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Assignment: Analysis of the Four Dreams of the Little Match Girl in the Short Story 'The Little Match Girl'
I. Detailed Outline
II. Sample Essay
Analyzing the Four Dreams of the Little Match Girl in the Short Story 'The Little Match Girl'
I. Outline Analyzing the Four Dreams of the Little Match Girl in the Short Story 'The Little Match Girl' (Standard)
1. Introduction
- The story 'The Little Match Girl' by the famous Danish author Andersen depicts the four pitiful dreams of the unfortunate little match girl, reflecting the most basic human needs for survival, safety, and social belonging.
- Each dream symbolizes a desire, a dream of children in life.
2. Body of the Essay
* Context:
- The little match girl, impoverished, starving, has to sell matches on New Year's Eve.
- Once experienced happiness when her grandmother was alive.
* First Dream:
- Sees a stove
=> Represents the need for existence, for safety against the biting cold. The girl yearns to be warm, to sit in a room with a stove, to drive away the bone-chilling cold and extreme loneliness of a poor, pitiful child in the midst of a bitterly cold night...(Continued)
>> See detailed Outline Analyzing the Four Dreams of the Little Match Girl in the Short Story 'The Little Match Girl' here
II. Sample Essay Analyzing the Four Dreams of the Little Match Girl in the Short Story 'The Little Match Girl' (Standard)
According to American psychologist Abraham Maslow, humans always have varying levels of needs, including physiological or existence needs, safety needs, social needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization needs. The story of 'The Little Match Girl' by the famous Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen illustrates the four dreams of the poor little match girl, expressing the desire for the most basic human needs: existence, safety, and social belonging. However, the harsh reality of life has pushed the girl to the brink of death, alongside half-burned matches, making those dreams mere illusions. From this, we draw profound lessons about deep empathy for the unfortunate in society, especially children, who should inherently enjoy happiness, education, and the best of life instead of struggling to survive.
The story recounts the tale of a poor match girl, wandering on New Year's Eve with the faint hope of selling a few more matchsticks, as she had not sold any all day. Exhausted and freezing, she sits in a corner, reminiscing about the past. It's truly pitiful and painful as the girl, who once led a comfortable life, seems to have lost all her happiness since the departure of her beloved grandmother. From a life of luxury, she now struggles to survive in the bitter cold, feeling immense suffering and self-pity, especially when her only relative, her father, shows her no love, constantly abusing the unfortunate child.
Facing the biting cold that cuts through the skin, amidst the quiet, deserted streets with families gathering for New Year's Eve, being able to light a match to keep warm is the small, fragile hope of the poor girl. She bravely lights a match, and the flame in her eyes appears beautiful and miraculous: 'the flame at first was blue, then turned red, and became clear and bright, like a little candle, as she held her hands over it'. Perhaps this is the rare joy of the girl since her grandmother's death. In the meager warmth of the match, she imagines a stove right before her eyes, embodying her deepest desires for existence, for safety against the biting cold. The girl longs to be warm, to sit in a room with a stove, to drive away the cold and extreme loneliness of a pitiful child in the dead of night. However, when the match goes out, her dream ends; there is no stove, and reality remains cruel. She is still alone on New Year's Eve, enduring the cold and the sorrow for her pitiful fate. This prompts her to strike another match.
In striking the second match, the girl no longer sees a stove. Instead, she sees a bright, beautiful room, 'the table was covered with a snow-white tablecloth, on which stood a splendid dinner service, and a roast goose...'. This could be said to be a dream of a higher level than the other dreams, as the girl dreams of a warm room, of seeing a roast goose, which symbolizes the desire for physical satisfaction amid hunger and cold tormenting the poor girl. These are the essential needs for a human being, especially for a child who is at the age of growth, with the simple wish to eat well, dress warmly. However, the unhappy life denies her that. When the match is extinguished, the girl is returned to harsh reality, with no room, no roast goose, only the cold, lonely night and the indifference of passersby, preparing for New Year's Eve, ignoring a poor child about to die of hunger and cold, a truly heartbreaking loneliness.
After exploring the content of the analysis of the four dreams of the little match girl in the short story The Little Match Girl, you can also refer to: The Author's Message and Compassion in The Little Match Girl Story, As a witness to the scene of the little match girl on New Year's Eve, please retell the story of The Little Match Girl, Analysis of the Character of the Little Match Girl in The Little Match Girl Story, Thoughts on the character of the little match girl in the short story The Little Match Girl by Andersen for the highest study effectiveness.
