Previously Unknown Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tale About Suicidal Candle Discovered
A Danish historian claims to have found a lost work by fairy tale auteur Hans Christian Andersen. The Associated Press reports Esben Brage was rifling through the belongings of wealthy Danish families at the National Archives last October when he found the six-page story, because he's retired and everyone needs a hobby.
The story, called "The Tallow Candle" is about a suicidal candle that seeks to end its own life by self-immolation:
The short story tells the tale of how a tallow candle seeks help from a tinder box to be able to ignite itself.
Andersen is most famous for "The Little Mermaid" — about a beautiful mermaid who kills herself when a prince doesn't love her — and "The Ugly Duckling" — an extended metaphor about the importance of physical beauty.
This newest tale of heartache and death written for children is suspected to be one of his earliest, written when Andersen was around 18. It is dedicated to a widow who goes by the single name Bunkeflod (diva) and was close with Andersen so there's a bit of a Tuesdays with Morrie vibe going on here.
There's no word on what will become of the recently-discovered manuscript, but no doubt Disney is working on turning "The Tallow Candle" into a happy-go-lucky musical with a dead parent and a Glade product placement deal.
