The Shadow (fairy tale)
Encyclopedia
"The Shadow" is a fairy tale
by Danish
poet
and author
Hans Christian Andersen
. The tale was first published in 1847.
went on a voyage south. One night, he sat on his terrace, while the fire behind him cast his shadow on the opposite balcony. As he was sitting there, resting, the man was amused to observe how the shadow
followed his every movement, as if he really did sit upon the opposing balcony. When he finally grew tired and went to sleep, he imagined the shadow would likewise retire in the house across the street.
The next morning however, the man found to his surprise that he in fact had lost his shadow overnight. As a new shadow slowly grew back from the tip of his toes, the man did not give the incident another thought, returned to northern Europe, and took up writing again. Several years passed by until one night a man knocked at his door. To his surprise, it was his shadow, the one he lost years before in Africa, and now stood upon his doorstep, almost completely human
in appearance. Astonished by his sudden reappearance, the learned man invited him into his house, and soon the two sat by the fireplace
, as the shadow related how he had come to be man.
The learned man was calm and gentle by nature. His main object of interest lay with the good, the beautiful and the true, a subject of which he wrote often but was of no interest to anyone else. The shadow said his master did not understand the world, that he had seen it as truly was, and how evil
some men really were.
The shadow then grew richer and fatter over the years, while the writer grew poorer and paler. Finally he had become so ill that his former shadow proposed a trip to a health resort at his expense, but on condition that he could act as the master now, and the writer would pretend to be his shadow. As absurd as this suggestion sounded, the learned man eventually agreed and together they took the trip, the shadow now as his master. At the resort, the shadow met with a beautiful princess
, and as they danced and talked with each other each night, the princess fell in love with him.
When they were about to be married, the shadow offered his former master a luxurious position at the palace, on condition that he now became his own shadow permanently. The writer immediately refused and threatened to tell the princess everything, but the shadow had him arrested. Feigning his distraught, he met with the princess and told her:
When the shadow wed the princess later that night, the learned man was already executed.
person, concerned with the good and true in the world. But as it says, the people around him are not much interested in his feelings on the subject. Indeed his shadow says he does not see the world as it truly is.
The shadow claims to have seen all that is in the world, but does not own a soul himself. He strongly desires to own a shadow of himself, and later asks his former master to reverse the roles on their trip. When the learned man finally realises how far his shadow has degraded, it is already too late.
The ending is especially bleak for a fairy tale, as Andersen suggests that it is not always good that triumphs, and that evil does indeed have a powerful grip over the good and just.
had published the popular Peter Schlemihl, a story about a man who sells his shadow to the devil
in exchange for a bottomless wallet. Chamisso's story had been the reigning authority on men who lose their shadows, and Andersen makes an explicit reference to it in "The Shadow":
. It was contained in the 1888 Dua Libro
(Second Book) by the creator of that language, L. L. Zamenhof
(the first book had contained only single bible verses, short poems and the like).
Evgeny Shvarts
has explicitly based his "Tyen" ("The Shadow") play on Andersen's tale, introducing additional characters and plot lines and a different ending.
In 1945 the story was adapted as an episode of the syndicated radio program The Weird Circle.
Skuggaleikur (Shadow Play) an opera by Icelandic composer Karólína Eiríksdóttir with libretto by Sjón
. Premiered in November 2006.
In 2003, the Carolina Ballet
premiered a ballet version of The Shadow with choreography by artistic director Robert Weiss
, set to the music of Khachaturian, Kabalevsky, Gyorgy Ligeti, Fauré and Rachmaninoff.
The ballet features an eerie sequence in which the poet contemplates his shadow in the mirror. The image, which at first copies his movements in complete synchrony, seamlessly emerges from the mirror frame (through effective changes in lighting) as another dancer in a gray full body stocking, alternately mirroring the poet's actions and taking on an independent existence.
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
by Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen was a Danish author, fairy tale writer, and poet noted for his children's stories. These include "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," "The Snow Queen," "The Little Mermaid," "Thumbelina," "The Little Match Girl," and "The Ugly Duckling."...
