HISTORY: H.C. Andersen's The Little Mermaid

WHAT: The Little Mermaid -- Den Lilla Havfrue in Danish -- is a fairy tale that was written in 1836 by Hans Cristian Andersen, the Danish author of The Snow Queen, The Ugly Ducking, and The Emperor's New Clothing, among others. Visitors to Copenhagen, Denmark, visit the tiny Little Mermaid statue, the city's icon -- but also the focus of repeated vandalism over the decades.

WHY: The Little Mermaid statue was commissioned in 1909 by the son of the Carlsberg Brewery after he saw a ballet about the Little Mermaid. Since its reveal in 1913, the statue has been the focus of repeated attacks of vandalism: she has had her head cut off several times, her hair has been painted red, she's been given a bra to wear, she's had her arm amputated and she's been blown off her rock.

Why all this attention? Issues range from simple drunks looking to occupy themselves, to feminist groups against the morality of the original fairy tale. Regardless of the reasons, she has returned time and time again to her perch on the rocks, and tourists arrive daily, digital cameras in tow, snapping portraits of the very non-Disney "Original Gangsta."

One cannot look condescendingly back on H.C. Andersen's stories, as so often happens with old movies. Times were not easier, nor were stories sugar coated for children - and unlike the Disney version of The Little Mermaid, the original version has a complex, heavier ending. You can read the entire original translated story at the link below.

http://hca.gilead.org.il/li_merma.html

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