-
The Fisherman and His Soul
About
the Book
The Fisherman and His Soul is
a short story from Oscar Wilde's collection The
Happy
Prince and Other Tales. Wilde
writes these stories for his children in 1888.
The Fisherman and His Soul is the story
of a young fisherman. One day he catches a
mermaid in his fishing net and he falls
in love with her. The fisherman learns he cannot
be with
the mermaid because he has a
human soul. The fisherman then tries to send away
his human
soul. The fisherman learns
from a witch how to send his soul away. He is then
free to be with his
mermaid. His soul
is alone in the world. He travels the world. Each
year he comes back to the
fisherman and
tells him about his travels.
One of the
themes of the story is temptation. In the story
the mermaid tempts the fisherman
with
stories of the sea. The fisherman tempts the witch
to help him send away his soul. And his
soul tries to tempt the fisherman to
leave the mermaid.
But the main theme
of the story is love. Love is more important than
anything. The soul cannot
tempt the
fisherman because the fisherman’s love is too
strong. And in the end, we discover that
you cannot live without love.
The Fisherman and His Soul is an exotic
story with Oriental and Eastern influences. There
are also
mermaids, witches and devils.
The language is poetic and is full of allegory.
1
THE
MERMAID
Every
evening
the
young
Fisherman
goes
out
on
the
sea.
He
throws
his
nets
into
the
water.
When
the wind blows from the land, he doesn't catch
many fish. But when the wind blows from
the sea, he catches lots of fish and he
can sell them at the market.
One
evening the Fisherman's net is very heavy. He
thinks, 'Are all the fish in the sea in my net?
Or is there a monster in my net?' He
pulls and he pulls his net.
There are
no fish or monsters in his net. But there is a
little Mermaid and she is sleeping.
The
Mermaid's hair is golden. Her body is white. Her
tail is silver and pearl. Her ears are like sea-
shells and her lips are like sea-coral.
Her beauty makes the Fisherman very
happy. He leans out of the boat. He takes the
Mermaid in
his arms. She wakes up when
he touches her. She cries like a seagull and she
wants to escape.
But the Fisherman
holds the Mermaid in his arms.
‘Please
free me,' the Mermaid cries.
alone.
‘Make me a promise,' says the
Fi
sherman.
You can sing to
me and to the fish. Then my nets can always be
full of fish.
‘I promise,' cries the
Mermaid.
The
fisherman
opens
his
arms
and
fees
the
frightened
swims
down
under
the
water.
What is
not a promise?
口
A statement in which you say that
something will definitely happen.
口
You will
definitely do something.
口
You will definitely not do something.
口
You guess
something will happen.
Every evening
the Fisherman goes out on the sea. He calls the
Mermaid. She comes out of the
water and
sings to him. The dolphins swim round and round
the Mermaid. The seagulls fly round
and
round the Mermaid.
The Mermaid sings a
beautiful song. She sings of the Sea-folk and of
the palace of the King. She
sings of
the gardens of the sea full of coral and fish. She
sings of whales, sea lions and seahorses.
She sings of sunken ships and of
Mermaids holding out their arms to the sailors,
calling them into
the sea.
The Mermaid sings and sings. All the
fish come from the bottom of the sea to listen to
her. The
Fisherman throws his nets into
the sea. His nets and boat are full of fish. Then
the Mermaid stops
singing. She smiles
at the Fisherman and she swims back under the sea.
Every evening the Fisherman calls the
Mermaid. And every evening she sings for him. But
she
does not come near him. The
Fisherman tries to touch her. But she swims back
under the Sea.
Every evening the
Fisherman listens to the Mermaid. Her Song and her
voice are sweet to his
ears. And the
Fisherman forgets his nets and the fish. His eyes
are full of love.
One evening the
Fisherman calls to the Mermaid.
'Li
ttle Mermaid, little Mermaid, | love you. Can I be
your husband?' he says.
But the Mermaid
shakes her head.
'No,' she says. 'You
have a human soul. I cannot love you with your
human soul. Send away your
human soul
and I can love you.'
The Fisherman
thinks, 'I have a soul. But I cannot see it. I
cannot touch it. I do not need it. I can
send it away. Then I can be happy with
my little Mermaid.'
The Fisherman is
full of joy. He stands in his boat. He opens his
arms to the Mermaid.