. The tale was first published in 1847.
Plot summary
Once a learned man from the northern regions of EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
went on a voyage south. One night, he sat on his terrace, while the fire behind him cast his shadow on the opposite balcony. As he was sitting there, resting, the man was amused to observe how the shadow
Shadow
A shadow is an area where direct light from a light source cannot reach due to obstruction by an object. It occupies all of the space behind an opaque object with light in front of it. The cross section of a shadow is a two-dimensional silhouette, or reverse projection of the object blocking the...
followed his every movement, as if he really did sit upon the opposing balcony. When he finally grew tired and went to sleep, he imagined the shadow would likewise retire in the house across the street.
The next morning however, the man found to his surprise that he in fact had lost his shadow overnight. As a new shadow slowly grew back from the tip of his toes, the man did not give the incident another thought, returned to northern Europe, and took up writing again. Several years passed by until one night a man knocked at his door. To his surprise, it was his shadow, the one he lost years before in Africa, and now stood upon his doorstep, almost completely human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
in appearance. Astonished by his sudden reappearance, the learned man invited him into his house, and soon the two sat by the fireplace
Fireplace
A fireplace is an architectural structure to contain a fire for heating and, especially historically, for cooking. A fire is contained in a firebox or firepit; a chimney or other flue allows gas and particulate exhaust to escape...
, as the shadow related how he had come to be man.
The learned man was calm and gentle by nature. His main object of interest lay with the good, the beautiful and the true, a subject of which he wrote often but was of no interest to anyone else. The shadow said his master did not understand the world, that he had seen it as truly was, and how evil
Evil
Evil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
some men really were.
The shadow then grew richer and fatter over the years, while the writer grew poorer and paler. Finally he had become so ill that his former shadow proposed a trip to a health resort at his expense, but on condition that he could act as the master now, and the writer would pretend to be his shadow. As absurd as this suggestion sounded, the learned man eventually agreed and together they took the trip, the shadow now as his master. At the resort, the shadow met with a beautiful princess
Princess
Princess is the feminine form of prince . Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or his daughters....
, and as they danced and talked with each other each night, the princess fell in love with him.
When they were about to be married, the shadow offered his former master a luxurious position at the palace, on condition that he now became his own shadow permanently. The writer immediately refused and threatened to tell the princess everything, but the shadow had him arrested. Feigning his distraught, he met with the princess and told her:
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When the shadow wed the princess later that night, the learned man was already executed.
Analysis
The Shadow is an exemplary story in Andersen's darker fairy tales. Throughout the tale, the writer is portrayed as a moralMoral
A moral is a message conveyed or a lesson to be learned from a story or event. The moral may be left to the hearer, reader or viewer to determine for themselves, or may be explicitly encapsulated in a maxim...
person, concerned with the good and true in the world. But as it says, the people around him are not much interested in his feelings on the subject. Indeed his shadow says he does not see the world as it truly is.
The shadow claims to have seen all that is in the world, but does not own a soul himself. He strongly desires to own a shadow of himself, and later asks his former master to reverse the roles on their trip. When the learned man finally realises how far his shadow has degraded, it is already too late.
The ending is especially bleak for a fairy tale, as Andersen suggests that it is not always good that triumphs, and that evil does indeed have a powerful grip over the good and just.
Publication
"The Shadow" was first published 6 April 1847 as a part of New Fairy Tales. Second Volume. First Collection. 1847. (Nye Eventyr. Andet Bind. Første Samling. 1847.). The work was re-published December 1847 as a part of A Christmas Greeting to my English Friends, and again 18 December 1849 as a part of Fairy Tales. 1850. (Eventyr. 1850.). The tale was re-published 30 March 1863 as a part of Fairy Tales and Stories. Second Volume. 1863. (Eventyr og Historier. Andet Bind. 1863.).Precedent
In 1814, three decades before the publication of "The Shadow", Adelbert von ChamissoAdelbert von Chamisso
Adelbert von Chamisso was a German poet and botanist.- Life :He was born Louis Charles Adélaïde de Chamissot at the château of Boncourt at Ante, in Champagne, France, the ancestral seat of his family...
