The fairy tale connection between Hans Christian Andersen and Jose Rizal

The book Hans Christian Andersen and José Rizal: From Denmark to the Philippines by Anvil Publishing is probably the most unusual literary mash-up published locally that I’ve encountered. Edited by Jan Top Christensen, Ambassador of Denmark to the Philippines, this volume highlights the relations between the Philippines and Denmark through five fairy tales and two of each country’s leading literary figures.

The five Hans Christian Andersen (HCA) fairy tales, namely The Fir Tree, Thumbelina, The Ugly Duckling, The Angel, and The Little Match Girl, along with their respective Tagalog translations by Jose Rizal make up the bulk of the book.

Preceding the tales are four essays about HCA and Rizal by Ejnar Stig Askgaard, Katrina Gutierrez, Johs. Nørregaard Frandsen, and Ambeth R. Ocampo that give historical and literary context to the stories.

Danish Ambassador Jan Top Christensen and historian Ambeth R.Ocampo

One could jump right to the stories, follow them up with the essays, and then give the stories another go, which I did. The second pass at the stories read differently for me once armed with more context about HCA, Rizal and their respective times.

Revisiting these fairy tales as an adult made me realize how gloomy these stories actually are. And these may sound morbid, but knowing that back then when these stories were first written and published, child mortality rates were so high (only around 60% survive childhood) that I felt disturbed picturing these tales being read to children in their deathbeds suffering from diseases that are easily cured nowadays.

Another notable aspect of this book is the translation by Jose Rizal. For 21^st century ears, the Tagalog sounds archaic since the translation was made during the late 19^th century decades before the declaration of Filipino as the country’s national language. Although it was a struggle for me to read, this will be of great interest for linguists and those who are into the evolution of our language.

This book, a pet project by Ambassador Jan Top Christensen, was around three years in the making. This hefty volume is a fine addition to bookshelves everywhere with a multi-faceted approach to children’s literature and Philippine-Denmark relations. Since reopening in 2014, the Embassy of Denmark has embarked on numerous projects like the Carl Nielsen Project concert and the annual Danish Film Festival.

Hans Christian Andersen and José Rizal: From Denmark to the Philippines is available in both hardcover and softcover editions in finer bookstores and online at www.anvilpublishing.com.