Short Story Analysis – The Little Match Girl

Short Story Analysis – The Little Match Girl

Title, Setting, Characters, and Plot

The short story “The Little Match Girl” was written by Hans Christian Andersen and first published in 1845. The story, which is set in a snowy winter, tells the tale of a little girl who leaves home on a snowy New Year’s Eve to sell matchsticks. The story contains a harrowing plot explaining the little girl from an impoverished family’s ordeal. The little girl dies of cold and hunger in the streets as she cannot sell her matchsticks while other people celebrate the birth of Christ in the comfort and warmth of their homes. The entire story reflects the little girl’s unhappy childhood and the unfriendly world that she faces in her quest for survival. The people riding the carriages are insensitive to the little girl’s plight, while the street urchin takes advantage of the situation to run away with one of the little girl’s enormous slippers. It is ironic that the young girl’s father sent her to the snowy dark streets to sell matchsticks, besides possibly threatening her as she cannot go back home without selling the matchsticks because she will receive blows. The little girl, unable to cope with the cold night, freezes to death at a time when everyone is celebrating. Need help with your assignment ? Reach out to us. We offer excellent services.

Ultimate Meaning of the Story

Andersen’s short story examines the poverty, hunger, and helplessness that a little girl faces when other people are celebrating the New Year and the birth of Christ. The author uses this story to reveal the selfishness and insensitive nature of human beings and how the actions of humanity do not reflect the desires of Jesus Christ. Anderson wrote the story during such celebrations to purposefully show how human beings live opposite of what is expected at a time when they should reach out to one another and touch their fellow counterparts’ lives (John 95). The little girl is deprived of the joy of celebrating by being sent out to the cold to sell match sticks when her mother, father, or any other older person could have gone in her place. The story leaves readers wondering whether it is the family’s sheer poverty, parental cruelty, or both that lead to the little girl’s death. Whatever the case, Andersen uses the story to show the readers that death can sometimes be better than life. The visions that the little girl experiences by lighting the matches reflect her unfulfilled dreams and wishes, “But no one knew what beautiful visions she had seen and in what a blaze of glory she had entered with her dear old grandmother into the heavenly joy and gladness of a new year” (Andersen). New Year’s Eve symbolizes the beginning of a new life for the little girl in heaven after death. The author implies that the New Year brings great and glorious transformations to the young girl’s life that other people cannot see.

Anderson uses the irony of the celebrations to reveal how the so-called civilized society has shut its eyes to the plight of the people suffering in society because of poverty and hunger. Similar to Le Guin’s ‘The Ones Who Walk Away From The Omelas,” Andersen shows how humanity indulges in selfish acts and avoids thinking about the horrible things that befall children whose vulnerability puts them on the receiving end (Merve 37). The little girl’s parents send her to the cold to sell match sticks, fully understanding the underlying risks of such an errand to her health. To make matters worse, her father threatens to beat her if she does not sell the match sticks, “For she had not sold any matches and could not bring a farthing of money: from her father, she would certainly get blows, and at home, it was cold too” (Andersen). The author’s use of an unnamed girl makes the story’s relevance transcend cultures and generations. Besides, the year and the place the story takes place have not been mentioned, indicating that the author wanted to retain the story’s universal appeal element. Any society can use this story to reflect on its actions and whether the present generation is losing the meaning of the core elements of humanity’s virtues.

Works Cited

Andersen, Hans Christian. The little match girl. Vol. 11. Scandinavia Publishing House, 2015.

Güranç, Merve. “An Analysis of the Utopia Question in Ursula Le Guin’s “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”.” Journal of English Language and Literature Club 1.2 (2019): 36-39.

Nørregaard, Frandsen Johs. “Hunger and plenty: hans Christian Andersen and the poetry of food.” Скандинавская филология 16.1 (2018): 93-103.

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Module 4 Short Story Analysis Assignment

Background

For this two-part assignment, you will be writing an analysis of a short story, including your interpretation of the story’s meaning, as well as relating the story’s meaning to your overall exploration of the humanities. These writings are not merely reflective exercises. Research and writing about the deeper meaning of the story is required. Although you may be creative, you will also have to demonstrate that you are engaging with the course materials, demonstrating academic research, and following proper citation procedures.

Short Story Analysis – The Little Match Girl

Grading

See assessment rubrics attached to this drop-box and the Module 4 Wrap Up Story Story Analysis Discussion.

Materials

Use the Module 4 Required Readings in your textbook and the Module 4 Online Exploration as your guides.

Assignment Instructions

Part 1 – Short Story Analysis Essay Instructions

Note: After completing Part 1, you will automatically gain access to Part 2.

1. Read some of the short stories from the link below and select ONE story to analyze.

Short stories available at: http://americanliterature.com/twenty-great-american-short-stories

2. After you select and have carefully read the short story, do RESEARCH by finding at least two scholarly articles on the short story and integrate what you learned from them in your essay. Try the SPC Library database or Google Scholar.

3. In a new document, start by composing one fully-developed paragraph (200 words minimum), where you identify the following elements:

title of story, author, date of publication
setting
characters
plot
4. Then, in two fully-developed paragraphs (at least 200 words in each paragraph), explain the ultimate meaning of the story. Provide as many specific examples from the story as possible. Please note that this is your interpretation of the many possible meanings that the author is trying to convey. This is a point over which reasonable people may disagree. How do the researched interpretations of the story compare to your own interpretations? Make sure you discuss the critical interpretations of each of your two scholarly sources in some detail and explain why you agree or disagree with their views of the short story. Also be sure that you refer to specific lines and passages from the text in your analysis and make sure you cite the author in MLA style when quoting the text.

Minimum 3 Paragraphs and 600-word count total.

5. Cite the sources of your researched interpretations. You must find and identify at least two research sources beyond your textbook. You may also cite research links provided in this module but be sure to find and cite at least one source beyond what you are provided. Please use the MLA format. Do NOT use Wikipedia or other encyclopedias (online, etc.) only. That is, you cannot use encyclopedias alone. Of course, you may use it as a starting place. Be sure to use SPELL CHECK and proofread your essay.

Tips:

Avoid retelling the story. You can assume your readers (the instructor and your classmates) are familiar with the story.
Focus the submission on the analysis: What is the ultimate meaning of the story? What is the author saying about the human experience? How does the author convey the meaning? Why did the author choose to do it that way?
Provide the citations both in text (Smith, 74) and in a Works Cited section on the last page. Use a hanging indent and double spacing. Put the citations in alphabetical order by the first word in the entry (usually the author’s name)
Cite the short story you’re analyzing too.