Hans Christian Andersen (April 2, 1805 – August 4, 1875) was born in Odense, Denmark and died in Copenhagen, Denmark. He was the son of a poor shoemaker and a washerwoman. Andersen dedicated The Little Match-Seller to her mother due to the poor childhood she had had; as well as the story She was Good for Nothing because of her alcoholism (Wikipedia). Hans Christian showed a great imagination since very young, which was fostered by the indulgence of both parents and superstition of the mother. Andersen was very interested in become an artist. He started looking for opportunities as a singer out of his country. However, he never stopped writing. The Little Match-Seller is a short fairy story by Danish poet and writer Hans Christian Andersen. The story was published as a part of the collection of New Fairy Tales on March 4, 1848. The story is about a dying child's hallucinations, and was first published in 1845. It has been adapted to various media including animated film, and a television musical (Wikipedia). This short story, full of symbols, lets me analyze it, and find archetypes; so I will use them as approach, in order to obtain a better understanding of the story.
The Little Match-Seller is a narrative story that describes a dying child's hallucinations. The story starts in the last night of the year. The streets of the city were covered with snow, and a little girl walked barefoot after having lost her sandals, the ones that she had taken from her mother (paragraph 1). The little girl carried matches to sell. However, no one had purchased anything the whole day. She was hungry, cold and frightened. The snowflakes fell on her long blond hair, but she could only think about the food she smelled, and the houses full of lights she saw. It was New Year's Eve, and that's what the girl thought (paragraph 2). There was a space between two houses, so the little poor girl sat down over there. She sat on his little legs, but she still felt cold. She did not dare to return home haven’t sold a single match because her father would hit her. Besides, it was also cold at home (paragraph 3). Her hands were extremely cold, so she thought maybe one match would be good to warm herself (paragraph 4). She took a match and lighted it. The flame was amazing. It warmed so well. The little girl imagined herself sitting in front of a huge stove. However, when she started warming the flame and her thoughts went out (paragraph 5). She lit another one and started imagining the cold wall as transparent as a veil. She thought a table with food specifically a roast goose. Then she imagined the goose jumping with the knife and fork on it. But the match blew out and there was only the wall (paragraph 6). She lighted another one. Now she thinks she is under a Christmas tree. The tree was great full of candles all over it. When she raised her arms the match went out (paragraph 7). The lights of the tree rose very high. She saw them as stars. A star fell and she thought: “someone has died” because her grandmother—the only one who loved her and who is dead—had told her when that happens, a soul goes to God (paragraph 8). She lit another match, with the light her grandmother appeared really clear with a sweet face (paragraph 9). The little girl said loud GRANDMOTHER take me because when the match gets gone you will disappears like the stove, the roast goose, and the Christmas tree (paragraph 10). And quickly she took all the matches and lit them. It was shining brightly. Her grandma took her and together flew away. There was not cold, hunger nor fear. They were next to God (paragraph 11). But between those two houses, the first day of the years was a little girl with a smile on her face and some burned matches. She was frozen. She had died (paragraph 12). Someone said that she tried to warm herself (paragraph 13). Nobody knew the beautiful things that the girl had seen, to what glory had gone with his elderly grandmother to the joy of New Year (paragraph 14).
The important symbols that appear in this story are (1) night, darkness, blue, red, white; (2) star, sky, earth, wind; (3) slipper, apron, veil; (4) candle, match, fire-flame, stove, light; (5) foot, hair, hand, arm, mouth; (6) glass, window, table, tree.
First, the story shows different kinds of symbols. “Night”, it could mean fear, loneness, or dark. According to the Dictionary of Symbolism, it is usually associated with darkness. It is the symbol of ignorance, the unconscious and latent potential. “Darkness”, in the Book of Revelation says that darkness indicates that the end of the world is forthcoming; we can realize that it could be the end for the little girl due to the journey she has to undergo. “Blue” is the color most often associated with issues of the spirit and intellect. Even though in the story it just refers to her foot turning blue for the cold and the snow it also shows an evident problem. “Red” although in the story is used to indicate that due to the little girl does not have shoes her feet are red and blue. However, it can be associated with health. “White” by itself it could be the lack of color, but in this case it means and refers to a table-cloth full of food as we can see in paragraph six.
