Historical and cultural approach of the tale “The emperors’ new clothes”. Analysis and didactic possibilities on Secondary Education

Abstract

The present study aims to carry out a contrastive analysis of three versions of the fable found in El conde Lucanor, traditionally known as "The emperor’s new clothes". So, we compare the first version gathered by Don Juan Manuel in the Fourteenth Century, the second made by H.C. Andersen in the Nineteenth Century and the last made by Ye Sheng Tao in the Twentieth Century. Thus a historical journey through the ages in which these three variants turned up is done, taking also into consideration the cultural, temporal and social conditions in which they were rewritten.

Accordingly, it is also reflected on the nuances that have made this story has sometimes been regarded as a fable or

exemplum, and at others, as a traditional fairy tale, depending on the explicit or implicit lesson taught in the story. Finally, a teaching practice to use the different exegetical approaches above mentioned is proposed. The aim of this proposal is to promote literary education and to transmit intercultural values in Compulsory Secondary Education.