Stories of Ourselves: "The Happy Prince" by Oscar Wilde

In this fantastical children's story, a bird and a statue attempt to alleviate a town's suffering.

Here are links to our lists for the short stories in Stories of Ourselves:
The Hollow of the Three Hills, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Signalman, The Happy Prince, The Yellow Wall Paper, The Son’s Veto, The Open Boat, The Moving Finger, The Door in the Wall, Sredni Vashtar, How It Happened, Her First Ball, The Lady in the Looking-Glass: A Reflection, The Fly in the Ointment, The Custody of the Pumpkin, An Englishman’s Home, The Phoenix, There Will Come Soft Rains, The Prison, The Destructors, Meteor, Billenium, The Lemon Orchard, The People Before, The Enemy, Five-Twenty, A Horse and Two Goats, Report on the Threatened City, The Rain Horse, Ming’s Biggest Prey, The Village Saint, Secrets, The Stoat, Games at Twilight, The Taste of Watermelon, Journey (Patricia Grace), The Bath, My Greatest Ambition, To Da-duh, in Memoriam, Of White Hairs and Cricket, Elephant, Sandpiper, Journey (Shirley Geok-Lin Um), The Third and Final Continent, Tyres, At Hiruharama, Real Time, On Her Knees, The Contest
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. gilded
    made from or covered with gold
    He was gilded all over with thin leaves of fine gold, for eyes he had two bright sapphires, and a large red ruby glowed on his sword-hilt.
  2. hilt
    the handle of a sword or dagger
    He was gilded all over with thin leaves of fine gold, for eyes he had two bright sapphires, and a large red ruby glowed on his sword-hilt.
  3. pinafore
    a sleeveless dress resembling an apron
    ‘He looks just like an angel,’ said the Charity Children as they came out of the cathedral in their bright scarlet cloaks and their clean white pinafores.
  4. coquette
    talk or behave amorously, without serious intentions
    ‘She has no conversation,’ he said, ‘and I am afraid that she is a coquette, for she is always flirting with the wind.’
  5. domestic
    of or relating to the home
    ‘I admit that she is domestic,’ he continued, ‘but I love travelling, and my wife, consequently, should love travelling also.’
  6. trifle
    act frivolously
    ‘You have been trifling with me,’ he cried.
  7. alight
    settle or come to rest
    So he alighted just between the feet of the Happy Prince.
  8. lofty
    of imposing height; especially standing out above others
    Round the garden ran a very lofty wall, but I never cared to ask what lay beyond it, everything about me was so beautiful.
  9. coarse
    rough to the touch
    Her face is thin and worn, and she has coarse, red hands, all pricked by the needle, for she is a seamstress.
  10. embalm
    preserve a dead body
    The King is there himself in his painted coffin. He is wrapped in yellow linen, and embalmed with spices.
  11. withered
    lean and wrinkled by shrinkage as from age or illness
    Round his neck is a chain of pale green jade, and his hands are like withered leaves.
  12. agility
    the gracefulness of a quick and nimble person or animal
    ‘Last summer, when I was staying on the river, there were two rude boys, the miller’s sons, who were always throwing stones at me. They never hit me, of course; we swallows fly far too well for that, and besides, I come of a family famous for its agility; but still, it was a mark of disrespect.’
  13. steeple
    a tall tower that forms the superstructure of a building
    He visited all the public monuments, and sat a long time on top of the church steeple.
  14. distinguished
    standing above others in character or attainment
    Wherever he went the Sparrows chirruped, and said to each other, ‘What a distinguished stranger!’ so he enjoyed himself very much.
  15. commission
    a special assignment that is given to a person or group
    ‘Have you any commissions for Egypt?’ he cried; ‘I am just starting.’
  16. bulrush
    tall marsh plant with cylindrical seed heads
    The river-horse couches there among the bulrushes, and on a great granite house sits the God Memnon.
  17. cataract
    a large waterfall; violent rush of water over a precipice
    At noon the yellow lions come down to the water’s edge to drink. They have eyes like green beryls, and their roar is louder than the roar of the cataract.
  18. garret
    floor consisting of open space at the top of a house
    ‘Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow,’ said the Prince, ‘far away across the city I see a young man in a garret..."
  19. pomegranate
    large globular fruit having many seeds with juicy red pulp
    His hair is brown and crisp, and his lips are red as a pomegranate, and he has large and dreamy eyes.
  20. amber
    a hard yellowish to brownish translucent fossil resin
    He told him...of the merchants, who walk slowly by the side of their camels and carry amber beads in their hands; of the King of the Mountains of the Moon, who is as black as ebony, and worships a large crystal...
  21. ebony
    hard dark-colored wood used to make furniture
    He told him...of the merchants, who walk slowly by the side of their camels and carry amber beads in their hands; of the King of the Mountains of the Moon, who is as black as ebony, and worships a large crystal...
  22. listless
    marked by low spirits; showing no enthusiasm
    He flew into dark lanes, and saw the white faces of starving children looking out listlessly at the black streets.
  23. leaden
    made of lead
    At that moment a curious crack sounded inside the statue, as if something had broken. The fact is that the leaden heart had snapped right in two.
  24. shabby
    showing signs of wear and tear
    As they passed the column he looked up at the statue: ‘Dear me! how shabby the Happy Prince looks!’ he said.
  25. proclamation
    a formal public statement
    ‘We must really issue a proclamation that birds are not to be allowed to die here.’
Created on Fri Mar 02 14:02:57 EST 2018 (updated Mon Nov 05 08:48:05 EST 2018)

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