“Star” showed in the eighth paragraph when the girl sees one falling behind her. According to the Dictionary of Symbolism, the star is the “presence of the divinity” (Cooper, 159). In this case the girl was able to see someone dead. “Sky” that also appears in the eighth paragraph represents infinity, eternity, immortality, and transcendence; it is the residence of the gods. And according to the story the grandmother came to take the girl to heaven with god. “Earth” can represent the cradle of humanity, home, and/or a place of origin. It is shown in the eleventh paragraph: the girl and her grandma “flew upwards in brightness and joy far above the earth” (Andersen). “Wind” represents the fleeting and transient, the elusive and the intangible. “It is the vital breath of the universe (Cooper, 192).
Another important symbol is “Slipper”, the closest thing I could find related to slipper was “shoe”, which according to the Dictionary of Symbolism, “Shoes might represent the lowly and the humble, or authority and power, depending upon the context. Since slaves went barefoot, they might represent liberty.” In this case the kid was looking for freedom. I think it could be the death. “Apron” it could mean hard work and be associated with poverty. It is closely associated with work and craftsmanship. “Veil” showed in the story when the child in one of her hallucinations saw a wall as transparent as a veil. It means a hidden knowledge.
According to the Dictionary of Symbolism, “Candle” symbolizes light in the darkness of life especially individual life. It is exactly what that means in the story when the girl imagines candles all over the tree in that cold and dark night. Also it is the closest thing I can get to “matches”. According to Wikipedia, a match is a consumable tool for lighting a fire in controlled circumstances. This is the most used symbol in the story. “Fire/flame” appears several times in the story and every time that appears has a specific story or hallucination that the girl experiences. It illuminates and warms, but it can also bring pain and death. “Fire is viewed by Christians, the Chinese, and the Hebrews as being a symbol of divinity” (Cooper, 1978). “Stove”, according to Wikipedia, is an enclosed heated space. It is used to transmit heat. In the story, the child dreams to be in a room with a stove. “Light” is the spiritual and the divine. Light is the source of goodness and the ultimate reality. The kid feels comfortable only when she sees herself full of light.
“Foot” is another symbol that in the story is connecting to a bare feet that means poverty, in that case. However, according to the Dictionary of Symbolism, Bare feet are a sign of mourning and respect. “Hair” symbolizes physical strength. It also can be thought as the external soul. In the story it is shown that although the girl had a gorgeous hair she didn’t think about that due to the hunger and cold she had. “Hands” generate strength, power and protection. Hands are expressive. In the story, the first that the kid warmed were her hands. “Arms” can represent protection and help. They symbolize authority and power. The word “arms” just appears one time in the story when the grandma took the little girl. “Mouth” appears when the girl is found dead in the same place where she was hallucinating, in the space between the two houses. It is communication, interaction, almost a door to the soul.
According to the Dictionary of Symbolism, “Glass” is usually representative of an inner plan because of it transparent nature. In the story it appears when the child is seeing through the glass-door in a rich man’s house. “Window” the closest word is door that represents different states and also that transitions and metamorphosis are the most common ideas of this word. The child imagines that she is in a nice place when she looks though the window a beautiful Christmas tree. “Table” is largely associated with gatherings and communions. The little girl thought in a big table with a white tablecloth and full of food, Christmas food. “Tree” is shown when the girl starts hallucinating and thinks about a tree. The tree is dynamic life itself, the result of heaven, earth, and water.
The most relevant archetypes are the little girl as the “poor girl”. She has to sell matches in the streets in order to not be abuse by his father. She is the girl who is looking for protection and who has to create an imaginary world to be able to survive. The father is the mean and rude man who force and abuse of a child, in this case his daughter. As we can see in paragraph three “Her father would certainly beat her”. The grandmother, she is the most loving person and the sweetest one that the poor girl could meet. However, the grandmother just appears as an angel. And God is the one who gives goodness and love.
The lessons to be learned in this short story are that people in general have to be aware that there are children in the streets everyday that are dealing with these kinds of situations. As human beings, we cannot allow that this continues. As in the story she found comfort with her grandmother, we have to act like her grandmother in a similar way. We have the power to do something for someone who really needs our help. A lot of children die everyday because of hunger. I think that there is no need to do big things; it is great if we can just make one child feel comfortable.
Works Cited
“Archetypes.” Wikipedia. Web. 20 May. 2010
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archetype
Dictionary of Symbolism. University of Michigan Fantasy and Science Fiction Website. 2001. 20 May. 2010
“Hans Christian Andersen.” Wikipedia. Web. 20 May. 2010
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Christian_Andersen
Image. Wikipedia. Web. 20 May.2010
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archivo:Little_Match_Girl_-_Anne_Anderson.jpg
“The Little Match Seller.” Wikipedia. Web. 20 May. 2010
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Little_Match_Girl
