Sometimes translated as "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," Hans Christian Anderson's tale has been turned into a ballet. It is very similar in feel to the Nutcracker with its cast of animated toys. Not a big fan of the Nutcracker, this was not a plus in my book.
That said, it is interesting from a philosophical point of view. It seems at first to be a very fatalist piece, but several times Anderson refers to the soldier choosing not to speak and the reader is left to wonder what would have happened had he spoken up-- in other words, perhaps his life didn't need to be determined by fate after all.
It's hard to say if such thoughts were originally intended by Anderson. Published at first in a collection of fairy tales for children, it seems to be a pretty adult message to include. Perhaps it was included in the same way that adult jokes get included in Pixar films today, or perhaps Anderson had no pretensions whatsoever. Maybe it was supposed to just be some random stuff that happened to toys.
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