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The Water Babies : A Fairy Tale for a Land-Baby (Abridged)
The Water Babies A Fairy Tale for a LandBaby - Abridged Author:Charles Kingsley "The Water-Babies" by Charles Kingsley is best described with reference to J. M. Barrie's more famous work "Peter Pan", both of which belong in the canon of Victorian fairytales. Kingsley's work is poised between two words: the world of Christianity and the whimsical realm of fairies, and the onset of the scientific a... more »nd historical developments that resulted in the evolution theory, industrial factories and the War.
Tom is a young chimney sweep of London, under the brutal care of Mr Grimes who doesn't hesitate in sending him up the filthiest, narrowest chimneys whilst he collects the money from downstairs. Tom himself is quite the little savage, but when his master is employed at Harthover Place, he is in for a surprise. Getting lost on the rooftop and crawling down the wrong chimney, Tom finds himself in a room where three things change his life. The first is a picture of the Crucifixion on the wall. Having no idea who Christ is, Tom is rather intrigued by the picture: "Poor man, he looks so kind and quiet. But why should the lady have such a sad picture in her room?" The second is the young girl asleep in the bed, beautiful and peaceful. The third is his own reflection in the mirror, which horrifies him - "Tom, for the first time in his life, found that he was dirty".
Accidentally waking the little girl on his way out, Tom sets the entire household upon him -- out of the house, across the moorlands and down the valley to meet his "death" in a nearby creek, and his rebirth as a water-baby.« less