1. Peter Pan was said to be semi-autobiographical. Not literally of course. It has been widely suggested that 'The Boy Who Never Grew Up' is actually based on Barrie's brother who died when he was six years old. He never grew up because he never had chance to grow up. Barrie began to dress and act like his brother to gain back his mothers affections but she never recovered from his death.
2. Alice In Wonderland's Mock Turtle Soup actually existed! The soup was a favourite in the Victorian period. It consisted of chopping off a calf's head and boiling it until the horn was soft, then adding mutton, veil and Madeira wine. Nice.
4. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The book originated from a bed time story that Dahl used to tell his two daughters Tessa and Olivia.
5. The Jungle Book. We pronounce Mowgli's name wrong according to Kipling's daughter. We pronounce the first syllable of his name like 'show' when it should be pronounced like 'cow'. After the creation of the 1967 film, Kipling's daughter never forgave Disney for the mix up.
6. The Wind In The Willows. When Grahame first wrote the book in 1908, it received mass rejection. It was only when the novel got published in America that it got true recognition and became popular in Britain and still remains a favourite.
7. Treasure Island. The book by Stevenson has been adapted 50 times into plays, films (The Muppets adaptation is perhaps the most notable), silent films, TV programmes, radio shows and audiobooks.
8. To Kill A Mockingbird. Scout's character was based on a youthful version of Lee. Lee dressed like a boy and had her hair cropped to a boys style. Interviewers who met her immediately felt like they were meeting a grown up version of Scout. Lee grew up in Monroeville, Alabama, so the novel could well be a first hand account of what she experienced as a child.
9. Little Women. In keeping with ideas of characters being based on the writers, Jo was said to be based on Alcott. Alcott's remained unmarried and wanted Jo to remain unmarried as she is based on herself. She felt angry that she was pressured to marry Jo off.
10. The Little Mermaid. Hans Christian Andersen's novel of The Little Mermaid was much more grim than the Disney version of the story. In the book, Ariel dies if she chooses to live as a woman with legs; every single step she will take as a woman will feel like she is walking on shards of glass.
No comments:
Post a Comment