‘I can send my
soul away,' he cries.
together at the
bottom of the sea. You can show me your kingdom.
We can be together.
The little Mermaid
is very happy. She laughs and hides her face in
her hands.
‘How can I send my soul
away?' cries the Fisherman.
'I do not know,' says the little
Mermaid sadly. ‘The Sea
-folk
ha
ve no souls.’
Then she
swims back down under the sea. She is sad now.
2
THE
PRIEST
Early the next morning the
Fisherman goes to the Priest's house.
He knocks three times on the door.
The fisherman enters the house and
kneels on the floor. The Priest is reading.
'Father,' he says to the Priest, ‘I am
in love with a Mermaid. I can send my soul
away.
My soul is not
important to me. It has no value to me.| cannot
see it. I cannot touch it. I do not
need it.’
‘Are
you mad?’ replies the Priest. ‘Of course you need
your soul. God gives us our souls to do
good things. Human souls are precious.
Very precious. Forget the Mermaid. The Sea-folk
are
lost. Good and evil are the same
for them. They have no place in heaven.'
The Fisherman is sad. He has tears in
his eyes. He stands and says, 'Father, I want to
be one of
the Sea-folk. I don't want my
soul. I want to be with my love. My Mermaid is
beautiful, like the
stars and the moon.
I love her, I don't need my soul. I don't need a
place in heaven. Help me.
Help me send
away my soul.'
The Priest
sends the Fisherman away and he shuts his door.
Fill in the blank.
Human souls are important for humans
because human souls are precious/ God gives us our
souls to do good things.
3
THE MERCHANTS
The Fisherman walks to the marketplace.
He is sad.
The merchants in the
marketplace see him. One of the merchants see the
fisherman,
you have to
sell?’
‘My soul.’ answers
the Fisherman. 'Please buy it. I cannot use it. I
cannot see it. I cannot to
uch it.
I do not need it.’
But the merchants laugh.
‘We
cannot buy your soul,' they say.
sell
your
body.
We
can
dress
you
in
purple
and
give
you
a
ring.
You
can
become
the
great
Queen's slave.'
'How
strange,'
thinks
the
Fisherman.
'For
the
priest
my
soul
has
great
value,
but
for
the
merchants
it has no value.' And he walks away. He goes to
the sea to think.
Why does
the Fisherman's soul have no value for the
merchants?
Because the merchants can
not sell it.
Because his soul is very
cheap.
Because the merchants sell other
goods.
Because his soul doesn’t have a
price in the market.
4
THE WITCH
Later the Fisherman remembers a young
Witch. His friend knows her. She is good at
spells.
The Fisherman runs to her cave.
‘I want a small thing,' says the
Fisherman. 'The Priest says “no
come to
you. You can help me and I can pay your price.'
'What do you want?' asks the Witch. She
comes near to the Fisherman.
'I want to
send my soul away,' says the Fisherman.
The Witch grows pale. She hides her
face in her blue cloak.
is terrible to
send your soul away.'
The Fisherman
laughs, 'My soul is not important for me,' he
answers.
touch it. I do not need it.'
‘What can you give me?
‘Five pieces of gold’, he say,
away. Then I can give you everything.'
The Witch laughs, ‘With my spells I can
have gold and silver. Money is not important to
me. ’
'If you don’t want gold or
silver, what can I give you?’ Cries the
Fisherman.
The Witch touches
the Fisherman's hair. Her hand is thin and white.
'Dance with me,
Fisherman,' She says.
She is smiling.
‘Is that all?’! asks
the Fisherman.
'That is
all,' she answers. She smiles again.
‘We can dance at sunset,' he says.
'Then you can tell me how to send my soul away.'
The witch shakes her head.
ear. 'Tonight at the top of
the mountain,' she whispers.
The
Fisherman looks at the Witch.
'Wait for
me at the top of the mountain, under the tree.
When the moon is full, we can dance
together.'
He
runs back to the town. He is happy.
The
Witch watches him leave. She goes into the cave.
She looks in a mirror. She is angry.
Why is the Witch
very angry?
Because she cannot dance
with the Fisherman.
Because the
Fisherman loves the Mermaid, not her.
Because the Fisherman thinks she is
ugly.
Because the Witch can do nothing
for the Fisherman.
