A devil figure is an evil figure in the story. The Sea Witch in “The Little Mermaid” acts as an archetypal devil figure because of her cruel nature and acts such as when she told the little mermaid that she had “the sweetest voice of any who dwell[es] here in the depths of the sea, [...] [so] this voice you must give to me; the best thing you possess will I have for the price of my draught” (Andersen ). This villain like character is necessary to have someone who opposes the rule of the Sea King and shows that there was a darker power in the ocean. Because many in Denmark at the time where part of the liberal party, the sea witch may have been influenced by the radicals who opposed the democratic practices. Threshold guardians test the main characters courage and worthiness for the task they have ahead of them. Because the Sea King was a widower for many years, his mother, the little mermaids grand-mother, was the threshold guardian for the young, princess sisters. To test their level of maturity, the grandmother of the little mermaid said she could go to the surface of the water once she “‘reached [her] fifteenth year, [...] [she] will have permission to rise up out of the sea, to sit on the rocks in the moonlight, while the great ships are sailing by” (Andersen ). The young and naive mermaid is in need of a threshold guardian to set regulations and tests as to when a task is appropriate to carry out. During the Napoleonic Wars in Denmark during the 1800’s, the grandmother’s character in “The Little Mermaid” may have been influenced by the danish rebellion commander Ferdinand von Schill who gave their army restriction of when and how to fight the enemy. A mentor is an older and wiser figure who serves as a role model to the main character. An old woman the little mermaid meets enlightens her on topics she was uncertain about
A devil figure is an evil figure in the story. The Sea Witch in “The Little Mermaid” acts as an archetypal devil figure because of her cruel nature and acts such as when she told the little mermaid that she had “the sweetest voice of any who dwell[es] here in the depths of the sea, [...] [so] this voice you must give to me; the best thing you possess will I have for the price of my draught” (Andersen ). This villain like character is necessary to have someone who opposes the rule of the Sea King and shows that there was a darker power in the ocean. Because many in Denmark at the time where part of the liberal party, the sea witch may have been influenced by the radicals who opposed the democratic practices. Threshold guardians test the main characters courage and worthiness for the task they have ahead of them. Because the Sea King was a widower for many years, his mother, the little mermaids grand-mother, was the threshold guardian for the young, princess sisters. To test their level of maturity, the grandmother of the little mermaid said she could go to the surface of the water once she “‘reached [her] fifteenth year, [...] [she] will have permission to rise up out of the sea, to sit on the rocks in the moonlight, while the great ships are sailing by” (Andersen ). The young and naive mermaid is in need of a threshold guardian to set regulations and tests as to when a task is appropriate to carry out. During the Napoleonic Wars in Denmark during the 1800’s, the grandmother’s character in “The Little Mermaid” may have been influenced by the danish rebellion commander Ferdinand von Schill who gave their army restriction of when and how to fight the enemy. A mentor is an older and wiser figure who serves as a role model to the main character. An old woman the little mermaid meets enlightens her on topics she was uncertain about