Pippi in Taka-Tuka-Land
| Pippi Longstocking | |
|---|---|
Pippi Goes On Board in Swedish
|
|
| First appearance | (1945) |
| Last appearance | Pippi in the South Seas (1948) |
| Created by | Astrid Lindgren |
| Portrayed by | Inger Nilsson |
| Information | |
| Nickname(s) | Pippi |
| Gender | Female |
| Nationality | Swedish |
Pippi Longstocking (Swedish: Pippi Långstrump) is the main character in an by the Swedish author Astrid Lindgren. Pippi was named by Lindgren's daughter Karin, then nine years old like Pippi, who asked her mother for a get-well story when she was off school.
Pippi is red-haired, freckled, unconventional and superhumanly strong – able to lift her horse one-handed. She is playful and unpredictable. She often makes fun of unreasonable adults, especially if they are pompous and condescending. Her anger comes out in extreme cases, such as when a man ill-treats his horse. Pippi, like Peter Pan, does not want to grow up. She is the daughter of a buccaneer captain and has adventure stories to tell about that too. Her four best friends are her horse and monkey, and the neighbours' children, Tommy and Annika.
After being rejected by Bonnier Publishers in 1944, Lindgren's first manuscript was accepted by Rabén and Sjögren. The first three Pippi chapter books were published in 1945–48, another six in 1969–75, and two final stories in 1979 and 2000. They have been translated into 70 languages and made into several films and television series.
Pippi lives in a small Swedish village, sharing the house she styles "Villa Villekulla" with her monkey named Mr. Nilsson, and her horse (nameless in the books; the horse has names in adaptations, most notably "Lilla Gubben", Swedish for "little old man" – other names include Horatio, Alfonso, and Horse) but no adults or relatives. She befriends the two children living next door: Tommy and Annika Settergren. The three have many adventures. Tommy and Annika's mother, Mrs. Settergren, often disapproves of Pippi's manners and lack of education, but Mrs. Settergren eventually comes to appreciate that Pippi would never put Tommy and Annika in danger, and that Pippi values her friendship with the pair above almost anything else in her life. Pippi's two main possessions are a suitcase full of gold coins (which she used to buy her horse) and a large chest of drawers containing various small treasures.
Pippi is portrayed as being a friendly and kind girl, but one with no "proper" manners and having no training or experience in how to behave in normal society, that is, any society other than the very freewheeling and non-regimented one aboard her father's ship. Due to leading a life at sea, Pippi has received very limited conventional education. This is balanced by the fact that she seems to have a wide range of competency in housekeeping skills; she demonstrates that she can cook for herself, clean and repair her house, care for her pets, and otherwise manage her affairs despite her illiteracy and lack of mathematical knowledge. Her behavior is highly exasperating to many adults, but she enjoys sharing recollections of her memories of sailing across the world. Pippi tends to tell many "tall tales" about her travels but appears to do so for the purpose of entertainment and will admit to her untruths when questioned. Otherwise she seems trustworthy and loyal to her friends.
...
Wikipedia