THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT（1）

THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT

The Tale of Peter Rabbitis Beatrix Potter’s first and most famous book. Initially¹ written for the young son of Potter’s former governess, Annie Carter, in 1893, the work was rejected by a series of publishers, before being privately² printed in 1901, followed by Frederick Warne & Co publishing the tale in October 1902. It centres on the disobedient young rabbit Peter, who is told by his mother not to enter Mr McGregor’s garden because he might be captured and killed. Mr McGregor’s wife is also considered very cruel and frightening because she killed and ate her first husband in a pie. Peter’s three sisters sensibly obey their mother’s warning and only pick berries from the lane, but Peter decides to enter the garden in search of vegetables. The story then involves Peter’s possible capture and attempts to make it home to his mother and sisters. Peter is an unusual hero for the time because he is scared and irrational³ rather than brave, courageous⁴ and logical which were typical characteristics of the era.

The work has been translated into over thirty-six languages and sold more than forty-five million copies worldwide, making it one of the most commercially successful books of all time. In 1938 Potter denied the rights of the work to Walt Disney, who wished to make an animated⁵ feature film of The Tale of Peter Rabbit. The author was immediately very aware of the commercial possibilities of merchandise stemming from the success of her work. Within the first three years of its publication there were Peter Rabbit soft toys, nursery wallpaper and a board game.

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