Niloufahr SheikhpourMs. FairchildFolktales1 April 2014What is beauty?Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. If you don't consider yourself beautiful, do you automatically consider yourself ugly? Be different; Does this make you unattractive and uncomfortable? Just because someone looks different and isn't the same as everyone else, does that make them less beautiful? The story “The Ugly Duckling” teaches children that just because you are not someone's ideal of beauty, you are no less beautiful. The ducklings in the story are symbolic to society and the swan represents the average woman and man. The last duckling born seems to be the odd one out. The duckling stands out from all the others; she was teased and separated from most of the other ducklings. The story gives you a greater understanding of what society was like during that time in history. The story was first published in 1842; even in that period people had an ideal of beauty, and what it meant to be such. Just like today, models, actors, celebrities, etc. they influence how most people should appear. People strive to achieve the appearance of what they think is beautiful and look down on others who do not fit their certain criteria of beauty. The story presents this poor swan as a victim, with whom most people can still identify. The little swan was bullied, told he was ugly and not allowed to play with some ducks because their parents didn't allow it. She had to be alone and constantly mocked by everyone around her for her difference. Just because she didn't look the same she was treated very differently (Anderson 1). In all versions of the folk tale, the swan is dejected and constantly depressed, which...... middle of paper.... ..swan going through a period of bullying. Hopefully one day this will end and the reader can become independent and rely less on everyone else. However, as you delve deeper into this folk tale, you learn that the psychological abuse suffered by this poor swan is unreal. If this were a real life situation, this poor swan would have grown up with socialization issues due to trauma caused as a child. Furthermore, the swan never discovered that he was a swan until he grew up and grew into a beautiful swan, which is equivalent to adulthood. The Ugly Duckling teaches children and adults that no matter how different you are, it doesn't make you any less beautiful. It gives hope to its readers and teaches a valid lesson, despite the trauma suffered by the poor swan. In the end, however, the swan emerges victorious and manages to make it on its own, becoming more beautiful.