NOEMI D.

ENTENDEZ

BSED-3

ELEMENTS OF THE STORY

Thumbelina
Characters:

• A fairy
• Thumbelina’s Mother
• Thumbelina
• The old toad
• Toad's son
• The cockchafer
• The field mouse
• A mole
• The swallow
• The king of flowers, the king of elves

Setting
The story's setting changes when Thumbelina and the bird fly to a land that stays warm all year
around. The bird later returns to Denmark, where the story begins. This play is one of many adaptations
of the Thumbelina story.

Style - Narrative

Theme
The tale of the tiny girl explores many themes, from kindness to greed. Several characters are
motivated by greed in wanting Thumbelina for themselves. Another theme is peer pressure, as the
cockroach questions if Thumbelina is as pretty as he thought she is just because his friends say she is ugly.

Moral
One main moral or theme in Thumbelina involves self-determination. Thumbelina does not have
many choices throughout the story. The toad and the cockchafer-beetle actually kidnap her and hold her
against her will. The mole does not kidnap her, but he wishes to marry her even though she does not want
to marry him. Another theme throughout the story is that of greed. Several characters are quite greedy and
want Thumbelina's beauty for themselves.
Emperor’s New Clothes
Characters:

• Emperor
• Conmen
• The Child
• The Servants
Setting
Based upon several different translations of the original Danish story, Demi's tale is set in old
provincial China. Filled with exquisite details, bright panoramas, and golden hues that leap off a wealth
of fold-out pages, this story lures readers into a magical place and time

Style - Narrative

Theme
The central theme of the emperor’s new clothes is that illusion depends at least in part on self-
deception on the part of those being deceived. The emperor and his courtiers pretend he is wearing
clothes because they do not wish to appear foolish; in the end they look more so.

Moral
The Emperor's New Clothes" meaning, or moral is that it is best to trust oneself and be honest;
Speak up for the truth and what is right. Without honesty, people often end up looking very foolish
The Nightingale
Characters:

• The Student. Initially a sympathetic character, the Student ultimately emerges as the antagonist
of "The Nightingale and the Rose." ...
• The Rose-tree.
• The girl.
• The Lizard.

Setting
The first setting is the student's garden, the place in which he desperately searches for a red rose
to give to the girl he loves. This is also the place where the nightingale sacrifices her life.

Style – Narrative

Theme
The main themes of the short story are sacrifice, love and materialism. The narrative can also be
interpreted as a satire to Romanticism.