The Shadows (MacDonald)
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The Shadows is a
fairy tale A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic (paranormal), magic, incantation, enchantments, and mythical ...
by
George MacDonald George MacDonald (10 December 1824 – 18 September 1905) was a Scottish author, poet and Christian Congregational minister. He was a pioneering figure in the field of modern fantasy literature and the mentor of fellow writer Lewis Carroll. I ...
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Plot introduction

Ralph Rinkelmann is a writer, who is selected by fairies to be the king of the fairies. While he is ill, they carry him off and crown him as king. The strange Shadows spend their existence casting themselves upon the walls and forming pictures of various sorts: mimicking evil actions of those who have done wrong in the hopes of causing their repentance, playing a comic dumb-show to inspire a playwright and dancing to inspire a musician, nudging a little girl to comfort her grandfather, and playing with a sick little boy as he waits for his mother to return home. For all that their forms are black, their hearts are of the whitest. The story ends with Ralph Rinkelman being comforted.


External links


Librivox AudioGutenberg Etext
Short stories by George MacDonald 1867 short stories {{fantasy-story-stub