The Steadfast Tin Soldier vs. The Shepherdess and the Chimney Sweep

While researching some information about Fantasia 2000 for a patron, I rediscovered The Steadfast Tin Soldier by Hans Christian Andersen. While the Disney version (set to Dmitri Shostakovich's Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Major) has a happy ending, the original version did not:

For his birthday, a young boy recieves a set of tin soldiers to play with. The last soldier is misformed and only has one leg. While out of his box, the Soldier sees a paper ballerina with a spangle on her sash. As she is also standing on one leg, the Soldier falls in love with her. That night, a Troll/Jack-in-the-Box challenges the Soldier to no longer look at the Ballerina, but the Soldier ignores him. The next day, the soldier falls from a windowsill and lands in the street. Two boys find the soldier, place him in a paper boat, and set him sailing in the gutter. The boat washes into the sewer, where a rat demands the soldier pay a toll. Sailing past the rat, the boat is washed out to sean where the Soldier is swallowed by a fish. While preparing the fish, the maid discovers the soldier, but he and the ballerina are knocked into the fire by the little boy. The ballerina burns away; the maid later discovers that the Tin Soldier has melted into the shape of a heart.

By contrast, The Shepherdess and the Chimney Sweep (Also by H. C. Andersen) is a story about two porcelain figures who live on a side table in a drawing room. They're in love, but a porcelain Satyr on a cabinet lusts after the Shepherdess and wants to marry her. He sends a porcelain chinaman (claiming to be her grandfather) to the table to force the Sheperdess to marry the Satyr. The couple escapes down a table leg and hide in a child's puppet theater. The lovers then climb with great difficulty up through a stovepipe, following the light of a star. When they finally reach the roof, the Shepherdess is frightened by the size of the world that she sees and immediately wants to return to the safety of the drawing room. The chimney sweep tries to dissuade her, but he finally agrees and guides her back to the table top. When they return, the learn that the Chinaman was damaged beyond repair and cannot force the Shepherdess to marry the Satyr. The lovers are safe at last.

Alas! There isn't any good clip art of of Shepherdess! So, as I need a vacation really, really, REALLY badly (and am not going on one until December) here's my longing for Disney: