Germanic Myths in the Audiovisual Culture Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina (ed.) Popular Fiction Studies 5 Popular Fiction Studies edited by Eva Parra-Membrives and Albrecht Classen volume 5 Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina (ed.) Germanic Myths in the Audiovisual Culture Bibliografische Information der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek verzeichnet diese Publikation in der Deutschen Nationalbibliografie; detaillierte bibliografische Daten sind im Internet über http: / / dnb.dnb.de abrufbar. © 2020 · Narr Francke Attempto Verlag GmbH + Co. KG Dischingerweg 5 · D-72070 Tübingen Das Werk einschließlich aller seiner Teile ist urheberrechtlich geschützt. Jede Verwertung außerhalb der engen Grenzen des Urheberrechtsgesetzes ist ohne Zustimmung des Verlages unzulässig und strafbar. Das gilt insbesondere für Vervielfältigungen, Übersetzungen, Mikroverfilmungen und die Einspeicherung und Verarbeitung in elektronischen Systemen. Internet: www.narr.de eMail: info@narr.de CPI books GmbH, Leck ISSN 2197-6392 ISBN 978-3-8233-8300-0 (Print) ISBN 978-3-8233-9300-9 (ePDF) ISBN 978-3-8233-0212-4 (ePub) www.fsc.org MIX Papier aus verantwortungsvollen Quellen FSC ® C083411 ® Table of Contents Aknowledgements ................................................................................................... 7 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 9 1 Richard Wagner and His Impact on Contemporary Audiovisual Culture Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina The Siegfried myth in opera and on film: from Richard Wagner to Fritz Lang ................................................................................................................. 17 Magda Polo Pujadas The Ring of the Nibelung: Philosophy, Wagner and La Fura dels Baus ..... 33 Miguel Salmerón Infante Staging Wotan: Chéreau, Schenk, Fura del Baus ........................................... 47 Jesús Pérez-García Die Wandlung des Nibelungenmythos in der bande dessinée von Sébastien Ferran L’Anneau des Nibelungen ..................................................... 55 2 Germanic Myths in Audiovisual Adapation and translation Heidi Grünewald Mythos und Utopie in Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm........................................ 71 Laura Arenas The image of Germany in German films. A study of national stereotypes in two film adaptions of the epic poem Nibelungenlied......................................................................... 85 Peio Gómez Larrambe Artusmythos und Transtextualität in Monty Python and the Holy Grail ... 99 Elena Castro García The Duality of Translation in Historical Television Series: Vikings ........ 107 6 Table of Contents 3 Germanic Myths in Television, Videogames and Propaganda Posters Ana Melendo Cruz Odin and Ragnar in the television series Vikings: Between myth and legend.................................................................................. 123 Irene Sanz Alonso Rewriting Germanic Myths in Video Games: The Witcher, Hellblade, God of War IV ........................................................................................................ 133 María Jesús Fernández-Gil Intersemiotic Analysis of Nazi Posters: Nordic Mythology at the Service of Arianism ............................................................................................. 145 4 Ecocritical Use of Germanic Myths and Comparative Mythology Lorena Silos Ribas How to Train Your Dragon: an Ecocritical Approach to Myth Criticism... 161 Lorraine Kerslake Young In the beginning was Crow: Reinventing and Subverting the Creation Myth....................................................................................................... 173 Yue Wen Norse Mythology and Chinese Mythology in Comparison: The Origin of the Cosmos, Time and Space................................................... 183 Contributors .......................................................................................................... 197 Bibliography ......................................................................................................... 205 Aknowledgements 7 Aknowledgements I would first like to thank Prof. José Manuel Losada (Universidad Complutense de Madrid), coordinator of the Research Project “Acis & Galatea: Research Activities on Cultural Myth-Criticism” (S2015/ HUM-3362) and initiator of the idea of the present volume. The current edition has been made possible thanks to the aforementioned project, funded by the Comunidad de Madrid and the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Research Group from the University of Alcalá, RECEPTION (Reception Studies, REF CCHH2010/ R24), which I am honoured to coordinate. I would also like to express my gratitude to the Scientific Committee that helped me with their recommendations regarding the selection and improvement of articles: Andreas Grünewald (Universität Bremen), Berta Raposo (Universidad de Valencia), Carlos Duque (Centro Superior de Música Katarina Gurska), Carmen Flys Junquera (Universidad de Alcalá), Claudia Francisca Cabezón Doty (IÜD, Universidad Heidelberg), Ingrid Cáceres Würsig (Universidad de Alcalá), Lorena Silos (Universidad de Alcalá), Magda Polo (Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona), Marisol Morales (Universidad de Alcalá), Miguel Salmerón (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid) and Susanne Cadera (Universidad Pontificia de Comillas). Finally, I would like to thank Laura Arenas García (Universidad de Alcalá) for her invaluable collaboration in the revision and layout of the texts in this volume. Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina Introduction The past decade has witnessed a striking renaissance of Nordic mythology in popular culture, mainly in the realm of audiovisual media. Be it the reinterpretation of Thor and his clan in the Marvel cinematic universe, or the success of series such as Vikings or American Gods, the truth is that the mythical tales of the ancient Germanic peoples of pre-Christian northern Europe have become increasingly popular and today exert a curious power of attraction, especially among younger audiences. Heroes like Thor, Siegfried, Ragnar, the Valkyries and Odin populate television series, films and video games, together with mythological creatures, such as the dragons Nidhogg or Fafnir, the wolves Fenrir or Sköll, and Odin’s crows. Moreover, Asgard, Heimdall, Muspelheim or Midgard, the settings for the mythical Nordic heritage, have become household names since they became ubiquitous in mainstream television and comic series. Why this growing interest in Germanic mythology in audiovisual culture? Why are so many traces of Norse myths observed specifically in popular art that fuses sound and image? When did this interest in Germanic mythology in audiovisual media arise? The articles included in this volume aim to answer these and many other questions. To that end, the volume is structured in four thematic sections: “Richard Wagner and His Impact on Contemporary Audiovisual Culture”, “Germanic Myths in Cinema and Audiovisual Translation”, “Germanic Myths in Television, Videogames and Propaganda Posters” and “Ecocritical Use of Germanic Myths and Comparative Mythology”. The first section, “ Richard Wagner and His Impact on Contemporary Audiovisual Culture ” analyses the legacy of the Wagnerian interpretation of the Germanic medieval sources in his tetralogy The Ring of the Nibelung and shows the extent to which the German composer’s reading of the myths has influenced all subsequent representations thereof in the audiovisual culture of the 20 th and 21 st centuries. The section opens with a chapter entitled “The Siegfried Myth in Opera and on Film: From Richard Wagner to Fritz Lang”. This essay by Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina explores the Siegfried/ Sigurd myth through opera and film, beginning with Wagner’s seminal interpretation in his opera Siegfried (1876), the third drama in his Ring of the Nibelung. In its combination of different medieval Germanic mythological sources (the medieval German Song of the Nibelungs and the Scandinavian Eddas) and its original aesthetic realization in the new Total Artwork (Gesamtkunstwerk), Wagner’s original view of the hero marks a watershed in 10 Introduction the way the fledgling cinema of the early twentieth century depicted the myth audio-visually. This is illustrated with reference to Fritz Lang’s silent picture, Siegfried (1924). The analysis shows that despite Lang’s wishes to retain a distance from Wagner’s reading of the Sigurd myth, his film contains evident parallels with the German master’s interpretation. The analysis also suggests that Wagner’s artwork was therefore truly visionary, not only in its recovery of the ancient Greek fusion of music, poetry and dance, but also in its addition to that amalgam of a new element which would be of vital importance to twentieth-century art and omnipresent in the present century’s audio-visual culture: the image. In the next chapter, “The Ring of the Nibelung: Philosophy, Wagner and La Fura dels Baus”, Magda Polo examines the impact of Nordic mythology and the influence of the philosophers Ludwig Feuerbach and Arthur Schopenhauer in the composition of Wagner’s tetralogy. The analysis shows how this influence is to be found not only in parts of the libretto but also, and especially, in the new worldview that represents the Total Artwork in The Ring of the Nibelung. Polo explains how we can find the marks of the philosophers in a footnote that appears in the original version of the last opera of the tetralogy: The Twilight of the Gods. The so-called “Feuerbach ending” and the “Schopenhauer ending” express an optimistic and pessimistic view, respectively, of the end of the world that, ultimately, did not come to light in Wagner’s original libretto. However, in the late 2000s, an adaptation of Wagner’s tetralogy by the avant-garde Catalan theatre company La Fura dels Baus included an overwhelmingly positive and Mediterranean ending, which illustrated the role of man in re-establishing a new order and thus reinterpreted the main ideas of Feuerbach's philosophy for the stage. Likewise in his article “Staging Wotan: Chereau, Schenk and La Fura dels Baus”, Miguel Salmerón reflects upon this recent version of La Fura dels Baus and compares it with the production of other stage designers: Patrice Chéreau’s proposal for the “Festspiele” centenary at Bayreuth (1976-79) and Otto Schenk’s work at the New York Metropolitan (1986-89). Salmerón focuses his analysis on the character of Wotan/ Odin, who in The Ring of the Nibelung undergoes a profound metamorphosis. Majestic in The Rhinegold, he is torn between the law and his yearnings in The Valkyrie and becomes a wandering traveller in Siegfried and a barely perceptible, but present, shadow in Twilight of the Gods. In his chapter, Salmerón explains how stage designers have provided different solutions for the full enactment of Wotan and his transformations. Finally, Jesús Pérez-García’s “Die Wandlung des Nibelungenmythos in der bande dessinée von Sébastien Ferran L’Anneau des Nibelungen” analyses the adaptation of the Nibelungen myth in the French comic adaptation of Wagner’s Introduction 11 Ring of the Nibelung, Taking as its point of departure the fact that the myths in the Romantic period emerged as constructs that modelled a stylized past and laboriously reclaimed cultural heritage, responding to the aspirations of nationalism and idealism in Europe at the time, Pérez-García examines how in the context of the globalized digital society, these semantic references are lost today, which leads to their radical transformation. The comic L'Anneau des Nibelungen reinterprets the myth for young audiences and analyses how the so-called heroic fantasy has a genre-defining effect in this renewal. The second section, “ Germanic Myths in Cinema and Audiovisual Adaptation and Translation ”, studies the adaptation of Nordic mythology in films and analyses the translation strategies used in the subtitling and dubbing of television series that are inspired by Germanic myths. Heidi Grünewald begins this section with an essay entitled “Mythos und Utopie in Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm”, which examines the concept of myth and utopia in Lang’s film The Nibelungs (1924), thereby linking it to Ortiz-de-Urbina’s chapter. As Grünewald notes, Fritz Lang was of the opinion that a film can only be convincing if it also corresponds to the nature of its time. The director also lays claim to this for his two-part film, whose production and reception reflect the mental state of the Weimar Republic. Based on the reception of the film, the article deals with the cinematic transfer of the key ideas of the Nibelung myth onto a society characterized by disillusionment and rationalization and analyses Lang’s pictorial language with a view to the utopian or dystopian projections manifest in the film. For her part, Laura Arenas adds another dimension to the study of Fritz Langs’ Nibelungs by comparing it with a contemporary film that also adapts the medieval epic poem Song of the Nibelungs: Uli Edels’ Dark Kingdom (2004). In her essay entitled “The Image of Germany in German Films. A Study of National Stereotypes in Two Film Adaptions of the Epic Poem Nibelungenlied”, Arenas analyses national stereotypes in both films. She starts from the fact that films, like other media, contribute to the transmission of the image of a country. This image, often riddled with stereotypes, not only provides information about a certain national group, but also about its producers. To analyse the image of Germany in those two film adaptations of the epic poem, she examines national stereotypes as mechanisms to represent mythological characters in movies and determines whether the image that is conveyed of Germany in both cinematographic productions has been modified or reshaped over time. Finally, in “Artusmythos und Transtextualität in Monty Python and the Holy Grail”, Peio Gómez examines the characteristics of the relationship between Arthurian myth and the classic comedy movie from 1975. The transformation processes of elements traditionally associated with Arthur and Lancelot are analyzed using two fragments to finally determine the transtextual relationship between film and myth based on these transformations. Using theories of transtextuality, Gómez suggests that Monty Python and the Holy Grail can be regarded as an artificial myth that ultimately triggers the demythologization of the Arthurian myth. The third section of this volume, entitled “ Germanic Myths in Television, Videogames and Propaganda Posters ”, explores the influence of Germanic mythology in videogames and television series and it surveys the intersemiotic translation processes through which the Nordic myths can be rewritten to serve political purposes. To begin with, Ana Melendo proposes a first approach to the analysis of the television series Vikings that recreates numerous Germanic myths and has experienced a great success among the youngest generations. In her essay “Odin and Ragnar in the Television Series Vikings (2013): Between Myth and Legend”, Melendo bases her study on the perspective of mythology as a vehicle to facilitate our understanding of certain literary, historical, theoretical and visual aspects that converge in this audiovisual text and, consequently, of the artistic qualities that define it. By focusing on the mythological sub-plot, her study explores the stylistic features and modus operandi of the series, which manages to create a universe that fuses myth and reality and diverges from other more realistic portrayals of Viking history. To continue the study of Vikings, Elena Castro’s chapter “The Duality of Translation in Historical Television Series: Vikings” focuses on the linguistic aspects of the show and how these are translated. In the series, the diastratic, diaphasic, diatopic and diachronic dimensions of language become essential tools in the process of bringing the source culture closer to the audience, despite the coexistence of up to five different languages and the audiovisual constraints that affect translation. Indeed, according to Castro, the linguistic complexity of the English-language series and the resulting complexity of translating it into Spanish highlights the limits of translation in the double contextualisation of this media product. In her essay “Rebuilding Germanic Myths in Video Games: The Witcher, Hellblade and God of War IV”, Irene Sanz shows that not only have Germanic myths survived healthily in different forms, such as opera, comics, cinema and television series, but also that the Norse myths seem to be enjoying a moment of glory in one of the 21 st century’s most ground-breaking audiovisual media, namely computer games. This chapter explores how three popular video games—The Witcher, Hellblade and God of War IV—acclaimed by both critics and players, resurrect Germanic myths in different ways, either as the background for the story or as essential elements in the plot of the game. 12 Introduction Introduction 13 María Jesús Fernández-Gil, in her essay “Intersemiotic Analysis of Nazi Posters: Nordic Mythology at the Service of Arianism” completes this section by analysing the way in which the story of Sigfrid/ Sigurd, the dragon slayer, was rewritten to draw the Nordic hero into the orbit of Hitler’s ideal Aryan master race. Myth was at the core of the National Socialist movement. Indeed, Nazis resorted to the appeal of Nordic mythology to shape an artificial united community driven by the idea of racial purity. Using a Nazi propaganda poster as a case study, this chapter seeks to highlight how Joseph Goebbels’ propaganda machine succeeded at conditioning the thoughts, feelings and actions of the German public, thereby ultimately gaining wide popular support for the Nazi agenda. Commenting on the increasing tendency to manufacture reality through digital image manipulation, this essay also attempts to show that lessons might be drawn from previous uses of propaganda and that acquiring visual literacy competencies is crucial in the post-truth world. Finally, the last section of the volume, “ Ecocritical Use of Germanic Myths and Comparative Mythology ” opens the door to new research lines that have hardly been investigated and are of vital importance to understanding the process of the reception of myths in today’s world: ecocritical studies on Germanic myths and a comparison of Nordic and Chinese mythologies. Lorena Silos opens this section with her essay entitled “How to Train Your Dragon: An Ecocritical Approach to Myth Criticism”. She argues that film and literary narratives aimed at children frequently feature a heroine or a hero who dares to question norms and traditions and thus unmasks the inconsistencies of the most deeply rooted discourses within their society. Silos explains how, in recent years, the most important animation studios have launched stories of rebellion and transgression in which the young protagonists resist perpetuating beliefs and attitudes that have, more often than not, legendary or mythological foundations. Such is the case of Hiccup, the main figure in the animated film How to Train Your Dragon (2010). He is a young Viking, destined to become a dragon slayer, who defies the traditions of his people and manages to rewrite a chapter of the legacy of Norse mythology. Silos explores the “ecological” reinterpretation of the Siegfried/ Sigurd myth in this computer-animated action fantasy film. In the next chapter, Lorraine Kerslake takes another ecocritical approach to the literary work Crow by Ted Hughes and relates Germanic myths to Biblical ones. According to Kerslake, Hughes reinvents myths by using his knowledge of primitive philosophies. The title of his work already alludes to an animal that is a spiritual guide in Nordic mythology, serving as a guide to Odin/ Wotan. This chapter looks at the importance of myth and the uneasy relationship that Hughes maintained with Christianity as well as the way mythology influenced both his writing and his imaginative universe. Through an ecocritical analysis, Kerslake examines how Hughes subverts the creation myth by turning the Genesis account of creation upside down and she looks at the parallels between the poetic universe of Crow and that of Hughes’ creation tales in the sphere of his children’s writing. Finally, Yue Wen enriches the present volume with a comparative analysis between Norse and Chinese mythology. Despite the fact that there is a huge distance between northern Europe and China and the culture and history of one has developed to a great degree without the influence of the other, there is still much in common that can be found in the early myths of both, especially in those reflecting the origin of the cosmos. Therefore, in her essay, within the frame of ethnology as put forward by Mircea Eliade and Joseph Campbell, Wen compares the Norse and Chinese myths in aspects such as cosmology and the concept of time and space. A foray is made into the similarities between Norse mythology and its Chinese counterpart, as well as into the anthropological origins underlying the Norse mythology classic The Poetic Edda, the Chinese Taoist doctrine classic work Dao De Jing and the mythical work Classic of Mountains and Seas. Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina (Universidad de Alcalá) 14 Introduction 1 Richard Wagner and His Impact on Contemporary Audiovisual Culture The Siegfried myth in opera and on film: from Richard Wagner to Fritz Lang Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina The Siegfried myth Main protagonist of the well-known epic poem, Das Nibelungenlied, written around 1200 in Middle High German, the Siegfried (also called Sigurd) figure had already appeared in earlier Nordic sources. The first iconographic treatment of this courageous hero, who slayed a dragon, obtained a prize and was finally murdered, is to be found in some eleventh-century Swedish and British runestones and stone crosses. Between 1050 and 1150 the Siegfried story merged with other heroic narratives to converge in the poems Reginsmál and Fáfnissmál, preserved in the Codex Regius manuscript (centre-piece of the Poetic Edda). These two poems would become the kernel and chief source for later sagas based on their mythical hero, namely, the Völsunga Saga (1217-1226), extant in a single thirteenth-century manuscript, the Pidriks Saga (1230-1250) and, less detailed than the others, the manuscripts of Snorri Sturluson’s Prose Edda (1220) 1 . The Siegfried legend combines two narrative strands, the first of which tells of the hero’s youth, the second of his death. The first pivots around the slaying of the dragon, the achievement of a treasure and—in the Nordic version—the rescue of an enchanted Maiden 2 . Of all the myths of Pan-Germanic origin, none have attained such popularity as those involving Siegfried and his victory over the dragon, Fafner. The adventures of Sigurd Fáfnisbani (or Fafner-slayer) are considered to be one of the first products of the Germanic imaginary of the Rhineland 3 . While the different tales exhibit variations in plot, they all share the common thread of the curse pronounced by the dwarf, Andvani (or Alberich), according to which whoever possesses the treasure will come to a tragic end, as happens 1 Langer, Johnni (2015). Na trilha dos vikings. Estudos de religiosidade nórdica. Jo-o Pessoa: Editora UFPB, 192. 