Journeys Through Bookland Volume X Part 16

8. The beautiful gla.s.s slippers are provided.

How real these incidents all seem! What art is shown in bringing in real things to give food to the imagination and to stimulate the interest that carries the little reader away from herself where she may riot in the wonders her active mind can so readily conceive. Some time when she has grown much older, and cares have wrinkled her smooth cheeks, she may see that the only fairy G.o.dmother who can clothe a Cinderella is hard work, and that mice become dapple-grays, and footmen are made from lizards behind watering pots only when she has earned the right to them herself. Just now it is enough for her to see that fairy G.o.dmothers come to good children only, and that good princes do not care if their wives have worked in the cinders, provided they are beautiful in gentleness and service to others.

Children like to understand what they read, and are never so happy as when talking over their favorite stories with those of their elders who have the power to enter sympathetically into the child world. By no means do all boys and girls like to be taught; in fact there are not many more certain ways of prejudicing a child against anything than by making it the subject of a formal lesson. Still, every child loves to learn, and is seeking at every moment to add to his information and to exercise his mind. Yet he must do it in his own way and with the things in which he is interested. If those facts are borne in mind, no parent will have difficulty in interesting his child or in leading the juvenile mind where it ought to go.

To apply these ideas to teaching the plot of such a story as _Cinderella_, let the parent who loves his children, and who wishes to be no stranger to their interests, joys and sorrows, seat himself among them some time and begin to read to them. Pausing now and then to explain some word whose meaning may be obscure to them, or to comment on some phase of the story that may be of special interest, let him read on to the end without attempting to do much more than to make the story a vivid tale where the interest centers in the incident.

When the story has ended, the pleasure has but just begun. Children like to ask questions, but they are no less ready to answer them if the questions are on things of interest, are related to the things which children know and are put in such a way that the genuine interest of the questioner is always evident. The I-know-it-all-and-you-know-nothing style of questioning; the I'm-the-master-and-you're-the-pupil style; the because-I-ask-you-must-answer style are all fatal to interest, and will soon prevent that hearty sympathy and living spirit of cooperation that the parent wishes to secure.

If we suppose it is _Cinderella_ that has been read, we may begin our questioning in this manner:

"That's a good story. I like it, don't you?--It is rather long, though; I've almost forgotten how it began.--O, was that the first thing that happened?--Was the father a rich man?--Did the story say he was rich or did you just think he was?--If he had not married a widow could things have happened as they did?--How did the widow and her daughters treat Cinderella?--If Cinderella had not been mistreated would her fairy G.o.dmother have come to her aid?--If the fairy had not appeared could the story have been the same?--How did the fairy make the golden coach?--Could she have made it out of anything else?--If she had made one just as good out of something else, could Cinderella have gone to the ball just as well?--If Cinderella went to the ball in good style did it matter how she went?--If Cinderella had not gone to the ball, could she have met the prince?--Was it as important then that she should have a coach made from a pumpkin as that she should go to the ball and meet the prince?--Can you think of something else just as necessary to make the story come out right as that Cinderella should go to the ball?--Can you think of other things that must have happened just as they did to make the story come out right and just as it did?--Can you think of some things that might have happened differently and still not have hurt the story at all?--Let us put together all the things that must have happened to make the story right and leave out the things that could be changed. Now, what are they?--Now let us find a few things we could leave out or change. What are some of them?--If we left them out the story would come out the same, but would it be as good, as interesting?--Would you like Cinderella as well if these little things had been left out?--Would you think as much of the prince if he had found Cinderella right away as you do when he has to do so many hard things before he finds her?"

Every one must realize the impossibility of providing a scheme of questioning that would fit exactly any given case, but will not the above suggest a method that may lead to many a happy and profitable evening at the family round table? Even if there are older children in the group they will renew their interest in the old stories and get more good from them when it is seen that father and mother do not deem it beneath their dignity, nor outside the range of their interests, to read and study a fairy tale.

In _Journeys Through Bookland_ are here and there outlines and questions designed to lead the children to see for themselves what it is hoped others will take pleasure in showing them. Examples of the selections which contain outlines, questions and comments designed to help in the study of the plot may be found as follows:

Volume I, page 264. _The Twin Brothers._ Volume I, page 395. _Something._ Volume II, page 124. _The Snow Queen._ Volume IV, page 174. _Incident of the French Camp._ Volume VIII, page 364. _The Tempest._ Volume IX, page 232. _The Gold-Bug._

B. THE PERSONS

In most stories, be they brief and simple or as long and complicated as the two-volume novel, the interest centers in one or more persons whose character the reader learns to understand, and whose success or failure, joy or grief gives him pleasure or excites his sympathy. All events center about the hero or heroes, and while other persons may be mentioned, and even win the reader's attention for a time, they finally subside into the background and are remembered only as they contribute to greater interest in the princ.i.p.al characters.

Every author tries to make his heroes and heroines speak and act like real human beings and show their characters by their actions and their words. Sometimes, however, he tells the reader just how his people look, feel and think, and describes their characters to give an interest in what happens to them. A more interesting method and a more artistic one is to leave the persons to disclose themselves as the story progresses, making them show by the way they act and by what they say under certain circ.u.mstances the strong and weak qualities in their natures. Nothing is more interesting than to watch the development of character in the hero of a story, particularly when it is accomplished under conditions which are themselves interesting.

In studying the persons in a story, then, the chief things to keep in mind are the following:

1. The princ.i.p.al person, or hero--the one, or perhaps the ones, in whose fortunes the reader is most vitally interested.

