The Tallow Candle by Hans Christian Andersen. Short summary

5 seconds

Greasy Candle was born with high hopes. But life polluted her and her friends abandoned her. It wasn’t until she met a flame that she caught fire. This was her true place.

1 minute

The Greasy Candle was born of sheep’s fat in the depths of the melting pot. It was white and pure, and had great hopes for the future.

But it had been misused, gripped with dirty fingers, and eventually became completely filthy. Inside, though, the candle remained clean.

The friends turned out to be false and left the Candle alone. She felt miserable, and could no longer understand her purpose. Candle thought about it for a long time and was completely lost in sadness.

But one day the Candle met a firebrand. It was able to look into the Candle’s soul and saw her purity. As the firebrand approached, the Candle lit up, her heart melted and a reciprocal flame appeared.

She began to illuminate everything around her, and those around her could see not only objects, but also the truth, if they were true friends.

There was a true marriage between the Candle and the flame, including a spiritual marriage. This is how the Candle was able to find her place in life and be of use.