The Snow Queen Flashcards
by Hans Christian Andersen — tap or click to flip
Flashcard Review
Flashcards: The Snow Queen
What power does the sprite's mirror have at the beginning of the story?
The mirror makes everything good and beautiful appear ugly and distorted, while magnifying everything that is evil and worthless.
What happens when the sprites try to carry the mirror up to heaven?
The mirror shakes so terribly that it slips from their hands and shatters into hundreds of millions of pieces that scatter across the world.
How does Kay's personality change after the mirror splinters enter his body?
He becomes cruel, mocking, and cold-hearted. He ridicules Gerda, his grandmother, the roses, and mimics people in the street to make fun of them.
How does the Snow Queen capture Kay?
Kay ties his sledge to her large white sleigh in the town square. She drives him far away, kisses him to numb the cold, and makes him forget his home.
Why does Gerda throw her red shoes into the river?
She offers them as a gift to the river, hoping it will return Kay to her. They are her most precious possession, making the sacrifice significant.
How does the old woman with the flower garden try to keep Gerda?
She combs Gerda's hair with a golden comb to make her forget Kay, and she sinks all the rose bushes underground so nothing will remind Gerda of home.
What task does the Snow Queen set for Kay in her ice palace?
Kay must arrange flat pieces of ice to spell the word 'eternity.' If he succeeds, the Snow Queen promises him his freedom, the whole world, and a pair of new skates.
How are the mirror splinters finally removed from Kay?
Gerda's warm tears fall on Kay's chest and penetrate to his heart, thawing the ice. He then weeps so much that the splinter washes out of his eye.
What is Gerda's defining character trait throughout her journey?
Innocent, selfless love and unwavering determination. The Finland woman says Gerda's power lies in her heart because she is a sweet and innocent child.
What role does Kay's grandmother play in the story?
She introduces the legend of the Snow Queen to the children and represents the warmth of home. At the end, she reads the Bible verse about becoming like little children.
How does the little robber maiden help Gerda?
Despite her rough nature, she is moved by Gerda's story, frees her reindeer to carry Gerda to Lapland, and gives her warm gloves, bread, and ham for the journey.
What information do the wood pigeons provide about Kay?
They tell Gerda they saw Kay riding in the Snow Queen's carriage, with a white hen carrying his sledge, as she flew over the forest toward Lapland.
Why does the Finland woman refuse to give Gerda a magical potion?
She explains that Gerda already has the greatest power possible: the innocent love in her heart. No potion could give her more than she already possesses.
What role does the Reindeer play in helping Gerda?
The Reindeer, who was born in Lapland, carries Gerda from the robber's castle through Lapland and Finland to the edge of the Snow Queen's domain.
How does the story contrast warmth and coldness as thematic opposites?
Warmth represents love, emotion, and human connection (roses, tears, grandmother's home), while coldness represents isolation, reason without feeling, and the Snow Queen's sterile power.
What does the story suggest about the power of innocence versus intellectual knowledge?
Kay's cold intellect (calculating fractions, arranging ice puzzles) cannot free him, but Gerda's innocent love and simple faith succeed where cleverness fails.
What is the significance of the Bible verse the grandmother reads at the end?
'Unless ye become as little children, ye cannot enter the kingdom of heaven' reinforces the story's message that childlike innocence and love are more powerful than worldly sophistication.
How does the story explore the theme of perseverance through Gerda's journey?
Gerda overcomes enchantment, robbers, bitter cold, and vast distances without special powers, relying only on her love for Kay and the kindness of those she meets along the way.
What narrative technique does Andersen use when the flowers in the garden each tell their own tale?
He uses stories-within-a-story (embedded narratives). Each flower recounts a self-absorbed miniature tale, none of which help Gerda, emphasizing that only she can find her own answer.
How does Andersen use personification with natural elements throughout the story?
The river, sunshine, swallows, roses, and other flowers all speak and interact with Gerda. The snowflakes become living soldiers, and Gerda's breath forms angels.
What is the function of the hymn about roses that recurs in the story?
The hymn 'The rose in the valley is blooming so sweet' serves as a motif connecting Kay and Gerda's childhood innocence. It appears at the beginning and triggers Kay's emotional awakening at the end.
How does Andersen use the number seven structurally in the story?
The story is divided into seven distinct chapters, each forming a self-contained episode in Gerda's quest, mirroring the fairy tale tradition of meaningful numbers and episodic journeys.
What does the word 'garret' mean as used in the story?
A garret is a top-floor room or attic space, typically small and located directly under the roof. Kay and Gerda's families live in garrets across from each other.
What does 'haberdine' mean in the context of the Lapland woman's message?
A haberdine is a dried or salted cod fish. The Lapland woman writes her message on a dried haberdine because she has no paper.
What does the word 'postilion' refer to when the robbers attack Gerda's carriage?
A postilion is a rider who guides the horses pulling a carriage by riding one of the lead horses rather than sitting on the carriage itself.
What does Gerda say when she first sees the Snow Queen's snowflake soldiers?
Gerda repeats the Lord's Prayer, and her frozen breath takes the form of angels who fight and shatter the snowflake soldiers with their spears.
What does the Snow Queen tell Kay about kissing him?
She says 'Now you will have no more kisses, or else I should kiss you to death!' after kissing his forehead, which makes him forget Gerda and his home.
What does the Finland woman say about Gerda's power?
She says 'I can give her no more power than what she has already. Don't you see how great it is? That power lies in her heart, because she is a sweet and innocent child.'