2. The secondary persons who are introduced merely to add variety or to throw light upon the character of the hero, or to a.s.sist to bring about the events which center about him.

3. The appearance, dress and manners of the persons.

4. The ways in which the author makes his persons lifelike and shows the reader what they really are.

5. The characters of the persons as they appear or as they are developed in the progress of the story. This is the really important part of the study, the one which becomes increasingly interesting as readers grow older and the stories they study become more and more complex and difficult. The study of the characters of Shakespeare's heroes and heroines is more than interesting pastime for men and women--it is good, hard work.

For a simple example of what is meant, let us undertake briefly the study of _The Hardy Tin Soldier_ (Volume I, page 148).

1. The hero is the Hardy Tin Soldier himself.

2. Persons of secondary importance are:

a. The twenty-four brothers.

b. The little boy.

c. The Dancing Lady.

d. The Goblin.

e. The servant-maid.

f. The two street boys.

g. The Water Rat.

h. The fish.

i. The cook.

Of these the Dancing Lady is second only to the lame Soldier; the Goblin, the two street boys, the little boy and the Water Rat are given considerable prominence, while the twenty-four brothers, the servant-maid, the fish and the cook are introduced merely to effect a certain incident or to give an air of truthfulness to the events. This is a fairy tale, and in it we must be faithful to our juvenile friends, considering the Goblin, the Water Rat and the fish as real persons, and the Tin Soldier as a very human being.

3. In appearance the Tin Soldier was tall and erect, but alas! he had only one leg! His uniform was red and blue and very splendid. He carried his musket across his shoulder as a marching soldier should, kept his eyes straight to the front, and stood very firmly upon his one foot. In the fire he lost the tinsel and the color from his uniform, and when the Dancer joined him he melted into a little tin heart.

4. While Andersen tells outright some of the characteristics of the little Soldier, he leaves others to be inferred from acts. The Soldier thinks, and sometimes the reader is told just what he thinks, but never once does he speak--to him silence is golden. Yet not once do we miss his voice, and it is only when we have finished that we suddenly think what a silent little body he is. That is part of the author's art. The Soldier never once moves his eyes, or changes his att.i.tude; the author never forgets that he is a _tin_ soldier, but makes his every act consistent with his stiffness and rigidity. That is more of the author's skill. There were other soldiers, twenty-four of them, and all were brothers. A less skilful author would have stopped in the telling of the fact, but Andersen adds in his whimsical, charming manner, "for they were all born of one tin spoon." All the other brothers were perfect; our Soldier had but one leg, yet "it was just this soldier who became remarkable." Even the missing leg creates an interest, and Andersen uses it to center our attention upon his little hero.

5. Andersen tells us the following things about the Tin Soldier's character:

a. He stood firmly even with but one leg to balance himself upon.

b. He thought his box was not a place for a lady-wife who lived in a castle. This showed his humility.

c. Yet he was very human--"I must make her acquaintance."

d. When he fell from the window, he put his leg straight up, stuck his helmet downward and his bayonet between the paving stones.

e. He would not call loudly to the servant-maid because he was in the uniform of a soldier.

f. While in the boat rus.h.i.+ng down the gutter, he trembled, but he never changed countenance, and still looked straight before him.

g. He sighed for the little Lady's company, while pa.s.sing through the drain.

h. He would not answer the Water Rat.

i. He stiffened himself and would not move an eyelid when the paper boat sank.

j. He lay unmoved even in the darkness of the fish's body.

k. He was not at all proud when he was rescued.

l. When he saw the Dancer again he very nearly wept tin tears, but he thought how improper that would be, and kept them back.

m. He stood firm and shouldered his musket although the fire, or grief, made all the colors leave him.

n. When the Dancer joined him in the flames he melted into a heart-shaped lump of tin.

What a fine little Tin Soldier he proves to be! Could any one be more loyal to his profession? Body erect, eyes to the front, musket shouldered, every muscle at attention all the time, no matter if he had but one leg to stand upon. He was brave as a lion, although once in the presence of the direst danger he trembled a little, but he drove every sign of fear from his face and stood his ground manfully. After he had once seen the Dancer and realized how similar her trials must be to his, how constant he was in his devotion! At his death what could be more fitting than to see him melt into a little heart-shaped ma.s.s, the symbol of his courage and constancy! Why should we call him the _hardy_ Tin Soldier; would it not have been better if the translator had called him the _constant_ Tin Soldier?

Now, when we give the hero of this pretty little story so much attention, does it not seem worth while? Will not we, grown men and women, find so much in the hero that we may gather our young friends about us and lead them to see how admirable a character he has and how beautifully Andersen has shown it? If we talk not _to_ the boys and girls, but _with_ them, if we invite their questions as to the Tin Soldier's character, and by our informal questions lead them to appreciate the strength, courage, and devotion of the little toy, will they not get some taste for a good story well written, and perhaps, learn some little lessons that will help them to be better men and women?

_Journeys_ furnishes you with many another fine story, equally interesting. There are a number of the tales, too, which may call for your own best efforts in the study of character, and from which even you may derive some genuine help in the heavy problems life thrusts upon you.

In many places, too, the present writer has appended outlines and questions which the young people themselves may like to pore over and which may a.s.sist the inquiring parent even more than the brief study above. The following are particularly suggestive:

Volume I, page 224. _Cinderella._ Volume IV, page 93. _A Dog of Flanders._ Volume VIII, page 335. _Dream Children._ Volume VIII, page 364. _The Tempest._