2 Heinzle, Joachim. (2013). Mythos Nibelungen. Stuttgart: Reclam, 15. 3 Langer (2015: 191). 18 Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina first to the dragon, Fafner, and then to Siegfried. This fatal destiny, foreshadowed in dreams, nightmares and auguries and transfigured in medieval literature, is a hallmark of the Pan-Germanic world-view 4 . The presence of the Siegfried myth in western culture from the Middle Ages to the nineteenth century is widespread 5 : literary milestones include Johann Heinrich Füssli’s Brynhild erblickt Sigurd in der Waberlohe (1800-1810), Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué’s Der Held des Nordens (1808-1810), Ludwig Uhland’s Siegfrieds Schwerdt (1812) or Friedrich Hebbel’s Die Nibelungen (1861) 6 . But it is Richard Wagner’s re-interpretation of the hero which marks a turning-point in its cultural history, above all in regard of its adaptation to audio-visual culture. Almost five decades after the first performance of Wagner’s opera, Siegfried, in 1876, film-maker Fritz Lang would screen his film version of the same name in 1924. Lang, together with his wife, Thea von Harbou, who wrote the screenplay, claimed their version was based solely on the medieval Nibelungenlied and had nothing to do with Wagner’s own reading 7 . However, as we shall see, an audio-visual analysis of his film shows the extent of its impregnation by Wagner’s work and aesthetic, something this early silent film shares with later artistic reworkings, particularly audio-visual ones. The Siegfried myth in Richard Wagner Creative evolution of the opera Siegfried The gravitational centre of Richard Wagner’s monumental opera cycle, The Ring of the Nibelung, composed between 1848 and 1876, is the myth of Siegfried. The Ring consists of four operas or “days”, The Rheingold, The Valkyrie, Siegfried and Twilight of the Gods. The full cycle received its première at the Bayreuth Festspielhaus in August 1876. However, the first seeds of the tetralogy were sown in 1843 when Wagner began to show an interest in Germanic myth and Greek mythology. In the summer of 1848, he wrote an essay summarising his mythological studies under the title The Wibelungs, World History Derived from Legend (Die Wibelungen, Weltgeschichte aus der Sage 8 ). From this emerged in October of 4 Langer (2015: 192). 5 For further information concerning the reception of the myth, see: Zernack, Julia / Schulz, Katja (eds.) (2019). Sigurd. In: Gylfis Täuschung. Rezeptionsgeschichtliches Lexikon zur nordischen Mythologie und Heldensage. Heidelberg: Winter, 547-554. 6 Cf. Heinzle, Joachim. (2013). Mythos Nibelungen. Stuttgart: Reclam. 7 Mueller, Adeline (2010). Listening for Wagner in Fritz Lang’s Die Nibelungen. In: Joe, Jeongwon/ Gilman, Sander L. (ed.). Wagner & Cinema. Bloomington/ Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 85. 8 Wagner, Richard (1907). Gesammelte Schriften und Dichtungen. Vierte Auflage Zweiter Band. Leipzig: Siegel’s Musikalienhandlung, 115-155. The Siegfried myth in opera and on film: from Richard Wagner to Fritz Lang 19 the same year a first draft in prose called The Myth of the Nibelungen, Draft for a Drama (Der Nibelungen-Mythus, Entwurf zu einem Drama 9 ). At the same time, Wagner was witness to the political revolution under way in Germany—the 1848 Revolution 10 - which prompted him to write the drama, Jesus of Nazareth, in which Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is a social revolutionary who spreads the political message of love. On top of that, Wagner continued to work on his recreation of the Siegfried myth, writing another prose work titled The Death of Siegfried. In November 1848 he rewrote it in verse. Five months later, on 30 April 1849, the Dresden Uprising took place, with Wagner among the rebels alongside his friends Mikhail Bakunin and August Röckel. Faced with persecution, he was forced to flee to Zurich, where he remained almost ten years in exile. There he wrote the continuation of The Death of Siegfried, which he called The Young Siegfried (Der junge Siegfried). The prose version was completed on 1 June 1851, its rewriting in verse on 24 June. The symbology of the myth in Wagner’s Siegfried While the ur-text for Wagner’s view of the Siegfried myth is the Song of the Nibelungs, which mixed medieval German legends and historical facts, the composer also drew on other Nordic sources. These were the Eddas and the Völsunga Saga, where he came upon the timeless mythical element which the epic medieval song, so firmly rooted in real time and history, was missing. The stage directions of Siegfried give no indication of the time of the events in the opera, and Wagner also avoided situating the characters temporally. As Christian Merlin 11 notes, it was not by chance that Wagner abandoned his projects focused on historical personages like Jesús de Nazareth to concentrate on the subject of The Ring of the Nibelung, more specifically, on the character of Siegfried whose a-temporal purity the composer was at pains to exalt. In his 1851 essay, A Communication to My Friends (Eine Mitteilung an meine Freunde), Wagner evoked Siegfried’s “purely human” element (“das Reinmenschliche” 12 ), untied as it was by convention, and made a case for the hero’s fundamental and immutable hu- 9 Müller, Ulrich/ Wapnewski, Peter (1986). Richard-Wagner-Handbuch. Stuttgart: Alfred Kröner Verlag, 270. 10 Also known as the March Revolution, the 1848 Revolution took place in the German Confederation between March 1848 and the end of 1849. Its goal was to bring down the nobility and establish a parliament and freedom of the press and thought. 11 Merlin, Christian (2010). Mythe. In: Diccionnaire Encyclopédique Wagner, Actes Sud / Cité de la Musique, Arles, 1366-1370. 12 Wagner, Richard (1851). Eine Mitteilung an meine Freunde. Kapitel 4. Available at: https: / / gutenberg.spiegel.de/ buch/ auswahl-seiner-schriften-840/ 4 20 Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina man nature which found expression beyond the story and the circumstances of the time. Whereas Christ as a figure could be documented historically, Siegfried transcended any specific historical context. Moreover, Wagner felt it important to underline the universal nature of the myth, which ennobled man and set him over and above individual traits and vulgar or selfish interest. That said, Wagner derived his idea for using the myth from Greek drama. As he put it in his 1852 essay, Opera and Drama, “[Greek] tragedy is no more nor less than the artistic culmination of myth itself” 13 . Following the Greek model, Wagner availed himself of the world of Germanic myth to criticize society. It was the free man, like Siegfried --and Prometheus— who had to fight against the established gods and, together with Brunhilde, achieve the foundation of a new world order through death and redemption. Power and capital, symbolized by gold and the ring, convention and defeat, are the archetypical themes worked out in Wagner’s musical drama. From the point of view of myth, revolution, which, as Candoni and Pesnel note, could be understood etymologically as “re-evolution”, becomes a repetition of the original act of creation. Siegfried is a sort of “noble savage”, the harbinger of a new world in the future which is forever foreclosed to us by corrupt civilization 14 . Siegfried, who would free the world of politics, alienation and the craving to possess, embodies Wagner’s revolutionary aspirations. For Siegfried, Fafner’s treasure is nothing more than a natural metal, yellow and shining, not the abstract symbol of power longed for by the other characters. Siegfried is conceived of as the hero whose purity and innocence are free of the taint of social conventions or the intrigues of power. Brought up in virtual solitude, his only models have been the forest and its animal dwellers. As we saw earlier, Wagner commenced work on the prose sketches for The Death of Siegfried in autumn and winter 1848 when he enjoyed the friendship and shared the revolutionary ideals of Bakunin and Röckel 15 . Thus, the Siegfried character is cast as the new man, the future of the world, the free man capable of carrying out Germany’s social revolution and building a new world on the ruins of the old. That is how a character chosen for its universal, timeless and mythical dimension was also the fulfilment of a very specific ideology belonging to the late 1840s. 13 Wagner, Richard (1852). Oper und Drama. Accesible en: https: / / gutenberg.spiegel.de/ buch/ oper-und-drama-843. 14 Candoni, Jean François/ Pesnel, Stéphane (2010). Siegfried. In: Diccionnaire Encyclopédique Wagner, Actes Sud / Cité de la Musique, Arles, 1951-1953. 15 Merlin (2010). The Siegfried myth in opera and on film: from Richard Wagner to Fritz Lang 21 The representation of the myth in Wagner’s Siegfried The mythification of the Siegfried figure in Wagner’s opera can be observed not only on the plane of interpretation, but also in the stage directions and costume design, in the music and in the selected texts. In the first place, the set designs by the Austrian painter Joseph Hoffman, which submerge Siegfried in the natural world, help lend the hero a timeless, mythical air. Scenes such as the dragon slaying (Fig. 3) were to have a decided influence on later film representations, such as the equivalent scene in Fritz Lang’s movie (Fig. 5). Fig. 1. Siegfried fighting against the dragon, according to set designer Joseph Hoffmann’s indications for Act 2 of Richard Wagner’s opera Siegfried (1876). Secondly, Wagner entrusted Carl Emil Doepler with the costumes and figurines for The Ring of the Nibelung. Despite being rather historically-minded, as Wagner would later confide to his wife Cosima 16 , Doepler achieved a purely human image of the hero (Fig. 1): ethereal (notice his cape flying in the air) and with an 16 Carnegy, Patrick (2006). Wagner and the Art of the Theatre. New Haven/ London: Yale University Press, 84. 22 Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina enlightened, messianic air, blond (like any typically German hero), young and innocent, but also strong and robust. Fig. 2. Carl Emil Doepler’s design for Siegfried’s costume, worn at the opera’s première in 1876. The Siegfried myth in opera and on film: from Richard Wagner to Fritz Lang 23 This image would be an influence on later representations of Siegfried in the cinema, not only in Fritz Lang’s 1924 version (Figs. 3, 4, 5), but also those of Harald Reinl (1966) or Uli Edel (2004) 17 . Thirdly, Wagner depicts Siegfried musically with the aid of the leitmotiv 18 , a sophisticated musical technique which would be imitated after his death not only in music but in art in general. Wagner’s interweaving of the leitmotif with the musical discourse of his work as a whole is complex and subtle. There are many leitmotifs related to the main hero of The Ring cycle and there is no space here to deal with them one by one. But among them me might pause a moment to consider the “Free Hero” motif, which defines Siegfried. It takes the form of a fanfare which the audience had already heard in the “day” preceding Siegfried in Act 3, Scene 1 of The Valkyrie. Fig. 3. The Free Hero motif represents Siegfried throughout Wagner’s The Ring of the Nibelung tetralogy. This motif is first heard when the Valkyrie Brunhilde tells Siglinde, on the death of her beloved, Sigmund, that her child by him will be the hero who will save the world, and that his name will be Siegfried. In German, the name Siegfried is composed of the term Sieg, meaning “victory” and Fried(en), meaning “peace”. In other words, it adumbrates a hero who will overcome adversities and bring peace to the world. The “Free Hero” motif recurs at the end of The Valkyrie when Wotan surrounds Brunhilde with a ring of fire and speaks as follows: : “Whoever fears the tips of my lance will never traverse the flames! ” 19 . Hearing the motif at the same time as Wotan’s words, listeners or spectators intuit subliminally that the man who shows know fear of the lance-tip will be the hero 17 Hackfurth, Jörg (2009). Ein deutsches Nibelungen-Triptychon. Die Nibelungenfilme und der Deutschen Not. En: Komparatistik Online. Komparatistische Internet-Zeitschrift. 39-62. 18 The term leitmotiv was coined by analysts of Wagner’s operas. He called them “melodious moments of feeling”, whose function was to act as a “psychological guide” to steer the listener through the almost fifteen hours of the Ring tetralogy. 19 “Wer meines Speeres Spitze furchtet, durchschreite das Feuer nie! ” (author’s translation). Wagner, Richard. Die Walküre. Original libretto available at: https: / / gutenberg.spiegel. de/ buch/ die-walkure-837. 24 Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina Siegfried. Finally, the motif is heard once more within other ones, also related to Siegfried, namely Siegfried’s “Horn Call” and Siegfried’s “Funeral March”. Here the motif is in a higher tone than in the “Curse scene”, which implies that Siegfried is indeed the one who will free the world from that deadly curse and restore order to the planet. Finally, it is worth highlighting how Wagner, who was his own librettist, presents Siegfried as an archetypal mythical hero surrounded by light, as if he were some god of light or the sun and the dragon he slays were the incarnation of the underworld and chaos, with all the symbolic power unleashed in a foundational act of that nature. Born in the East, as we learn in The Valkyrie, Siegfried also stands for the return of the sun. When Brunhilde awakens from her long, magical dream, she does not at first recognise in him the man, but the sun which has roused her and announces a new life. These are the words with which she greets him: Hail, bright sunlight! Hail, fair sky! Hail, O radiant day! Long was my sleep; but now I wake: Who is the man wakes me to life? 20 From myth to film through the Gesamtkunstwerk In 1848, while writing his prose version of The Death of Siegfried, Wagner began to form the idea of what would become known as the Total Artwork or Gesamtkunstwerk, a new artistic concept which aimed to fuse music, poetry, dance and image. This new aesthetic amalgam would be the work of art of the future, as Wagner explained in several of his theoretical works, above all, Opera and Drama. 20 “Heil dir, Sonne! / Heil dir, Licht! / Heil dir, leuchtender Tag! / Lang war mein Schlaf; ich bin erwacht: / wer ist der Held, der mich erweckt’? ” (Trans. Anon. Available at www. operafolio.com/ libretto.asp? n=Siegfried&translation=UK#Top). Wagner, Richard (1876). Siegfried. Act III, Scene 3. Original libretto available at: http: / / gutenberg.spiegel.de/ buch/ siegfried-842/ 10. Similarly, at the end of the prologue to Götterdämmerung, Brunilde refers to Siegfried as “conquering light” “life in its radiance”: “Heil dir, Siegfried, siegendes Licht! / Heil, strahlendes Leben! ” (“Hail, O Siegfried, / conquering light ¡ / Hail, life in its radiance! ”). Richard Wagner, Siegfried. Libreto original accesible en: http: / / gutenberg. spiegel.de/ buch/ gotterdammerung-835/ 2 . Trans. Andrew Porter, available at https: / / www.chandos.net/ chanimages/ Booklets/ CH3060.pdf. The Siegfried myth in opera and on film: from Richard Wagner to Fritz Lang 25 The concept of Gesamtkunstwerk had first seen the light at the end of the eighteenth century as a reaction against the enlightenment idea, advocated by Lessing in his Laokoon, oder Über die Grenzen der Malerei und Poesie (Laocoon: An Essay on the Limits of Art and Painting, 1766), according to which music and poetry, as autonomous arts, should not be yoked together 21 . The German romantics were quick to conceive the idea of a universal poetic essence common to all arts, the substance of which lay beyond the sensible form of a given artwork and evoked the need to overcome the separation of the art. German philosopher Friedrich Schelling was the first romantic thinker to relate the notion of artistic fusion with opera, thereby sowing the seed that Wagner would cultivate in his Zurich essays. Wagner’s notion of the Total Artwork rests on the global coming together not only of art but of reality as a whole; in so doing, it pulls the rug of legitimacy from beneath all scientific, analytical or mechanistic world-views. For Wagner as for the German romantics, it was a matter of re-encountering through the artwork a primal unity guaranteeing the coherence of the universe at all levels. In fact, the Wagnerian Gesamtkunstwerk is the recovery and restitution of Greek tragedy. What Wagner called the drama of the future presupposed both the reunification of the three major forms of artistic expression, namely, dance, poetry and music, as the Greeks had done, and the inclusion in this new amalgam of a new element, the visual. It is that which made Wagner’s formulation particularly innovative and visionary in its anticipation of the cinematic art and the visual culture of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Wagner did not stop at revolutionising the world of music by creating a new musical language but went further and reconceived drama as a mould-breaking, technological spectacle. In his new conception of the theatre, all spectators had to enjoy an equally good view of the stage. This was not the case in European theatres of the time where such a view was enjoyed by the privileged taking their seats in the royal box or the stalls but unavailable to those cooped up in the Gods. For that reason, he built a Greek-style theatre at Bayreuth which allowed every member of the audience, irrespective of class, to have an equally good view of the stage, much as would happen in the cinema four decades later. Wagner also put the orchestra out of sight in his newly-created pit; that way, the musicians were invisible to the audience who were free to hear the music as if it emanated directly from what they were seeing on stage. Once again, the cinema would shortly follow suit. In addition, Wagner’s electronic contraptions (lighting, elevators, and so forth) lent the scene a new visual dimension which 21 Candoni, Jean François (2010). Gesamtkunstwerk. In: Dictionnaire Enciclopedique de Richard Wagner, 794-798. 26 Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina anticipated the essence of the cinematic art that was to take wing four decades after his death. In the French cradle of European Wagnerism, critics and theorists saw in turn-of-the-century cinema the same re-birth of Greek tragedy for the modern world that in his early stages Friedrich Nietzsche had seen in Wagnerian opera. Thus, the Italian film critic resident in Paris, Ricciotto Canudo, who coined the concept of cinema as the “seventh art”, proclaimed in 1911 that the birth of cinema —what he called “great synthetic theatre”— amounted to “tragedy’s renaissance” and inaugurated the great artistic renewal as presaged by Wagner 22 . Emile Vuillermoz, the well-known Parisian music and cinema critic of the 1920s whose opinions reverberated Europe-wide, argued in 1927 that it had been impossible to achieve satisfactorily the Total Artwork Wagner had dreamed of due to the restrictions of stage space. Wagner and those who succeeded him had endured “the appalling reliance on cardboard and clumsy machinery” 23 . His conclusion could not have been more pointed: “If he had been born fifty years later, Wagner would not have written his tetralogy for a stage, but for a screen” 24 . Thus, the arrival of cinema meant the enhancement of the artistic synthesis the Wagnerians had yearned for. The myth of Siegfried on film: Fritz Lang Viennese director Fritz Lang’s output belongs to the early days of the new art of cinema. In 1924 he premièred his mammoth film, Siegfried, which took the German hero as its subject. Lasting 143 minutes, it was the first part of his monumental diptych, Die Nibelungen, the second being Krimhild’s Revenge. Produced by Erich Pommer, with a screenplay by Thea von Harbou, music by Gottfried Huppertz and photography by Carl Hoffmann and Günther Rittau, the film was shot in line with the UFA’s principles 25 , was a hit across Europe and even caused a stir in United States. Although Fritz Lang wished to keep a distance from Wagner’s interpretation of the Siegfried myth in his Ring cycle, his cinematic diptych was associated from the start with Wagnerian aesthetics, as we shall see. 22 Ricciotto Canudo (1911, ed. 1995). La naissance d’un sixième Art. Essai sur le cinématographe. Essai sur le cinématographe. In: L’usine aux images. Paris: Séguier-Arte, 34. 23 “L’effroyable servitude au cartón-pâte et à la grossière machinerie” (author’s translation). Vuillermoz, Emile (1927). La musique des images. In: L’Art Cinématographique, III, 56. 24 “ S’il était né une cinquantaine d’années plus tard, Wagner aurait écrit sa Tétralogie non pas pour un plateau, mais pour un écran” (author’s translation). Vuillermoz, Emile (1927). La musique des images. In: L’Art Cinématographique, III, 56. 25 The UFA, acronym of Universum Film AG, was Germany’s most important film studio during the Weimar Republic. The Siegfried myth in opera and on film: from Richard Wagner to Fritz Lang 27 To begin with, links were forged directly during screenings which were accompanied by performances of Wagnerian pieces that had become indissociable from the characters of the Ring myths. Many of the major screenings in Paris and New York 26 were actually accompanied by musical extracts from Wagner’s Ring. Secondly, the relationship between the two was palpable in the composition of original scores using various musical procedures inspired by Wagner’s own methods, such as the leitmotif or the use of rhythm to emphasise visual sequences. Moreover, Lang’s Die Nibelungen could not avoid receiving a Wagnerising gloss given that the first French film theorists had persistently framed their thoughts on film rhythm and the stylisation of the fundamental parameters of cinematic expression in terms of the Wagnerian Total Artwork 27 . Much as Wagner had turned to medieval literary sources for his representation of Siegfried, so Thea von Harbou, Lang’s wife from 1922 to 1933 and screenwriter of almost all his films between 1920 and 1933, showed a keen interest from the start in mythological matters. With respect to the Die Nibelungen diptych, Lang himself took almost no part in writing the script as he was much more interested in the artistic aspects of set-design 28 than in the contents and the nationalist-political adaptation to which his wife wished to subject her medieval literary sources. As Michael Töteberg notes, while Lang refrained from airing his political opinions in the 1920s, his wife, Thea, was a woman of principles who made political comments in public, was fervent in voicing the ideas of the silent majority (“schweigende Mehrheit”) and showed clearly reactionary-nationalist tendencies 29 . Her nationalist ideology is plain to see in her screenplay for the film. Karin Bruns has explained how Thea, driven by the urge to produce something “genuinely German”, so shaped the literary sources to the screenplay that its legendary characters would take root in the public’s conscience. At the same time as injecting new life into the world of myth, her aim was to popularise national themes as a means of countering the cultural ho- 26 Guido, Laurent (2012). Une nouvelle formule d’opéra ou le film comme Gesamtkunstwerk: Les enjeux esthétiques de la reception française des Nibelungen. in: Les Nibelungen de Fritz Lang, musique de Gottfried Huppertz. Une approche pluridisciplinaire. Paris: L’Harmattan, 122-123. 