Storytime for Grownups – Summer Session: The Little Mermaid

Host: Faith Moore
Episode Date: August 18, 2025

Episode Overview

This Summer Session episode of Storytime for Grownups with Faith Moore focuses on Hans Christian Andersen’s iconic fairy tale, “The Little Mermaid.” Departing from the usual format of reading classic literature with notes, Faith’s summer series explores the origins and recurring motifs of fairy tales, discussing their lasting influence on literature and society. This episode features:

• Listener feedback highlighting how fairy tales echo in contemporary culture
• A discussion on connections between poetic symbolism in oral fairy tales
• An introduction to Hans Christian Andersen as the foremost “original” fairy tale author
• A full read-aloud of “The Little Mermaid,” followed by an encouragement to reflect and write in

Episode Structure and Key Segments

1. Opening Remarks and Announcements

[00:00–04:08]

• Faith welcomes listeners, explaining that Summer Sessions offer a blend of storytelling and literary analysis, “sort of like a college class, only fun.”
• Announcements for upcoming sessions and community events (e.g., Tea Time on Aug 28; reveal of the next book on Sept 21).
• “There are actually only two more weeks of Summer Session after today. So there are three more episodes…if we include today.” [@02:50]

2. Listener Comments and Reflections on Animal Bridegrooms

[04:08–10:22]

• Faith responds to listener comments inspired by the previous episode’s discussion of “East of the Sun and West of the Moon.”
• Clarifies an error about the function of a carding comb in spinning, citing listener Laura:

  “A carding comb...is like a large brush and that it's used to brush clean and straight the fibers or the wool and loosen them before...they are spun.” [@04:03]

• Highlights how modern works borrow from classic fairy tales:
  • Ruby notes that the YA novel Echo North was based on East of the Sun and West of the Moon rather than Beauty and the Beast as she initially thought.
  • Cody reflects on similarities between “East of the Sun and West of the Moon” and “The Wizard of Oz.”

    "About halfway through, I realized that I was hearing inspiration, at least in part, for the Wizard of Oz." [@07:12]

Main Insight

Faith underscores the web of recurring motifs connecting not only fairy tales to each other but also to literature, films, and cultural myths.

3. Literary Motifs & Thematic Recurrences

[10:22–14:14]

• Faith synthesizes patterns and recurring themes:
  • Wicked stepmothers as symbols of “growing up”
  • Kind older women paralleling fairy godmothers
  • Spinning and feminine items as metaphors for female maturation
  • Prince-in-disguise and the “maidenhood” journey leading to partnership
  • Beauty vs. ugliness representing inner virtue
  • Parallels to Greek myths, such as Orpheus and Eurydice

“First, she becomes a woman capable of being with a man, and then she actually has to be with the man, which might be a little bit more messy than the maidenhood stories like Cinderella...” [@10:23]

4. Transition to Hans Christian Andersen and the “Original Fairy Tale”

[14:14–17:35]

• Faith introduces Hans Christian Andersen as the most famous authorial creator of fairy tales (distinct from oral tradition).
• Defining “original fairy tales”:

  “Stories that use all of the fairy tale symbolism and imagery and motifs and everything…but which are actually new stories…created by the person who's writing them, rather than by generations of oral storytellers.” [@14:10]

• Announces that “The Little Mermaid” is perhaps Andersen’s most legendary work and will be read in its entirety.

5. Brief Biography of Hans Christian Andersen

[16:00–17:35]

• Danish author born in 1805, died in 1875; contemporary of Dickens and Collins.
• Initially criticized for fairy tales lacking “clear morals,” but eventually beloved and widely published.
• Anecdote about his eccentricity, including an awkward visit with Charles Dickens.

