The Ugly Duckling is a fairy tale written in 1872 by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. Its moral teaching is that inner virtues will eventually overshadow
physical appearance.
Not as ugly as their reputation: young
swans (cygnets) have short wings and fluffy
feathering.
Plot synopsis
A mother duck hatches her eggs and, while most of her ducklings are normal, one is gray, too large, and too clumsy to fit in
among the others. Though she tries to accept him, the entire barnyard realizes that he simply does not belong and after a period
of harassment he leaves to fend for himself. He wanders for the entire summer and fall, for no one will take him in, and he
nearly freezes to death in an icy pond. Though he is rescued by a human, he cannot live in captivity, and he goes back to the
wild.
By the end of winter he is miraculously still alive. He comes to a pond in a park or garden, where beautiful white swans are
swimming. He is drawn to their beauty, though he has no reason to think that they will treat him better than anyone else has.
Still, he thinks, even if they kill him, he must approach them. To his surprise, the beautiful creatures welcome and accept him;
gazing at his reflection, he sees that he too is a swan. The children declare that he is the most beautiful swan of them all, yet
he is not proud, for a good heart is never proud. Because of all that he suffered he now appreciates his happiness so much
more.
Analysis
The moral concept of "The Ugly Duckling" is that inner beauty will overshadow the physical appearance. Its understated social
moral is buried within the tale: To be born in a duck's nest, in a farmyard, is of no consequence to a bird, if it is hatched
from a swan's egg. A human parallel would concern a child who looks or acts different from the other children around
him/her.
H.C. Andersen used the story to explain his early life. Born into lower
middle-class, he frequently felt the part of the ugly duckling. He was an admittedly effeminate youth who later reveals his
homosexual feelings through correspondence. This further explains his feelings of being out of place in his day. Today, the
story's significance has grown to become a metaphor for anything neglected continually, or anything neglected at first, then
becoming popular or good. For example: "I can't believe Sara's so accomplished now! She
used to be such an ugly duckling."
While the story is uplifting to those currently suffering harassment because of difference, it also encourages belief that the
tormentors are simply destined to remain lower class, giving an otherwise innocent story a tinge of elitism and classism.
One other concern is that while the underlying theme of a youth who is not accepted among his peers finding a group where he
belongs is a pleasant premise, it is ironically rather self-defeating. The ugly duckling is not accepted among his peers because
he is inadvertently different from them; only later as he discovers that he has turned into a beautiful swan is he accepted into
a group and finds happiness.
Some peoples believe that "The Ugly Duckling" is Andersen's autobigraphic story, because he was the illegitimate son of
royalty. So he was "ugly duck" among his brothers and sisters but later he accepted by noblesse as the most beautiful "swan".
Also like "ugly duck" he leaves to fend for himself as young boy etc.
Adaptations
Walt Disney produced two Silly
Symphonies animated shorts based on the story, one in 1931 in black and white, and one
in 1939 in Technicolor. The latter film is the more notable
version, as it won the 1939 Academy Award for Best Short Subject
(Cartoons). In this version, the baby swan's sufferings are significantly shortened, as he is found by his real mother and
father, and brothers and sisters, after only a few minutes of rejection and ostracism, instead of a whole year; also, its quack
was similar to that of a motorcar horn. This abbreviated version is read by Lilo to
Stitch in the 2002 Disney film
Lilo & Stitch. The story has a deep impact on Stitch, who sets out to look
for his real family.
The 1952 Charles Vidor musical film Hans Christian Andersen
contains a song, "The Ugly Duckling", written by Frank Loesser and sung by
Danny Kaye.
A musical, Honk!, based loosely on the text of Hans Christian Andersen, but more on the concept of the "Ugly Duckling," was performed in
London's West End Theatre.
In 1914, the Russian-born composer Sergei Prokofiev composed a work for voice and
piano based on Nina Mershchersky's adaptation of Andersen's original tale. Later in 1932, he arranged the work for voice and
orchestra.
In 2006 the Danish animation studio A. Film produced a spin-off CG feature called
The Ugly Duckling and Me!, and later a children's CG TV-series Ugly Duckling Junior, featuring the same characters as the movie.
Books
Television Shows
External links
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