U is for...Ugly ducklings!

Ok, so it was really hard to find a 'U' letter for today's post. It was a choice between Unicorns and The Ugly Duckling, so I went with the latter because it's an actual fairy tale, and I don't actually know of any fairy tales that involve Unicorns!
Taken from here
Taken from here
The Ugly Duckling is a story about a baby swan whose egg rolled into the nest of a duck. When he hatched from his egg with the ducklings, they perceived him as 'ugly' and he was therefore teased and bullied by all of the ducklings, and the other animals on the farm. He wanders away and lives with some wild ducks and geese until they are killed by hunters. He then lives with an old woman, but her cat and hen also tease him, so he runs away from there too.

He sees a flock of migrating swans and is excited about the possibility of joining them, but he is too young and can't fly yet. Winter then arrives, and a farmer finds the baby swan and takes it home with him, but he is scared by the farmers children and so flees. During winter, he hides in a cave near a lake that has frozen over, on his own. When Spring arrives, another flock of swans land on the lake, and the ugly duckling decides to throw himself at them, believing that it is better to be killed by such beautiful creatures than to live a lonely life of ugliness and misery. However, the swans welcome him and accept him, and when he looks at his reflection in the water he realises that he has grown up into a beautiful swan. He spreads his wings for the first time and flies away with his new family.
Taken from here
I like this story, because no matter what, the 'ugly duckling' never gave up. He was bullied for being 'ugly' or different, but he kept on looking for people to take him in, and in the end didn't care what other animals thought of him anymore. Fittingly, this is the point where he started perceiving himself as 'beautiful'.
So there's my U post, hope you enjoyed it even though it's very last minute!

Comments

  1. I don't care what age group this is intended for...I think this story should be required reading for middle school and high school kids.

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    1. It should, it carries such a positive message! :)

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  2. I had the most trouble finding a 'U' word. I was actually thinking of doing the Ugly Duckling myself but decided against it. I'm glad you chose to write about this fairy tale though because it is certainly one of my favorites. Especially since the message is so important for those in school today what with all the bullies and all.

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    1. It's one of my favourites too, and the message is certainly very important. It's one of the reasons why I love it so much :)

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  3. Just a beautiful little tale. Completely sends out the right message for kids these days.

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  4. I adore this story too, it's just so beautiful and touching!

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    Replies
    1. It really is, I love stories with messages :)

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  5. I have an Ugly Duckling song on vinyl that I secretly love- have been singing along with it since I was five! :-)

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    Replies
    1. Ooh an Ugly Duckling song? That sounds awesome! :)

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  6. It is such a gorgeous story, the ugly ducking. Not as well known as it used to be, but i still adore it.

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    1. It's brilliant, I love how he ends up more beautiful than all of the other ducklings who made fun of him :)

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  7. Those are some not ugly duckling pictures. They are lovely!

    ScribblesFromJenn
    Happy A to Z-ing!

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  8. I should have remembered the ugly duckling, but I hate the song. It seems a shame the swan was turned into matches so that we could make models of the Taj Mahal.

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    1. I don't think I've ever heard that song, I'll have to listen to it! :)

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  9. Replies
    1. Yeah, that's probably what he sounded like! :)

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  10. I vaguely remember the version of the book that I had when I was a little kid being one from China. Either way, it was one of my favorite stories!

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  11. Excellent choice for U. This was one of my favorite stories as a child. :)
    #84 following
    Kate
    http://whenkateblogs.blogspot.com/

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    Replies
    1. I love it, it has such a positive message :)

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