![]() ![]() When the prince marries another, the mermaid sacrifices herself instead of harming the prince. Transformed by a sea witch, she must marry the prince or risk death. The mermaid decides to venture onto land, but her legs come at a price. When the mermaid saves a drowning human prince, she learns that the love of a human might allow her an immortal soul. In Andersen’s story, the mermaid is motivated by her desire for an immortal soul, not a desire for love and life on land. Hans Christian Andersen's original Little Mermaid story might surprise readers familiar with Disney's 1989 film adaptation. However, Andersen's writing was influenced by traditional folklore about merfolk and water nymphs. The plot is drawn from Hans Christian Andersen's imagination rather than a specific folktale. The Little Mermaid is a literary fairy tale. Hans Christian Andersen's original storyįirst published in 1837, The Little Mermaid was written in Danish and titled Den lille havfrue. Illustration by Mabel Lucie Attwell from Hans Andersen's Fairy Stories (1901). ![]()
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