چكيده عربي :
Hans Christian Andersen is one of the most prominent writers in children s literature. His fairytales has been considered mere stories for a very long time. Yet, knowing his life and the man behind the scenes gives deeper insights and meanings to his fairytales. One would be able to better understand and appreciate his characters if he knew that these sufferings are true suffering of the writer himself Andersen often says that he suffers with his characters but the truth is the other way around. He makes his characters suffer with him and for him. In most cases he gives his heroes sad hopeless endings simply because he himself has experienced them. Four of Andersen s most famous fairytales are studied in details to trace his self reflection in his works for children. In the Ugly Duckling (1843) Andersen reflected his disappointment in his appearance and inferior origins as a duckling that is picked at and tortured because it was ugly. But thanks to no one the duckling, like Andersen, managed to rise above its class and becomes a beautiful swan.The Little Match Girl (1864) reflected his parent s - suffering and his own because of poverty and hunger. It portrays his mother who was forced to sell matches in the cold winter. Andersen suffered a lot because of his low origins and poverty while trying to ascent the highest classes of society. Andersen remained steadfast and immune to these obstacles although he suffered dearly. He voices his steadfastness in facing repeated unrequited love by women in his fairytale The Steadfast Tin Soldier (1838). He was not ashamed of voicing his frustration by men too. In the Little Mermaid (1837), Andersen shares with his readers his grief of losing his beloved Edvard Collins to a woman, Jetta, who soon became edvard s wife. Reading Andersen s fairytales as biographies does not take away from their magic but enhance it more strongly. Knowing the fairytale is just a tale where all is well or all is bad because of fairies and poetic justice takes away their magic. But what is more magical than an ugly duckling boy, who is the son of a shoemaker and a washer, turns out to be a beautiful, wealthy and famous swan.