27 Guido, Laurent (2012). Une nouvelle formule d’opéra ou le film comme Gesamtkunstwerk: Les enjeux esthétiques de la reception française des Nibelungen. in: Les Nibelungen de Fritz Lang, musique de Gottfried Huppertz. Une approche pluridisciplinaire. Paris: L’Harmattan, 122-123. 28 Hackfurt 2009: 45. 29 Töteberg, Michael (1985). Fritz Lang. Rowohlts Monographien. Reinbek bei Hamburg: Rowohlt, 26. 28 Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina mogenisation threatened by the film industry 30 . The film was actually dedicated explicitly “to the German people” (“dem deutschen Volke”) for Thea’s purpose in using The Song of the Nibelungen was that the Germans should turn to the heroic adventures and identify with Siegfried and the unswerving loyalty of the protagonist of the old tale of national exploits 31 . Not only that, but just as the first performance of Wagner’s Ring tetralogy had been a national event attended by the German Emperor, Wilhelm I, his Brazilian counterpart, Pedro II, as well as King Ludwig of Bavaria and political personages from the world over, so the première of Fritz Lang’s Die Nibelungen diptych was a major social event in which the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gustav Stresemann, and top officials of the Weimer government took part. Furthermore, it was Lang’s intention to give form to the Total Artwork through the new art of cinema. As Bertetto says, Lang’s films are particularly complex, capable of “bringing together all the technical, linguistic and pragmatic elements inherent to cinema in a new, strongly structured and artistically justified, synthetic version” 32 . No other director of the early 1920s showed so much artistic zeal in their work, “aiming at the creation of a Total Artwork on the basis of his synthetic and complex characters” 33 . Just as Wagner was able to transmit through language (his libretto) the idea of Siegfried as a messianic figure surrounded by light, so too was Lang, bringing it to the screen with the aid of his innovative photography and its novel interplay of mist and light which made the hero of myth float timelessly on an aura of white light (Fig. 2). 30 Bruns, Karin (1995). Kinomythen 1920-1945: die Filmentwürfe der Thea von Harbou. Stuttgart: Metzler, 17. 31 Mueller (2010: 85). 32 Bertetto, Paolo (1995). La voluntad y sus formas. In: Eissenschitz, B./ Bertetto, P. Fritz Lang. Madrid: Ediciones Documentos Filmoteca, 55. 33 Ibid. The Siegfried myth in opera and on film: from Richard Wagner to Fritz Lang 29 Fig. 4. Siegfried, surrounded by an aura of White light and mist, in Fritz Lang’s fi lm Siegfried (1924). Likewise, Lang’s scene of the dragon-slaying (Fig. 5), in which a dragon of the same shape and size as Wagner’s is discovered by the young, blond hero in a forest beside a river, is plainly indebted to the Wagnerian scenography devised by Joseph Hoff mann (Fig. 1). Fig. 5. Siegfried fi ghting the dragon as staged by Fritz Lang, Carl Hoff mann and Günther Ritt au (1924). Another feature of especial interest which has barely been researched to date is the importance of music as a narrative element within cinematic discourse. In the present case this is particularly significant since Lang commissioned the movie’s soundtrack from German composer Gottfried Huppertz, whose post-romanticism was a direct throwback to Wagner’s works. It is well-known that the technique of the leitmotif was a staple of movie soundtracks from the very earliest days of cinema 34 . While Huppertz went one step further in his use of Wagnerian guiding motifs and created his own language, the musical conception of the whole soundtrack is based on the Wagnerian principle of the leitmotif as a way of linking motifs or themes to different parts of the story which could be developed in different ways as and when the narrative required 35 . As in Wagner’s majestic work, the immense cinematic architectonics of Lang’s Die Nibelungen provide the perfect frame for the epic stature of its mythical heroes. Lang dispensed with the aesthetics of Wagner’s late romanticism in favour of more contemporary modes. As Lotte Eisner explains, the balanced architecture of Die Nibelungen deployed some principles of German expressionism, chief among them the expressive stylisation of its large surfaces. Like the expressionists, Lang sought the essential, the mighty line and compression, all of which issued in an “absolute fusion of abstract forms”. To transmit his message Lang needed “monumental proportions” 36 . Not only that, but to achieve his celluloid Siegfried Lang abided by the principles of the UFA which, at that time, rejected the use of outdoor shots 37 . Thus, the director had no choice but to make use of new scenography tools to give the landscape its “soul” 38 , in this case by means of images soaked in atmosphere (Stimmungsbilder) which enveloped the characters and endowed them—as we saw with Siegfried—with a more profound symbolic force. Like Wagner, Lang aimed to contrive spectacular effects, which is why he illuminated the grandiosely rigid architecture with a novel and cunning combination of lighting (Fig. 3). Also, like Wagner’s, whose epic tale unfolds slowly in the timelessness of myth, Lang’s cinematic narrative is majestically slow-moving. If it took Wagner a four-opera cycle lasting a total of over fifteen hours to tell his 1876 saga of 34 Guido (2012: 120). 35 Villani, Vivien/ Anger, Violaine (2012). ‘Les Nibelungen’ de Fritz Lang, émergence de la ‘musique de film’? Esquisse d’une aproche analytique. In Anger, Violaine/ Roullé, Antoine (eds). Les Nibelungen de Fritz Lang, musique de Gottfried Huppertz. Une aproche pluridisciplinaire. Paris: L’Harmattan, 155-170. 36 Eisner, Lotte H. (1988). La pantalla demoníaca. Las influencias de Max Reinhardt y del expresionismo. Madrid: Cátedra, 112. 37 Eisner (1988: 107 -117). 38 Eisner (1988: 108). 30 Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina the Nibelung, Lang was hardly more hurried, his 1924 film diptych running to a total length of over seven hours. Conclusions From the turn of the twentieth century, Wagner’s personal vision of the Siegfried myth marked a watershed in audio-visual interpretations of the German hero. Based on German (the medieval Song of the Nibelungs) and Nordic (the Scandinavian Eddas), the tale of Siegfried was the germ of Wagner’s grandiose tetralogy, The Ring of the Nibelungen, a four-opera cycle showcasing the results of Wagner’s theoretical engagement with the Total Artwork, Gesamtkunstwerk, which, in the tradition of the German romantics, was an attempt to unite all the arts in a single, new artistic product. Despite Fritz Lang’s wishes to preserve a distance from Wagner’s reading of the Siegfried myth, his film diptych, Die Nibelungen contains evident parallels with the German master’s interpretation. This is clear, in the first place, in its music in so far as the Gottfried Huppertz’s scores for the soundtrack resort to techniques inspired by Wagner’s methods such as the use of the leitmotif or the rhythmic emphasis given to visual episodes. A second parallel is the slow progress of the mythical tale, Wagner’s fifteen hours of opera being corresponded in Lang’s seven hour-long film diptych. Thirdly, the social critique underlying Wagner’s work is manifest too in Lang’s film. Wagner viewed the Siegfried myth as embodying his revolutionary aspirations, according to which a pure German hero, a new man, unfettered by convention, would free the world of politics from alienation and the thirst for possession. In the same way, Thea Von Harbou’s screenplay, with its explicit dedication to the German people, pursued political goals in so far as Siegfried, also based on mythology, as universal as he was timeless, was presented as a new hero for the German people to identify with as part of her nationalist programme. Finally, in aesthetic terms, Lang’s work was indebted to and a continuation of the Wagnerian Gesamtkunstwerk in regard of its innovative and personal synthetic vision of cinema. The architectonic structures which set the scene for Siegfried’s actions, the stylised landscape in which he is immersed, the messianic light which shrouds him, and the music which underscores the action together create an aesthetic end-product which is similar in substance to the achievement of Wagner’s musical drama. Wagner’s future artwork was therefore truly visionary, not only in its recovery of the ancient Greek fusion of music, poetry and dance, but also in its addition to that amalgam of a new element which would be of vital importance to twentieth-century art and omnipresent in that of the twenty-first. That element was the image. The Siegfried myth in opera and on film: from Richard Wagner to Fritz Lang 31 The Ring of the Nibelung: Philosophy, Wagner and La Fura dels Baus Magda Polo Pujadas “(…) helles Feuer das Herz mir erfaßt, ihn zu umschlingen, umschlossen von ihm, in mächtigster Minne vermählt ihm zu sein! ” Richard Wagner Introduction There is no project in the history of opera that has been macerated for as long as Der Ring des Nibelungen (more than 26 years of the writer’s life). R. Wagner's tetralogy is a paradigmatic case with respect to this process of creation in which social revolutions, ideological changes, revisions of the book and music are made to conceive this particular Wagnerian “Weltanschauung”, which represents The Ring of the Nibelung. The main purpose was to recover the essence of mythology, Nordic or Scandinavian, as a supernatural way of explaining something that not only happened in literary fiction but also in reality in the mid-nineteenth century in the form of a society that had just dealt with one of the most convulsive revolutions of Romanticism, that of 1848, also known as “The Spring of Nations”. From the many musical and artistic directions that have taken place on stage around the world, I will focus my research -with the aim of analyzing an audiovisual projecton the tetralogy conducted by La Fura dels Baus, a company which, since its foundation in Moià in 1979, has broken all the rules of art. I will concentrate specifically on the project created by Carlus Padrissa and accompanied by the musical direction of Zubin Mehta. Padrissa dared to conceive the prologue (or preliminary evening) and the three days that make up the great work, two of which premiered at the Palau de les Arts in Valencia in 2009, with 34 Magda Polo Pujadas the spirit of bringing to the stage the first of the complete versions made by Wagner. 1 He was seduced by the most original version of all, which allowed him to make a reading “very furera”, giving it an optimistic, Mediterranean ending. The four parts that constitute the Ring cycle are, in sequence: Das Rheingold (The Rhinegold), Die Walküre (The Valkyrie), Siegfried and Götterdämmerung (The Twilight of the Gods). If Wagner started the tetralogy at the end 2 -as an extension of a previous project entitled The Death of Siegfriedit was because he felt he had to explain to his audience how Gods were killed. Thus, it became necessary to explain the origin and life of the hero using antonomasia, in this case Siegfried, which resulted in the conception of Siegfried, the The Valkyrie and The Twilight of the Gods, in that order. That this work was conceived from the end to the beginning meant that it was created in a cyclical way, from the decline of the Gods and the end of the world to the origin of the deities and the beginning of the world. This cyclical, very Greek character -a reminder of the concept of Nietzsche’s eternal returninfuses the work with a with a sense of myth on the one hand and with philosophy on the other. Bryan Magee states at the beginning of his book Wagner and the philosophy that The Ring deals with a process of maturation of the world in an explicitly feuerbachian sense: first, the gods assume the control of the world and then, little by little, the humans follow suit. 3 Later, he recognizes that, at the end of the compositional Wagnerian path and with Schopenhauer’s influence, he represented a metaphysical remedy. 4 Therefore, there are two philosophical sources with a strong presence in the tetralogy: L. Feuerbach and A. Schopenhauer, representing two philosophies that clash head on in The Twilight. The ideologies of both philosophers are very opposed. Feuerbach’s is clearly marked by materialism, by an eminently anthropological conception of theology, religion and man, in which reality is what really exists. By contrast, Schopenhauer’s is circumscribed by philosophical idealism, influenced by Buddhism, by a pessimistic view of the world and mankind and by the supreme recognition of the idea, or rather, of the Will, as the origin of the world, from a totally metaphysical, phenomenal angle, far from the real. This chapter will emphasize these two philosophical influences, which marked the changes that Wagner made in that Total Artwork despite following the Scandinavian mythology and how the two aforementioned philosophies 1 It is important to remember that there were at least five versions and revisions of the work in different years. 2 Haymes, Edward R. (2010). Wagner’s Ring in 1848. Rochester (New York): Camdem House, p. 2-3. 3 Magee (2001: 54). 4 Magee (2001: 139). The Ring of the Nibelung: Philosophy, Wagner and La Fura dels Baus 35 come to light in the immolation of Brünhilde in the final scene of The Twilight of the Gods. The chapter will also take into account what is the “furera conception” of this global Artwork that consider these points of intersection based on a contemporary vision. The hypothesis from which we will depart after having studied different lines of research, mainly Anglo-Saxon, is that Wagner was ahead of the philosophies of his time, either by intuition or foreboding. All of these concepts are often associated with the definition of a class of Leitmotiv. In this sense, we will affirm that the tetralogy is guided by certain ideologies and materialistic and idealistic thoughts before reading Feuerbach and Schopenahuer and that they acted as Leitmotiv during the 26 years of its composition and also clearly as musical Leitmotiv at the end of The Twilight of the gods. 5 The restoration of myth as the ontological foundation of Tetralogy The Volsunga Saga, The poetic Edda, The prosaic Edda, The Song of the Nibelungen and The saga of Thidriks af Bern, together with the Germanic mythology by Jacob Grimm and The saga of the German hero by Wilhelm Grimm were sources that served as the basis for the construction of the tetralogy.It is Jacob Grimm who could be said to exercise a more remarkable authority. 6 In these mythological sources, Wagner found a foundation for establishing a new religion based on a particular conception of nature, at a time when political ideology needed new formulations, such as the socialist or the anarchist, in a convulsed Europe. The political frustration of Dresden in 1849 led Wagner to find in the myth the essence of the German people that would take shape in the symbolic project that The Ring would represent, And in a period in which Christianity was showing signs of irrationality. For this reason, the Nordic mythology compilations served to Wagner to be placed in a vision of the world before the Christianisation of the Germanic peoples. Although he did not follow exactly what they were talking about, it did serve as an ideological foundation for his philosophical-musical project. In fact, The Ring considers -in the same way that Nordic mythology doesthree races: Gods, who live in the on high, Giants, who dwell on the earth and are replaced by men and Nibelungs, who live under the earth and forge metals. In this context there is one element that justifies all the drama of operas: gold, which represents power and materialism and is opposed 5 As Eduardo Pérez Maseda maintains, we could speak of “intuitive proclivity” (Pérez Maseda, Eduardo. (2004); El Wagner de las Ideologías. Niezsche-Wagner. Madrid: Biblioteca Nueva, p. 110). 6 Salmerón Infante, Miguel. “Símbolo y forma: los hermanos Grimm en Richard Wagner”, Castilla. Estudios de la literatura, vol. 6 (2015), pp. 250-268, p. 252. 36 Magda Polo Pujadas to love. It will be necessary to return the gold to its place of origin, the Rhine, so that peace and harmony in the world can be restored. It will also be necessary for the death of gods in order for humans and love to reign. It is evident what the function of myth is and how Wagner uses it in his work in a text attributed to Hölderlin, Schelling and Hegel called The Oldest Systematic Program of German Idealism: First I will speak about an idea here, which as far as I know, has never occurred to anyone’s mind-we must have a new mythology; this mythology must, however, stand in the service of ideas, it must become a mythology of reason. Until we make ideas aesthetic, i.e., mythological, they hold no interest for the people, and conversely, before mythology is reasonable, the philosopher must be ashamed of it. Thus finally the enlightened and unenlightened must shake hands; mythology must become philosophical, and the people reasonable, and philosophy must become mythological in order to make philosophy sensual. Then external unity will reign among us. Never again the contemptuous glance, never the blind trembling of the people before its wise men and priests. Only then does equal development of all powers await us, of the individual as well as if all individuals. No power will be suppressed any longer, then general freedom and equality of spirits will reign-- A higher spirit sent from heaven must establish this religion among us, it will be the last work of the human race. 7 To refound a new philosophy it must be made mythological. For that reason there is a key word in Scandinavian mythology, which is “Ragnarök”, meaning “destiny of the gods”. This destiny will be fought for in a great battle in which the entire universe will be burned with fire and all beings on earth will die and the sun and the stars will go out. Toxic vapors will arise and everything will be incinerated. In the end, the earth will sink into the sea. After this destruction, a new land will emerge from the sea, green and fair. Some Gods and humans will survive the great battle, those chosen by Wotan and the Valkyries, and the great moment of renewal will come to pass. The tetralogy of Wagner represents the awareness of philosophy through myth and music. The logos will have to travel back to the myth to recover the purest sense of the link between humans and nature so that universal freedom and equality between humans can reign. Wagner placed mythology at the service of his own ideas. La Fura dels Baus does exactly the same. For the Fura, the Germanic myth developed by Wagner includes many common features of Greek and, as Padrissa would say, “Mediterranean” myths. The origin of the world and its corruption is shared at the roots of all the myths of our universal culture. Myths embody the essence of gods and menand represent 7 Available under: https: / / control-society.livejournal.com/ 10718.html (Stand: 01/ 10/ 2018). The Ring of the Nibelung: Philosophy, Wagner and La Fura dels Baus 37 a dialogue between the physical and the metaphysical, as Daniela A. AM Schulz comments. 8 In The Ring, this is what happens. In turn, as Padrissa suggests, the mythologicaland archaic can always explain the present and invite a new future. The philosophies that underlie the Wagnerian project It is normal to distinguish two stages in Wagner. The first is the “revolutionary” stage, in which he wrote Art and Revolution (1849), The Artwork of the future (1850) and Opera and Drama (1851). He was a friend of Feuerbach, of Bakunin, of Röckel and of the left-wing Hegelians and read Proudhon and the utopian socialists. The second stage was more conservative, abandoning its adherence to utopian socialism, instead approaching Christianity and communing with the Kaiser and the Prussian hegemony in Germany. In these two phases there are three philosophers, who overfly the creation of The Ring and whom Wagner cites ideologically in his work. The Essence of Christianity, Principles of the Philosophy of the Future and Thoughts on Death and Immortality by Feuerbach, The World as Will and Representation by Schopenahuer and The Birth of Tragedy and Richard Wagner in Bayreuth by Nietzsche. All these works caused the greatest impact on the German composer the greatest impact on the German composerall impacted heavily on Wagner. In this chapter we are going to focusIn this chapter we are going to focusThis chapter focuses on the first two days and the last day of The Twilight of the Gods and, particularly its ending, which was somewhat controversial due to the number of times that Wagner changed it. As Carl Dahlhaus writes in Richard Wagner’s Music Dramas: Wagner Changed the end of Götterdämmerung time and again, as thought there were no limit to the drastically different political and/ or philosophical convictions one drama could be expected to express. This is a source of great embarrassment to exegetes who would prefer to grasp an author by his “last words”. Wagner himself was by no means certain what his own work meant, and it is safer for us to place our trust in Wagner the dramatist than in the philosopher, who propounded the ideology of himself. 9 Continuing with the contribution of Dahlhaus, it is not clear if what really matters at the end of The Twilight-… is to show the unbending love of Brünhilde, 8 Schulz, Daniela A.AM. (2013). Körper - Grenzen - Räume. Die katalanische Theatergruppe “La Fura dels Baus” und ihre Performances, Bielefeld: Transcript Verlag, p. 193. 9 Dahlhaus, Carl. (1992). Richard Wagner’s music dramas. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 138. 38 Magda Polo Pujadas the redemption for love towards Siegfried, the renunciation of the world or the resignation of Wotan. 10 It is important to highlight that it would be possible to go into more detail of all the revisions that were made in the booklet regarding the end of The Twilight- … However, this would exceed the objective of the research. James Locus, in his article The incongruence of the schopenhauerian Ending in Wagner’s Götterdämmerung, proposes five endings: November 1848, a romantic ending in which the great love that Brünhilde feels for Siegfried is affirmed; the end of December 1848, in which a more religious tone is acquired; that of 1852, with the end of Feuerbach and clearly atheistic; the published end of December 1852, emphasizing the power of love and the new world of men; and May 1856, the Schopenhauer end, in which the world clearly disappears to quiet the pain and suffering on earth, with a clear Buddhist influence. 