The Emperor's New Clothes

Author:  Hans Christian Andersen
Illustrator:  Eve Tharlet
Traditional Literature

In the classic tale The Emperor's New Clothes, a young ruler loves his wardrobe so much that he changes clothes every hour of the day.  When two weavers come to town saying they make beautiful clothing that can only be seen by intelligent people, the emperor decides he must have them.  He orders these conniving men to design him a set of clothes so that he may impress everyone in his kingdom.  Day after day, the young emperor sends his most trusted authorities to the clothesmakers so that he can hear the progress that is being made.  No one wants to admit that they can't see the clothes because, if they admitted it, people might call them stupid.  So, everyone assures the emperor that his clothes look wonderful.  The day finally comes for him to wear the custom-made garb in public, so he orders a parade, gets dressed, and begins walking among the villagers.  Everyone, including the emperor himself, pretends that they can see the clothes, but it isn't until a child cries out the obvious that realization occurs.  The tricky designers had already skipped town and had taken the gold paid to them by the gullible emperor.

This is a story that applies to many.  Often, "keeping up appearances" is a way of showing how put together one feels, instead of simply being truthful.  This is exactly what happened to the emperor.  He was so vain that he had to have the best clothing money could by, and someone capitalized on his stupidity.  This is a good lesson for students to learn early.  The book was easy to read, and the pictures were simple, yet informative.  I noticed that this book was translated from the original story.  If students have heard it before, this might be a different version.  Let them tell you the differences, and compare/contrast the many versions.  It will make for a great discussion!