The Brave Tin Soldier Flashcards
by Hans Christian Andersen — tap or click to flip
Flashcard Review
Flashcards: The Brave Tin Soldier
How many tin soldiers were there, and what made one of them different?
There were twenty-five tin soldiers, all made from the same old tin spoon. One soldier had only one leg because there was not enough melted tin to finish him.
Why did the tin soldier fall out of the window?
The window flew open and the tin soldier fell heels over head from the third story into the street. The narrator suggests either the black goblin or a draught of wind was responsible.
How did the two boys send the tin soldier sailing away?
The two boys made a boat out of a newspaper, placed the tin soldier inside it, and sent him sailing down the gutter after a heavy rain.
What did the water-rat demand from the tin soldier in the drain?
The water-rat demanded to see a passport and cried that the soldier had not paid toll. The tin soldier ignored him and sailed on in silence.
How did the tin soldier end up back in the same room after his adventure?
After the paper boat sank and the soldier fell into the water, he was swallowed by a large fish. The fish was caught, taken to market, sold to a cook, and cut open, revealing the soldier inside.
How does the story end for the tin soldier and the dancer?
A boy threw the tin soldier into the stove for no reason, and a draught of air blew the paper dancer in beside him. The dancer burned instantly while the soldier melted into a lump shaped like a small tin heart.
Why does the tin soldier believe the dancer has only one leg?
The dancer stands at the door of her paper castle with one leg raised so high the soldier cannot see it. He assumes she is one-legged like himself, which deepens his attachment to her.
Who is the tin soldier in love with?
The tin soldier falls in love with a tiny paper dancer who stands at the door of a paper castle on the same table. He admires her from behind a snuff-box, never taking his eyes off her.
What is the black goblin, and what role does he play?
The black goblin lives inside a toy puzzle snuff-box and warns the tin soldier not to wish for what does not belong to him. He is implied to be the sinister force behind the soldier's misfortunes.
What does the dancer look like, and what is she made of?
The dancer is made of paper and wears a dress of clear muslin with a narrow blue ribbon scarf. She has a large glittering tinsel rose fixed to the front of her costume.
What is the central theme expressed by the tin soldier's behavior throughout his ordeals?
The central theme is courage and steadfastness in the face of adversity. No matter the danger, whether the fall, the drain, the water-rat, the fish, or the fire, the soldier never flinches or cries out, always keeping his musket on his shoulder.
What theme does the tin soldier's love for the dancer represent?
Their love represents devotion and longing across an impossible social distance. The soldier considers the dancer too grand for him because she lives in a castle while he shares a box with twenty-four others.
What does the story suggest about fate and random cruelty?
The boy throws the tin soldier into the stove for no stated reason, underscoring that fate can be arbitrary and cruel. The narrator notes it must be the goblin's fault, but no real explanation is ever given.
What does the tin heart at the end of the story symbolize?
The tin heart is the physical remnant of the melted soldier and symbolizes a love that endures even after death. It is the one thing the fire cannot fully destroy.
What does the burnt tinsel rose symbolize?
The burnt tinsel rose is the only remnant of the dancer and symbolizes her beauty and their relationship that could never be realized. Its destruction alongside the soldier suggests their love is fully consumed.
What literary device does Andersen use when the tin soldier thinks the dancer has only one leg?
Andersen uses dramatic irony. The reader can see the dancer is simply balancing on one leg as a pose, but the soldier misreads it as a permanent condition, mirroring his own disability.
What is the role of the snuff-box goblin as a literary device?
The goblin functions as a foreshadowing device and a narrative antagonist. His warning not to wish for what does not belong to you anticipates the tragedy that follows the soldier's unrequited love.
How does Andersen use personification in the story?
The tin soldier, dancer, goblin, and water-rat are all given emotions, speech, and intentions. This device allows Andersen to explore human themes of love, pride, and fate through inanimate objects and toys.
What does the verse the tin soldier hears as his boat sinks foreshadow?
The verse, Farewell, warrior! ever brave, Drifting onward to thy grave, foreshadows the soldier's death in the stove at the end of the story, framing his journey as a march toward an inevitable fate.
What does the word "countenance" mean as used in the story?
Countenance means a person's face or facial expression. Andersen uses it to show that the tin soldier's face remained unchanged, showing no fear, even as his boat rocked wildly in the flooded gutter.
What does the word "sylph" mean in the line "she fluttered like a sylph right into the stove"?
A sylph is a slender, graceful woman or a mythological spirit of the air. Andersen uses it to emphasize the dancer's delicacy and weightlessness as the draught lifts her into the flames.
What does "sham fights" mean in the context of the toys' nighttime play?
Sham fights are mock or pretend battles, not real combat. The toys play at soldiering and conflict as a game during the night when the household is asleep.
What verse does the tin soldier hear as his paper boat is sinking?
He hears the words: Farewell, warrior! ever brave, Drifting onward to thy grave. They sound in his ears as the water closes over his head.
What does the goblin say to the tin soldier from inside the snuff-box?
The goblin says: Tin soldier, don't wish for what does not belong to you. When the soldier ignores him, the goblin adds: Very well; wait till to-morrow, then.
What does the tin soldier say to himself when he first sees the dancer?
He thinks: That is the wife for me, but she is too grand, and lives in a castle, while I have only a box to live in, five-and-twenty of us altogether, that is no place for her. Still I must try and make her acquaintance.