11 According to Warren Darcy, we are interested in two aspects: the end of The Twilight of the Gods, whose libretto was finally finished in July 1872, with two footnotes from the Feuerbachian and Schopenhauerian verses 12 and the music of November of 1874, which was released as the culmination of the cycle of The Ring of the Nibelung in the Bayreuth Festspielhaus in August of 1876 under the direction of Hans Richter. These are the verses that appeared as notes. Firstly, the Feuerbach ending: Though the race of gods Passed away like a breath, Though I leave behind me A world without rulers, I now bequeath to that world My most sacred wisdom’s hoard. Not wealth, not gold, nor godly pomp; not house, not garth, nor lordly splendour; not troubled treaties’ treacherous bonds, not smooth-tongued custom’s stern decree: blessed in joy 10 Dahlhaus (1992: 141). 11 Locus, James (2012). “The Incongruence of the Schopenhauerian Ending in Wagner’s Götterdämmerung”. Available under: https: / / web.stanford.edu/ group/ journal/ cgi-bin/ wordpress/ wp-content/ uploads/ 2012/ 09/ Locus_Hum_2008.pdf (Stand: 10/ 11/ 2018). 12 Darcy, Warren. (1994). The Metaphysics of Annihilation: Wagner, Schopenhauer, and the Ending of the “Ring”, MTS, 16: 1, 1-40, p. 3. The Ring of the Nibelung: Philosophy, Wagner and La Fura dels Baus 39 and sorrow love alone can be. 13 and then the Schopenhauer ending: I depart from the home of desire, I flee forever from the home of delusion; the open gates, of eternal becoming I close behind me: to the holiest chosen land, free from desire and delusion, the goal of world-wandering redeemed from rebirth, the enlightened one now goes The blessed end of all things eternal do you know how I attained it? Grieving love’s deepest suffering opened my eyes: I saw the world end. 14 These footnotes, which represent two of the different endings of The Twilight-…, show us how the work represented a clash in the evolution of Wagner’s materialist-to-idealist thought. In The Twilight of the Gods it is evident that Wagner is steeped in the philosophy of Feuerbach, since the gods leave for men to rule. This ending is an optimistic and Feuerbachian endingas love is the only thing that makes possible the essence of the human being and the belief in the infinite capacity of man. For Feuerbach, 15 the principle of philosophy is no longer situated, as Hegel had thought, in the Spirit or the absolute but in the human being and in nature. Religion and gods are a human creation that have taken man away from his essence. Men have created God, according to their needs and anguish, and not the other way around. They have created it in their image and likeness, projecting into the idea of God the qualities of humanity. Submission to and admiration 13 Magee, Bryan (2001). Wagner and Philosophy. London: Penguin Books, epub, p. 54-55. 14 Magee (2001: 150-151). 15 There is some evidence in My life that this philosopher influenced the thinking of Richard Wagner. Consider the dedication of his first important theoretical book: The Artwork of the future. Wagner, Richard. My life, vol. 1, epub. Available under: www.gutenberg.org/ ebooks/ 5197: 349, 367 and 369 (Stand: 13/ 11/ 2018). 40 Magda Polo Pujadas of God have led to the alienation of man. Through education, man must free himself from this alienating mechanism and occupy the place that God has usurped. A new religion of humanity, a humanism without God, a humanistic atheism that transforms the idealistic philosophy into a philosophical anthropology becomes necessary. In 1852, Wagner had finished the librettos of The Rhinegold and Valkyrie and had realized that the cycle must end with the destruction by fire of both Valhalla and the Gods. The new ending of this last opera was influenced by the reading that Wagner made of Ludwig Feuerbach, whose writings suggested that Gods were the construction of human minds and that love prevailed over all other human affairs. In this ending of Feuerbach’s, Brünnhilde proclaims the destruction of the Gods and their replacement by human society, governed by love. In the year 1874, after various versions, Wagner finally decided to compose the ending, returning to the 1852 version, but without its Feuerbachian ending that exposed the important conception of love in this philosopher. What, then, is the nature of man, of which he is conscious, or what constitutes the specific distinction, the proper humanity of man? Reason, Will, Affection. To a complete man belong the power of thought, the power of will, the power of affection. The power of thought is the light of the intellect, the power of will is energy of character, the power of affection is love. Reason, love, force of will, are perfections—the perfections of the human being—nay, more, they are absolute perfections of being. To will, to love, to think, are the highest powers, are the absolute nature of man as man, and the basis of his existence. Man exists to think, to love, to will. Now that which is the end, the ultimate aim, is also the true basis and principle of a being. But what is the end of reason? Reason. Of love? Love. Of will? Freedom of the will. We think for the sake of thinking; love for the sake of loving; will for the sake of willing—i.e., that we may be free. True existence is thinking, loving, willing existence. That alone is true, perfect, divine, which exists for its own sake. But such is love, such is reason, such is will. The divine trinity in man, above the individual man, is the unity of reason, love, will. Reason, Will, Love, are not powers which man possesses, for he is nothing without them, he is what he is only by them; they are the constituent elements of his nature, which he neither has nor makes, the animating, determining, governing powers—divine, absolute powers—to which he can oppose no resistance. 16 In 1854, after having finished the first act of Valkyrie, Wagner wrote, when he rewrite this work, which was devoted to his favorite reading The World as Will and Representation by Schopenhauer. 17 This book had been recommended to 16 Feuerbach, Ludwig. The Essence of Christianity, epub. Available under: www.gutenberg. org/ ebooks/ 47025, p. 17 (Stand: 13/ 11/ 2018). 17 Wagner, Richard. (2012). My life, vol. 2, epub. Available under: www.gutenberg.org/ ebooks/ 5144, p. 53 (Stand: 13/ 11/ 2018). The Ring of the Nibelung: Philosophy, Wagner and La Fura dels Baus 41 him by Georg Herwegh, a poet who was also exiled in Switzerland for political reasons and who, as we can see in different passages of My Life, occupied a very special place Wagner’s heart. As a token of gratitude to the one who had provided him moments of such intense intellectual enjoyment, Wagner sent the philosopher a copy of the Poem of the Nibelungen, paying him tribute. In The World as Will and Representation paragraphs can be found as Wagnerian as this one: “Therefore we called the phenomenal world the mirror of the will, its objectivity. And since what the will wills is always life, just because life is nothing but the representation of that willing for the idea, it is all one and a mere pleonism if, instead of simply saying “the will,” we say “the will to live.” Will is the thing-in-itself, the inner content, the essence of the world. Life, the visible world, the phenomenon, is only the mirror of the will. Therefore life accompanies the will as inseparably as the shadow accompanies the body; and if will exists, so will life, the world, exist.(…) That generation and death are to be regarded as something belonging to life, and essential to this phenomenon of the will, arises also from the fact that they both exhibit themselves merely as higher powers of the expression of that in which all the rest of life consists. 18 Although Wagner never composed the verses of Schopenhauer or those of Feuerbach included in the intermediate versions, they did appear, as aforementioned, as footnotes in the printed edition of the text, together with an added note that, while he preferred the lines of Schopenhauer, he did not include them because their meaning was better expressed by music alone. In other words, the ending that he decided to the music was intended to be Schopenhauerian, although it was never affirmed that way explicitly in the libretto since, according to Darcy Wagner, he had already finished it before reading The World-… According to Schopenhauerian vision, only music, without words, purely instrumental, is what the will can represent. That in some sense music must be related to the world as the representation to the thing represented, as the copy to the original, we may conclude from the analogy of the other arts, all of which possess this character, and affect us on the whole in the same way as it does, only that the effect of music is stronger, quicker, more necessary and infallible. Further, its representative relation to the world must be very deep, absolutely true, and strikingly accurate, because it is instantly understood by everyone, and has the appearance of a certain infallibility, because its form may be reduced to perfectly definite rules expressed in numbers, from which it cannot free itself without entirely ceasing to be music. Yet the point of comparison between music and the world, the respect in which it stands to the world in the relation of a copy or 18 Schopenhauer; Arthur. (2011) The World as Will and Representation. Available under: www.gutenberg.org/ files/ 38427/ 38427-pdf.pdf ? session_id=3e2fd1c5eab7c92fcedad041378628e49918bd01, p. 355-357 (Stand: 13/ 11/ 2018). 42 Magda Polo Pujadas repetition, is very obscure. Men have practised music in all ages without being able to account for this; content to understand it directly, they renounce all claim to an abstract conception of this direct understanding itself. 19 However, since the pessimistic side of Schopenhauer would claim a denial of the will to live to belong to essence or will, it is interesting to consider Schopenhauer’s conception of love: But before I go further, and, as the conclusion ofmyexposition, show how love, the origin and nature of which we recognised as the penetration of the principium individuationis, leads to salvation, to the entire surrender of the will to live, i.e., of all volition, and also how another path, less soft but more frequented, leads men to the same goal, a paradoxical proposition must first be stated and explained; not because it is paradoxical, but because it is true, and is necessary to the completeness of the thought I have present. 20 The Tetralogy of La Fura dels Baus There have been many representations of The Ring, from a socialist critique of industrial society , as in The Perfect Wagnerite by George Bernard Shaw 21 to the most Jungian, , which can be found depicted in Wagner’s Ring and its Symbols by Robert Donington 22 and that raises the opera as the development of unconscious archetypes. To discover the the Fura’s interpretation and to enter into the theoretical bases of the construction of the “furera” tetralogy, it is essential to know the voice of its director, Carlus Padrissa, and his project. 23 From the reading by 19 Schopenhauer (2011: 334-335). 20 Schopenhauer (2011: 480). 21 “And now, attentive Reader, we have reached the point at which some foolish person is sure to interrupt us by declaring that The Rhine Gold is what they call “a work of art” pure and simple, and that Wagner never dreamt of shareholders, tall hats, whitelead factories, and industrial and political questions looked at from the socialistic and humanitarian points of view.” (Shaw, George Bernard. The perfect wagnerite. A comentary of Nibelungs Ring. Wagner as Revolucionist. Available under: http: / / www.gutenberg.org/ files/ 1487/ 1487-h/ 1487-h.htm#link2H_4_0008 (Stand: 20/ 11/ 2018). 22 Donington, Robert. (1963). Wagner’s Ring and its Symbols. London: Faber & Faber Limited. 23 This project came up in 1999 when Helga Schmidt met La Fura in Salzburg to talk about a project that did not work out but the good relationship they established led them to start talking about The Ring of Nibelung project, co-produced by El Palau de les Arts de València and the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Theater. Importantly, when they developed the Schmidt Ring they suggested reflecting on light as an important element of the opera and so they did. The Ring of the Nibelung: Philosophy, Wagner and La Fura dels Baus 43 Padrissa himself in Dejad que exista solo el amor! 24 (Let there be only love! ), it is evident that he proposes something that Wagner also expressed in The Ring: to represent the world in which man finds himself, a world in crisis and in a trance, and build from a critical attitude the possibility of a new world, populated by men with a new sense of responsibility towards nature and towards other people. There is a very clear correlation between the two projects since the message of the work of Wagner and Fura’s artistic direction respond to that same objective. To make it clearer still, Padrissa seizes the words of Wagnerian Ángel Fernando Mayo, who very sharply synthesized what Wagner’s tetralogy could represent nowadays: As Ángel Fernando Mayo wrote, today Wagner’s Tetralogy can be understood, on the one hand as the suicidal degradation of nature at the hands of technical man, as a destructive spiral where war, genocide and the irrational exploitation of natural resources have no place. And, on the other hand, the loss of individual and cultural identity of today’s man, massified, manipulated by himself and by others, devoured by a propaganda medium that mediates his decisions and makes him replace his interests as an unrepeatable individual with others of caste or class, artificial, political, economic or pseudo-social-… 25 Later in the same text, Padrissa outlines what the vision for The Ring would be, a conception that aimed to overcome the one, by Patrice Chéreau and Pierre Boulez in Bayreuth in 1976, that served as a guide, which was the most risky until then, as well as the version by Otto Schenk in 1987 in The Met. Padrissa writes: Our proposal wants to recover a symbolist vision of the characters that, strongly characterized with their ancestral elements, remain in the middle of the scene wrapped with their dresses and sets of light. All this in a slow and continuous rotation of tonalities, brightness and shadows that evokes the most profound and forgotten ecology of our existence. La Fura also contributes its theatrical energy in which the body of the actor is the canvas to be covered with plastic materials: paint, flour, mud, straw-… its rituals and sacrifices surrounded by the ancestral struggle of the elements earth, air, water, fire, wood and metal. 26 The symbolist vision of which Padrissa speaks deeply respects the ancestral and the mythological. It is in the audiovisual projections, more than in music, that the message of the myth will be reinforced, an important aspect of this staging, which, as Padrissa himself describes, “is at the limit of the furero language”. It is 24 Padrissa, Carlus. (2009). “Dejad que exista solo el amor”, in: Das Rheingold. Richard Wagner (1813-1883), València: Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia de la Generalitat Valenciana. 25 Padrissa (2009: 31). 26 Padrissa (2009: 32). at the limit because, in opera, the language has to be more measured. You cannot make much noise because there is music and, therefore, there has to be more provocation than shouting. Thus, the image, for the Fura, is a great provocation for that great metaphor that represents the tetralogy. As Padrissa comments in an interview conducted by Justo Romero: We are a little more baroque because we use video. Is different. Video is an important element, which is light, but a very controllable light (…) It is more the union of cinema, too, which in the 19th century Wagner had not considered. It is very curious that the decline of the opera began with the emergence of cinema. And yet now both genders embrace in the common scene. 27 Following this proposal Padrissa’s audiovisual proposal fully respects the tempo of the Wagnerian score. It is a “delayed game” because the story is explained in a very slow way. Mythology is out of time and Padrissa finds a parallel between Nordic and Greek mythology in order to translate its way of understanding it. In the suitcases of the trips to Italy that many of the romantic artists, including Wagner, went on, they took part of the Mediterranean light and that is the basis of Padrissa’s interpretation, which, as he himself confesses, is very Dalinian. The Fura utilises modern technology to update as much as possible the context in which The Ring is perceived in 2009. For example, you reach Earth in The Valkyrie through Google Earth. This resource allows us to travel at the speed of light, as only the gods could (as Wotan does, for instance). Padrissa uses this methodology as a leitmotiv until the end. Without going any further, when the earth is burned, a version of Google Earth with a blackish earth is used, as if burnt by oil. Another example to consider is how Valhalla is represented in the sculpture of The Thinker by Rodin, in high definition. It was created with multiple screens to be able to split the image into many segments and was built by men -an androgen made with people. The molecular structure -a reference that is repeated in the tetralogyacts as if each person were a cell, as if the dead who collect the Valkyrie took them to Valhalla and created an ideal person. In the words of Padrissa: “The Thinker! That, in addition, would come to represent the ideal man who also imagined Wagner, with that transmutation that he wanted the public to suffer-…” 28 . Gold has also been conceived in a molecular way, created by people, and the fire that surrounds Brünhilde is also a fire created by 64 torches, in a molecular way. After taking into account these considerations and focusing on the philosophy that prevails in the Fura dels Baus, there is no doubt that the ending is 27 Padrissa (2009: 77). 28 Padrissa (2009: 94). 44 Magda Polo Pujadas overwhelmingly positive, illustrating as it does the value of man and the power of man to re-establish a new order. Therefore, it would seem that Feuerbach’s philosophy leaves its mark on Padrissa, not only because all the molecular structures are built by men, by the characteristics of Valhalla, by the conception of fire etc. but because at the end of The Twilight of the Gods and as Brünhilde says in her final sentence, what remains, after the devastation by fire, is love, “die Liebe”, a concept so important to the materialist philosopher who had such an impact on Wagner but which Wagner himself suppressed, influenced by Schopenhauer. Hence, in the Fura, the erased message appears in which it is implied that love is what remains at the end of everything. The Ring of the Nibelung: Philosophy, Wagner and La Fura dels Baus 45 Staging Wotan: Chéreau, Schenk, Fura del Baus 47 Staging Wotan: Chéreau, Schenk, Fura del Baus Miguel Salmerón Infante ‘Traddutore traditore’ As the famous saying goes, ‘traddutore traditore’—translators are traitors. Let us take the term ‘translator’ from a broader angle and apply it to any field of activity in which content needs to be conveyed from one medium to another. So to speak, an intersemiotic translation. This paper will discuss two translations and, as a consequence, examine two potential instances of perfidy: Wagner’s translation of mythology into his libretti, and the scenographers’ translation of these libretti into the stage performance. Richard Wagner maintained a very flexible attitude toward blending traditional myths and legends with his work, and incorporating historical events into his libretti. He freely translated, without inhibition of any kind, everything he found useful and effective for his works. Wagnerian scenographers, for their part, have differed widely in their approach. Some have faithfully followed the composer, while others have introduced variations to the actions in the stage. In some instances, these variations have taken certain anecdotic licences, while in other cases they have led to major alterations to the plot. This paper will study the scenography for Der Ring des Nibelungen focusing on the figure of Wotan. Wagner wrote the libretto for his most extensive musical drama based on a free rendering of the Edda and the Nibelungenlied. Below is a brief overview of the topics he selected from these sagas, especially those concerning the chief Scandinavian-Germanic god: Odin- Wotan. Later, this paper shall examine the treatment given to these topics in three stage productions. 48 Miguel Salmerón Infante Betrayals by Wagner The sources from which Wagner gathered material for his libretto were the German heroes presented by Mone 1 , those of the Edda 2 and Von der Hagen’s Der Nibelungen Lied. 3 The expository and hybrid statements in the last of these were unsatisfactory and lacking in philological rigour in the opinion of the Brothers Grimm. 4 The most decisive text for Wagner, however, which allowed him to become intimately acquainted with the theme of the Ring, was undoubtedly Jacob Grimm’s Deutsche Mythologie, 5 the effects of which Wagner himself described as abductive. Vor meiner Seele baute sich eine Welt von Gestalten auf, welche sich wiederum so unerwartet plastisch und unverwandt kenntlich zeigten, daß ich sie deutlich von mir sah und ihre Sprache in mir hörte, endlich nicht begreifen konnte, woher gerade diese fast greifbare Vertrautheit und Sicherheit ihres Gebarens kam. 6 It is worth underscoring this point, as Wagner relates how the compendium of stories by the Brothers Grimm inspired visions that became recognisable, understandable and close. All this was of such great intensity that he could not tell where such familiarity had sprung from. This non-finito in the description takes on a markedly romantic nuance. It would seem that the provenance of such familiarity was an earlier telluric link between Wagner and the Germanic myths, as something carried under the skin or present in the blood. Moreover, Wagner appeals - without referring to terminology unknown to him, as it had not yet been created - to the unconscious. Not only was his reading of Grimm, like those of Mone and Von der Hagen, not literal, but it generated a series of autonomous images that compounded the true basis for Der Ring. Two issues merit special attention to identify differences and similarities between Wagner’s sources and the libretto for the Ring: Wotan’s nature and the burning of Walhall. 1 Mone, Franz Joseph (1836). Untersuchungen zur Geschichte der Teutschen Heldensage. Leipzig: G. Basse. 2 Von der Hagen, Friedrich Heinrich (Hg.) (1812). Die Edda-Lieder von den Nibelungen zum erstenmal verdeutscht und erklärt. Breslau: J. Max. 3 Von der Hagen, Friedrich Heinrich (Hg.) (1816). Der Nibelungen Lied, zum erstenmal in der ältesten Gestalt aus der St. Galler Handschrift mit Vergleichung der übrigen Handschriften. Zweite mit einem vollständigen Wörterbuche vermehrte Auflage. Breslau: J. Max. 4 Haymes, Edward R. (2010). Wagner´s Ring in 1848. Rochester: Camden House, 14. 