History Literature / HansBrinkerOrTheSilverSkates

* SmallRoleBigImpact: The tale about the boy with his finger in the dike, which is only a small StoryWithinAStory, is actually more famous than Hans and his skates.

Hans is a 15-year-old boy who, together with his younger sister Gretel, yearns to participate in a great ice-skating race on the canal. The main prize is a pair of silver skates. Unfortunately, they come from a very poor family with a father who is unable to work since a fall from a dike. The father has mental problems as a result and the children have to work to support the family. They skate all right, but on homemade wooden skates that stick after a few strokes. After Dr. Boekman is persuaded to examine their father, the doctor concludes that Father Brinker could be cured by a risky and expensive operation involving trephining. Despite saving money to buy himself some steel skates, Hans offers the doctor everything he has. This touches Dr. Boekman so much that he offers to provide the surgery for free, thus enabling Hans to buy good skates and participate in the race. The operation is a success and from now on, Dr. Boekman is a much kinder man who helps Hans into becoming a successful doctor.

* BetaBitch: Rychie is the kind who is a PoisonousFriend to the Alpha Bitch Katrinka. Rychie can be nasty and even cruel; Katrinka is flighty and easily influenced.

* IAmNotShazam: Many people call the dike-plugging boy Hans Brinker. In fact, he's never named and is the protagonist of a StoryWithinAStory told to Hans and his classmates.

* UrbanLegend: The story of the boy who stuck his finger in the hole in the dike is BasedOnAGreatBigLie, with no basis in history or fact, nor is it even part of Dutch folklore. Interestingly, in 1953 there was an instance of a man whose quick thinking blocked a hole in a dike— using an entire cargo ship!

* ThatDidntHappen: The finger-in-the-dike story wasn't an actual historical event, nor is it part of Dutch folklore.

* UrbanLegend: The story of the boy who stuck his finger in the hole in the dike is BasedOnAGreatBigLie, with no basis in history or fact. Interestingly, in 1953 there was an instance of a man whose quick thinking blocked a hole in a dike— using an entire cargo ship!

* HaveAGayOldTime: [[AllLesbiansWantKids A little boy sticking his finger inside a hole in a dike]]? To prevent a ''"flood"''? Meaning the dyke is being fingered? Errrr...

There is a subplot that often gets forgotten in the retelling of the story. A group of Dutch boys - Peter van Holp, Carl Schummel, Lambert van Mounen, Ludwig van Holp, Jacob Poot and Ben Dobbs - go on a multi-day skating journey to several of Holland' more famous towns. Much of the subplot consists of long conversations between Lambert and Ben on the history of Holland and the places they journey through.

* CompletelyDifferentTitle: The story is sometimes shortened to ''"Hans Brinker"'' or ''"Hans Brinker ''and'' the Silver Skates"'', while the original title is actually ''"Hans Brinker, ''or'' the Silver Skates"''.

* MusclesAreMeaningful: During the big race, Hans realizes that he isn't fit to win the race because he wasn't able to go on the skating tour of Holland with the other boys and is out of shape compared to them. [[Spoiler:So when Peter's skate string snaps, Hans, realizing he isn't going to win anyway and preferring that Peter win instead of Carl, drops out of the race and gives Peter his skate string.]]

* TheBigRace

* ChildrenAreInnocent

* TheGreatFlood

* LemonyNarrator: Most of the book was written with standard narration. In a few places it lapsed into Lemony Narration, such as when the narrator pondered why SantaClaus didn't visit the destitute Brinker household on Christmas. Most jarring, however, is the ending, when the narrator declared that the reader didn't care whether Hans or Peter won the race.
* MacGuffin: The skates

* {{Jerkass}}: Almost everyone to the Brinkers. Carl and Rychie in particular are nasty towards anyone they consider below their social class. There's also Janzoon Koolp, who's essentially the town delinquent.

* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: A poor brother and sister named [[HanselAndGretel Hans and Gretel]]? Hmm...

* SpoiledSweet: Hilda Van Gleck, unlike the two other rich girls in the story [[RoyalBrat (Rychie and Katrinka).]]

* TheIngenue: Annie, an upper class girl Hans' age.

* SpoiledSweet: Hilda Van Gleck, unlike the two others rich girls in the story [[RoyalBrat (Rychie and Katrinka).]]

Hans is a 15-year-old boy who, together with his younger sister Gretel, yearns to participate in a great ice-skating race on the canal. The main prize is a pair of silver skates. Unfortunately, they come from a very poor family with a father who is unable to work since a fall from a dike. The father has mental problems as a result and the children have to work to support the family. After Dr. Boekman is persuaded to examine their father, the doctor concludes that Father Brinker could be cured by a risky and expensive operation involving trephining. Despite saving money to buy himself some steel skates, Hans offers the doctor everything he has. This touches Dr. Boekman so much that he offers to provide the surgery for free, thus enabling Hans to buy good skates and participate in the race. The operation is a success and from now on, Dr. Boekman is a much kinder man who helps Hans into becoming a successful doctor.

Hans is a 15-year-old boy who, together with his younger sister Gretel, yearns to participate in a great ice-skating race on the canal. The main prize is a pair of silver skates. Unfortunately, they come from a very poor family with a father who is unable to work since a fall from a dike. The father has mental problems as a result and the children have to work to support the family. After Dr. Boekman is persuaded to examine their father, the doctor concludes that Father Brinker could be cured by a risky and expensive operation involving trephining. Despite saving money to buy himself some steel skates, Hans offers the doctor everything he has. This touches Dr. Boekman so much that he offers to provide the surgery for free, thus enabling Hans to buy good skates and participate in the race. Gretel wins the girls' race, but Hans lets a friend--who is worse off than himself--win the boys' race. The operation is a success and from now on, Dr. Boekman is a much kinder man who helps Hans into becoming a succesful doctor.

* HappyEnding

* NoBudget: Hans and his sister have no money to pay for their father's operation.

* StoryWithinAStory: In a case of PopculturalOsmosis The story about the dike-plugging boy is actually read to Hans Brinker in class.

A lot of common misconceptions are attributed to this novel:

Hans is a 15-year-old boy who, together with his younger sister Gretel, yearns to participate in a great ice-skating race on the canal. The main prize is a pair of silver skates. Unfortunately, they come from a very poor family with a father who is unable to work since a fall from a dike. The father became a short-tempered alcoholic as a result and the children have to work to support the family. After Dr. Boekman is persuaded to examine their father, the doctor concludes that Father Brinker could be cured by a risky and expensive operation involving trephining. Despite saving money to buy himself some steel skates, Hans offers the doctor everything he has. This touches Dr. Boekman so much that he offers to provide the surgery for free, thus enabling Hans to buy good skates and participate in the race. Gretel wins the girls' race, but Hans lets a friend--who is worse off than himself--win the boys' race. The operation is a success and from now on, Dr. Boekman is a much kinder man who helps Hans into becoming a succesful doctor.

* AbusiveParents: Hans and Gretel's father is a violent drunk.