The History, Value, and Importance of "The Princess and the Pea" Essay

The story "The Princess and the Pea," originally published by Anderson has been told across generations with different authors recreating various versions of the story over the time. The subsequent stories borrow different parts of the original story, illustrating the intent of each author in recreating the story based on culture and time. The book has valuable lessons and moral stories that make it an interesting piece of literature. Given the important lessons provided by this story, it is important to study its history, the reasons for its creation and alteration over time, its value in influencing our understanding of cultures and historical eras, and the importance of passing it on from one culture to another.

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Hans Christian Andersen created the first version of the story in 1835. Andersen claims that he heard the story as a child, but there were no traces of the story in the Danish tradition. The story has since traveled across cultures and changed significantly to fit the culture in which it is re-told. The translation of the narration by various communities and nations relies on the norms and beliefs of the communities.

The most popular secondary versions of the story include the Swedish, Italian, and Indian version. All these versions draw from the original but emphasize different aspects of the story for cultural relevance. The Swedish version of the story titled "The Princess Who Lay on Seven Peas" narrates about an orphan girl whose cat convinced her she was a princess and informs her about the pea test. The test gets administered whereby the girl lays on top of a mattress that lies over seven peas (surlalune.fairytales.com). Upon waking up, the girl claims that she had slept horribly, which qualifies her as a princess in her world.

The Italian version titled "The Most Sensitive Woman" has a setting almost similar to the original version by Andersen. In this version, the prince is searching for a sensitive woman to marry. Two women, one who is sick after sleeping on wrinkled sheets and another one who is suffering after her hair was pulled out are considered not sensitive enough (surlalune.fairytales.com). A distressed woman whose foot has been damaged by a jasmine petal shows up, her leg bandaged, and in great pain (surlalune.fairytales.com). This image appeals the king, who considers her the most sensitive woman.

The Indian version is more adjusted according to the culture where they do not believe in princesses. Upon the belief, the tale told in this region over the years involves a boy from a wealthy family who has to prove his wealth through sleeping on seven mattresses (surlalune.fairytales.com). He is disturbed to his awakening where he finds a hair placed in his bed and which brings the disturbance. His realization leads to his revelation as a worth a wealthy young man and is handed down part of his father's acquisitions (surlalune.fairytales.com). These stories have been derived from the original storyline, and as a result, there has been a full concept of ideas developed from the story. Even though the story draws various concepts from the "The Princess and the Pea," it was changed to fit the Indian culture as the Indian people did not believe in royalty or princesses. The Indians instead believed in wealthy families and thus changed the story to correspond with these aspects of the culture.

The story influences our understanding and appreciation of other cultures by showing the similarities and differences in the customs and beliefs owned by the communities that have incorporated the story in their tales. Similarities are notable in the fact that there are common characters and themes developed from the story shows the presence of similar ideologies and beliefs among communities existing different and far from each other. Apart from the Indian tale, the other versions embrace royalty and depict the seriousness that entails joining the royal family. The Indian version deviates from royalty but replaces it with wealth, which is the equivalent of royalty regarding social class.

Additionally, the story and subsequent narrations portray male dominance as the women are pictured as submissive and ready to prove themselves in different cultures. For example, the Indian story shows a man, and not a woman, being in control of wealth. One similarity between the stories in their depiction of cultures is the search involved before a bride is chosen. Even though the stories describe the search in the context of royalty, the concept is similar for people of all social classes.

The story is valuable as it expresses essential lessons and concepts that are timeless. Common lessons are originating from the other versions of the story as well as the original story. The first notion underlying the story is the deceiving nature of looks. The appearance of the princess does not befit royalty. She appears in the middle of a thunderstorm and is not as elegant as would be expected of a princess. The description "the water ran down her clothes; it ran down into the toes of her shoes and out again at the heels" presents her as an ordinary person, which makes the queen doubt her position and subjects her to the pea test (Andersen, 2007). This lesson teaches us not to judge or classify people based on their appearances or first impressions.

Another lesson emerging from the story is the significance of small things in life and their ability to make a difference. In the narration, a pea is used to determine the identity of the princess. Also, despite the comfort of the piles of mattresses and blankets, the pea still causes discomfort for the princess. The story reveals that only birth can decide a real prince or princess and not the making (Reference, 2015). Also, there is the lesson on perseverance brought about through the process of finding a princess by the prince of each story. In the original story and the subsequent versions, the prince has to conduct a long search and even reject some women in search of a particular character. The lesson demonstrates the importance of destiny.

Conclusion

The tale "The Princess and the Pea" is important as it contains valuable morals and lessons which have led to its translation, alteration, and recreation. The original version was developed by Andersen in 1835 and different authors have recreated it, the most popular versions being the Italian, Swedish, and Indian versions. The story influences our understanding of culture by highlighting cultural beliefs such as male dominance and practices such as royalty. The tale highlights valuable lessons including the significance of small things and the judgment based on appearance. It is crucial to ensure the existence of the tale in the years to come because the passing of the story helps in the preservation of culture through literature. Also, the story is subject to the relevant changes as seen from the discussion thus, keeping it around helps in broader thinking by the following generations over the years.

Works Cited

Andersen, Hans Christian. "Fairy Tales and Stories." (2007). Retrieved from http://hca.gilead.org.il/

Anderson, Hans Christian. "The Princess and the Pea" (1835). Retrieved from http://hca.gilead.org.il/princess.html

Reference. "What is the Moral of the Fairy Tale, "The Princess and the Pea." Retrieved from https://www.reference.com/art-literature/moral-fairy-tale-princess-pea-ecbfdd6a93f3458c

surlalune.fairytales.com. "Tales Similar to The Princess and the Pea." (2015). Retrieved from http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/princesspea/other.html