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Read Ebook: The Catholic World Vol. 26 October 1877 to March 1878 by Various
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Ebook has 1120 lines and 35638 words, and 23 pages
Editor: Frederick Orville Perkins
Translator: Alexander Teixeira de Mattos
Transcriber's Note: Inconsistencies in spelling e.g. color/colour, neighbor/neighbour have been left as in the original.
THE ? BLUE ? BIRD FOR CHILDREN
THE ? WONDERFUL ? ADVENTURES OF ? TYLTYL ? AND ? MYTYL ? IN SEARCH ? OF ? HAPPINESS
BY GEORGETTE LEBLANC
EDITED AND ARRANGED FOR SCHOOLS BY FREDERICK ORVILLE PERKINS
SILVER ? BURDETT & COMPANY BOSTON ? NEW YORK ? CHICAGO ? ATLANTA DALLAS ? SAN FRANCISCO
This School Edition of The Blue Bird for Children is affectionately dedicated to the School Children of America
Georgette Leblanc
One of the strongest pieces of imaginative writing for children that the past decade has produced and one of the most delicate and beautiful of all times, is "The Blue Bird," by Maurice Maeterlinck, written as a play, and very successfully produced on the stage.
Georgette Leblanc , has rendered this play in story form for children, under the title "The Children's Blue Bird," and in this form it has now been carefully edited and arranged for schools.
Maurice Maeterlinck was born in Ghent, Belgium, August 29, 1862. Although trained for the practice of the law and moderately successful in it, he very early became dissatisfied with the prospect of a career at the bar. In 1887, the young man moved to Paris and turned his attention to writing. Shortly after, at the death of his father, Maeterlinck returned to Belgium where he has since resided most of the time. His career as an author practically began in 1889, when he published two plays. At this time he was quite unknown, except to a small circle, but soon, because of his remarkable originality, we find him being called "The Belgian Shakespeare," and his reputation firmly established.
Amidst his Belgian roses he continued to work and dream, and upon his youthful dreams he built his plays. They are all shadowy, brief transcripts of emotion, and illustrate beautifully his unity of purpose, of mood and of thought. Whether in philosophy, drama or poetry, Maeterlinck is exclusively occupied in revealing or indicating the mystery which lies only just out of sight beneath the ordinary life. In order to produce this effect of the mysterious he aims at extreme simplicity of style and a very realistic symbolism. He allows life itself to astonish us by its strangeness, by its inexplicable elements. Many of his plays are really pathetic records of unseen emotions.
Of all his writings, it is conceded that "The Blue Bird" makes the strongest appeal to children. Maeterlinck has always had much in common with the young. He has the child's mysticism and awe of the unknown, the same delight in mechanical inventions, the same gift of "making believe."
In "The Blue Bird" Maeterlinck takes little account of external fact. All along he has kept the child's capacity for wonder; all along he has preserved youth's freshness of heart. He has, therefore, never lost the key which unlocks the sympathies of childhood; he still possesses the passport that makes him free of the kingdom of Fairyland.
This story of "The Blue Bird" may remind one somewhat of "Hansel and Gretel," for here Maeterlinck, like Grimm, shows to us the adventures of two peasant children as they pass through regions of enchantment where they would be at the mercy of treacherous foes, but for the aid of a supernatural friend. But the originality, the charm and the interest of "The Blue Bird" depend on the way in which the author, while adapting his language and his legends to the intelligence of youthful readers, manages to show them the wonders and romance of Nature. He enlists among his characters a whole series of inanimate objects, such as Bread, Sugar, Milk, Light, Water, Fire and Trees, besides the Cat, the Dog and other animals, investing them all with individuality,--making for instance, with characteristic bias, the Dog the faithful friend of his boy and girl companions and the Cat their stealthy enemy.
We may not understand his characters, we may not be informed whence they came or whither they move; there is nothing concrete or circumstantial about them; their life is intense and consistent, but it is wholly in a spiritual character. They are mysterious with the mystery of the movements of the soul.
All through the story we are led to feel that Maeterlinck's spirit is one of grave and disinterested attachment to the highest moral beauty, and his seriousness, his serenity and his extreme originality impress even those who are bewildered by his graces and his mysticism.
"The Blue Bird" will forever live among Maeterlinck's greatest works and will linger long in the memory of all children, continuing throughout their lives to symbolize that ideal of ideals, true happiness,--the happiness that comes from right seeking.
I THE WOODCUTTER'S COTTAGE 3
II AT THE FAIRY'S 31
V THE KINGDOM OF THE FUTURE 89
VI IN THE TEMPLE OF LIGHT 117
X THE AWAKENING 169
FACING PAGE
She herself helped Mytyl 10
They all looked at her with a bewildered air. They understood that it was a solemn moment 38
Delighted with the importance of his duty, undid the top of his robe, drew his scimitar and cut two slices out of his stomach 42
Sugar also wanted to impress the company and, breaking off two of his fingers, handed them to the astonished Children 44
Everything vanished and, instead, there appeared a pretty little peasant's cottage 50
The grandparents and grandchildren sat down to supper 56
The road to the Palace of Night was rather long and rather dangerous 66
Night sat up, all quivering. Her immense wings beat around her; and she questioned Tylette in a trembling voice 68
Wagging her head and stopping every minute to cough, sneeze and blow her nose 74
A wonderful garden lay before him, a dream-garden filled with flowers that shone like stars 80
Light's servants were very odd 90
Other Blue Children opened great big books 98
Other Blue Children unfolded maps and plans, or brought enormous flowers 102
And, in a moment, the Blue Children were crowding round the tall old man 110
The Cat at once draped her cloak round her, opened the door and ran and bounded out into the forest 119
A regular waterfall of tears came gushing from her eyes, flooding all around her 154
Closely pursued by the Dog, who overwhelmed her with bites, blows and kicks 162
"It's the Blue Bird we were looking for! We have been miles and miles and miles and he was here all the time!" 174
THE WOODCUTTER'S COTTAGE
Once upon a time, a woodcutter and his wife lived in their cottage on the edge of a large and ancient forest. They had two dear little children who met with a most wonderful adventure.
But, before telling you all about it, I must describe the children to you and let you know something of their character; for, if they had not been so sweet and brave and plucky, the curious story which you are about to hear would never have happened at all.
Tyltyl--that was our hero's name--was ten years old; and Mytyl, his little sister, was only six.
Tyltyl was a fine, tall little fellow, stout and well-set-up, with curly black hair which was often in a tangle, for he was fond of a romp. He was a great favorite because of his smiling and good-tempered face and the bright look in his eyes; but, best of all, he had the ways of a bold and fearless little man, which showed the noble qualities of his heart. When, early in the morning, he trotted along the forest-road by the side of his daddy, Tyl the woodcutter, for all his shabby clothes he looked so proud and gallant that every beautiful thing on the earth and in the sky seemed to lie in wait for him to smile upon him as he passed.
His little sister was very different, but looked ever so sweet and pretty in her long frock, which Mummy Tyl kept neatly patched for her. She was as fair as her brother was dark; and her large timid eyes were blue as the forget-me-nots in the fields. Anything was enough to frighten her and she would cry at the least thing; but her little child soul already held the highest womanly qualities: she was loving and gentle and so fondly devoted to her brother that, rather than abandon him, she did not hesitate to undertake a long and dangerous journey in his company.
What happened and how our little hero and heroine went off into the world one night in search of happiness: that is the subject of my story.
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