5 Grimm, Jacob (1844). Deutsche Mythologie, Göttingen: Dietrich. 6 Wagner, Richard (1976). Mein Leben, Vollständige kommentierte Ausgabe. Martin Gregor-Dellin (ed.). München: List Verlag, 273. Staging Wotan: Chéreau, Schenk, Fura del Baus 49 Odin or Wotan in the Edda is a complex being. The intricacy of his character is due to features and forms of activity formerly associated with other deities becoming assimilated in his nature over many centuries: father of gods, god of war and of the dead, god of poetry, runes and ecstatic experience, with clear shamanic traits. 7 Nordic religion does not have omniscient gods that monopolise the other world and the transcendent. These deities, and Wotan in particular, far from all-knowing, need to learn of what awaits them in the other world. This yearning for knowledge on behalf of the mythical Wotan is expressed in that his palatial residence, Valaskjálf, allows him a view of the whole world, and his ravens, Hugin and Munin, fly everywhere bringing him news of what is happening. Wotan’s insecurity causes him to sacrifice an eye for the privilege of drinking from Mimir’s well. This burning quest for knowledge is a trait common to the Wotan of myth and of the stage. However, Wagner relocates the god’s uncertainty to his inner self. His hesitations derive from not knowing for certain what he yearns for, rather than from what may happen. In Rheingold, he dithers over whether he should deliver Freya to the giants in payment for the construction of Walhall and over whether it is lawful for him to keep the Ring. In Die Walküre, he ruminates over whether he should save Siegmund and whether he should punish Brünnhilde. Likewise, in Siegfried, his insecurity stems from his doubts regarding whether it is worth his while to remain a god or to follow his leaning toward abandoning this condition forever. Wagner’s Wotan responds perfectly to the general characterisation aptly made by Obleser. Als Gottheit repräsentiert er das göttliche Interesse am Wohlergehen der Menschen, die ohne die Inspiration der Gottheit in der Unbewußtheit verhaftet bleiben. In seinen menschlichen Persönlichkeitsanteilen verkörpert er den Weg der Psyche aus dem Unbewußten heraus zur Bewußtheit und Individuation 8 . According to the Edda, Odin lives in Asgard, the world of the Æsir, at the palace of Valaskjálf. As well as this residence, Odin owns another palace, Gladsheim. This is where the gods hold their assemblies, and where Walhall, the place of heroes, is located. The heroes are invited to Odin’s banquet after receiving the kiss of the Valkyries. Here, they await the battle that will mark the destiny of the gods: Ragnarök. Wagner - displaying extraordinary architectural economy, no doubt inspired by theatrical economy - integrates in a single building named Walhall, the residence, an assembly hall and the warriors’ resting place. The third day, or fourth part of the Tetralogy, Götterdämmerung, ends with Walhall 7 Simek, Rudolf (2006). Lexikon der germanischen Mythologie. Stuttgart: Alfred Kröner, 310. 8 Obleser, Horst (1993). Odin. Ein Gott auf der Coach. Waiblingen: Stendel, 25. 50 Miguel Salmerón Infante consumed by fire and the demise of the gods, reminiscent of similar denouements in mythical sagas and musical drama. Although ‘Götterdämmerung’ and ‘Ragnarök’ have the same meaning—end, destiny and twilight of the gods -, there are, nevertheless, significant differences. The mythical final battle is fought between the gods and the forces of darkness, and takes place after three consecutive winters without summer and after two wolves devour the sun and the moon. It remains unclear whether the battle is followed by the regeneration of a new humankind. 9 In any case, it is a cosmological myth. As Böldl so fittingly notes, in Wagner everything is very different. 10 Zwar ging es Wagner im Ring des Nibelungen keineswegs darum, eines kosmologischen Mythos zu gestalten; er dringt vielmehr zu den aus Sicht kategorischen Elementen des Mythos vor, um diese philosophisch und auch gesellschaftsbzw., ideologiekritisch zu besetzen 11 The gods, too, succumb: not in a struggle between the forces of good and evil, but because they are the holders of evil. They base their power on exploiting the giants, on usurping the Nibelungs and on keeping men at war. All their corrupt dominance falls, not overthrown by evil from the outside but by evil within, embodied in themselves. It is the semi-god Siegfried, grandson of Wotan, who challenges their supremacy, freeing Brünnhilde and thus replacing power with love in the world. The burning of Walhall destroys the gods, symbolising the elimination of their spurious and coercive power. Indeed, Wald and Frühwald wisely point out that the narrative in the Ring can be construed as a bid for freedom, the latter understood as the strength to overcome mythical coercion. 12 In sum, some conclusions can be drawn. The unrest experienced by the mythical Wotan is external and driven by the need to know what is happening, while Wagner’s Wotan is restless inside, longing to discover what is happening to him. As for the end of time, a similar difference is observed. Ragnarök is the battle fought by the Æsir, who embody good, against the forces of evil. By contrast, the burning of Walhall is the last of the catastrophes caused by the degeneration and the evil that sustain the power of the gods. 9 This regenerative denouement is portrayed in Vafþrúðnismál, not in Völuspa. The goddess Sól has a daughter, who would follow in her mother’s footsteps. 10 Lindow, John (2001). Norse Mithology. A Guide to Gods, Heroes, Rituals and Beliefs. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 115. 11 Böldl, Klaus (2000). Der Mythos der Edda, Tübingen/ Basel, Francke Verlag, 272. 12 Melanie Wald / Wolfgang Frühwald (2013). Die Dramaturgie der Leitmotive bei Richard Wagner. Kassel: Bärenreiter, 81. Staging Wotan: Chéreau, Schenk, Fura del Baus 51 Betrayals of Wagner Considering that, throughout his life, Wagner only attended performances of his work exclusively under his control, one wonders how he would have viewed the liberties that scenographers have taken with his works since his death. In the frieze on the frontispiece of Villa Wahnfried, the mansion built by Louis II of Bavaria for Wagner, Wotan is perceived as a central figure. Hence, we can surmise a degree of identification between Wagner and this character. Wotan was betrayed and disobeyed by Brünnhilde because he protected Siegmund, but, ultimately, she was obedient to him in that, disregarding appearances, she read his mind and, foregoing his mandate, followed his wishes. Would it not be possible to extrapolate this situation to the relationship between Wagner and his scenographers? If Wagner had survived to witness many of the performances of his work, would he not have been in some cases tolerant with unfaithful renderings that, going beyond what he explicitly proposed, showcase his intentions with greater expressiveness? Undeniably, Wotan is the character most clearly identified with the work he appears in, the Tetralogy, as an extraordinary example of presence and absence, ostensible visibility and invisibility. In the words of Richard Klein: Der Ring lebt von Theaterpresenz und Verweisungsentzug von Augenblicksucht und Abstraktionsexzess, von überwältigender Gegenwart und komplizierter reflexiver Archäologie. Genau besteht auch die Eigenart der Wotanfigur: Sie ragt in beide Bereiche hinein und tritt in beide auseinander. Wotan bildet gleichsam das Gelenkstück zwischen dem, was man sehen kann, und dem, was man denken muss. 13 The following will briefly review a few proposals for the staging of Wotan through three productions of Der Ring des Nibelungen. The production by Patrice Chéreau, which was staged during the centenary of the Bayreuther Festspiele (1976-1979), and is known as the ‘French Ring’ (with the presence of Pierre Boulez as conductor) 14 ; the New York Metropolitan production by Otto Schenk 13 Klein, Richard (2012). Der sichtbare und der unsichtbare Gott, Versuch über Wotan. In: Dombois, Johanna / Klein, Richard (eds.). Richard Wagner und seine Medien. Für eine Praxis des Musiktheaters. Stuttgart: Klett-Cotta, 157̶ 194, 159. 14 Wagner, Richard (2005). Der Ring des Nibelungen. Bayreuther Festspiele. Conductor, Pierre Boulez. Artistic Director, Patrice Chéreau. Berlin: Deutsche Grammophon (DVD Video). 52 Miguel Salmerón Infante (1986-89) 15 and the production by La Fura dels Baus at the Palau de la Música de València (2007-2009) 16 . The stage production by Schenk at the Metropolitan was based on the blocking instructions and annotations in Wagner’s original libretto, which was used for the first performance directed by Wagner in 1876 in Bayreuth. Chéreau, in contrast, interpreted the Ring following the tenets of the original 1849 libretto, that is, the Feuerbachian libretto centred on the humanistic atheism of this philosopher (to whom Wagner dedicated the text). In turn, Chéreau incorporates sketches of Western Marxism to the scenic design. These are evident, for instance, as the theory of exchange value and commodity fetishism are introduced when stipulating that the price for Freia is the sum of Alberich’s treasure plus the ring. 17 Finally, in their rendition of Der Ring, Fura dels Baus draw attention to the destruction of Earth through human action and perpetrated by the meddling of man in the ultimate frontier imaginable: genetic engineering. In a way, Schenk attempts to show us what Wagner said; Chéreau what Wagner meant to say; and the Fura dels Baus what Wagner might suggest. In Der Ring, Wotan, the supreme Germanic-Scandinavian god, undergoes a profound metamorphosis. Majestic in Das Rheingold, forlorn in Die Walküre and a wandering traveller in Siegfried, he is reduced to a shadow in Götterdämmerung.In Das Rheingold, he confirms his majesty with the construction of Walhall, the residence of the gods and of warriors fallen in combat. In Die Walküre, Wotan is torn asunder when, moving to defend Siegmund, he is obliged to do so with Hunding, and when having to punish Brünnhilde for disobedience even though she has satisfied his yearnings. In Siegfried, Wotan becomes a wanderer whose sole aspiration, as he travels the world, is that Siegfried will put an end to the power of the gods and thus to his, too. A deicidal god with anarchistic tendencies who envisages how love among mankind will bring down a world of hypocrisy and unwholesome contracts. And, lastly, in the Götterdämmerung, Wotan only appears at the moment his ravens fly over Siegfried before he is murdered by Hagen. Which of these scenic arrangements is the more faithful, or more successfully unfaithful, to Wagner’s intentions? 15 Wagner, Richard (1999). Der Ring des Nibelungen. The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Conductor James Levine. Artistic Director, Otto Schenk. Berlin: Deutsche Grammophon (DVD Video). 16 Wagner, Richard (2009). Der Ring des Nibelungen. Palau de la Música de València. Conductor, Zubin Mehta. Artistic Director, Fura dels Baus. Berlin: Major (DVD Video). 17 Rosendorfer, Herbert (2013). Richard Wagner für Fortgeschrittene. 3 rd Edition. Frankfurt am Main: DTV, 156. In a comparative scenographic review, we may first of all consider the gods entering Walhall, a moment of supremacy for Wotan. Otto Schenk arranged their entry on a skywalk over the rainbow, highlighting the majesty of the moment. The Fura dels Baus, for their part, chose to dwell on the ignominious nature of the construction of Walhall, designing this as a structure erected by androids and inspired on ‘castellers’ and their human towers. The unjust, wilful and despotic dominance by the gods is masterfully depicted by Chéreau in his staging of the Valkyries’ cavalcade. Instead of recovering the fallen warriors’ transcendental spirits, they find only corpses. War, according to classic Marxism, is the mechanism that sustains the capitalist system. Maintaining the struggle of everyone against everyone else the gods guarantee their dominance over the belligerents. Fura dels Baus take this to the extreme, depicting a battle between androids and humans, rather than among men. The Ring is a cosmic drama whose core becomes intimate. And the instant in which this interiorisation takes place, the true pivotal moment in the Tetralogy 18 , is reached when Wotan moderates the punishment imposed on his daughter Brünnhilde for her disobedience of him. She ceases to be a Valkyrie, is rendered mortal, and is possessed by a mortal to whom she will become attached—a mortal whose kiss causes her to fall into a deep sleep and who then encircles her with a ring of flame that only the fearless may cross 19 . This measure ensures that she will be accompanied by a brave man. Brünnhilde is the Valkyrie who most surely confirmed Wotan’s godly condition, and is now the strongest advocate of his will to be a god. 20 Such ambiguity and this intimate grounding are beautifully expressed in the version by Chéreau, played by the excellent vocal and dramatic talents of Donald McIntyre and Gwyneth Jones. The incestuous kiss of love with which the god divests the Valkyrie of her divinity and puts her to sleep is one of the highest peaks in the history of operatic staging. His inner struggle shows that Wotan is increasingly reluctant to remain a god. At the turning point from his recent doubts to his final renunciation, he visits Erda who all things knew, knows and will know. There he realises that what Erda knows is in the runes, in the old contracts, that he himself has been enforcing with increasing severity. This moment leads to their mutual estrangement. Erda says to Wotan ‘Du bist nicht, was du dich nenn´st’. In other words, ‘you are a god no longer’. To which Wotan replies ‘Du bist nicht, was du dich 18 Kitcher, Philip / Schacht, Richard (2004). Finding an Ending. Reflections on Wagner´s Ring. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 11. 19 Once again, we find the influence of the Brothers Grimm on Wagner, in a clear paraphrase of Sleeping Beauty or Dornröschen, Röllecke, Heinz (2008). Die Kinder- und Hausmärchen der Brüder Grimm in Richard Wagner’s Bühnenwerken. Fabula 49, 19 ̶ 29, 24. 20 Wagner, Nike (2015). Wagner Theater. 5 th Edition, Frankfurt am Main/ Leipzig, DTV,108. Staging Wotan: Chéreau, Schenk, Fura del Baus 53 54 Miguel Salmerón Infante wähn’st’. 21 That is to say, ‘your divinatory skills are no longer effective in a world that is not ruled by the gods’. Schenk in this scene converts Erda into a reflection of Princess Leia’s hologram in Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope (1977). La Fura shows the telluric Erda as a cosmic mother Earth, Gea or Gaia, far more majestic and regal and, at the same time, under greater threat from Wotan. From the viewpoint of the narrative for Wotan’s resignation as god, the scene mentioned above in which Erda and Wotan are estranged is of key importance. However, Wotan’s renunciation of divinity is more expressively depicted from a dramatic point of view when he faces Siegfried, and the sword Nothung (‘child of necessity’) breaks the runed spear, Gungnir. This scene is staged in the most lucid and interesting manner by the Fura dels Baus. While Wotan stands defiant, his android company’s spears remain upstanding. As soon as Gungnir is broken, however, the androids fall prostrated to the ground, lowering their spears before retiring from the stage, leaving Siegfried to reach the rock encircled in fire. The stage design for the flight of Wotan’s ravens before the death of Siegfried is arguably not very convincing. In Schenk, the ravens are notably absent, whereas in the Fura they are represented by two human figures suspended from cables. Perhaps the most remarkable solution is their appearance as stuffed birds in Chéreau, who seems to draw our attention to the debased nature of capitalism that exploits nature turning the Rhine into stagnant waters, stamping out a multitude of living creatures such as these ravens. Finally, in the burning of Walhall, the final twilight of the gods, the Fura dels Baus come up with an interesting solution through the use of video art. While the fortress burns, two panels come into view: they show the words which Richard Wagner composed for the so-called Feuerbach ending in Der Ring. The new generations are urged to turn their gaze to the horizon. There, they will see the burning pyre of Walhall in which Siegfried and Brünnhilde are already consumed. Likewise, they will also witness how the Daughters of the Rhine carry the ring into the deep. This is the demise of the gods. In return, the universe will receive the treasure of wisdom: happiness lies not in gold, nor in lavish palaces, nor in obscure contracts, nor in the harsh laws of hypocritical customs. Happiness can only be found through love. Fidelity and infidelity in scenography will always be debatable. Fidelity is desirable so long as it does not lapse into rigidity, and infidelity is always tolerable provided that, without distortion, it contributes a free interpretation that may possibly transform such infidelity into true fidelity as in the case of Brünnhilde toward the thoughts and yearnings of Wotan. 21 Wagner, Richard (2003), El Anillo del Nibelungo. Madrid: Turner, 281. Die Wandlung des Nibelungenmythos in der bande dessinée von Sébastien Ferran L’Anneau des Nibelungen Jesús Pérez-García Richard Wagners Gründungsmythos Der Ring des Nibelungen Der gegenwärtige französische Zeichner Sébastien Ferran huldigt Wagners Opern-Tetralogie Der Ring des Nibelungen (1848-1874 entstanden, 1876 als Zyklus uraufgeführt) mit einer modernisierten Comic-Adaptation (2007-2013). Der zeitliche und kulturgeschichtliche Abstand zwischen beiden Künstlern ist beträchtlich, was zu unübersehbaren, aber interpretationsbedürftigen Unterschieden führt. Der deutsche Komponist Richard Wagner war ein Revolutionär der Opernszene. Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts schuf er ein extrem innovatives Werk, in dem er die verschiedenen deutschen und skandinavischen Traditionen des Nibelungenstoffes zu einem neuen Ganzen zusammenfließen ließ. Es half ihm, dass er in einer fruchtbaren Scharnierperiode der deutschen Kulturgeschichte wirkte, als die Romantik und der deutsche Idealismus dem neuen Geist des industriellen Zeitalters kreativ angepasst werden mussten. Mit einem gestärkten Selbstbewusstsein bemühte sich die deutsche Bildungselite damals um die Suche nach Gründungsmythen, welche die neue Rolle Deutschlands konsolidieren sollten. Von diesem Zeitgeist beflügelt, baute Wagner auf der allgemeinen Begeisterung für das mittelalterliche deutsche Heldenepos Das Nibelungenlied (ca. 1200) auf, die ihren Höhepunkt im späten 18. und frühen 19. Jahrhundert erreicht hatte. Die Wiederentdeckung ging in dieser Phase mit einer philologischen Ausrichtung einher, welche die mittelalterliche ritter-höfische Stilisierung und den Realismus der Schilderung getreu wiedergab. Wagner distanzierte sich vom Inhalt des überlieferten Strophengedichts, ließ verschiedene deutsche Nibelungentratiditionen zusammenfließen und führte als wichtigste Neuerung eine weitverzweigte nordische Götterwelt ein, die die Handlung von einer historischen auf eine mythische Ebene verlagerte. Darüber hinaus kombinierte 56 Jesús Pérez-García er Theater, Musik, Poesie und Malerei, die zu dem sogenannten Gesamtwerk verschmolzen, das den damals üblichen Rahmen der Oper italienischer oder französischer Tradition aus den Fugen geraten ließ. Besonders innovativ war die Gliederung der Musik durch 80 “Leitmotive”, die dem 15 Stunden langen Stück zu einem kohärenten Ganzen verhalfen. Heutzutage wird jeden Sommer die Inszenierung des Ringes (Bayreuther Festspiele) zu einem kulturellen Highlight, dessen Erneuerungen und Neuinterpretationen mit größtem Interesse von der Presse verfolgt werden. Demzufolge kann Der Ring als eine Art work in progress betrachtet werden, der sich ständig wandelnden Erwartungen und Geschmacksempfindungen anpasst. Es nimmt daher nicht wunder, dass musikalische, literarische und graphische Werke immer wieder Inspiration daraus schöpfen. Sébastien Ferrans Aneignung epischer und mythischer Traditionen Die hier analysierten bandes dessinées (= französische Comics) von Sébastien Ferran erschienen als Trilogie unter dem Titel L’Anneau des Nibelungen in den Jahren 2007, 2010 und 2013, in Hochglanzformat 31,5 x 22 cm, mit festem Einband. 1 Einer einschlägigen Homepage der französischen Comicbranche zufolge ist Sébastien Ferran seit dem Jahr 2000 diplomierter Künstler der École Supérieure d’Arts Graphiques (Paris). 2 Als Zeichner und Drehbuchautor in Paris tätig, richtet er sich an ein breites Publikum, indem er einen modernen Stil pflegt, der europäische und japanische Einflüsse vereint. Vor L’Anneau des Nibelungen signierte er eine dreibändige freie Adaption von Homers Odyssee, die 2004 und 2004 in Frankreich erschienen ist. 3 Diese erste graphische Bearbeitung der europäischen Helden- und Mythentradition ist insofern relevant, als sie die Verfahren zu seiner späteren Aneignung von Wagners Ring des Nibelungen in vieler Hinsicht vorwegnimmt. Die Handlung der altgriechischen Odyssee wird im Großen und Ganzen beibehalten, es werden jedoch manche dichterischen Freiheiten 1 Sébastien Ferran. L’Anneau des Nibelungen (Librement adapté de l’œuvre de Richard Wagner). Paris: Emmanuel Proust Éditions. Die Trilogie setzt sich aus drei Bänden zusammen: Livre I: Wotan le Faible (2007). Dieser erste Band wird des Weiteren unterteilt in “Das Rheingold” und “Die Walküre” (in beiden Fällen auf Deutsch im Original). Livre II: Siegfried l’Invicible (2010). Livre III: Brünhilde. L’Ange de la Mort (2013). 2 Babelio.com, sub voce “Sebastien Ferran”. Abrufbar unter: https: / / www.babelio.com/ auteur/ Sebastien-Ferran/ 22040 (letzter Zugang 20.1.2019) 3 Ein Kommentar dazu: Castro, Juanjo (2013). Ulises, de Sébastien Ferran, otra versión en cómic de la Odisea de Homero. Didaskalos 7.2.2013. Abrufbar unter: http: / / didaskalos-juanjocastro.blogspot.com (letzter Zugang den: 10.9.2018). gemacht. 