“He was kind of a strange person, you guys. And he had several friendships and romantic relationships that kind of went awry.” [@16:43]

6. Full Reading: The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen

[18:16–73:48]

Highlights and Notable Quotes

• Symbolic Setting:

  “Her skin was as clear and delicate as a rose leaf, and her eyes as blue as the deepest sea, but like all the others, she had no feet, and her body ended in a fish's tail.” [@18:29]

• Longing & Identity:

  "Oh, were I but 15 years old...I know that I shall love the world up there and all the people who live in it." [@28:19]

• Pride and Pain:

  "'But they hurt me so,' said the little mermaid.
  'Yes, I know. Pride must suffer pain,' replied the old lady." [@35:30]

• Sacrifice for Humanity:

  "You want to get rid of your fish's tail and to have two supports instead, like human beings on earth...No dancer will ever tread so lightly. Every step you take, however, will be as if you were treading upon sharp knives..." (Sea Witch to Little Mermaid) [@50:43]

• Choice & Consequence:

  “If you do not win the love of the prince...the first morning after he marries another, your heart will break, and you will become foam on the crest of the waves.” [@51:29]

• Human vs. Mermaid Souls:

  “We sometimes live for 300 years, but when we cease to exist here, we become only foam...We have not immortal souls.” (Grandmother) [@41:50]
  “…a mermaid has not an immortal soul, nor can she obtain one unless she wins the love of a human being. On the will of another hangs her eternal destiny.” [@70:00]

• Selflessness and Transformation:

  “She flung [the knife] far from her into the waves...she cast one more lingering, half fainting glance at the prince, then threw herself from the ship into the sea and felt her body dissolving into foam.” [@68:40]

• Afterlife & Redemption:

  “…the Daughters of the Air, although they do not possess an immortal soul, can by their good deeds procure one for themselves. We fly to warm countries and cool the sultry air...After we have striven for 300 years to do all the good in our power, we receive an immortal soul...” [@71:00]

Memorable Moment

Faith pauses occasionally to clarify vocabulary (e.g., “calyx”), but largely preserves the original language and reading pace to convey Andersen’s tone and heartbreaking endings—a striking contrast to the Disney adaptation.

7. Closing Reflections & Invitation for Listener Engagement

[73:50–end]

• Faith encourages listeners to share their reactions and questions at her website or through the show notes link, promising to discuss “The Little Mermaid” in the final Summer Session episode.
• Brief plugs for community events and reminders about the upcoming reveal of the next book.

Notable Quotes (w/ Timestamps)

• “One of the reasons that I picked East of the Sun and West of the Moon was because I felt like it held within it a lot of the ideas and images that we’ve been talking about this summer.” (Faith, [@08:01])
• “‘Pride must suffer pain,’ replied the old lady.” (Andersen, [@35:30])
• “You have the sweetest voice of any who dwell here in the depths of the sea. ...But this voice you must give to me.” (Sea Witch, [@51:31])
• “She knew this was the last evening she should ever see the prince for whom she had forsaken her kindred and her home... She had no soul and now could never win one. All was joy and gaiety upon the ship until long after midnight. She smiled and danced with the rest, while the thought of death was in her heart.” (Andersen, [@66:25])
• “Among the Daughters of the Air, answered one of them, a mermaid has not an immortal soul, nor can she obtain one unless she wins the love of a human being. On the will of another hangs her eternal destiny... After we have striven for 300 years to do all the good in our power, we receive an immortal soul...” (Daughters of the Air, [@71:00])

Episode Takeaways

• This episode offers an immersive experience into the roots, evolution, and enduring influence of fairy tales.
• Faith emphasizes the universality of motifs, exploring complex themes such as sacrifice, identity, suffering, yearning for transformation, and the unique heartbreak of Andersen’s tales.
• The read-aloud of “The Little Mermaid” vividly illustrates how original fairy tales can be darker, richer, and more morally ambiguous than their later adaptations.

For Next Time

Faith will be away for the next episode, but promises to discuss “The Little Mermaid” in the session following her return. Listeners are encouraged to send in observations or reactions to the episode for inclusion in the final Summer Session wrap-up.

Links:

• Contact: faithkmoore.com (Contact form)
• Join the Drawing Room online community
• Show notes for additional resources and merch

“Class is dismissed. I'll see you next week.”