The Little Engine That Could: The Complete, Original Edition

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In the tale, a long train must be pulled over a high mountain after its locomotive breaks down. Larger locomotives, treated anthropomorphically, are asked to pull the train; for various reasons they refuse. The request is sent to a small engine, who agrees to try. Despite the steep climb and heavy load, the engine slowly succeeds in pulling the train over the mountain while repeating the motto: "I-think-I-can". A little railroad engine was employed about a station yard for such work as it was built for, pulling a few cars on and off the switches. One morning it was waiting for the next call when a long train of freight-cars asked a large engine in the roundhouse to take it over the hill. "I can't; that is too much a pull for me", said the great engine built for hard work. Then the train asked another engine, and another, only to hear excuses and be refused. In desperation, the train asked the little switch engine to draw it up the grade and down on the other side. "I think I can", puffed the little locomotive, and put itself in front of the great heavy train. As it went on the little engine kept bravely puffing faster and faster, "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can". In the 1941 Disney movie Dumbo, the circus train chants Little Engine’s motivational words ‘I-think-I-can’.

In Piney Vale of Dream Land, Tammy is a shunter who dreams of becoming a Dream Hauler and bringing dreams to the Real World. She tries to pull boxcars for Big Locomotive, but ends up causing traffic for the other engines, and the Tower reminds her she is only supposed to pull one boxcar at a time due to her small size. Tammy later gets encouragement from Rusty, an old and wise engine. The story of the little engine has been told and retold many times. The underlying theme is the same—a stranded train is unable to find an engine willing to take it on over difficult terrain to its destination. Only the little engine is willing to try and, while repeating the mantra "I think I can, I think I can", overcomes a seemingly impossible task. An American fairy tale, it was chosen by ‘Jumpstart Read for the Record’ to be read worldwide in 2006. In 2007, it was also named in the ‘Teachers’ Top 100 Books for Children’. In 1954, Platt & Munk published another version of The Little Engine That Could, with slightly revised language and new, more colorful illustrations by George and Doris Hauman. [5] Although there had been many previous editions of this classic story, "it was the work of George and Doris Hauman that earned The Little Engine the title of being worthy to sit on the same shelf as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ". [5] A 1976 reworking that featured art by Ruth Sanderson received a lot of attention at the time of its release, in part because it prompted a discussion of gender stereotypes. [5] Plot [ edit ]The story first appeared in print with the title The Little Engine That Could in 1920, collected in Volume I of My Book House, which is a set of books sold in the U.S. by door-to-door salespersons. [2] The Book House version began: "Once there was a Train-of-Cars; she was flying across the country with a load of Christmas toys for the children who lived on the other side of the mountain". [2] The story was labeled, [4] as told by Olive Beaupré Miller, that the first edition gave credit to Bragg, but subsequent editions did not as Miller subsequently concluded that "the story belonged to the realm of folk literature". [2] Miller was the founding editor and publisher of The Book House for Children, a company based in Chicago. National Education Association (2007). "Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children" . Retrieved August 22, 2012. Have you ever heard the phrase “When in Rome, do as the Romans do?” Has anyone ever said that what was right for you wasn’t right for them? We live in a world where people have a wide multitude of opinions, political, social, and moral. What makes them have these opinions, and are they always entitled to them? In The Little Engine That Could, a train carrying toys and treats for good boys and girls breaks down. Three train engines decide to not help, each for their own reasons. Finally, a little blue engine comes along and helps. This story is a helpful reminder of the importance of perspective and optimism. This book was chosen by "Jumpstart Read for the Record" to be read worldwide to tens of thousands of children on August 24, 2006. [29]

I Think I Can Rail Tour Schedule". Archived from the original on July 6, 2008 . Retrieved April 18, 2018. The Little Engine That Could is a 2011 American computer-animated adventure film based on the 1930 story by Watty Piper. [3] Plot [ edit ] a b c Cullinan, Bernice E., and Diane Goetz Person. The Continuum Encyclopedia of Children's Literature. Continuum International Publishing Group, August 1, 2003. p. 634. This fairy tale is used to teach children the value of optimism and hard work. Later versions were written specifically to appeal more to children. A Disney version of the story was published in 1976. It was adapted in 1991 as an animated film (Wales-USA). In 2011, it was adapted into a 3-D film featuring the voice of Whoopi Goldberg and Jamie Lee Curtis (Universal).

I Think I Can Rail Tour Schedule". Archived from the original on March 6, 2012 . Retrieved April 18, 2018.

The Little Engine: The Original Tale from 1920 By Olive Beaupre Miller, John Kurtz-Simon and Schuster The philosophical ideas brought up are moral relativism and moral absolutism. Relativism comes in many flavors, but the one that fits best with The Little Engine That Could is cultural relativism. The world is full of people with different ideas about what is right and what is wrong, and what culture they grew up in changes how they think about things. In other words, they think like those around them, and as such, their values may be different from yours. The trains each believe they are doing the right thing based on their own values, and these stem from the kind of work they do. Alyson Stoner as Little Blue Tammy, a little steam shunter engine who dreams of being a Dream Hauler and becomes close friends with Richard.In The Little Engine That Could, each train gives different reasons for why it won’t, or can’t, help the toys. Despite the fact that they each feel that they are doing right, they may be doing the wrong thing by failing to help. The idea that there is a right and a wrong thing despite circumstances is moral absolutism. This means that you should do the right thing, no matter what, and that people who are mistaken about what is right and wrong can still do the wrong thing. Questions for Philosophical Discussion Subjective Opinions Michael Rodrigo and Luke Williams as Scott and Stretch, a pair of bullies who antagonize Richard in the real world. In March 2011, the story was adapted as a 3-D film named The Little Engine That Could, produced by Universal Studios and featuring the voices of Whoopi Goldberg, Jamie Lee Curtis, Alyson Stoner, and Corbin Bleu. [7] Song [ edit ] Great Smoky Mountains Railroad 2012 Railfest". Archived from the original on September 15, 2012 . Retrieved April 18, 2018.

Charlie Schlatter as Major, a toy soldier who sometimes finishes his sentences with "sir". He gives up his badge to help bandage a leak in Tammy's water tank. Television Musicals: Plots, Critiques, Casts and Credits for 222 Shows Written for and Presented on Television, 1944-1996 - Google Books (#59)The tale with its easy-to-grasp moral has become a classic children's story and was adapted in January 1991 as a 30-minute animated film [6] produced in the United Kingdom and co-financed in the United Kingdom and the United States. The film named the famous little engine Tillie and expanded the narrative into a larger story of self-discovery.