Essays on literary works - 2023
Last years of life
Andersen Hans Christian
No one has written as many autobiographies as Hans Christian Andersen. Each of his fairy tales is either a childhood memory, such as "The Ugly Duckling", or a story about his parents, or a story about his own experiences. No wonder he said that his life resembles a fairy tale, in which a beautiful fairy works miracles.
No one has written as many autobiographies as Hans Christian Andersen. Each of his fairy tales is either a childhood memory, such as "The Ugly Duckling", or a story about his parents, or a story about his own experiences. No wonder he said that his life resembles a fairy tale, in which a beautiful fairy works miracles.
Nyuhavan - street in the Venetian style. Actually, this is not a street at all, but a canal, on both sides of which houses lined up. Living on Nyhavan is prestigious, and many enterprising Copenhageners dream of having their own tavern here. However, this street was not always. In the 19th century, one side of it was considered elite, and the other, the one that never sees the sun, was considered ordinary. It was on this nondescript side that Hans Christian Andersen rented a room for a long time. House number 67 today is decorated with a plaque with the name of the storyteller. But on the other, sunny side, where the writer who got rich on fairy stories spent his last years, there is no tablet or inscription.
The seventy-four-year-old writer moved into this apartment on October 23, 1871, just four years before his death. He was famous, and fame made him quite a likeable person in the eyes of his fans. As one young lady, a big fan of Andersen's work, said, \"he was not a handsome man, but his charming smile made me think differently\". But what could the enthusiastic glances of young girls mean if during his long life Andersen fell in love three times and was unhappy in love three times. He never married, although he came close to it. His chosen one was the famous Swedish singer Jenny Lind, but the romance ended in nothing. The amorous writer found himself another object of adoration and plunged headlong into a new passion. In addition, his melancholic nature inspired few people to live together. Andersen broke all records for the number of attempts to commit suicide. Did he love life? Perhaps yes. But not in the way that others like her. For him, life and death were inextricably linked. And his fairy tales "The Ice Maiden" and "The Snow Queen" are odes to death. In Denmark, there is a belief: when frost draws a pattern on the window, then among the intricate lines you can see a beautiful face - this is the face of an ice maiden. She comes for those whose last hour has struck. Such a maiden came for his father, and he was waiting for her at 18 Nyuhavan Street. when frost draws a pattern on the window, then among the intricate lines you can see a beautiful face - this is the face of an ice maiden. She comes for those whose last hour has struck. Such a maiden came for his father, and he was waiting for her at 18 Nyuhavan Street. when frost draws a pattern on the window, then among the intricate lines you can see a beautiful face - this is the face of an ice maiden. She comes for those whose last hour has struck. Such a maiden came for his father, and he was waiting for her at 18 Nyuhavan Street.
He hardly left the house. Doctors diagnosed cirrhosis of the liver and discovered a number of other diseases. Hans Christian's state of mind was depressing. He moped and arrived in a deep depression. \"I feel my own old age, and even my neighbors - young students, can no longer ignite me with their youth,\" the storyteller complained. He constantly kept a diary, recording there all the bouts of pain and the slightest change in well-being. Hans Christian increasingly preferred to tell his magical stories rather than write them down. But nevertheless, by 1872, the last two tales \"Old Johan's Tale\" and \"Aunty - a toothache \" were born. Andersen dedicated both stories to himself. At that time, he paid special attention to his teeth and believed that their condition affects his work. Perhaps that is how it was. In January 1873
But the loneliness of the writer was more internal than external. He was constantly surrounded by friends: Edward Collins with his wife and the Melheor family, whose mansion on the outskirts of Copenhagen Andersen considered his home. Dorothea Melcheor served as a nurse. She cooked food, since Christian did not trust the maid, and daily she brought him a bouquet of white roses. Before putting them in a vase, Dorothea brought the bouquet to the face of the sick writer, and he gently kissed each flower. Andersen knew that he was dying, but he was tormented by fears of being buried alive. \"Before you put me in a coffin, make sure that I really died,\" he said to Madame Melcheor.
Apparently, Andersen's fears were not in vain. Copenhagen was already preparing to say goodbye to the great storyteller. Children and adults raised funds for a monument to the writer. The sculptor Auguste Sabo was entrusted to perpetuate Hans Christian in bronze. It was he who came to house 18 with a sketch of the future masterpiece. Glancing at the sheet, Andersen became indignant: "Do you want me to read my fairy tales surrounded by children who hang on my shoulders and knees? Yes, I won't say a word in such an atmosphere! \". Sabo was shocked, but took into account the wishes of the storyteller and removed the children. Few of the writers had the opportunity to edit their own monument. And the sculpture in the royal park Rosenberg from this point of view is a real masterpiece. Everything is done to Andersen's taste - a favorite book and no children.
After the departure of the sculptor Sabo, Hans Christian said with displeasure: "They are preparing a tombstone for me." And four months later, on August 4, 1875, he died. He was buried at the Assistens Cemetery in Copenhagen. In his will, Andersen asked, when the time came, to bury his friends Edward and Henrietta Collins next to him, so that after death it would not be as lonely as during life. The storyteller's wish was fulfilled ten years later, when the couple died. However, the Collins children decided to ship the bodies of their parents to the family crypt. And Andersen was left alone again, now forever.