THIS year, the world is celebrating the 200th birthday of the famed Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, also known as the father of fairytale. The yearlong bicentennial celebrations will be marked with about 300 events in more than 40 countries. And of course celebrations are very well part of the global cyber fraternity.
Hans Christian Andersen was born in Odense in 1805. Following a miserable childhood that saw him face poverty and hunger, Andersen rose above the odds to eventually write more than 150 stories for children that established him as one of the great figures of world literature. Andersen’s tales of fantasy include The Ugly Duckling (1843), The Emperor’s New Clothes (1837), The Snow Queen (1844), The Red Shoes (1845) and The Little Mermaid (1837), a story that was translated into a wonderful animated movie a few years back. And all of them and more can be read on a number of websites.
One of them is Hans Christian Andersen: Fairy Tales and Stories http://hca.gilead.org.il/. Biography, stories and a chronological list of his work are available here. His work is even cross-referenced and there are details of the artwork that illustrated his initial story writing. However, the site is quite dull and boring, graphically speaking. At least the background could have been taken care of in this sense.
Hans Christian Andersen’s fairytales have inspired plays, ballets, films and works of sculpture and painting. However, it was after he had published his first novel, The Improviser in 1835 that his first book of fairytales was published the same year. Andersen travelled extensively in Europe, Asia and Africa and continued to write novels, plays and travelogues. But as we all know now, it was his work as a storyteller of fairytales that etched his name in literary history.
The official site of the Hans Christian Andersen’s bicentennial birthday celebrations is the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 http://www.hca2005.com/. The site celebrates the life of Hans Christian Andersen with information and resources about his fairy tales and the man himself. Available in eleven different languages, the site also has on display the official itinerary of the various events that will be taking place throughout the year. HCA2005 projects, cartoons, quiz and stamps are all part of this site. Aesthetically well done, this address is really a pleasure to visit. Pity that this site doesn’t have an online shop from where to buy HCA memorabilia. A Hans Christian Andersen t-shirt wouldn’t be a bad idea!
Coming back to the web sites, if it is something really colourful that you want to visit, then click to Andersen Fairytales http://www.andersenfairytales.com/en/main.
Here you will find the way of storytelling, just the way that the Danish author would have wanted it to be; colourful, animated and with sound. With the help of Flash, stories aren’t read here, they are told and narrated. However, needless to say, the site is pretty bandwidth intensive. Meaning, if you’re still stuck to those dial-ups and aren’t enjoying the richness of broadband, then this site is sure to give you plenty of headaches.
Another, not so demanding site is Hans Christian Andersen — Biography and Works http://www.online-literature.com/hans_christian_andersen. Part of The Literature Network, here you’ll find an extensive biography of Hans Christian Andersen and a searchable collection of his works. You’ll even find links to other great literary figures, such as Shakespeare, whose sonnets are available via an e-mail list here.
But sites about Andersen’s works aren’t the only things that dot the cyber landscape. There is also the Hans Christian Andersen Museum http://www.solvangca.com/museum/h1.htm. Though stories are available here, but we’ve been through them already. So we’ll jump to the museum’s details, timings, address and telephone number. So, the next time you’re in Denmark, you’ll be sure to know how to reach and visit this place. Exhibits and displays in museum include, a model of Andersen’s childhood home, a model of the “The Princess and the Pea” by famed artist Carl Jacobson. There is also a handcrafted Andersen doll, complete with a miniature book, designed and made by Danish doll maker Kirsten Gynther Eriksen and antique tools for making wooden shoes (similar to those used by Andersen’s father).
Hans Christian Andersen Teacher Resource File http://falcon.jmu.edu/~ramseyil/andersen.htm is a site that proves to be of great help to teachers and educators. Lesson plans, resource files and of course online text of the author’s greatest works. This is a site not for children, rather it’s for others to have a look at and helps children to read and understand Hans Christian Andersen’s greatness.
THIS year, the world is celebrating the 200th birthday of the famed Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, also known as the father of fairytale. The yearlong bicentennial celebrations will be marked with about 300 events in more than 40 countries. And of course celebrations are very well part of the global cyber fraternity.
