The Little Mermaid

The Little Mermaid is a fairy tale published by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen in 1837, which depicts the journey of the Little Mermaid, the youngest daughter of the sea king, to the human world by giving up her voice and life as a mermaid in order to obtain a human soul.

 

The main plot is as follows:

 

• The Little Mermaid lives happily with her family under the sea, but is curious about the human world and the soul.

 

• When she turns 15 and goes up to the surface for the first time, the Little Mermaid falls in love with a prince and saves him, but the prince does not recognize her.

 

• The Little Mermaid makes a deal with the sea witch to exchange her voice for human legs, but if she does not win the prince's love, she will turn into sea foam and disappear.

 

• The prince eventually marries another princess, and the Little Mermaid can return to being a mermaid if she kills the prince, but because of her love, she cannot do so and throws herself into the sea and turns into foam.

 

• However, the Little Mermaid does not completely disappear, but thanks to her sacrifice, she becomes a ‘daughter of air’ and has the opportunity to gain a soul by doing good deeds.

 

The story contains various themes such as love, sacrifice, change of identity, and curiosity about the unknown world, and has been adapted into various media such as Disney animation.