Opinion

Modern example of famous fairy tale

Posted April 20, 2020 1:00 am

For many years my sixth grade students read Hans Christian Andersen's cautionary tale "The Emperor's New Clothes." He also wrote the original "The Little Mermaid" around 1837 in Denmark. The vain Emperor is swindled by weavers who create magic fabric which is visible to only those that agree with the Emperor; of course, it's invisible to those who don't concur. In the end, an honest child shouts out the truth that the Emperor is naked while leading a procession throughout his kingdom.

More than ever this tale is timeless as it humorously illustrates the overuse of power in a boastful leader. Without any prompting, students identified the character traits of the ego driven Emperor and compared him to President Trump. Within the last week, we can identify the child as Dr. Anthony Fauci who has honestly advised President Trump. Let's hope Trump is in earshot of Dr. Fauci and puts on his royal robe to complete the parade.

Parents of e-learning students would be wise to read Hans Christian Andersen's story with their children for a modern discussion of civil discourse. Compare and contrast PDF versions of the story available online with a YouTube cartoon of the same title. Of course, enjoy the reading time with your child as they figure out the theme or message that Andersen wove into the tale.

Colleen Oenning

Park Ridge

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