Citations
Andersen, Hans Christian. “The Princess and the Pea.” Hans Christian Andersen, 1835, http://hca.gilead.org.il/princess.html.
This is one of the earliest versions of the princess and the pea. I chose this story because of the time period. It made me rethink the story in the way I knew it because I realized that it was the same. Growing up, I would only hear one version on repeat so hearing this made me validate the fact that I have been listening to the original version from the 1800s. The deeper theme is just that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. In the story we see that the princess is covered up and she’s wet from the rain so the queen is hesitant in accepting the fact that she is a princess. So in order to test her, she goes through this entire ordeal with putting the pea inside of all of those mattresses and seeing if she feels it. I feel like this variation of the story is clearly the one that all of the other ones stem from. I would also like to think that, other stories are just taking bits and pieces from this one and making it their own.
Cellier, Melanie. The Princess Companion: A Retelling of the Princess and the Pea. Luminant Publications, 2016.
This is one of the newer retellings of the princess of the pea and it was basically the same. It only made me realize that it is very similar to the original verson except for some small details. In this version, it is a more older kid friendly kind of story and we see how the princess is actually older and the story isn’t just about her meeting her prince and then getting married. we see how the princess and the prince’s relationship develops and how it converts into a relationship towards the end of the book. I like this version a lot, I feel like it gave the original story more details and a better understanding of the characters. We also get a lot more backstory on them and how they came to be who they are and who they are as people before being Prince’s and princesses.
Findley, Violet. Folk & Fairy Tale Easy Readers: 15 Classic Stories that are Just Right for Young Readers. Scholastic, 2006.
This story is one that is easy for children to understand. It also comes with other stories but with “The princess and the pea”, they make the story more simplified. This version is a picture book version, and it is more visually appeasing for children. It has a lot more colorful images and more vibrant colors and the Expressions on the characters are a lot more exaggerated in order for children to understand how the characters are feeling in that specific moment. this story is a nice version especially if you just want a quick summary or if you want a refresher on what the Princess and the Pea was about. This version makes me rethink the story from the version that I know by making it seem like the story itself is very short and simple. I remember the version that I know being a lot more longer with more detail while this version is a quick version with more colors than words.
Nugent, Elizabeth. “The Princess and the Pea: Activist, Analyst, Shadow.” April 2022, https://www.libbynugent.com/post/the-princess-and-the-pea-activist-analyst-shadow.
This is an analysis of “The princess and the pea” and they talk about some issues that you would not normally think about when reading this story. In this analysis we see deeper topics and we also see issues that you would not normally talk about with this kind of story. When I first listened to this story, I thought that it was very sweet and simple and just a cute story for children. yet in this analysis, we see that the reader believes that the princess is very entitled and overly sensitive because of the fact that she was able to feel a single pea in dozens of mattresses. I really liked reading this analysis because it was very in-depth and went into a lot of details on why they believed what they did because of the story.
PINKFONG. “The Princess and the Pea | Fairy Tales | Musical | PINKFONG Story Time for Children.” YouTube, November 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXiMM3A35oc.
This is a song about “The princess and the pea” and it is the same common story except in a song version. The song itself is very cute see and short yet still hits the major points within the story itself. I feel like it is very easy way to remember the story, especially for children who may struggle with reading or children who are unable to see the bigger picture unless it’s in a more fun way. Even though this song is quick childish, many other songs with the princess and the Pea in mind, are the same or more childish. This version is different from others simply because the fact that it is a song and also because the story itself is a lot shorter and a lot of details are excluded.
Rytsarev, Boris. “The Princess and the Pea.” IMDb, 1977, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075104/.
This is a movie about “the princess and the pea” but it follows the story of the princess and how she comes to be at the prince’s palace. It is also quite old and has some sexist topics. This version is a romance movie that follows a life of a princess and a prince who find each other. even though the prince searches high and low for the perfect bride, he is unable to find one. he struggles a lot and as he’s giving up, he runs into the princess who makes him realize that love isn’t dead. It is a cute romance story with more background on the characters and who they are as people. The story itself follows the main points of the original, except it goes into a lot more detail especially because it is a movie and movies tend to be long while the story itself is very short. I did enjoy watching this movie and I liked this version. This version is in Russian so in order to see it I had to read the subtitles. Even though this version is not from the United states, the story itself is exactly the same.
5) visual version
This image is a representation of “the princess and the pea” and I feel like by looking at it you are able to tell what it is. Especially because of the iconic bed and pea in it. In this image we see vibrant colors and a lot of gold to emphasize the fact that this is a princess on the bed. we can also see the size of the Pea compared to the mattresses and the princess. while this image is a good representation of The Princess and the Pea, I feel like it could have had more detail since the background is completely blank and I also feel like there could have been more characters in the image since the princess and the pea is not just about the princess. Out of all the pictures that I found, this one was my personal favorite because I felt like it was very simple just like the story and straight to the point.