In the
evening the moon rises in the sky. The Fisherman
climbs to the top of the mountain. He
waits under the tree. He sees the sea
below. There are fishing boats on the sea.
At midnight the witches come. They fly
in the air like bats. They land on the top of the
mountain.
Then the young Witch arrives.
Her red hair blows in the wind. She is wearing a
gold dress and a
green hat.
The Witch walks to the tree. She pulls
the Fisherman into the light of the moon. They
begin to
dance. They dance and dance.
Round and round.
Now
everything is going round and round. The Fisherman
feels frightened. He feels evil in the
air. The Witch and the Fisherman are
dancing round and round. He hears the Witch laugh.
Then a dog barks and the dancers stop.
At that moment the witches
scream and fly away. The Witch with the red hair
also tries to go
away. But the
Fisherman Catches her and holds her in his arms.
Why do the witches scream
and fly away?
What is happening?
Because in calling the holy name the
Fisherman is sending their ‘evil’ spirits and
powers away.
'Free me,' says the Witch.
'No,' he answers. 'Tell me the secret.'
'What secret?' says the Witch. She
fights like a wild cat. She wants to be free.
'You know,' he replies.
He
holds her in his arms. She cannot escape.
'Am I not beautiful like the daughter
of the sea?' she whispers close to the Fisherman's
face.
The Witch grows pale.
'As you wish,' she says. ‘It is your
soul, not mine.'
The Witch gives him a
little knife.
‘What is this for?' the
Fisherman asks.
The Witch is
silent for a few moments. She is afraid. Then she
says,
'Man has a shadow'. This
shadow is not the shadow of your body.
It is the body of your soul. Stand on the seashore
with
the moon behind you. Then cut away
your shadow from your body. Cut away your soul's
body.
Send your soul away. Then your
soul can leave you.'
The Fisherman is
afraid, too. 'Is this true?' he
s
ays.
'It is
true,' she cries. 'But you can only do it once.'
She holds his knees, and she is crying.
The Fisherman pushes the Witch away. He
puts the knife into his belt and he climbs down
the
mountain.
5
THE SOUL
The Fisherman climbs down the mountain.
The Fisherman's soul calls to him, 'Don't send me
away. Please, don't send me away.'
'You are not important to me,' says the
Fisherman. 'Go away. Go where you want. My love is
calling me.'
The Fisherman
arrives at the seashore. He stands with his back
to the moon. He looks at the sea.
White
arms are calling him. His shadow lies before him.
His shadow is the body of his Soul.
The
Soul speaks again, 'Send me away with your heart.'
'How can I love my Mermaid with no
heart?' replies the Fisherman.
'Be
kind,' says the Soul. 'Give me your heart.'
'My heart is for my Mermaid. Go!'
'Can I not also love?' the Soul tries
again.
‘Go! You are not important to
me,' cries the Fisherman. He takes the
little
knife and he cuts his
shadow away from his feet.
The shadow rises and stands before him.
The shadow is the same size as the Fisherman.
‘Go!' says the Fisherman.
‘No,' replies the Soul. ‘I want to meet
you again.'
'How?'
as
ks the Fisherman.
'Every year I can come back to this
place,' says the Soul. ‘I can call you and you can
come.'
'OK,' replies the Fisherman. 'I
can come.'
The Fisherman jumps into the
water. The Tritons blow their horns and the little
Mermaid comes
to meet him. She kisses
him. They go down under the water.
The
Soul watches on the beach. He is all alone.
6
THE
FIRST YEAR
The first year passes and
the Soul comes back to the seashore. He calls the
Fisherman. The
Fisherman rises from the
deep water and says, ‘Why do you call
me?’
The
Fisherman comes near. He lies in the water. He
leans his head on his hand and listens.
The Soul begins his story:
I
decide to go to the East. Everything in the East
is wise. I travel for six days. On the seventh day
I
come to the land of the Tartars.
There are lots of hills and the land is dry and
hot. I sit under a
tree and watch.
People come and go. Then the Tartars go and fight.
The moon is high. I see a fire. There
are merchants sitting on carpets. There are tents
and camels.
I go over and the chief
merchant stands up and takes out his sword.
'Who are you?' he asks me.
'I am a Prince. I am running away from
the Tartars. I do not want to be their slave,' |
answer.
The merchant takes my hand and
I sit beside him. Then a servant brings me milk
and food.