4 Zum Beispiel sind die starke Präsenz der weiblichen Nebenfiguren und die Manga-Einflüsse schon bei diesem Frühwerk auffallend. Einige Beispiele lassen das schnell veranschaulichen. Den Sirenen, die im Dienste Poseidons handeln, wird eine wichtigere Rolle als bei Homer beigemessen. Eine weitere relevante Änderung erfolgt in den Schlussszenen, als eine geheimnisvolle Prinzessin Nausikaa 5 Odysseus bis zum Tor des Vergessens begleitet, wo dem Helden eine schnelle Heimkehr nach Ithaka gewährt wird. Ferner wird die berühmte Episode des Massakers von Penelopes Freiern durch einen Einzelkampf zwischen Odysseus und seinem ehemaligen Gefährten Eurylochos ersetzt, welcher selbst zu einem Freier Penelopes und zum Knecht des Poseidons geworden ist. Diese Fokussierung entspricht einem allgemeinen Trend in gegenwärtigen Comics, die den Zweikampf und die individuelle Bewährung des Helden anstatt der imposanten Massenschlachten in den romantischen Fresken bevorzugen. Die Darstellung der altgriechischen Motive in der Odysseus-Reihe fordert die Fantasie des Autors dadurch heraus, dass die irrealen Landschaften 6 und Fabelwesen, wie etwa die Insel des Aiolos, die weiblichen Wasserkreaturen oder das Ungeheuer Polyphem, in die neue komplexe Comicsprache hineingezeichnet werden müssen, die immer stärker von der Videogame-Kultur und von der Hybridität zwischen der ostasiatischen Mangafantasy und dem aus den USA stammenden Superhelden-Universum geprägt wird. Alte graphische Schablonen erweisen sich nicht mehr als effektiv, will man sich Zugang zu den neueren 4 Die in Frankreich ansässige strukturalistische Schule unterscheidet zwischen den Mythemen (Erzähleinheiten, in die sich eine mythische Erzählung zerlegen lässt) und den kontingenten Teilen des Mythos. Die Abwandlung dieses zweiten Bestandteils ist möglich, ohne dass die authentische Wertschätzung des Mythos beeinträchtigt wird (vgl. dazu Lévi-Strauss, Claude [1974 (1958)]. La structure des mythes. In: Lévi-Strauss, Claude. Anthropologie structurale I. Paris: Plon, Seiten 240-249). 5 Der Mythos von Nausikaa ist auch vom japanischen Manga erfolgreich weiterverarbeitet worden. Hayao Miyazaki konzipierte die Story zum Comic Nausicäa aus dem Tal der Winde, der 1984 zu dem gleichnamigen Anime-Kinofilm von Studio Ghibli führte. In beiden Fällen wurde der Stoff in ein futuristisches Szenario mit modernem Umweltbewusstsein und einer eindeutig japanischen Naturliebe verlegt. 6 Besonderes Interesse verdienen die Landschaften, die die Handlung in Ferrans Adaptationen einrahmen, die mediterranen Kulissen bei der Odyssee oder die Wälder Germaniens und der Rhein bei L’Anneau. Landschaften bergen in sich die Fähigkeit, große symbolische Kraft zu entfalten. In dieser Hinsicht sei hier der theoretische Ansatz von Aleida Assmann herangezogen, nach dem bestimmte prägnante Orte als Stützen des kollektiven Gedächtnisses fungieren. Unterschieden wird zwischen heiligen und mythischen Orten, Generationenorten, exemplarischen Gedächtnisorten, Gräbern und Grabsteinem, und traumatischen Orten. Vgl. Assmann, Aleida (1999). Erinnerungsräume. Formen und Wandlungen des kulturellen Gedächtnisses. München: C. H. Beck, Seiten 298-339. Die Wandlung des Nibelungenmythos in L’Anneau des Nibelungen 57 58 Jesús Pérez-García Generationen verschaffen. 7 Vergleichbare Leistungen waren bei der Konzeption von L’Anneau des Nibelungen erforderlich, wenn auch dieses Werk dieselben Strategien in gewissem Maß zielsicherer anwendet. Die Veränderungen des Ring-Mythos im Medium Comic Ferrans Einsatz des Stifts steht dem Stil von illustrierten Büchern für Jugendliche nah. Die Gesichter neigen zu runden Formen, die, ohne in eine Karikatur abzugleiten, den Figuren einen pubertären Hauch verleihen, wie das auch bei ähnlichen Veröffentlichungen üblich ist, die anspruchsvolle Inhalte für ein junges Publikum adaptieren. Anders verhält sich die graphische Konstruktion von Superhelden der Marvel- oder DC-Verlagsgruppen, wo eher markante und stählerne Gesichtszüge zum Ausdruck kommen. Die Superheldenschule, die sich in manchen Aspekten auch bei Ferran aufspüren lässt, war ursprünglich den klassischen Illustratoren der ersten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts geschuldet und, frei von einer didaktischen Hauptfunktion, richtete sie sich in nicht geringem Maße an einen erwachsenen Kunstgeschmack. 8 Bemerkenswert ist auch der Farbreichtum, wobei die hellen Töne der früheren Odysseus-Reihe von einer düsteren Palette abgelöst worden sind; das 7 Das setzt Trends fort, die schon lange im Gang sind. Spätestens nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg kommt es oft dazu, dass alte Mythen und legendäre Stoffe von visuellen Medien wie dem Kino oder Fernsehen stark umgewandelt werden. Dabei geht der ursprüngliche Sinn in dekontextualisierte flache Schablonen über, die leicht von Mainstream-Audienzen zu verdauen sind. “[…] folklorized, sanitized, sequined Magic Kingdoms”, in den Worten von J.D. Niles (1999). Homo narrans. The Poetics and Anthropology of Oral Literature. University of Philadelphia: Philadelphia (Penn.), Seite 61. Dazu auch Pérez-García, Jesús (2014). El homo narrans visto por románticos y romanciers. In: Hernández, I. / Llamas, M. (Hrsg.) Los hermanos Grimm en contexto. Reescritura e interpretación de un legado universal. Madrid: Síntesis, 107-116. 8 Die Verbindung zwischen dem Comic und der klassischen eleganten Illustration der ersten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts ist besonders ausgeprägt bei Prince Valiant (ab 1937), von Harold Foster (vgl. Vilches, Gerardo [2014)]. Breve historia del cómic. Madrid: Ediciones Nowtilus, Seite 51]. Dieses Werk war ein Meilenstein in den Comics mit mittelalterlichen Hintergrund. Der Stil, die Atmosphäre und die hohen Ideale dieser Serie schufen eine Schule, der sich viele mit Eifer anschlossen. In Spanien gilt als die beste Nachahmung der Capitán Trueno, der im spanischen goldenen Comic-Zeitalter (“edad de oro del tebeo español”, Jahrzehnte 1940-1960) entstand. Der Idealismus und die Bewährung der Helden waren bei allen diesen Fiktionen besonders ausgearbeitet, genauso wie bei Wagners Ring. Diese Wertekonstruktionen erfreuten sich der Gunst eines romantischen und nachromantischen Publikums. Vgl. Zarandona, Juan Miguel (2013). The Treatment of the Character of Merlin in the Spanish Comic El Aguilucho (1959) by Manuel Gago (1925-1980). In: Parra Membrives, E. / Classen, A. (Hrsg.) Literatur am Rand. Perspektiven der Trivialliteratur vom Mittelalter bis zum 21. Jahrhundert / Literatur on the Margin. Perspectives on Trivial Literature from the Middle Ages to the 21st Century. Tübingen: Narr. mediterrane Licht wechselt zu Schatten, Nebel und Wolken. Die Farben werden auch zur Transposition von Richard Wagners Leitmotiv-Prinzip eingesetzt; die Figuren und Figurengruppen werden demgemäß mit bestimmten Farbtönen in Verbindung gesetzt. Die Rheinnymphen oder “demoiselles azurées” treten in blauen Schattierungen auf. Alberich und die Zwerge, die im Untergrund ihre industriellen menschenfeindlichen Schmieden betätigen, assoziiert man mit Ocker und erdfarbenen Abstufungen. Fig. 6. Tor zum Zwergenreich Nibelheim, wo Alberich haust. Nach Konventionen der zeitgenössischen Phantasy stilisiert (Band 2, Siegfried, Seite 21). Die romantische Walküre Brünhild, die Wotan in einem ewig lodernden Feuer gefangen hält, glänzt golden; sie gesellt sich zu dem jungen Siegfried, dessen rötlich-goldener bloßer Oberkörper die ewige Unschuld eines jungen Menschen betont, der vor dem Übergang in die volle Reife geopfert wird. Schwermütig schlägt sich der Gott Wotan in einem nordischen Preußischblau durch. Die Wandlung des Nibelungenmythos in L’Anneau des Nibelungen 59 60 Jesús Pérez-García Die Schauplätze, an denen die Figuren agieren, muten weniger spektakulär als in der Odysseus-Reihe an, erscheinen im Allgemeinen deshalb auch als nicht so gründlich recherchierte Kulissen, die hinter den in Großaufnahmen dargestellten Göttern, Helden und fabelhaften Wesen verblassen. Die weitläufigen Wälder Germaniens könnten wohl die Inspiration für die Umrahmung der Szenen im Freien geliefert haben, ohne die Details besonders intensiv zu erarbeiten. Manche Heterotopen, wie das Gebirge, wo die Zwerge hausen, deuten das Universum von Tolkiens Lord of the Rings an; der Bergkamm ähnelt einem Drachenrücken, während der Höhleneingang das klaffende, mit Beißzähnen bestückte Maul eines Monsters erahnen lässt. Der von Wotan in Auftrag gegebene Walhallapalast (Band 1, Seiten 14-15) ist architektonisch wenig kohärent. Gotische Bögen gruppieren sich mit romanischen Arkaden, großen byzantinischen Kuppeln und venezianischen Campanile-Türmen, zu einer bizarren Aufstellung, die stilistisch kaum Bezug zu heidnischen germanischen Vorbildern nimmt. Das Ganze suggeriert vielmehr einen befremdlichen Eklektizismus der italienischen frühmodernen Periode, steht vor allem aber im Zusammenhang mit der neuen Manga- und Gamekultur, die sich unbekümmert vom früheren strikteren Historizismus entfernt. Fig. 7. Architektonischer Eklektizismus zeichnet Ferrans Interpretation des Walhallapalastes aus (Band 1, Wotan le Faible, Seite 15; Ausschnitt). Eine dramatische Vogelperspektive wird beim ersten Anblick der Walhalla eingesetzt. Genau dieser Blickwinkel kommt immer wieder zum Einsatz, wenn man den Schauplatz hervorheben will. Dabei muss man bedenken, dass die Luftperspektive erst mit der Entwicklung der Luftfahrt unaufhaltsam in die Comic-Sprache eindrang. Bei den Tintin-Büchern des Belgiers Hergé setzte sie sich etwa nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg durch. 9 Manche Szenen von L’Anneau werden durch eine ganzseitige Vignette erzählt. In seltenen Fällen greift man auf zwei Seiten zurück, wie bei der statischen Betrachtung der Walhalla oder bei Siegfrieds Drachenkampf (Band 2, Seiten 32-33), diesmal mit größerer Dynamik und eingeblendeten kleinen Vignetten, die, in Anlehnung an die japanische Manga 10 , Akzente für emotionale oder kinetische Handlungsdetails setzen. Die Heroic Fantasy als Gattungserneuerung in Bezug zu Wagners Ring Richard Wagner komponierte eine von Sinnlichkeit und Mystik umwobene Erneuerung des nibelungischen Mythos. Wohl darf man behaupten, dass beide Eigenschaften in Ferrans bande dessinée nur in Ansätzen enthalten sind. Die Sinnlichkeit ist im halbnackten Siegfried und in vielen der weiblichen Figuren angedeutet, ohne dass man der orientalischen üppigen Erotik und Dekadenz im 19. Jahrhundert näherkommt. 11 Das von kolonialen Beamten, Abenteuern und 9 Dazu die Ausstellung “Tintin et ses avions” in Aeroscopia-Museum in Toulouse-Blagnac (22. Mai 2018 bis 10. Januar 2019). 10 Kennzeichnend für die Mangasprache ist u. a. das Fokussieren auf konkrete Handlungen, die durch eine Art eingefrorener Bilder dekonstruiert werden: So wird etwa das Ballschießen in einer Fußballmannschaft durch mehrere Momentaufnahmen vor und nach dem Stoß mit höchster dramatischer Intensität erzählt, mit besonderer Betonung der Fußbewegungen und der Mimik des Spielers. Vgl. Otaku, Camilo / Mata, Jorge (2007). Cómo dibujar manga. Madrid: Libsa, Seite 12. 11 Die Sinnlichkeit in der Abbildung des weiblichen Körpers prägte insbesondere die Orientalistikmalerei, und sie war sogar in den religiösen Bildern der romantischen Periode vorhanden. Ein gutes Beispiel war in Spanien in der ersten Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts Antonio María Esquivel, der seinerseits der deutsch-österreichischen nazarenischen Schule nah stand. Was die Nazarener selbst angeht, gilt Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld als einer ihrer Hauptvertreter, der viele berühmte Illustrationen und Gemälde des mittelalterlichen Nibelungenlieds hinterließ, wobei mit einer romantischen und konservativen Ästhetik, die als Gegenpol von Sébastien Ferrans L’Anneau zu bewerten ist. Dazu: Pérez Calero, Gerardo (2018). Esquivel y Suárez de Urbina, Antonio María. En “Enciclopedia” de la web Museo del Prado. Abrufbar unter: https: / / www.museodelprado.es/ aprende/ enciclopedia/ voz/ esquivel-y-suarez-de-urbina-antonio-maria/ 1ad0adbb-b9d6-49e3-a322-ff829e3983ce (letzter Zugang den: 25.9.2018). Zu Schnorr von Carolsfeld: Das Nibelungenlied. Mit Il- Die Wandlung des Nibelungenmythos in L’Anneau des Nibelungen 61 62 Jesús Pérez-García Reisenden erschaffene Konstrukt des Orientalismus beflügelte damals die Sinne und schlich sich in die verschiedensten Kunstformen, von dem Trivialroman, über die Oper und Gemälde bis zur Architektur. Wagner konnte sich in seinem epochalen kunstübergreifenden Werk diesen Einflüssen nicht entziehen. Das Schaffen des deutschen Meisters, an der Schwelle einer ansetzenden aber rasch expandierenden Industrialisierung, erfreute sich einer noch ausgeprägten romantischen Fantasie, der keine Grenzen gesetzt waren. In der Tat wirkte er als einer der Hauptvermittler vieler Sehnsüchte und Bestrebungen des 19. Jahrhunderts. Auf die Tetralogie projizierte er die vagen Umrisse einer ersehnten germanischen mythischen Antike, aber gleichzeitig auch die einer stilisierten mittelalterlichen Welt und eines alten Ritterethos. Und mit nicht weniger Intensität geriet er in den Bann eines deutschen, wenn auch pangermanisch verhüllten Nationalismus, der damals als Katalysator und treibende Kraft einer ungehemmten Kreativität fungierte. Als Wagners Ring entstand, war der romantische Idealismus Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts mit der Wucht des neuen positivistischen industriellen Zeitalters zusammengeprallt. Wagners Werk signalisiert der Untergang Wotans, des Herrschers des germanischen Olymps, das Ende eines Götterzeitalters. Das Erhabene weicht einer niederen Welt. Der fortwährende Fluch des Ringes, an dem das ganze System letztendlich kollabiert, steigt schicksalhaft aus einem Untergrund heraus, wo die Zwerge, ihre Schmiede und ihre kapitalistisch orientierte Gier angesiedelt sind. Ferran behält die Handlungsstruktur bei, die ursprüngliche symbolische Deutung geht jedoch verloren oder ist kaum nachvollziehbar. Die kulturellen Koordinaten, in die sich der französische Graphiker einreiht, sind ganz anderer Natur. Das frühe 21. Jahrhundert weist schon ausgeprägte Merkmale auf, die eine Zäsur zu den vorherigen Zeiten bedeuten. Der Ton wird immer mehr von Videospielen und der dazugehörigen Gaming-Kultur und -Ästhetik eingeschlagen, verbunden mit einer neuen Globalisierungswelle, an der sich die Allgemeinheit ohne Zeitversetzung betätigt, wie es nie zuvor geschah. Mythen und sonstige kulturelle Artefakte überqueren ungebremst die Grenzen, werden dadurch zwangsläufig resemantisiert und Prozessen einer durchgreifenden Trivialisation, Banalisation und schnellen Konsum ausgesetzt. 12 lustration von Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld und Eugen Neureuther. Hamburg: Nikol Verlag. 2018 [2014]. In der neuhochdeutschen Übersetzung von Karl Simrock (Text erschien ursprünglich 1827). Vom selben Maler und mit ähnlichem Stil, aber mit biblischem Schwerpunkt: Die Bibel in Bildern: 240 Darstellungen erfunden und auf Holz gezeichnet von Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld. Leipzig: Georg Wigand, 1857-1860 erschienen. 12 Losada plädiert für eine neudefinierte Mythenkritik, die der zeitgenössischen Gesellschaft gerecht sein kann. Drei Hauptfaktoren sollen berücksichtigt werden: Globalisie- In diesem Kontext muss die Gattung interpretiert werden, der sich Ferrans L’Anneau des Nibelungen verpflichtet fühlt: die heroic fantasy. Auf dem Cover des ersten Bandes ist folgendes zu lesen: Le dessinateur Sébastien Ferran réalise une version épique et moderne du mythe fondateur du «-Ring-» dans laquelle on retrouve tous les thèmes majeurs de l’heroic fantasy à la «- J.R.R. Tolkien- »- : l’anneau de pouvoir maléfique, les nains forgerons, l’épée magique, le dragon gardien du trésor-… Die heroic fantasy geht über die Grenzen des genre fantastique hinaus, indem sie neuere Quellen und Bezüge einfließen lässt. In den hier analysierten Bänden sind ferner intertextuelle Verweise auf eine Vielfalt von Werken aus dem zweiter Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts zu finden: • Filmklassiker des Kinos mit mittelalterlichen Stoffen und der Artussage, insbesondere Excalibur (deutsch: Excalibur - Das Schwert des Königs; 1981, USA, Regie John Boorman, mit Musik von Richard Wagner u. a.). Dieser Streifen gilt als einer der erfolgreichsten Fantasy-Filme überhaupt und ebnete den Weg für die Verfilmungen von The Lord of the Rings (Trilogie, 2001-2003), die auf seinem Vorbild aufbauten. Vor allem die symbolische Kraft des Gegenstands “Schwert” ist in Ferrans L’Anneau wieder anzutreffen. • Superhelden-Comics mit mythischem Stoff. An erster Stelle sei hier der Gott und Superheld Thor des Marvel-Verlages erwähnt, der einen Kassenerfolg durch die Verfilmung aus dem Jahr 2011 (Regie Kenneth Branagh) erzielte, der bald darauf eine Fortsetzung Thor - The Dark Kingdom (2013, Regie Alan Taylor) folgte. 13 • “Sword-and-sorceress”-Comics und -Filme. Einen besonderen Stellenwert nimmt in dieser Rubrik die Figur Conan aus Cimmerien (ab 1970) ein. Der entsprechende Film Conan the Barbarian (1982, USA, Regie John Milius) wird auch in die Unterkategorie low fantasy eingruppiert, die auf die bescheiderung, Immanenz und Konsumlogik. Die neuen gesellschaftlichen Verhältnisse werden durch eine Kultur des métissage (Mischformen) und des Ephemeren gekennzeichnet. Kulturerscheinungen werden immer übernationaler und unstabiler, was als Ergebnis der auf Neue Medien gestützten Globalisierung und des Konsumdrangs zu erklären ist. Vgl. Losada, José Manuel (2015). Mitocrítica y metodología. In: Losada, J.M. (Hrsg.) Nuevas formas del mito. Berlin: Logos, 9-29. 13 Die Comic-Figur Thor wurde von Stan Lee und Jack Kirby geschaffen und erschien erstmals 1962. Die Gestalt erlebte einen neuen Erfolg ab 1983, als Mark Gruenwald (*1946, Knoxville, Tennessee) die neue Marvel-Reihe The Mighty Thor startete, in der Außerirdische in die nordische Götterwelt eindrangen. Vgl. Clemente, Julián M. (Hrsg.) (2015). Marvel héroes 66. Marvel 75 años: La edad moderna. Girona: Panini, Seite 006. Die Wandlung des Nibelungenmythos in L’Anneau des Nibelungen 63 64 Jesús Pérez-García nen Ursprünge dieses Subgenre in der nordamerikanischen Schundliteratur verweist. 14 • 300. Graphic Novel aus dem Jahr 1998, verfasst von den US-Comic-Autoren Frank Miller und Lynn Varley, Verfilmung aus dem Jahr 2006 (USA und Kanada, Regie Zack Snyder). Die antike Schlacht bei den Thermopylen wird nacherzählt. Interessant ist beim Film nicht so sehr der inakkurate Umgang mit den geschichtlichen Ereignissen, wie sie von Herodot überliefert wurden, sondern die überbordende neuorientalistische Inszenierung, die Nahaufnahmen und die ruckartigen Bewegungen, mit forcierter Beschleunigung und Verlangsamung. Der gelungene Bezug zu der Sprache der Videospiele verlieh diesem Film eine avantgardistische Originalität, die in den anschließenden Jahren epigonal verfolgt werden sollte. Vor allem die Magie, aber auch fantastische Gestalten, wie Feen, Zwerge oder Drachen, sind ein fester Bestandteil der Fantasy. Eine nicht reale Welt wird geschaffen. Fabelhafte Wesen werden vordergründig aus der niederen Mythologie entliehen und in ein stilisiertes Mittelalter hineinversetzt. Die Fantasy soll als eine neue eigenständige Gattungsbezeichnung aufgefasst werden, die vom früheren Phantastischen unterschieden werden soll. Die phantastische Gattung, so wie sie sich im 19. Jahrhundert konsolidierte, war vor allem durch das Gruselige (französisch l’horreur) bestimmt - die Magie konnte vorhanden sein, war jedoch in ihrer fiktionalen Welt keine Selbstverständlichkeit. 15 Viele kritischen Studien haben sich in letzter Zeit mit der Fantasy befasst, darunter Ruaud, der folgende Definition bietet: Littérature qui se trouve dotée d’une dimension mythique et qui incorpore dans son récit un élément d’irrationnel au traitement non purement horrifique, notamment incarné par l’utilisation de la magie. 16 Die Entwicklungsphasen der Fantasy werden von Bergue folgendermaßen aufgeteilt: 17 14 Die sword-and-sorceress-Genre überschattete eine Zeit lang die Superhelden-Comics. Nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg erlebten die uniformierten Superhelden einen vorübergehenden Niedergang, der zu einer Differenzierung im Publikumsgeschmack führte (vgl. Vilches, 2014: 57, Seiten 150-152). 15 Bergue, Viviane (2015). La Fantasy, Mythopoétique de la quête. CreateSpace. Abrufbar unter: https: / / www.academia.edu/ 18085865/ La_Fantasy_mythopo%C3%A9tique_de_la_ qu%C3%AAte (letzter Zugang den: 11.10.2018), Seiten 5-6. 16 Ruaud, André-François (Hrsg.) (2004). Panorama illustré de la fantasy et du merveilleux. Lyon: Les Moutons électriques, Seite 13. 17 Bergue (2015: 5). Die Wandlung des Nibelungenmythos in L’Anneau des Nibelungen 65 1. Jahre 1960 bis 1970. Fantasy etabliert sich im Verlagswesen als Kategorie. 2. Ab ca. dem Jahr 2000 kommt es zu einem Aufschwung durch die Verfilmungen von The Lord of the Rings durch Peter Jackson sowie die Romanreihe um Harry Potter, von der Schottin J.K. Rowling. Als Gattungszweig erscheint die heroic fantasy, die, den fabelhaften Hintergrund beibehaltend, das Heldenhafte und den Bezug zur Erzählungsart des Epos betont: Genre littéraire anglo-américain qui mêle, dans une atmosphère d’épopée, les mythes, les légendes et les thèmes de récit fantastique et de la science-fiction. 18 Zuweilen wird dieser Begriff ins Französische als “médiéval fantastique” übersetzt. In die Unterkategorie heroic fantasy fallen vor allem eine Reihe von Werken ab den 1990er Jahren. Der britisch-amerikanische Film Beowulf (2007, Regie Robert Zemeckis) bearbeitete das mittelalterliche klerikale Epos der Angelsachsen, fühlte sich mit einer ökokritischen Perspektive in die nichtmenschliche Kreatur Grendel ein, und verwandelte das Ganze in ein visuelles Spektakel, indem systematisch 3D Computer-Animation eingesetzt wurden. Zur heroic fantasy können auch eine Reihe von einflussreichen Mainstream-Kunstprodukten gezählt werden, darunter die US-amerikanischen Romane The Name of the Wind von Patrick Rothfuss (Trilogie, ab 2007), und A Game of Thrones von George R.R. Martins (1996). Nach Robert Silverberg würden sogar die antiken Geschichten des Gilgamesh und des Homers die Kriterien des heroic fantasy erfüllen. 19 Tatsächlich sind das Übernatürliche und das Heldenhafte in den ältesten Epen präsent, unterscheiden sich jedoch in vielen Aspekten von der zeitgenössischen heroic fantasy. Letztere hat vorwiegend die Unterhaltungskultur der postmodernen USA als ihren Entstehungsort, und sowohl die religiös-geistlichen als auch die historischen Sphären, die jeweils das Phantastische und das Heldenhafte einrahmen, werden aufgehoben. In den Vordergrund rücken stattdessen die hybride Natur der amerikanischen Kultur, die intertextuellen Bezüge zu den Fantasy-Werken und schließlich auch die Erwartungen eines globalen Publikums im Zeitalter der digitalen Neuen Medien. Die heroic fantasy wirkt im Großen und Ganzen als ein Typ viel spielerischerer Natur als die alten Epen. 18 Encyclopédie Larousse. s.v. heroic fantasy. Abrufbar unter: https: / / www.larousse.fr/ encyclopedie/ litterature/ heroic_fantasy/ 173955 (letzter Zugang den: 26.1.2019). 