The Galoshes of Fortune
"The Galoshes of Fortune" | |||
---|---|---|---|
Short story by Hans Christian Andersen | |||
![]() 1889 illustration by Helen Stratton | |||
Original title | Lykkens Kalosker | ||
Country | Denmark | ||
Language | Danish | ||
Genre(s) | Literary fairy tale | ||
Publication | |||
Published in | Three Poetical Works. (Tre Digtninger.) | ||
Publication type | Anthology | ||
Publisher | C. A. Reitzel | ||
Media type | |||
Publication date | 19 May 1838 | ||
Chronology | |||
|
"The Galoshes of Fortune" (Danish: Lykkens Kalosker)[1] is a literary fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen about a set of time-travelling boots, considered to be inspired by the folktale of the "seven-league boots" (syvmilestøvler).[2]
The tale was first published by C. A. Reitzel in
Reitzel paid Andersen 40 rixdollars for the story. In the tale, Andersen continues to perfect his colloquial style.[4] Andersen read the tale aloud in the late 1830s with his novel Only a Fiddler.[5] The tale irritated the young Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard[6] with its satirical portrait of a bird that babbles on endlessly in a philosophical vein.[5][7]
Plot
The story is set in Copenhagen. A group of guests are holding a large party. During the festivity Councilor of Justice Knap argues that the Middle Ages were a time better than their own, more specifically the time of King Hans. Suddenly two fairies arrive, dressed up as house maids. One is old, Dame Care, the other is a minion of Dame Fortune. The dame has brought a pair of galoshes along that can transport whoever wears them to whatever time, place or condition in life that he desires. And his every wish in regard to time and place will be instantly granted. Dame Care predicts that it will nevertheless make the person unhappy, wishing he was back in the present.
As the party concludes Councilor Knap decides to go home. He finds the galoshes, puts them on and is sent back to the reign of King Hans. He is not immediately aware of what happened, but does notice that the unpaved streets are full with filth and mud. He notices a procession for the Bishop of
Next, a watchman tries the galoshes on. He wishes to be the lieutenant, because he assumes his life is much better than his. The galoshes do their work and suddenly the watchmen becomes the lieutenant, sitting at his desk. He notices the lieutenant had written a poem called, "If Only I Were Rich", which confesses that the lieutenant actually feels he is short on money and is lonely as a result. Then he realizes he would rather be a watchman, because he at least has a wife and children who share his joy and sorrows. The galoshes then transform him back into himself. The watchman, still unaware what has happened, watches a falling star. He wishes he could travel to the Moon and suddenly the galoshes send him there at the speed of light. There he meets several Moon men who all wonder whether Earth is inhabited and decide this must be impossible. Back on Earth the lifeless body of the watchman is found and he is brought to a hospital, where they take his shoes off, breaking the spell again. He awakens and declares it to have been the most terrible night he had ever experienced.
As the galoshes remain in the hospital one of the young night interns tries them on. His task is to guard the hospital fence, but he wishes to get out for a while, wondering whether he "could get his head through the fence and escape." As soon as he thinks this his head is stuck and he's unable to pull it back. He struggles for a while, until he wishes he was free again, which is granted by the galoshes. The next day the intern attends a
Meanwhile, the watchman picks up the galoshes at the hospital and turns them in at the police station where they are accidentally given to a clerk whose galoshes happened to have been lost too. During a walk the clerk meets a friend who is a poet and desires to live his life, for it seems to be much more enjoyable than his. At first the clerk enjoys being a poet full of inspiration. Then he wishes he was a lark, but is caught by a little boy and sold off to a family, where he is put inside a cage. He talks with a canary and parrot, who both lament the days when they were still free. As it so happens the cage door is open and the clerk tries to fly away, but is attacked by a cat. He manages to fly back to his own home, where the spell is broken again.
Then the fairy tale concludes with the clerk's neighbour, a theological student, asking for the galoshes. The clerk gives them to him. As the student walks away he wishes he could travel to Switzerland and Italy, whereupon he is on top of the Mont Blanc. In the freezing weather he wishes he was on the other side of the Alps, where he ends up in Italy, near Lake Thrasymene. There he enjoys the beautiful landscapes, but he is confronted with the local people's hunger and poverty. He concludes that it would be better off if his body could rest, while the spirit flies on without it. The galoshes grant his wish and he is now peacefully dead. Andersen concludes with a quote by Solon: "Call no man happy until he rests in his grave." Dame Care then tells the other fairy that her predictions have indeed all come true. Though she does grant the student a favor. She takes off his galoshes and takes them back with her, causing him to be brought back to life.
References
- Footnotes
- Works cited
- Andersen, Jens (2005), Hans Christian Andersen: A New Life, translated by Tiina Nunnally, New York, Woodstock, and London: Overlook Duckworth, ISBN 1-58567-737-X
- Kierkegaard, Soren; Rohde, Peter P. (1990), The diary of Søren Kierkegaard (reprint ed.), Citadel Press, ISBN 0-8065-0251-7
- Rossel, Sven Hakon (1996), Hans Christian Andersen: Danish writer and citizen of the world, Rodopi, ISBN 90-5183-944-8
- Stewart, Jon (2009), Kierkegaard's International Reception: Northern and Western Europe, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., ISBN 978-0-7546-6496-3
- Wullschlager, Jackie (2000), Hans Christian Andersen: The Life of a Storyteller, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, ISBN 0-226-91747-9
External links
The full text of The Galoshes of Fortune at Wikisource
Media related to The Galoshes of Fortune at Wikimedia Commons
- "Lykkens Kalosker" Archived 6 April 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Original Danish text
- "The Galoshes of Fortune". English translation by Jean Hersholt