The Wonderful Adventures of Nils · Chapter
The City at the Bottom of the Sea explained
On a clear Easter-eve night, Nils is visited by Herr Ermenrich the stork, who takes him on a moonlit flight to a desolate shore.
What happens
On a clear Easter-eve night, Nils is visited by Herr Ermenrich the stork, who takes him on a moonlit flight to a desolate shore. There, Nils discovers the legendary sunken city of Vineta, which rises from the sea once every hundred years for one hour. He explores its magnificent streets and regal inhabitants, but when he tries to pay a merchant with a rusty coin he had earlier kicked aside, the city vanishes back into the sea. Herr Ermenrich explains that if a living creature had bought something, the city would have been saved. Nils is left heartbroken.
Themes in this chapter
Folklore and Swedish Heritage
The chapter centers on the legend of Vineta, a sunken city from Swedish and Baltic folklore, and the stork's role as a messenger of ancient tales.
Adventure and Exploration
Nils embarks on a moonlit flight with Herr Ermenrich and explores the wondrous, vanished city of Vineta.
Humanity and Compassion
Nils feels genuine sorrow for the inhabitants of Vineta and weeps when he cannot help them, showing his growing empathy.
Characters to notice
- Nils Holgersson
Nils is awed by the vision of Vineta and deeply sorrowful when he fails to save the city by paying with a coin.
- Herr Ermenrich
The stork fetches Nils in the night, takes him to the shore, and later explains the legend of Vineta, hoping Nils could break the curse.
- Akka
Mentioned as the leader of the wild geese; Herr Ermenrich asks if Nils wants to speak with her.
- Bataki
The raven is credited by Herr Ermenrich as the source of the legend about Vineta's sinking and its centennial reappearance.
Key passages
“It is tonight that all the witches come home from Blakulla, thought he, and laughed to himself. For he was just a little afraid of both the sea-nymph and the elf, but he didn't believe in witches the least little bit.”
Nils chuckled at the thought of witches returning from Blakulla on Easter-eve, noting that while he feared mythical creatures like sea-nymphs and elves, he had no belief in witches.
Shows Nils's skeptical yet superstitious nature, setting the stage for the magical encounter.
“If you, Thumbietot, only had had an ever so tiny coin, to pay the merchants, Vineta might have remained up here on the shore; and its people could have lived and died like other human beings.”
Herr Ermenrich explains that if Nils had possessed even the smallest coin to buy something, the city would have been saved from sinking back into the sea forever.
Reveals the tragic condition of Vineta's curse and the missed opportunity.
“He covered his face with his hands and wept. It wasn't easy to say which one looked the more disconsolate—the boy, or Herr Ermenrich.”
Nils hid his face and cried, and both he and the stork appeared equally heartbroken over the lost chance to save the city.
Highlights the emotional impact of the failure on both characters.