The Snow Queen

Explore the asides of the many flowers in Chapter 3. What do these tales add to the overall story? Why do you think Andersen chose to include them, and how do they influence Gerda’s journey?

Choose three characters Gerda meets on her quest to rescue Kai. What does each of these characters represent? Why is each important to Gerda’s quest and character growth? Support your answer with evidence from the text.

Andersen links Gerda’s goodness to Christianity. Explore the religious undertones of “The Snow Queen.” How do they inform the story and its struggle between good and evil?

Unlike other fairy-tale villains, the Snow Queen does not pay for what she has done by the story’s end. What does Andersen’s choice to leave the villain at large say about the battle between good and evil, as well as about the world in general?

Compare and contrast the Snow Queen and the devil. Is one character more of a threat to the story world? If so, which and why? If not, how are they equally threatening? In what ways does the story associate the Snow Queen and the devil, and why?

What unique characteristics and qualities do children bring to the tale, and why did Andersen choose to tell the story about children, not grown-ups? Could the story have gone the same way without the innocence of the children driving it?

The shifting of the seasons plays a large role in “The Snow Queen.” By contrast, the seasons never change in either the old woman’s garden or the Snow Queen’s palace. What do the stagnant natures of these two locations say about the characters who inhabit them? How do these places compare to the wide world with its changing seasons? Why is that contrast significant?

Explore the role animals play throughout “The Snow Queen.” How are the animals of the story similar and different from the humans? What does the inclusion of animals give the story that it would otherwise lack? How would Gerda’s journey have been different without aid from animals? Support your answer with evidence from the text.