had published the popular Peter Schlemihl, a story about a man who sells his shadow to the devil
Devil
The Devil is believed in many religions and cultures to be a powerful, supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The nature of the role varies greatly...
in exchange for a bottomless wallet. Chamisso's story had been the reigning authority on men who lose their shadows, and Andersen makes an explicit reference to it in "The Shadow":
He was very annoyed, not so much because the shadow had disappeared, but because he knew there was a story; well-known to everybody at home in the cold countries, about a man without a shadow; and if he went back now and told them his own story, they would be sure to say that he was just an imitator, and that was the last thing he wanted.
Adaptations
The Shadow became the first text of some considerable length to be published in EsperantoEsperanto
is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto , the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887...
. It was contained in the 1888 Dua Libro
Dua Libro
The Dua Libro de l' Lingvo Internacia was the second publication to describe the international language Esperanto , and the first book ever to appear entirely in Esperanto. It was published in Esperanto in Warsaw in 1888 by Dr. L.L...
(Second Book) by the creator of that language, L. L. Zamenhof
L. L. Zamenhof
Ludwig Lazarus Zamenhof December 15, 1859 – April 14, 1917) was the inventor of Esperanto, the most successful constructed language designed for international communication.-Cultural background:...
(the first book had contained only single bible verses, short poems and the like).
Evgeny Shvarts
Evgeny Shvarts
Evgeny Lvovich Shvarts was a Soviet writer and playwright whose works include twenty-five plays and screenplays for three films .- Life :...
has explicitly based his "Tyen" ("The Shadow") play on Andersen's tale, introducing additional characters and plot lines and a different ending.
In 1945 the story was adapted as an episode of the syndicated radio program The Weird Circle.
Skuggaleikur (Shadow Play) an opera by Icelandic composer Karólína Eiríksdóttir with libretto by Sjón
Sjón
Sigurjón Birgir Sigurðsson , known as Sjón , is an internationally known Icelandic author and poet. His pen name is formed from his given name , and means 'Sight'....
. Premiered in November 2006.
In 2003, the Carolina Ballet
Carolina Ballet
Carolina Ballet is a ballet company founded in 1997 which performs primarily in Raleigh, North Carolina and throughout the state. It has toured to New York City, Hungary and China. Robert Weiss, the artistic director, danced for George Balanchine for sixteen years at New York City Ballet and...
premiered a ballet version of The Shadow with choreography by artistic director Robert Weiss
Robert Weiss (choreographer)
Robert Weiss is an American ballet dancer, choreographer, and Artistic Director of Carolina Ballet. He began his professional career at age 17 joining the New York City Ballet under George Balanchine, eventually becoming a Principal Dancer. Balanchine created several roles for him, including Ballo...
, set to the music of Khachaturian, Kabalevsky, Gyorgy Ligeti, Fauré and Rachmaninoff.
The ballet features an eerie sequence in which the poet contemplates his shadow in the mirror. The image, which at first copies his movements in complete synchrony, seamlessly emerges from the mirror frame (through effective changes in lighting) as another dancer in a gray full body stocking, alternately mirroring the poet's actions and taking on an independent existence.
See also
- List of works by Hans Christian Andersen
- Vilhelm PedersenVilhelm PedersenThomas Vilhelm Pedersen was a Danish artist best known for being the first artist to illustrate the fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen....
, first illustrator of Andersen's fairy tales
External links
- "The Shadow" Jean Hersholt's English translation
- http://www.adl.dk/adl_pub/vaerker/cv/e_vaerk/e_vaerk.xsql?ff_id=22&id=6315&hist=fmS&nnoc=adl_pubSkyggen Original Danish text
- English translation (full text) from "Andersen's Fairy Tales"