19 Silverberg, Robert (1998). Legends, Short Novels by Masters of Modern Fantasy. New York: Tor Books, Seiten XII-XIII. Fazit Abschließend kann folgendes behauptet werden: Ferrans L’Anneau des Nibelungen wird als eine Comic-Adaptation von Richard Wagners Tetralogie aufgefasst, die das klassische Werk des genialen deutschen Komponisten einem jungen Publikum näherbringen soll. Dabei entfernt sie sich in ihrer Konzeption von den romantischen symbolischen Sinnebenen; und auf formaler Ebene nimmt sie von dem flachen konventionellen Stil ähnlicher zeitgenössischer Comic-Produkte für Jugendliche Abstand. Die Umwandlung ist nicht spontaner Natur; sie ist vielmehr das Ergebnis eines bewussten und wohlkalkulierten Eingriffs, indem Ferran sich explizit den Gattungsprinzipien der heroic fantasy unterordnet. Der Idealismus, der Pangermanismus, der deutsche Nationalismus oder die Kritik an der industriellen Entfremdung waren semantische Schichten, die bei Wagner eine epochale Wirkung erzielten. Bei Ferrans L’Anneau sind diese Deutungen nicht mehr relevant. Der Zeitgeist ist anders, geltend sind im 21. Jahrhundert ein völlig neuer Erwartungshorizont sowie neue Gattungskonventionen. L’Anneau des Nibelungen reiht sich in völlig neue Koordinaten ein, und zwar in die eines neuartigen mythisch-heroischen Comics, die eine tiefe und grundlegende Erneuerung der Traditionen, des Nibelungenmythos in diesem Fall, vollzieht. Einerseits verliert die Nibelungentradition im französischen Terrain zwangsläufig den nationalen Wert, der sie auf germanischem Boden hat. Andererseits sind die Neuerungen systemischer Natur und hängen mit dem Zeitgeist eines neuen digitalen Zeitalters zusammen, das Anfang des dritten Jahrtausends im Entstehen begriffen ist. Dieses wird u. a. durch mehrere Erscheinungen gekennzeichnet. Das händische Zeichnen und Kolorieren früherer Comic-Autoren wird immer mehr durch computergestützte Techniken ersetzt. Zur gleichen Zeit wird der Comic-Markt in eine globale Welt eingebettet, in der der Austausch zwischen Ost und West stärker und unmittelbarer herausragt. Aus Japan kommen dezidierte Impulse der Manga, aber auch aus der dort beheimateten Gaming-Kultur. Anders als bei Kontakterscheinungen früherer Zeiten hat die neue digitale Globalisierung zur Folge, dass kulturelle Produkte einem automatischen Outsourcing unterzogen werden. Mythen stehen nicht mehr in direktem Bezug zu einem konkreten geographischen Raum, sondern werden vielmehr von ihren Vermittlern und Konsumenten, sowohl in der Produktion als auch in der Rezeption, einem globalen Kontext ausgesetzt. Neue Erwartungen, eine neue Ästhetik und oft ein schneller Konsum zwingen zu einer Neuprägung des Mythos. Alle diese Phänomene lassen die Veränderungen von Richard Wagners Ring des Nibelungen erklären, die nicht auf eine oberflächliche Lektüre oder auf eine Reduktion 66 Jesús Pérez-García und Vereinfachung zurückzuführen sind, sondern als die Herausbildung neuer und aktualisierter Sinnebenen betrachtet werden sollen. Die Romantiker und Postromantiker verwendeten antike und mittelalterliche Mythen auf eine aktualisierende Weise, die immer noch mit Interesse und Erstaunen rezipiert wird. Die Frage lautet nun: Inwieweit wird die neue Trivialisierung des digitalen und globalen Zeitalters eine ähnlich anhaltende Mythenrevision hervorbringen können? Die Wandlung des Nibelungenmythos in L’Anneau des Nibelungen 67 2 Germanic Myths in Audiovisual Adapation and translation Mythos und Utopie in Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm 71 Mythos und Utopie in Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm Heidi Grünewald Einleitung Das Wesen des Films sei „nur dann überzeugend und eindringlich“, erklärt Fritz Lang, „wenn es sich mit dem Wesen der Zeit deckt, aus der dieser geboren wurde“. 1 Die Zeit, in der sein Nibelungenfilm entstand, ist für Deutschland eine chaotische Zeit. Die Nachwirkungen des Ersten Weltkriegs schaffen eine gesellschaftliche Atmosphäre, in der jede Form des Eskapismus, insbesondere in den großen Städten, Balsam auf die offenen Wunden ist. Die Uraufführung des Films, schreibt Anton Kaes (2009), sei nicht nur als kulturelles, sondern auch als politisches Ereignis zu bewerten: German society was still traumatized by its military defeat, the failed revolution, numerous political assassinations, widely reported serial killings, and (most recently) by the humiliation of the Ruhr crisis. In January 1923, in reaction to Germany’s failure to pay reparations, […] French and Belgian troops occupied the Ruhr area, thus further demoralizing Germany and arousing nationalist sentiments. 2 Obwohl viele Intellektuelle, wie zum Beispiel Ernst Bloch (Geist der Utopie, Prinzip Hoffnung), sich nach dem Großen Krieg fragten, ob das moderne Leben im Zuge der Rationalisierung nicht doch auch einer utopisch-mythologischen Dimension bedürfe, so fällt Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm auf der Suche nach erfüllenden Tagträumen, an denen der kaputte Mensch sich wieder hätte aufrichten können, sicher aus dem Rahmen. Der Geist des Nibelungenfilms ist rückwärtsgewandt, auch wenn er die modernste Filmtechnik vorführt. Am 14. Februar 1924 findet die Uraufführung des ersten Teils Siegfried statt und am 26. April folgt der zweite Teil mit dem Titel Kriemhilds Rache. Beide Teile sind in jeweils sieben Kapitel gegliedert, die - als Gesänge bezeichnet - die 1 Lang, Fritz (1924). Kitsch-Sensation-Kultur und Film. In: Beyfuss, E./ Kossowsky, A. (Hrsg). Das Kulturfilmbuch. Berlin: Chryselius & Schulz Verlag, 28-31. Hier: 29. 2 Kaes, Anton (2009). Shell Shock Cinema: Weimar Culture and the Wounds of War. Princton and Oxford: Princton University Press, 133. 72 Heidi Grünewald Struktur des mittelalterlichen Nibelungenlieds assoziieren. 3 Damit verspricht der Film jedoch keine Literaturverfilmung, sondern steckt nur einen glaubhaften Rahmen für seinen Gebrauch des Nibelungenmythos. Der Nibelungenfilm soll bei den Deutschen wieder ein Gefühl der Größe und Erhabenheit wecken. Deshalb ist es kaum verwunderlich, wie Anton Kaes anführt, dass Fritz Lang und seine Frau Thea von Harbou, die das Drehbuch zum Film verfasste, am Tag der ersten Uraufführung einen Kranz am Grab von Friedrich II. niederlegten. Kaes sieht darin einen „symbolische[n] Akt, der über den PR-Effekt hinaus den nationalistischen Kontext anzeigt, in dem der Nibelungenfilm rezipiert wurde“ 4 . Eine filmische Mission Die Nibelungen sollten alle bis dahin in der Weimarer Republik produzierten Filme übertreffen, und zwar nicht nur aufgrund der filmtechnischen Leistung, die von der Konstruktion des sensationellen Drachens bis zu neuartigen Licht- und Spezialeffekten, Animationen und Film im Film-Projektionen reicht, sondern auch wegen des missionarischen Eifers, mit dem der Regisseur und noch stärker seine Drehbuchautorin den Film in den Dienst nationaler Selbsterhöhung stellten. Mehrfach äußern sich Regisseur und Drehbuchautorin zu dieser filmischen Mission, auf die auch der Untertitel „Dem deutschen Volke zu Eigen“ Bezug nimmt. Lang und von Harbou war es daran gelegen, der Deutung ihrer Adaption eine Richtung vorzugeben. Lang schrieb deshalb für das Programmheft der Uraufführung einen längeren Text mit dem Titel Worauf es beim Nibelungen- Film ankam 5 und Thea von Harbou berichtete Vom Nibelungen-Film und seinem 3 Die im Beitrag angeführten Filmreferenzen und Zitate beziehen sich auf die spanische DVD-Edition: Los Nibelungos (2012). Valladolid: Divisa Red [Orígenes del cine]. Diese spanische Edition geht auf die neu restaurierte Fassung der Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau- Stiftung (2010) zurück. Sie besitzt die durch Viragierung (orangefarbene Tönung) verbesserte Bildqualität und enthält die Originalmusik von Gottfried Hupperts. 4 Kaes, Anton (2001). Der Mythos des Deutschen. Zu Fritz Langs Nibelungen-Film. Filmgeschichte, 15, 43-50. Hier: 43. 5 Lang, Fritz (1924). Worauf es beim Nibelungen-Film ankam. In: Programmbroschüre der Ufa-Decla-Bioscop: Die Nibelungen, o. O. und o. J. - Auch erschienen in: Frankfurter Film-Wochenspiegel 4 (1924), 28-31. Alle in diesem Beitrag zitierten zeitgenössischen Kritiken (Ausschnitte aus Tagespresse, Programmheften, Filmzeitschriften), insbesondere aus dem Jahr 1924, sowie Programmtexte von Fritz Lang und Thea von Harbou, stammen aus der entsprechenden Materialmappe [Fritz Lang. Die Nibelungen] des Deutschen Filminstituts (DIF), Frankfurt am Main. - Ich bedanke mich an dieser Stelle bei den Mitarbeitern des Instituts für die freundliche Unterstützung und schnelle Bereitstellung der Materialien. Mythos und Utopie in Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm 73 Entstehen 6 . Beide Stellungnahmen wurden in verschiedenen Filmzeitschriften und Sonderheften zum Film abgedruckt und betonen vor allem die Berufung der Autoren, den Stoff zu verfilmen. Ihre Texte gleichen einem wirkungsästhetischen Manifest, in dem sich die Aussagen auffallend überschneiden und wiederholen. Meinolf Schumacher (2017) nimmt deshalb an, dass Thea von Harbou den von Lang gezeichneten Programmtext mit verfasst hatte. Fritz Lang habe „das Nationale später vollständig bestritten, indem er im Jahr 1968 den Film nur noch sozialkritisch verstehen wollte. Das Nibelungenlied sei kein Heldenlied der Deutschen, sondern eines der «herrschenden Oberschicht». Vom «Volk» sei nirgendwo die Rede“, zitiert Schumacher. 7 Die Meinungen über Langs politisches und künstlerisches Engagement bleiben auch heute kontrovers, nicht zu leugnen ist jedoch der ideologische Einfluss Thea von Harbous, die schon 1923 ein Nibelungenbuch 8 als Vorarbeit zum Film geschrieben hatte. In ihrem Programmtext Vom Nibelungen-Film und seinem Entstehen schlägt sie einen völkisch imperialistischen Ton an: Der Film sei dazu berufen, „als ein Sendbote von deutschem Wesen, deutscher Arbeit, Geduld und Kunst, einer jener Apostel zu werden, zu denen ihr Meister sprach: Gehet hin in alle Welt und lehret alle Völker! “ 9 . Lang argumentiert etwas dezenter, der Film habe eine große Verantwortung, denn es handele sich um das „geistige Heiligtum einer Nation“. Doch auch er beharrt auf der Verbreitung und „Geltung des Deutschtums“: „Wir wollen ihnen das bringen, was sie nicht haben: Das Unnachahmliche, was einmalig und einzig ist im Gegensatz zu nivellierend-internationalen unübertragbar national ist“. 10 Es scheint, als würde hier jenes politische Schlagwort wieder lebendig, welches bereits gegen Ende des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts den politischen Diskurs prägte, nämlich dass die Welt am deutschen Wesen genesen möge. Auch wenn betont wird, dass dieser Leitspruch lyrischen Ursprungs 11 sei und sich im Kontext der Einigungskriege durchaus wohlwollend auf ein Frieden stiftendes geeintes deut- 6 Harbou, Thea von (1924). Vom Nibelungen-Film und seinem Entstehen. In: Programmbroschüre der Ufa-Decla-Bioscop: Die Nibelungen, o. O. und o. J. - Auch erschienen in: Frankfurter Film-Wochenspiegel 4 (1924), 26-28. 7 Schumacher, Meinolf (2017). Ein Heldenepos als stumme Film-Erzählung. In: Preußler, Heinz-Peter (Hrsg.) Späte Stummfilme. Ästhetische Innovation im Kino 1924-1930. Marburg: Schüren Verlag, 39-63. Hier: 42. 8 Harbou, Thea von (1923). Das Nibelungenbuch. Mit 24 Bildbeil. aus d. Decla-Ufa-Film ‚Die Nibelungen‘ von Fritz Lang. München: Drei Masken Verlag. 9 Harbou (1924). Vom Nibelungen-Film und seinem Entstehen. 10 Lang (1924). Worauf es beim Nibelungen-Film ankam. 11 Das Schlagwort geht zurück auf das Gedicht ‚Deutschlands Berufung’ (1861) von Emanuel Geibel (1815-1884). Es endet mit den Worten: ‚Und es mag am deutschen Wesen/ einmal noch die Welt genesen‘. Vgl. ‚Am deutschen Wesen mag die Welt genesen‘. Abrufbar unter: https: / / de.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Am_deutschen_Wesen_mag_die_Welt_genesen (Stand: 09/ 01/ 2019). 74 Heidi Grünewald sches Staatswesen beziehe, später jedoch politisch umgedeutet worden sei, so darf doch nicht übersehen werden, dass die Zweideutigkeit des Begriffs Wesen der imperialistischen Machtpolitik des Kaiserreichs durchaus gelegen kam. Von Harbou und Lang tragen diesen Diskurs in die Weimarer Republik, wenn sie nachdrücklich von der Berufung des Films sprechen, „hin in alle Welt“ zu gehen und „alle Völker“ zu belehren, was wahre Kultur sei. Von dieser überheblichen Wirkungsabsicht kann sich der Nibelungenfilm trotz seiner hervorragenden künstlerischen Leistung zwangsläufig nicht lossagen. Deutschland möchte sich nach dem Ersten Weltkrieg im Ausland rehabilitieren, doch am Grundton hat sich nur wenig geändert. Selbst der damalige Außenminister, Gustav Stresemann, gab bei der Uraufführung des ersten Teils zu verstehen, der Film solle „ein Baustein sein in der großen Brücke, die das Seelenleben, das Geistige von uns - zu allen anderen Nationen zu schlagen berufen ist“ 12 . In der Kulturvermittlung sieht Fritz Lang „die ethische Aufgabe des Films und speziell des deutschen Films“ 13 . Das Medium Film sei besonders dazu geeignet, da das Auge ja ohne Übersetzung begreife, was es sieht. Nach von Harbou kann deshalb ein Film wie Die Nibelungen in „Hammerfest ebensogut verstanden werden wie in Kapstadt“ 14 . Dass aber auch Filmbilder unterschiedlichen kulturellen Dekodierungen unterliegen, blenden die Autoren aus. Von Harbou geht es um die Rechtfertigung ihrer großdeutschen Vision und Lang will den deutschen Film gegenüber dem wachsenden Unterhaltungskino des amerikanischen Kostüm- und Sensationsfilms aufwerten. Der Nibelungenfilm soll volksnah, aber auch bildend wirken; denn „im Chaos unserer Zeit“ habe niemand mehr die „Muße und die Nervenruhe, das Nibelungenlied zu lesen“. Der Nibelungenfilm soll dem Volk gehören und nicht wenigen „kultivierten Gehirnen“. 15 Zeitgenössische Kritik Als Grundlage für ihre Arbeit am Drehbuch nennt von Harbou die „im Bewusstsein des Volkes wurzelnde Erinnerung“ an den Mythos und begründet damit ihren stofflichen Zusammenschnitt aus den verschiedensten Quellen. Sie habe aus allem das Schönste herausgepflückt. 16 In der zeitgenössischen Kritik findet dieses Verfahren weitgehend Zustimmung, insbesondere als Mittelweg zwischen Wagner und dem christlich-mittelalterlichen Epos. Die von ihr be- 12 Der Außenminister über den deutschen Film. Der Kinematograph 887, 17. Februar 1924. Zitiert nach Kaes (2001), 43. 13 Lang, Fritz (1924). Stilwille im Film. Jugend 3, 1. Februar 1924, 55. 14 Harbou (1924). Vom Nibelungen-Film und seinem Entstehen. 15 Lang (1924). Worauf es beim Nibelungen-Film ankam. 16 Harbou (1924). Vom Nibelungen-Film und seinem Entstehen. Mythos und Utopie in Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm 75 nutzten Quellen scheinen zweitrangig, vielmehr lobt man, dass sie das „klare, einfache, breite, epische Gefüge“ lieferte, das die Regie brauchte. Sie sei ein „getreuer Gefolgsmann ihres Regisseurs“, aber auch ein „getreuer, zuverlässiger Verwalter des heiligen Erbes“, schreibt der Berliner Film-Kurier am Tag nach der Uraufführung. 17 Die Tageszeitung Berlin 18 kommentiert allerdings, von Harbous Fassung decke sich mit der Fassung des alten Volksbuchs „Vom hürnenen [sic] Siegfried“ in der Sammlung Gustav Schwabs von 1837 19 , die den Kampf mit dem Drachen und Siegfrieds Tod in den Vordergrund stellt. Der Romantiker Schwab setzte damals den Märchenton, den auch der Nibelungenfilm aufnimmt. Die Fassung stelle „alles noch heute Lebendige an der Sage in der populärsten Form“ 20 zusammen. Interessant ist die Bemerkung des Kritikers, dass dadurch allerdings eines der wesentlichen Merkmale des „heidnischen Mythoshelden wegfalle, nämlich die befremdende Tatsache seiner „Ich-Erfüllung durch den Tod“ 21 . Diese Ich-Erfüllung oder Ich-Treue verlagert sich im Film auf die Welt der Burgunder als Teil ihres Rachefanatismus. In einem Sonderheft zum Nibelungenfilm, das die konservative Zeitschrift Die Filmwoche herausgab, setzte die Wirkung des Films schließlich ein beunruhigendes Zeichen. Dort heißt es: „Wir brauchen wieder Helden“ 22 . Während der erste Teil sofort einen gewaltigen Erfolg verzeichnete, blieb der zweite Teil wenig erfolgreich und wurde oft negativ beurteilt. Wahrscheinlich hatte man mit einer Steigerung der Spezialeffekte und der gewaltigen Bilderflut des ersten Teils gerechnet. 1933 wurde dann der erste Teil als gekürzte Neufassung (Tonfilm) 23 mit dem Titel Siegfrieds Tod von der Reichsfilmkammer in den Kinos neu gestartet. Zu diesem Neustart gab die UfA ein Heft mit Reklame-Ratschlägen heraus, die unter anderem auch das folgende Geleitwort des damaligen Reichsministers Goebbels enthält: „Hier ist ein Filmschicksal nicht aus der Zeit genommen, aber so modern, so zeitnah, so aktuell, dass es auch die Kämpfer der nationalen Bewegung innerlich erschüttert hat.“ 24 Der Reklametext 17 Berliner Film-Kurier, 15. Februar 1924 [Materialmappe/ Deutsches Filminstitut]. 18 Berliner Tageszeitung, 15. Februar 1924 [Materialmappe/ Deutsches Filminstitut]. 19 Schwab, Gustav (1837). Erzählungen aus den alten Volksbüchern. Kapitel: Der gehörnte Siegfried. - Es handelt sich hierbei um eine freiere Bearbeitung der älteren Volksbuchtexte. 20 Berliner Tageszeitung, 15. Februar 1924. 21 Berliner Tageszeitung, 15. Februar 1924. 22 Zitiert nach Gast, Wolfgang (1993). Treue und Gehorsam. Fritz Langs ‚Nibelungen‘ und die NS-Filmpropaganda. In: Gast, Wolfgang (Hrsg.). Literaturverfilmung. Bamberg: C.C.Buchners Verlag, 49-60. Hier: 55. 23 Franz B. Biermann besorgte die Bearbeitung dieser Tonfassung. Der Sprecher war Theodor Loss. 24 Siegfrieds Tod. Reklameratschläge des UFA-Leih (1933), o. O., 8 [Materialmappe/ Deutsches Filminstitut]. 76 Heidi Grünewald betont, Langs Film habe ein großes Echo gefunden und auch diesmal werde das „Liede eines Heldenschicksals“ die Menschen ergreifen. In diesem Sinne endet dann auch der Film mit dem Bild der im Dom aufgebahrten Leiche Siegfrieds: „Wie zwei Grabfiguren“, heißt es in der Inhaltsangabe, „halten die dunkle und die lichte Frau die Totenwache bei Siegfried, den sie beide geliebt“. 25 Mehrfach wurde diese Szene als Denkmal für die im Krieg gefallenen Soldaten gesehen oder gar als Sinnbild der sogenannten Dolchstoßlegende, jener Verschwörungstheorie, die die Schuld an der militärischen Niederlage Deutschlands im Ersten Weltkrieg auf die Sozialdemokratie und das Judentum abwälzen sollte. Noch im selben Jahr bot Goebbels Fritz Lang die Leitung des Filmwesens in Deutschland an. Einen Tag nach ihrer Unterredung floh der Regisseur nach Frankreich. Seine Frau, Thea von Harbou, aber blieb. Der Publizist Kurt Pinthus erklärt in seiner Kritik zum Nibelungen-Film, die Bilder zeigten, dass Lang beim Transfer des Stoffes in die Sprache des Films eine „Vision der Umformung“ gehabt habe. Lang sei kein „Schauspieler-Regisseur“, sondern ein „Bilder-Regisseur“, der den Prinzipien von „Einfachheit und Bildhaftigkeit“ folge. In diesen Prinzipien, die „auf alle Nebenhandlungen, auf alle Nebenpersonen“ verzichten, liegen nach Auffassung des Kritikers „alle Vorzüge und zugleich alle Schwächen des Films“. 26 So ergebe sich durch die konsequente Durchführung dieser Prinzipien eine starke Konzentration und damit auch, wie das Ende des ersten Teils zeige, zu viele langwierige Szenen aus einem unerfreulichen Familienleben. Bis dann im zweiten Teil kraß herausgearbeitet wird: hier radikale Treue der Sippen bis zum allgemeinen Selbstuntergang - dort radikale Rache um den Mord Siegfrieds. 27 Langs Translation des mythischen Stoffs Diese Lesart deckt sich wohl kaum mit den thematischen Ansprüchen des Regisseurs und seiner Drehbuchautorin. Ihres Erachtens liegt dem mythischen Stoff ein zentrales Thema zugrunde, das beide in ihren Programmtexten messianisch vertreten, nämlich eine tiefgreifende Schuld-Sühne-Thematik. Die Achse des Films sei „die Unerbittlichkeit mit der die erste Schuld die letzte Sühne nach sich zieht“, schreibt von Harbou, „es handele sich um eine „erschütternde Predigt 25 Siegfrieds Tod. Reklameratschläge (1933), 6. 26 Pinthus, Kurt (1924). Der Nibelungen-Film. In: Kurt Pinthus: Filmpublizist (2008). Mit Aufsätzen, Kritiken und einem Filmskript von Kurt Pinthus. Essay von Hanne Knickmann. München: edition text+kritik, 176-179. Hier: 176. 27 Pinthus (1924), 177. Mythos und Utopie in Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm 77 von der Sühne jeder Schuld“. 28 Damit stellt sie den Schicksalsgedanken in den Mittelpunkt des Geschehens. Der Hauptfokus liege auf dem Menschen und den menschlichen Tragödien. Es gäbe „keine Menschen von heute oder von damals […]. „Es gibt nur Menschen“ 29 , argumentiert auch der Regisseur. Darum sei es seine Absicht gewesen, die Schicksale dieser Menschen aus ihren Ursprüngen her zu erklären und notwendig erscheinen zu lassen, sodass alles was geschieht, nach dem Gesetze einer unerbittlichen Folgerichtigkeit geschieht. 30 Lang bestimmt seine Translation des Mythos durch eine rigorose thematische Fixierung und strenge Stildisziplin. Die Hermetik dieser thematischen Fokussierung und des ihr anhaftenden weltanschaulichen Grundgedankens widersetzt sich jeglicher historischen Perspektive, die nach Ursachen und Folgen der Handlungszusammenhänge fragt. Der Mensch im Nibelungenfilm findet seine einzige Selbstvergewisserung im Rückblick auf eine ihn bestimmende Urschuld. Alle Erklärungen und Referenzen Langs und von Harbous fokussieren das Vergangene und blenden eine aufgeklärte Gegenwartsanalyse aus. An Stelle von Geschichte tritt der Mythos als Folie utopischer Selbstprojektion. Anton Kaes fasst zusammen: Durch Abkehr von der Gegenwart sollten ewige Werte aufscheinen, die die Misere der Nachkriegszeit nicht nur relativierten, sondern aufhoben in einer rückwärtsgewandten Utopie. Der Nibelungen-Film machte es sich damit zur Aufgabe, das deutsche Volk mittels einer filmischen Phantasmagorie als nationale Gemeinschaft zu rekonstruieren: die Wiedergeburt der Nation aus dem Geiste des Lichtspiels. 31 Diese retro-utopische Perspektivierung bzw. Wirkungsabsicht macht deutlich, dass der Mythos als solcher im Nibelungenfilm seiner eigentlichen Aufgabe enthoben wird: Anstatt die Welt auszulegen, soll er nun Pate stehen für bestehende Weltanschauungen. Für seine Adaption des Mythos suchte Lang einen Stil, „der die Idee des Werkes kristallen ins Licht hob“ und das „Heilig-Geistige“ nicht banalisierte. 32 So musste die Filmtechnik unter anderem die Darstellungen des Märchenhaften bewältigen und seinen mystischen Zauber sichtbar machen. Dies habe der Film sicherlich bewiesen, mit Bildern wie der „Burg Brunhilds unter ewigem Nordlicht inmitten eines Flammensees“ [DVD, 50: 52-51: 20], „der Zauber der Tarnkap- 28 Harbou (1924). Vom Nibelungen-Film und seinem Entstehen. 29 Lang (1924). Stilwille im Film, 55. 30 Lang (1924). Worauf es beim Nibelungen-Film ankam. 31 Kaes (2001), 44. 32 Lang (1924). Stilwille im Film, 55. 78 Heidi Grünewald pe“ [DVD, 57: 35-57: 50] oder „Siegfrieds Ritt durch den mystischen Wald“ [DVD, 16: 13-16: 46]. 33 Lang nennt diese Szenen nicht nur, um die perfekte Technik hervorzuheben, die sie entstehen ließ, sondern vielleicht auch, weil sie einprägende Beispiele dafür abgeben, dass über dem Film an sich noch etwas, wie er sagt, vom „Mystischen der Schöpfung“ liege: „Ein Wille sagt, es werde! Und siehe da, es wird! “, deklamiert Lang und verleiht damit dem Medium Film eine religiöse Dimension, die den Film zu einer Art Kunstreligion erhöht. Die schöpferische Kraft des Mediums thematisiert er in einer Höhlenszene, wo er seinen Helden die Macht der bewegten Bilder spüren lässt. Siegfried traut seinen eigenen Augen nicht, tastet die Felswand ab, auf die Alberich mit seiner Lichtkugel lebendige Bilder (Zwerge, die die Krone des Eiskönigs schmieden) projiziert. [DVD, 31: 30- 32: 40]. „Lang verweist in diesem medialen Exkurs auf die Fremdheit und Faszination, die sich mit dem Medium der bewegten Bilder verbinden, und präsentiert ihre Herstellung […] als einen magischen Schöpfungsakt“ 34 , kommentiert Susanne Schul. Was zunächst als hervorragende technische Leistung der Film im Film Projektion Bewunderung findet, wird im Nibelungenfilm also zum Paradigma medialer Selbstdarstellung. Mit der Höhlen-Sequenz, meint Schul, verweise Lang „auf sein filmästhetisches Konzept der Erschaffung einer ‚neuen‘ Welt durch das Medium Film“ 35 , wobei zu ergänzen wäre, dass Langs filmästhetisches Konzept auch die Projektion möglicher neuer Welten impliziert, insbesondere wenn man davon ausgeht, dass im Zusammenspiel von Mythos und Fiktion neue Figurationen des Imaginären entstehen. Darin liegt das utopische Potential des Films. Als Beispiele medialer Selbstreferenz führt Schul auch die „filmästhetischen Illusionseffekte“ und „visuelle(n) Verfremdungstechniken“ von Walter Ruttmann an, wie z. B. „die Visualisierung von Kriemhilds Falkentraum“ 36 [DVD, 41: 00], die die Bildabstraktion eines Adlers und eines Falken darstellt. Der Trickfilm will die Illusion schaffen, „man könne in die andersartigen Wahrnehmungsformen einer Traumrealität der Figur eintauchen“ 37 . Zu diesem medialen Exkurs gehört auch die Sequenz von Siegfrieds Abschied unter einem blühenden Kirschbaum [DVD, 02: 10: 17], der sich in Kriemhilds Erinnerung langsam „in mehreren Einstellungen zur symbolischen Visualisierung des Todes“ 38 wandelt und schließlich einem Totenkopf gleicht. 