Illustrated by Arthur Szyk
Copyright 1945
This book, containing twenty-nine of Hans Christian
Anderson’s Fairy Tales, is in beautiful condition for its age. Apparently it has spent much of its existence
in the box with the companion book of Grimm’s Fairy Tales. Andersen’s tales were written for children, yet
contain lessons and morals more suitable for the deeper thought processes of
adults. Just to name a few: The Ugly
Duckling, The Nightingale, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, and The Princess and the
Pea.
One tale I remember reading as a child is The Emperor’s New
Clothes. I recall thinking what a silly man that emperor was to not see that he
was being swindled. How could he not see
the truth - that the so-called clothes he was given were actually non-existent?
The picture in my head of the emperor walking through the town naked was just
funny. And how come only one small child
had the nerve to speak the truth?
What do I think about this tale now?
Each of the emperor’s advisors, all the wise and learned
men, and all the townspeople except that one very honest child, were unwilling
to form their own opinions. They were
afraid that questioning authority would cause them to appear foolish, when
actually, if they had questioned, the truth could have been discovered before
it was too late.
What has this story taught me?
I should not be afraid to have my own opinion – to question
authority. If I don’t understand something, l’ll look deeper. Blindly going along with the crowd is never a
good idea. The truly wise don’t have all
the answers – they just have more questions.
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