StoryOriginally a Hans Christian Andersen tale.
Once upon a time, there was a widowed sea king who lived at the bottom of the ocean with his six beautiful daughters. The youngest of the mermaids was the most beautiful of the six and had the loveliest voice. She had always dreamt of becoming a human and when she turned 15, she had permission to swim up to the surface. When she did, a sailing ship sailed passed and she heard voices. Carefully, she swam closer to the ship to try and catch a glimpse of her first human; and she did. One of them was a prince and she fell in love. Suddenly, a storm broke and the prince fell overboard. The little mermaid swam after him and brought him safely back to dry land. She dare not stay and swam off back to the bottom of the ocean. All the little mermaid could think about was her prince and she wished more than ever that she too could become a human. So one night, she crept out to see the sea witch. “I can make you human,” said the sea witch,“but only in exchange for your voice.” And so it was. The little mermaid’s tail turned into legs and she met her prince once more. Yet without her voice, she could not tell him just how much she loved him. Then one day the prince got married. The little mermaid was heartbroken. “If I didn’t have to marry a princess, I would marry you,” said the prince. The wedding was held on a grand ship and as the little mermaid stared out over the railings she saw her sisters swimming below. “We have brought a dagger from the sea witch,” they said. “If you stab the prince through the heart, you will get your tail back and you can swim away with us.” But the little mermaid loved her prince far too much. Would they ever be united....? |