Use the Internet
to find out about the Tartars.
Who are
they?
Where do they live?
In the morning the caravan starts on
its journey. | ride on a red-haired camel next to
the chief.
The men of war walk with
their weapons. Eighty mules follow us with all the
things we have to
sell. There are forty
camels in the caravan.
We leave the
land of the Tartars and we travel to many strange
lands.
We come to a land where the
people curse the moon, We see gryphons guarding
their gold on
white rocks, dragons
sleeping in their caves. We pass mountains with
snow. We pass valleys with
pygmies
shooting arrows. At night we hear wild men beat
their drums.
We come to the Tower of
the apes. We put fruit before the apes. They do
not hurt us.
We come to the Tower of
the serpents. We give them warm milk in bowls.
They allow us to pass.
Three times on
our journey we cross the river Oxus. We Cross on
rafts of wood. The river-horses
try to
fight us. But they see camels and they are afraid.
We pay money to the guards of the
cities. But they do not open the doors of their
cities. They
throw bread and cakes over
the walls.
We arrive at villages and
the people run away in fear.
On
our
journey
we
fight
many
battles.
Many
people
on
the
caravan
die
in
battle.
And
many
people on the caravan die of hunger.
The survivors start to talk about me. Do I bring
bad fortune?
I pick up a snake. It
bites me but I don't feel anything. Now the people
are afraid of me.
After
four months we arrive at the city of lllel and we
knock at the big metal gates. The guards
open the gates and we go to the
marketplace. The merchants and the servants start
to sell their
goods. The people come
and look. On the first day the priests come and
buy. On the second day
the nobles come
and buy. On the third day the craftsmen and slaves
come and buy.
One day I am walking in
the streets of the city. I come to the temple of
the city's god. There are
priests in
yellow clothes. The temple is rose-red with bells
on the roof. I sit in front of the temple
by a pool of cool water. A priest comes
to me.
'What do you want?' he asks.
'I want to see the god,' I reply.
'Tell me where, and I can
watch him sleep,' I answer.
'The god is
at a feast,’ he cries.
'Give
me wine and I can drink with him,' I answer.
The priest looks at me, then he takes
me by the hand and we go into the temple.
In the first room I see a statue. It is
made of ebony and it is the size of a man. There
is a ruby on
its forehead.
'Is this the god?' I say to the priest.
'This is not the god! Show
me the god,' I shout. And I touch his hand and it
becomes small.
'Cure me and I can show
you the god,' he says.
So I breathe on
his hand and it becomes normal again. The priest
is afraid.
In the second room I see
another statue. It is made of ivory.
It
is twice' the size of a man and it is sitting on a
jade flower.
'Is this the god?' I say
to the priest.
'This is the god,' he
answers.
'This is not the god! Show me
the god!' I shout. And I touch his eyes and he
becomes blind.
'Cure me and I can show
you the god,' says the priest.
So I
breathe on his eyes and he can see again. Now the
pries is afraid.
In the third room
there are no statues. But there is a round mirror.
The mirror is made of metal
and it is
on a stone step.
‘There is
no god,’ he answers. ‘This is the Mirror of
Wisdom. When you look into it, you can
s
ee
everything in heaven and
on earth. But you cannot see your own face. When
you look into this
mirror, you can see
everything and you become wise. Nothing is hidden
from you. There are lots
of other
mirrors in the world but there is only one Mirror
of Wisdom. The Mirrors of Wisdom is
the
god, and we worship it.'
I look into
the mirror, and I see everything on heaven and on
earth. The priest is telling the truth.
Then I do a strange thing.
I take the mirror and I hide the Mirror of Wisdom.
The mirror is in a
valley a day's
journey from here.
This is the end of
the Soul's story.
Then the
Soul turns to the Fisherman and says,
your servant. You can have the Mirror
of Wisdom and become wise. You can have
W
isdom.'
But
the Fisherman laughs,
me.'
'No,' says the Soul.
I want
Love,' answers the Fisherman. He jumps back into
the sea.
The Soul goes away. He is
crying.
Do you think the
Fisherman chooses well?
Which one do
you choose? Wisdom or Love?
7
THE SECOND YEAR
The second year passes and the Soul
comes back to the seashore.
He Calls
the Fisherman. The Fisherman rises from the deep
water and says, ‘Why do you call
me?’