Week 13 Storytelling: The Little Mermaid

Gathering around their grandmother, the children were bustling with excitement. Tonight she was going to read them a new story. She found an old dusty book deep within her closet and it told the tale of a magical world with mermaids. It begun with the story of a little mermaid…

 Ariel was the youngest daughter of the mighty King Triton, who was the son of the God Poseidon. Triton had inherited the throne from his father in place of his sister, Ursula the Sea Witch. Poseidon made it very clear throughout their childhood that Triton was his favorite. Ursula held a great deal of jealousy within her heart and because of this she became very wicked. Her domain was in the fiery depths of the sea vents where no other creature was brave enough to venture. 
 

King Triton ruled his kingdom in peace for many years and even gave his top advisors regions to govern themselves. Though his father created his base in the waters off the coast of Greece, Triton developed his kingdom in the Atlantic Ocean. He did this in order to be able to reach other regions of the world more easily. He enjoyed the immense amount of power he held over all the seas but there was one thing he loved even more. His family.

His wife unfortunately lost her life in a horrific incident. She became entangled in a net and was pulled up onto the deck of a ship. The crew killed her in hopes to take the mermaid to their queen for a reward. Little did they know that when a mermaid dies their body dissolves into sea foam. Shock and disappointed overtook the men. This however could not compare to the terror that gripped them once King Triton discovered what became of his beloved wife. The waves Triton procured engulfed the ship and pulled the men to the deepest depths of the ocean. For years ships could not sail across the Atlantic without facing great peril.

Triton’s anger subsided over the years as his daughters grew. In particular his youngest, Ariel, had a special place in his heart. She was very young when her mother passed but she could not have been more similar to her. Triton saw his wife in Ariel more and more with every passing day. She had her mother's wild spirit, never-ending curiosity, and her beautiful scarlet hair.

On her fifteenth birthday, as customary, Triton allowed her to venture up to the surface as long as she didn’t stray too far. Arriving at the surface, Ariel couldn’t believe how beautiful it was. She quickly became entranced with all things from the land above the sea. One night she came across a ship. As fearless as she was, Ariel swam right alongside it and hoisted herself on a small shelf along the exterior. She watched the crew dance and listened to the music. Then she watched beautiful color explosions in the sky. In that moment she saw him, the most attractive being she had ever seen. Captivated she wanted nothing other than to grow close to him.

Her father received word of how close she was to the humans so he conjured a great storm. The waves grew tremendously and rocked the ship. It did not take long for the party to become a place of panic. Soon enough a monstrous wave overtook the ship and broke it into hundreds of pieces. All Ariel could think about was finding the man she had seen earlier and saving him from the storm. Floating amongst some debris she spotted him barely hanging on. Ariel wrapped her arms around him and swam to shore as she could. She knew he was still breathing but he had yet to open his eyes...

The grandmother was quite surprised. Apparently some of the pages within the book had been torn out so she had to think on her feet to not disappoint the children. So she continued…

After a very long nap the man awoke and instantly fell in love with Ariel! He asked for her hand in marriage and when she said yes he went off to find a magical fairy that could give the little mermaid some legs to walk on. Her father forgave her for mingling with the humans and even grew fond of his daughters groom. The two had the biggest and most beautiful wedding, all of the townspeople were invited. They went on to live happily ever after.

Satisfied with the happy ending the children willingly went to bed with visions of mermaids in their heads.

 

Ariel

Author’s Note: It’s not too hard to figure out that I retold the popular story of The Little Mermaid! I used Hans Christian Andersen’s version as my primary basis for the retelling. Other aspects that I added in were from previous knowledge, the Disney movie, and my own imagination! In Hans Christian Andersen’s version there is very little mention of King Triton. In the Disney movie however, he was one of the primary characters so I wanted to incorporate him back into the story. I knew that he was the son of Poseidon and that some people claim Ursula is his sister. Both of these tidbits were left out in the original story and the movie. I wanted to develop Triton’s character and really make him into a family man, which he is in the movie. I have no idea why Ariel’s mother is never around but I felt an explanation needed to be given. Neither the story nor the movie attempts to explain why. This would also explain why Triton has such a problem with humans. The Little Mermaid was a really long story so I had to find a way to only be able to tell part of the story, that is why I cut it short.

Bibliography: "The Little Mermaid" by Hans Christian Andersen, from Fairy Tales and Stories (1872). Web Source: Untextbook.