Born in the small town of Odense, Denmark in 1805, Hans Christian Andersen's life was not easy. His father was a
sickly man and his mother washed clothing for a living. His mother wasn't highly
educated, but because she was superstitious, she introduced Andersen to folklore. This encouraged his love of stories, plays, and the theater1 at a young age. These hobbies, which were combined with Andersen's love of literature2, eventually helped him become a famous writer.
Andersen was forced to start working after his father passed away in 1816.
For a time, he worked as a tailor3, and then in a tobacco4 factory. At 14, he moved to Copenhagen to become a singer. However, after his voice changed, a director at the Royal Theater
arranged for Andersen to go back to school.
Andersen began his writing career by writing plays and poems for a local journal5. Then, in 1835, he
broke into novel writing with The Improvisator. The plot6 of this novel is the basis of many of Andersen's works. In general, Andersen's stories are mostly about a main character who has to face many problems while he or she is
pursuing happiness. Despite his success in novel writing, it was children's tales that eventually brought Hans Christian Andersen fame.
漢斯•克里斯欽•安徒生於1805年出生在丹麥的歐登賽這座小鎮裡，當時的他日子過得並不好。他的父親體弱多病，而母親則靠洗衣服維持家計。他母親沒受過高等教育，但因為她很迷信，所以帶安徒生認識了許多民間傳說。這使得他在小小年紀時就熱愛故事、劇本和戲劇。這些嗜好與安徒生對文學的熱愛相互結合，使他最後成為一位著名的作家。
安徒生的父親於1816年過世後，他便被迫開始工作。他曾一度以裁縫師為職，之後又在菸草工廠上班。十四歲時，他搬到哥本哈根，成了一位歌手。不過在安徒生變聲之後，皇家劇院的一位導演便安排安徒生回學校唸書。
安徒生藉由幫一家當地的雜誌撰寫劇本和詩而開始他的寫作生涯。然後於1835年，他以《即興詩人》一書打入了寫小說的領域中。這本小說的情節是安徒生許多作品的根基。大體上，安徒生的故事是描述一位主角在追求快樂的同時還必須面對許多難題。僅管他在小說寫作上頗為成功，終將名氣帶給安徒生的還是兒童故事。
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