Topic: The Happy PrinceSubject: English LiteratureClass: VI

The Happy Prince(Summary & Analysis)

1. SummaryThe Happy Prince is purely a fairytale and has imaginary characters. When the Happy Prince was alive, he lived in a palace without any difficulty or sorrow. He lived a happy life without even knowing the pains that other people were facing in his kingdom. However, when he died, his courtiers set his statute on a tall column in the centre of the city. His statue had the gold leaves covering along with ruby and sapphires moulded on it. The statue of the happy prince saw all the misery of the city. He wept when he saw people in trouble and wanted to help them. A swallow (bird) came and stayed at the feet of the statue of the happy prince for a night. On the Prince’s request, the Swallow helped an ill baby boy through the precious stones over statue. It (Swallow) prolonged its stay and helped many poor people with the ruby, sapphires and gold leaves. Later, the Swallow decided to stay with the Happy Prince forever.

The story concludes with the Swallow dying at the feet of the Happy Prince. The Happy Prince statue was also taken down when the Mayor and the town Councilors decided that it is no longer beautiful as it was previously. They decided to build another statue in place of that.

Meanwhile the statue was melted in a furnace to recast it into another statue but his broken leaden heart was not melted in the furnace. So the workmen at the foundry threw the leaden heart in a dust heap nearby dead Swallow. The author then tells us that when God asked one of his Angels to bring him the two most precious things in the city, the Angel brought him a leaden heart and a dead Swallow. God then proclaimed that the Angel has chosen the right things. He then said that Swallow would sing forever in his garden in Paradise, and the Happy Prince would always praise him in his city of gold.

2. Character SketchMajor Characters

(i) The Happy Prince - Former ruler who lived happily in palace of Sans-Souci. The palace was surrounded by lofty walls so that sorrows could not enter. The happy Prince did not bothered how people in Sans-Souci were living their lives. After his death, his statue was set up so high that he could see all the ugliness and misery of the city.

Topic: The Happy PrinceSubject: English LiteratureClass: VI

(ii) The Swallow - Swallow was the bird who worked as a messenger for the statue of Happy Prince. When the statue donated both of his eyes, swallow stayed with him forever, he started loving the statue of the Happy Prince.

Minor Characters(i) The Seamstress - The first poor in the story is the seamstress. She is portrayed as a

thin and worn face woman with coarse and red hand. She has a baby and he is lying ill on the bed. He has a fever, and asking for oranges. His mother has nothing to give him but river water, so he is crying.

(ii) The Playwright - The second poor is a young man whose hair is brown and crisp. His lips are red as a pomegranate and he has large and dreamy eyes. He is trying to finish a play for the Director of the Theatre, but he is too cold to write anymore. There is no fire in the grate, and hunger has made him faint.

(iii) The Little-match girl - The little match-girl is the third poor. She has to give her father money or she will beat her if she goes home penniless. She has let her matches fall in gutter, and they are all spoiled. Her father will beat her if she doesn’t bring home some money, and she is crying. She has no shoes or stockings, and her little head is bare.

(iv) The Beautiful Angel - An angel was signed with the task by the God, to bring two most precious things in the city. When he brought the leaden heart and the dead swallow, “You have rightly chosen,” said God. The good deeds of “whomever” and “whatsoever” (Happy Prince and Swallow) must be paid fairly by God.

3. Setting High above the city, on a tall column,

stood the statue of happy prince. It was decorated with thin leaves of fine

gold. For eyes he has two bright sapphires

and a large red ruby glows on his sword-hilt.

This reputation given to statue by Town’s Councilors

4. Plot1

There is a statue of the Happy Prince in the middle of a really unhappy town. A swallow comes to sit on the statue’s plinth. The swallow sees the happy prince

crying and asks him why.

1 A plot's structure is the way in which the story elements are arranged.

Topic: The Happy PrinceSubject: English LiteratureClass: VI

The prince says there is too much sadness in the town and that the swallow should take all the jewels off the statue and give them to those who need them.

But then the swallow never flew away for the winter and dies. Lastly, the town councilors don't think the statue is beautiful anymore without the

jewels and order for the Prince to be melted down.

But they find that the prince's lead heart won't melt so they throw it out.

Through out the story, an angel was there, who has been ordered by God to find the two most precious things he can find in city and bring them back to him.

The angel brings back the dead swallow and the leaden heart and God is happy and says that the swallow will now sing in paradise garden forevermore and the happy prince shall praise me forever in the city of gold.

5. Moral of the StoryThe author wants to tell that the outward beauty does not meant a lot the real beauty is in person’s heart which have the deep feelings and the ability to feel the sorrows and hardships of others just like the happy prince that he led a happy life but after his death when he saw people worries he felt them and helped them up to the extent possible.

(i) Outward beauty is nothing it is just a show but the real beauty is the love and sacrifice.

(ii) Love and sacrifice are two good energies. (iii) There is a great gap between the rich and the poor, the rulers and the masses.(iv) God loves those who love their fellow human beings.

6. Video Link - https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=IP7ESTU4Pxs