Short Stories The Happy Prince Summary Character Themes Analysis by Oscar Wilde
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Characters
The Prince
The Prince is a changed man as a dead statue. He is more alive to the misery of his people even as a lifeless statue. He wants to help them through the lavish decorations of his statue.
He meets the Swallow and recruits it to execute his plan for helping others. During the process, he develops affection for the bird and confesses his love. In the end, he suffers from a broken heart when he sees his beloved Swallow die right in front of his eyes.
The City People
The Divine and the Envoy
God appears at the end of the story. Rewarding the true nature of the bond between the Prince and Swallow, God allows them the riches of Paradise. There is also an angel who is tasked to collect the two most prized objects from the city.
He chooses the Prince's heart and his friend's body as they represent an invaluable bond of affection and empathy.
The Swallow
Swallow is a symbol of love and sacrifice. It leaves its family's trip to warm Egypt in order to follow his heart's desire for a reed. Destroyed by Reed's betrayal, it finds the Prince's statue and builds a strong bond with it.
He learns about the Prince's qualities and his worries for others. It develops empathy and slowly finds love. It helps the Prince by distributing its gemstones to the people in need.
In the end, Swallow decides to stay with the Prince nad ends up sacrificing its life. It does not survive the winter cold and dies right beside its paramour.
Themes
Affection
The central theme of the story is affection. The affection that the Prince feels for his people is taken forward by the Swallow. The affection between Swallow and the Prince develops into a full-blown romance.
Appearance
The central object of the story is the statue of Prince which is bejeweled and decorated with the most expensive of objects. This wealth is equated with happiness but is a form of shallow and deceitful existence.
The Prince himself feels appalled at the state of the poor in his city. The story is full of examples where a person is suffering at the hands of the greed of rich and entitled people like young girls or old seamstress.
For people in abject poverty, even gemstones are not as valuable as ration or food. Beauty in itself is valued differently by people in different circumstances. The statue itself is discarded once it loses its gems, a sign of the importance that is put on the appearance of beauty.
Inequality
The story juxtaposes the lavish wealth of the kings with the abject poverty of the subjects. It highlights the sheer difference in the quality of life and opportunities to improve them between the privileged and the unfortunate.
The portrayal of the masses as victims of the greed of the rich is contrasted with the arrogance of the rich to turn a blind eye to the scarcity of the poor. The decorated statue of the Prince is contrasted with the broken leaden heart inside of it.
Faith
There is a clear reference to the religious figures like Jesus Christ in the portrayal of Prince who suffers to ease the pain of others. The values of charity and altruism are expounded through his character.
Also, there is an element of idol worship with statue beings the objects of reverence. There is a reference to Jewish money arguing over money also.
In the end, there is an introduction to God and his angel who is sent to the city to collect valuable artifacts. There is an appreciation of Christianity on one hand whereas the critique of others.
Analysis
Symbolism
The dead statue and lead heart are symbol of lifeless appearance. However, looks can be deceiving and we find the Prince more compassionate than he was ever as living ruler.
Reed is used as symbol of fleeting pleasures of material beauty. There is mention of foreign and exotic places like Egypt which are held as symbols of mythical beauty and romance. Children are used as symbols of purity, intelligence and incorruptible beauty.
Setting
The Happy Prince is a story set in a city with Victorian moral values. It has a ruling kingship and dependent subjects. There is rampant inequality that is highlighted by the difference in residence and resources between the rich and the poor. There is also mention of Egypt and other places to add details to the setting.
Moral Lesson
The moral lesson of the story is to value the true beauty of people. It celebrates the virtues of piety, compassion, and charity. It also decries the greed and materialistic fetish of some who do not care for the rest of humanity especially the poor and needy. The story claims that in the end, good will triumph over ugly and bad at the final and divine judgment.
Summary
Story of Dead Ruler & a Bird
This is a tale of an unlikely romance between a dead monarch and a hopeful visitor. The dead ruler had lived a life of extravagance and luxury and is now revered in the form of a statue.
However, as a silent witness to the sad affairs of his townsfolk as a statue, he too suffers from their pain. The dead Prince's massive image is riddled with priceless ornaments. He finds a strange visitor one day, a swallow.
Prince’s Regret
The Prince opens up about his comfortable and lavish lifestyle when he was not concerned with the plight of his countrymen. He feels regret and entreats his new friend to help him correct his wrongs.
He suggests to his new friend to look for people in distress. The bird locates young orphans, old women, etc who needed help to survive. The Prince asks his friend to distribute the wealth that his statute is decorated with.
One by one, the statue loses its ornaments and becomes old and ungainly. The bird also suffers from grief after losing track of its family even though it develops feelings for the statue.
Winters Appear
Soon the winter arrives and the lost bird realizes that it would not last the wintry torment. The bird embraces its friend for one last time and drops dead on the floor. The Prince's heart breaks at the sight of the dead friend.
The next day, the new ruler observes the sad and despicable state of the old Prince and the dead bird near it. He decides to demolish the only memory of the past monarch in order to establish his own legacy.
Statue is Removed
The statue is removed and thrown into the fire. However, the broken heart if the statue remains intact and is dumped with the dead body of its companion.
The story then takes a leap for the supernatural and God appears on the scene. The divine asks one of the angels to hunt for the most special and valuable thing from the same place.
The envoy evaluates the wealth of the city and ends up bringing the burned heart and the corpse. The divine accepts the assessment of the two things as priceless due to the beauty of the emotions and love shared between the two.
