’s old fashioned Danish fairytales follow a unique narrative structure that can be found in every corner of Western culture. From Ugly Betty to Mean Girls, the Kardashians to Frozen, Hans Christian Andersen’s influence can be seen everywhere.

So who was Hans Christian Andersen and what is so special about the structure of his stories?
Professor Johannes Nørregaard Frandsen, Head of The Hans Christian Andersen Centre at the University of Southern Denmark tells us more…
“Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875) was already well-known in his native land of Denmark and in Germany for his novels and poetry. Since then, it is these stories, these fairy tales, that have made him one of the world’s most read and re-told authors anywhere. He is best known for his ‘Fairy Tales and Stories’ written between 1835 and 1872. His earlier stories were based on traditional folk tales, like those the Brothers Grimm published some 20 years earlier. But the uniqueness in Andersen’s storytelling comes in the twists and turns he made to the traditional folk tale structure. He created his own universe by breaking the genre, breaking the mould, and by inserting new content into the traditional models.
The traditional folk tale structure can be represented by what is referred to as the actantial model, seen below, where a hero is on a quest and follows a specific pattern along his journey.
With Andersen, he often put a twist on the traditional model, which would take the reader by surprise. For example, the person you thought was the ‘helper’ suddenly became the ‘opponent’, which added a whole new dimension to the story. By breaking the mould of traditional patterns Hans Christian Andersen lifted his fairy tales to another level of culture and narration.”

So how are Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales seen in today’s popular stories?
One of Andersen’s best-known fairy tales is ‘The Snow Queen’ written in 1844. It’s the tale of a boy called Kai who is kidnapped by the Snow Queen and struck by a shard from an evil mirror, and of a girl Gerda, who travels all over the world to try, through love, to drive the evil out of his heart. The tale is about faith, hope and love, with love conquering all, for only love is greater than everything else.
Right now, Disney is enjoying phenomenal success with its animated film Frozen, which was inspired by Andersen’s ‘The Snow Queen’. Disney’s Frozen interprets the material in its own way where the ‘object’ becomes the ‘opponent’ – Anna, the sister of the queen Elsa, sets off on a dangerous and mysterious journey to bring back Elsa, who has run away after causing an endless winter upon her kingdom. But Elsa fights Anna and refuses to go back.
Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales are universal. They are read, told and enjoyed everywhere in the world today. They’re also interpreted into contemporary culture – from film and TV to music and art.
We’ve looked at some of today’s most popular films, TV series and even reality TV shows to see if we can recognise a Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale in it. Here are just a few of the ones we can think of:

The Ugly Duckling – Britain’s Got Talent
Numerous talent shows we see today are based on the The Ugly Duckling storyline. Just look at Susan Boyle from Britain’s Got Talent. Despite coming from humble origins, you can still prove your worth and become successful.

The Brave Tin Soldier – Disney’s ‘Toy Story’
Many of Disney’s stories have their roots in Hans Christian Andersen tales. Disney’s Toy Story is a good example of stories where “dead” objects play the leading parts like they do in Andersen’s tales such as The Brave Tin Soldier, the story of a one-legged tin soldier who falls in love with a beautiful ballerina.

Clumsy Hans – American TV series, ‘Empire’
Even contemporary box sets can be linked back to Hans Christian Andersen. Take the current American TV series, Empire, where a rich father who owns a record label becomes ill and must decide which of his three sons should take over the company, two of the sons are his favourites and one was always the outcast. This storyline has roots in Andersen’s ‘Silly Hans’ or ‘Clumsy Hans’ – the tale of three sons vying for the heart of a princess who has decided she will marry the son with the best way with words. Two of the sons are educated but the third is not, so he must get creative in the fight for the princess’s Heart.
You can see how Hans Christian Andersen’s stories are so profound that they can easily be interpreted into modern day culture.
To celebrate the start of the course on 19th October, we’re challenging you to discover ‘Where’s Hans?’

To get involved simply look out for #WheresHans on Twitter and Facebook and test your knowledge in our challenges.
Interested in finding out more? Join the Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales course from 19th October and enter into an entrancing world of fantasy and folklore.