Dancing Flowers: The Fairy Tale ‘Little Ida’s Flowers’

In Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tale, a little girl learns about her wilting flowers’ mysterious nocturnal activities.

A little girl wonders why her flowers are wilting, and she gets a whimsical answer. Shutterstock/Photohota

Published in 1835 in his fairy tale collection “Fairy Tales, Told for Children,” Hans Christian Andersen’s “Little Ida’s Flowers“ shows the beauty of a healthy imagination, especially one inspired by nature. Such an imagination reinforces a child’s sense of wonder and love of nature.

Wilted Flowers

One day, little Ida approaches her friend, a young student, to tell him her woes. Her beautiful bouquet of flowers, which were healthy and vibrant just the night before, are now wilted.

She presents the flowers to him, sadly asking: “Why do the flowers look so wretched to-day?” The young student quickly explains that the flowers wilted because they attended a wonderful ball the night before.

A ball? Ida responds incredulously that flowers can’t dance. “Of course they can dance!” The student says. “When it is dark, and we are all gone to bed, they jump about as merrily as possible.”

The student explains that, when the king leaves for the city, the flowers sneak into the castle. The flowers then hold balls in the king’s castle every night.

Two roses sit on the thrones as king and queen, while the red cockscombs take upon themselves the role of chamberlains. The blue violets enter as the naval cadets and dance delightfully with the young hyacinth and crocus ladies. Among the young dancers, the old dowagers (the tulips and tiger lilies) act as chaperones and make sure that the dances are danced well and with discretion.

All the flowers dance beautifully and have fun. All the while, they make sure that their dances remain unknown.

The student even explains that even flowers from far away can make it to the ball. All they have to do is launch themselves into the air and flap their petals like butterflies.

Ida then wonders how the flowers know what to do and where to go, since they cannot speak. The student agrees that they cannot speak but says that they communicate by making signs to each other.

Beautiful flowers like these purple violets dance in Hans Christian Andersen's story "Little Ida's Flowers." Walter Erhardt/Shutterstock

Ida’s imagination comes alive with the beauty of the student’s tales. She suddenly realizes that her flowers must be tired from their late night dancing, so she places them in her doll’s bed to get some rest.

Flowers Dancing

That night, Ida falls asleep with wonderful, floral thoughts. But she wakes in the middle of the night to hear the most beautiful music. Curious, she sneaks out of bed and peers into the room where her toys are stored.

Inside is a splendid sight. A company of flowers are dancing. The hyacinths and tulips dance, while a yellow lily plays the piano for them all. Even the toys come out and enjoy the dance.

The next morning, Ida awakes to find her bouquet of wilted flowers dead. So, with beautiful memories of them dancing at the ball, she lovingly buries them with due honors and rights.

Though cut flowers don't last very long, they bring joy and happiness to all who see them. oceandream/Shutterstock

Through this wonderfully whimsical story, Andersen demonstrates how a healthy imagination imbues a child’s mind with love, wonder, and appreciation for nature. The story perfectly suits the season of spring, the time when  flowers begin blooming.

Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875) was born in Odense, Denmark. Though poor, he was able to attend the University of Copenhagen in 1828 and began his writing career shortly after. His writing spanned from autobiographical works, travel journals, plays, fairy tales, poems, to novels. He’s best known for his special style of fairy tales, which he began writing in 1835.

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