33 Lang (1924). Worauf es beim Nibelungen-Film ankam. 34 Schul, Susanne (2014). HeldenGeschlechtNarrationen: Gender, Intersektionalität und Transformation im Nibelungenlied und in Nibelungen-Adaptionen. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang, 177. 35 Schul, 176. 36 Schul, 177. 37 Schul, 178. 38 Schul, 178. Mythos und Utopie in Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm 79 Mythos, Ideologie und Stil Aber nicht nur die technischen Möglichkeiten bestimmen die Umsetzung des mythischen Stoffs in Filmbilder, auch Langs Erfahrungen als Maler finden hier ihren Niederschlag. Der malerisch lyrische Grundton etlicher Bildmotive, die offensichtlich Arnold Böcklins Gemälden entlehnt sind, bestimmt insbesondere die Naturszenerie, in der sich Siegfried bewegt. Die Filmhistorikerin Lotte Eisner 39 bemerkt dazu: Arnold Böcklins Nymphe auf dem Einhorn inmitten dunkler Baumstämme, durch die Lichtnebel flutet, wird für jene Szene verwendet, in der Siegfried auf dem weißen Zelter durch den flimmernden Zauberwald reitet. Jupiterlampen ergießen ihr strömendes Licht über Atelierbäume, Nebelschwaden steigen zwischen den Stämmen auf, verweben sich dem flutenden Leuchten. 40 Eisner erklärt, dass auf diesen Atelier-Wald durch bestimmte Öffnungen auch „echte Sonne“ hinunterstrahlte: „So mischte sich echte Natur mit Ateliernatur“. 41 Langs Lichtdramaturgie, in der Schul „eine Verknüpfung von Lichtsetzung und bildnarrativen Strukturen“ 42 sieht, ist ausschlaggebend für die Atelierlandschaft, in der sich Siegfried bewegt. So leuchten beispielsweise die Bäume wie von innen heraus und machen Siegfried zu einer emblematischen Lichtgestalt. Fig. 8. Fritz Lang, Die Nibelungen 43 39 Eisner, Lotte (1955). Die dämonische Leinwand. Wiesbaden: DER neue FILM. 40 Eisner, Lotte (1958) zitiert nach: Die Nibelungen (I. Teil Siegfrieds Tod). Texte ausgewählt und zusammengestellt von Werner Zurbach. Freunde der Gilde deutscher Filmkunsttheater, 9. April 1958, o. O., o.S. [Materialmappe/ Deutsches Filminstitut]. 41 Eisner (1958), o.S. 42 Schul, 180. 43 Abbildung 8. DVD (1): [57: 35-57: 50]. Fig. 9. Arnold Böcklin, Das Schweigen im Walde (1885) 44 Eine Korrespondenz mit Böcklins Motiven erkennt Eisner auch in der zeitlos und raumlos anmutenden Idylle der Quelle, wo Siegfried von Hagen ermordet wird. „Die blumenübersäte Wiese, die vor dunklen Felsen weiße Birkenstämmchen umsäumen“, kommentiert Eisner, „ist lediglich die Synthese zweier beliebter Böcklin-Bilder. Auch hier verweist sie auf das Zusammenspiel von natürlicher Natur und Atelierlandschaft, da „auch […] natürliche Blumen auf der Wiese im Gelände als kleine Setzlinge angepflanzt worden waren und man monatelang auf ihr Blühen wartete“. 45 Neben dieser lyrisch-mystisch anmutenden Gestaltung wird die bildliche Umsetzung des Mythos vor allem auch durch einen vornehmlich im Raumkonzept der Burgunder herrschenden, starren Ornamentstil geprägt. Ihm sind Architektur und Menschen unterworfen. Er hierarchisiert und monumentalisiert, schafft eine Aura mit Denkmalcharakter. Von Harbou erklärte, das Ornamentale habe nur den „ihr Schicksal lebenden Menschen“ gedient: „Es gab kein Ornament, nicht eine Linie, nicht eine Lichtwirkung, die als Selbstzweck das Auge von ihnen, den Menschen, ablenken durften“. 46 Lang und von Harbou zwingen den Menschen in die Enge des Ornaments (vgl. Abbildung 10), um ihn so lange zu formen, bis er nur noch in den für ihn vorgesehenen Raum passt und gewissermaßen als Mythos Mensch auf einen Sockel gestellt werden kann. Nicht umsonst meint Lang: „Man stellt Denkmäler nicht auf den flachen Asphalt“ 47 . 44 Abbildung 9. Abrufbar unter: https: / / commons.wikimedia.org/ wiki/ File: B%C3%B6cklin- Mappe_1901_Das_Schweigen_im_Walde.jpg (Stand: 09/ 01/ 2019). 45 Eisner (1958), o.S. 46 Harbou (1924). Vom Nibelungen-Film und seinem Entstehen. 47 Lang (1924). Kitsch-Sensation-Kultur und Film, 31. 80 Heidi Grünewald Fig. 10. Fritz Lang, Die Nibelungen 48 Einer der prominentesten Filmkritiker der Weimarer Republik, Siegfried Kracauer, der wie kein anderer das zeitgenössische Kino in seinem 1947 im Exil erschienen Band From Caligari to Hitler 49 unter die Lupe nahm, stand dem Nibelungenfilm sehr kritisch gegenüber. Lang setze auf den „Bann dieser dekorativen Kompositionen“, die den Zwang des Schicksals symbolisierten. Ästhetisch entspreche dieser Zwang der Tatsache, „dass alle Strukturelemente streng in den Rahmen luzider Formen eingefügt sind“. 50 Personen würden zu Ornamenten geordnet und es gäbe eine ornamentale Fokussierung von Räumen und Zeremonien. Insbesondere die menschlichen Ornamente repräsentierten die Allmacht der Diktatur, meint Kracauer, wie z. B. der Landungssteg aus Soldaten, die „wie lebendige Säulen“ Brunhild den Weg bahnen, oder die angeketteten Zwerge, die den dekorativen Sockel für Alberichs Schätze bilden. 51 Insgesamt triumphiere im Nibelungenfilm das Ornament über das Menschliche, denn „absolute Autorität behauptet sich dadurch, dass sie die ihr unterworfenen Menschen zu gefälligen 48 Abbildung 10. DVD (1): [01: 24: 21]. 49 Zitiert nach der deutschen Ausgabe: Kracauer, Siegfried (1995). Von Caligari zu Hitler: eine psychologische Geschichte des deutschen Films. Übers. von Ruth Baumgarten und Karsten Witte. 3. Aufl. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp, S. 100-104. 50 Kracauer (1995), 102. - Nach Kracauer impliziert auch die „allzu auffällige Schönheit“ der Bildkompositionen Böcklins eine „konstruktive Strenge“, die in Langs Stilkonzept passt. (Kracauer, 102). 51 Kracauer (1995), 102. Mythos und Utopie in Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm 81 82 Heidi Grünewald Mustern anordnet“. Genau hier zieht Kracauer einen Vergleich zum Nazi-Regime, „das seine stark ornamentalen Neigungen durch Massenaufgebote zum Ausdruck brachte“. Die Architektur dieser Veranstaltungen war so angelegt, dass Hitlers Blick „über ein Riesenornament“ gleiten konnte, „das aus hunderttausend Einzelteilen bestand“. An Leni Riefenstahls Triumpf des Willens, dem offiziellen Nazifilm des Nürnberger Reichsparteitags von 1934 ließe sich der Einfluss des Nibelungenfilms deutlich nachweisen: „Die theatralischen Trompetenbläser, pomphaften Treppenaufgänge und autoritären Muster von Menschen aus Siegfrieds Tod tauchen, […] extrem vergrößert, wieder auf“, schreibt Kracauer. 52 Zum anderen hebt der Kritiker hervor, dass das dominant Statische in Langs Ornamentstil auch „das mythische Reich zu einem statischen“ 53 stempelt. Damit bemächtigt sich der Film unseres Erachtens nicht nur des mythischen Stoffs, sondern des Mythischen überhaupt. Zusammenfassung Die Betrachtungen zu Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm haben gezeigt, dass die Verfilmung des mittelalterlichen Epos zwei wichtige Ziele verfolgt. Zum einen will sich Lang durch den Einsatz modernster Filmtechniken (Spezialeffekte) mit den Herausforderungen des visuellen Mediums zukunftsweisend auseinandersetzen und dem trivialen Unterhaltungskino die Stirn bieten. Zum anderen verfolgt er eine Wirkungsabsicht, die den bewussten Gebrauch des Nibelungenmythos im Kontext der ersten Nachkriegsjahre der Weimarer Republik verdeutlicht: Der Film soll als kulturpolitisches Instrument fungieren und zur Rehabilitierung Deutschlands beitragen. Die Erklärungen der Autoren, insbesondere die von völkischem Gedankengut geleiteten Kommentare der Drehbuchautorin Thea von Harbou, aber auch Langs Eifer, den Nibelungenmythos als kulturelles Manifest nationaler Größe wiederzubeleben, verweisen auf einen rückwärtsgewandten Diskurs, der sich auf die vermeintlich höchsten Werte der deutschen Seele (z. B. Treue bis in den Tod) beruft und die deutsche Kunst und Kultur als einzig wahre verherrlicht. Langs Verfilmung gebärdet sich als eskapistische Aufbereitung des Nibelungenstoffes und wurde, wie die zitierten Kritiken der 1920er Jahre zeigen, weitgehend positiv aufgenommen, lenkte sie doch vom politischen Chaos der Weimarer Republik ab und fokussierte eine im Ruhm und Glanz des Vergangenen und Mythischen verankerte Utopie einer neuen nationalen Identität. Auf die Frage nach der Umsetzung dieser einerseits kulturpolitischen, andererseits filmästhetischen Mission antwortet Fritz Lang mit einer akribischen 52 Kracauer (1995), 103. 53 Kracauer (1995), 104. Bildsprache der Monumentalität und Erhabenheit, die das Fremde als barbarisch stigmatisiert und die edle Welt der Burgunder im Ornamentalen erstarren lässt, sodass die dystopischen Bilder von Rache, Hass und Zerstörung wie Denkmäler das kollektive Gedächtnis prägen. Auf diese Weise zeichnet Lang ein statisches Bild des vom Schicksal gefesselten Menschen, der im Film auch als Massenornament in Erscheinung tritt (z. B. der Landungssteg aus Soldaten). Diese Stilstrenge geht mit einem Absolutheitsanspruch einher und es darf nicht verwundern, dass sich die nationalsozialistische Propaganda vom Nibelungenfilm inspirieren ließ. Die totalitäre Ästhetik der Großveranstaltungen und Aufmärsche Hitlers spiegelt den ideologischen Gebrauch der Massenornamente, auch wenn Langs Kunstauffassung sich dem entziehen sollte. Der dominant statische Stil des Nibelungenfilms durchdringt auch die mythische Welt und verpasst ihr einen märchenhaften Rahmen. Das mythische Geschehen wird nun primär vom Medium Film bestimmt, welches sich mit eigenen filmischen Mitteln selbst als Mythos kreiert, und zwar im Sinne einer utopischen Projektion möglicher neuer Welten. Mythos und Filmfiktion schaffen in Die Nibelungen neue Figurationen des Imaginären, die jene Utopie der unendlichen Imagination assoziieren, von der auch die audiovisuellen Medien im einundzwanzigsten Jahrhundert leben. Mythos und Utopie in Fritz Langs Nibelungenfilm 83 The image of Germany in German films. A study of national stereotypes in two film adaptions of the epic poem Nibelungenlied Laura Arenas National images When thinking of a nation, we can hardly get rid of the automatic images that rapidly arise in our minds. The study of images in literary texts is part of the discipline called Imagology, which firstly emerged in Comparative Literature 1 . Due to the complexity that the study of images entails, we can talk about an interdisciplinary concept which offers a wide range of methodological approaches that have been applied in many other fields of study: historical, political, cultural, literary, linguistic, didactic, psychological and sociological, among others 2 . About national images, Allport says: “Objective findings are one thing. The “images” that people have of a national character may be quite another” 3 . Thereon he defines them as follows: “The images are, like all perceptual and memory phenomena, a blend of fact and previously held frames of reference and value” 4 . In his statement, he brings to light the complexity that these phenomena involve, since they are inherent to human cognition. In addition to that, he points out that “images are important to study because people act in terms of them” 5 . 1 Chew III, William L. (2006). What’s in a National Stereotype? An Introduction to Imagology at the Threshold of the 21st Century. Language and Intercultural Communication 6: 3-4, 179-187. Hoenselaars, Ton/ Leerssen, Joep. (2009). The Rhetoric of National Character: Introduction, European Journal of English Studies 13: 3, 251-255. Leerssen, Joep. (2016). Imagology: On using ethnicity to make sense of the world. In: Galéote, Géraldine (coord.) Les stéréotypes dans la construction des identités nationales depuis une perspective transnationale. Paris: Université Paris-Sorbonne Paris IV, 13-31. 2 Cf. Witte, Annika. (2014). Das Deutschlandbild mexikanischer Studierender. Eine empirische Untersuchung. Münster: Waxmann Verlag GmbH, 16. Cf. Chew (2006: 179). 3 Allport, Gordon. (1954). The nature of prejudice. 4th ed. Reading: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, 118. 4 Allport, (1954: 119). 5 Allport (1954: 119). 86 Laura Arenas The study of national images seems to be directly related to the study of national stereotypes. In fact, scholars still have not agreed on a clear distinction between national images and national stereotypes 6 . The boundaries of these two concepts are so blurred and vague, that in the literature it is still common to find both terms used interchangeably. Some authors point out that the term image implies a conscious construction and manipulation of the picture transmitted 7 . However, Löschmann proposes that, in case of having to make such a distinction, national images would constitute a broader concept that include not only a set of stereotypes about people, which have been fossilized and transmitted over time, but also our experiences, knowledge, ideas and feelings: Das Bild, dass wir von etwas, z. B. vom Zielsprachland haben, ist auf jeden Fall mehr als nur etwa ein Bündel von Stereotypen. Es ist eher eine komplexe Vorstellung, eine mehr oder weniger strukturierte Ganzheit, in die Wahrnehmungen, Vorstellungen, Erfahrungen, Kenntnisse und Erkenntnisse, Ideen, Vermutungen, Gefühle und natürlich auch Stereotype und Vorurteile eingehen. Anderes ausgedrückt, lässt sich das Bild als subjektiv gewertetes, aber sozial verarbeitetes Bild der Wirklichkeit begreifen, das unabhängig von Beobachter existiert, aber keineswegs in dem Sinne objektiv ist, dass es mit der Realität übereinstimmen muss. Von hier aus wird auch einsichtig, dass sich Nationenbilder viel schneller wandeln können als Stereotype 8 . So far, images as well as stereotypes are understood as cognitive and perceptual phenomena; however, these terms will oscillate conceptually depending on the 6 Cf. Löschmann, Martin. (1998). Stereotype, Stereotype und kein Ende. In: Löschmann, Martin/ Stroinska, Magda (eds.) Stereotype imFremdsprachenunterricht. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang, 7-34, 21. Cf. Sato-Prinz, Manuela. (2011). Zum Einfluss von Studienaustauscherfahrung auf das Deutschlandbild japanischer Studierender - Ergebnisse einer Querschnittstudie. Zeitschrift für Interkullurellen Fremdsprachenunterricht 16: 2, 185-203, 186. Cf. Spaniel, Dorothea. (2002). Methoden zur Erfassung von Deutschland- Images. Ein Beitrag zur Stereotypenforschung. Info Daf 29: 4, 356-368, 357. Cf. Spaniel, Dorothea. (2004). Deutschland-Images als Einflussfaktor beim Erlernen der deutschen Sprache. Deutsch als Fremdsprache 41: 3, 166-172, 166. Cf. Grünewald, Matthias (2005). Bilder im Kopf. Eine Longitudinalstudie über die Deutschland- und Deutschenbilder japanischer Deutschlernender. München: Iudicium, 36. Cf. Witte (2014: 32). Cf. Le Müller, Katarina/ Hallsteinsdóttir, Erla (2016). Stereotype im Fremdsprachenunterricht. Perspektiven der Stereotypenforschung. In: Hallsteinsdóttir, Erla/ Geyer, Klaus/ Gorbahn, Katja/ Kilian, Jörg (eds.) Frankfurt am Main etc.: Peter Lang, 234. 7 Quasthoff, Uta. (1973). Soziales Vorurteil und Kommunikation. Eine sprachwissenschaftliche Analyse des Stereotyps. Frankfurt am Main: Fischer-Athenäum-Taschenbuch, 21. Kleinsteuber, Hans J. (1991). Stereotype, Images und Vorurteile - Die Bilder in den Köpfen der Menschen. In: Trautmann, G., Die häßlichen Deutschen: Deutschland im Spiegel der westlichen und östlichen Nachbarn. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 50-77, 61-64. 8 Löschmann (1998: 22). discipline. Thiele 9 approaches images and, consequently, also stereotypes in media in two different ways: firstly, she defines them as mental constructs about individuals of a certain group that come from the reception of media-images and, secondly as concrete products that can be expressed in a graphic, optic or linguistic medium. These differences highlight the relative ease with which images can change in comparison to stereotypes, which tend to remain stable over time and that specifically refer to the common traits of the individuals of a certain group, usually, a nation, gender, religion or social class 10 . As a consequence, in this article we understand images and stereotypes as two closely related concepts, since stereotypes are to be considered as a key element in shaping and analysing a certain image. In this paper, we will look at the image of Germany conveyed in two film adaptations— one a classic, the other a recent production— of the medieval epic poem Nibelungenlied: Die Nibelungen by Fritz Lang (1924) and Dark Kingdom by Uli Edel (2004). In order to do so, we will carry out an analysis of national stereotypes as portrayed by the mythical characters in these films. Finally, we will make a comparison of both films to determine whether the image of Germany that is transmitted has changed or evolved over time. National stereotypes The term stereotype is used in various theoretical disciplines and can have quite different meanings in each of them. This term was firstly introduced by the American journalist Walter Lippmann in his work Public Opinion (1922). He defines it as “pictures in our heads” 11 about other social groups. This statement made the concept gain attention rapidly both from a cognitive as well as from a sociological perspective. This will make stereotypes of interest in the field of Social Psychology, which still dominate current research on the topic. The sociocognitive theory of stereotypes takes as standpoint Allport 12 and Tajfel 13 who consider stereotypes as fundamental for perception and as natural and inherent tools to understand the complexity of the world. Thus, stereotypes would inevitably have an influence over our social perception by categorizing individuals into groups through the attribution of a set of homogeneous traits. This approach 9 Thiele, Martina. (2015). Medien und Stereotypen. Konturen eines Forschungsfeldes. Bielefeld: Transcript Verlag, 40-43. 10 Schweinitz, Jörg. (2011). Film and stereotype: a challenge for cinema and theory. New York: Columbia University Press, 4. 11 Lippmann, Walter (1922). Public Opinion. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co. 12 Allport (1954). 13 Tajfel, Henri. (1969). Cognitive aspects of prejudice. Journal of Social Issues 25, 79-97. The image of Germany in German films 87 88 Laura Arenas also focuses on the pragmatic function of stereotypes, since they are deemed as natural mechanisms in the individual’s orientation for “self-reference” 14 . The sociological theory highlights the role of stereotypes in intergroup relations and in the construction of a social or national identity. This approach has been strongly influenced by philosophy, since it sets back its bases on Hegel’s philosophical concept of Otherness 15 and argues that the construction of the Other is fundamental to the construction of the Self. Simone de Beauvoir also recognized the cognitive dimension of Otherness and defined it as “a fundamental category of human thought” 16 . In addition to that, she highlighted the natural distinction of the Self and the Other in order to strengthen our identity. To this respect, she says: “No group ever defines itself as One without immediately setting up the Other opposite itself” 17 . From this standpoint, the socio-psychological approach explains that group categorization leads to an exaggeration of intergroup differences, which affect the individual’s perception, thus attributing or expecting the same set of characteristics to all the members of a certain group. Thus, these perceived differences would not only play a role in defining identities, but also in enabling identification. On one side, they help individuals adhere to a certain social or national group that, in theory, shares similar characteristics and beliefs. On the other, these differences are used to protect the positive image of the ingroup, creating an image of the outgroup that tends to be negative 18 . Furthermore, the reduction of complexity of the outgroup would be enough for the individual to make judgements based on a limited amount of information that could actually be inaccurate 19 . The linguistic approach also tries to explain why this process of stereotyping has special consequences on nationalities. To this respect, Stroinska claims that we tend to believe that members described under the same linguistic category, namely Germans, must have a set of common characteristic traits. However, we will never be able to say that “there is such a thing like an average German” 20 . 14 Tajfel, Henri/ Turner, John C. (2004). The Social Identity Theory of Intergroup Behavior. In: Jost, John Thomas/ Sidanius, Jim (eds.)-Key readings in social psychology. Political psychology: Key readings.-New York: Psychology Press, 276-293, 283. 15 Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich/ Findlay, Niemeyer John/ Miller, Arnold Vincent. (1977). Phenomenology of spirit. Oxford: Clarendon Press. This book is a translation of Hegel’s original work Phänomenologie des Geistes (1807). 16 Beauvoir, Simone de. (1949). The second sex. New York: Vintage Books, 19. 17 Beauvoir (1949: 23). 18 Tajfel and Turner (2004: 277). 19 Allport (1954: 119). 20 Stroinska, Magda. (1998). Them and us: On cognitive and pedagogical aspects of the language-based stereotyping. In: Löschmann, Martin; Stroinska, Magda (eds.) Stereotype im Fremdsprachenunterricht. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang, 35-58, 40. Stereotypes in films There are two main ways to spread images and stereotypes. They can be acquired through primary experience, which refers to the direct experience and contact with the outgroup, and, also, through secondary experience, which concerns socialization, media or the environment 21 . Nowadays, the easiest and fastest way to spread stereotypes is through mass media 22 . Film is a medium that transports especially memorable images. It not only provides information about the world, but also ways to see it and to understand it 23 . The images projected do not reflect reality, yet they act as signifiers of this reality 24 . In this sense, what and how they are projected will exert a great influence on the imaginary of the individuals. The representation of a national group is inevitably “tied to ideologies” 25 . Myths constitute a good example of this, since they usually refer to the origins, culture and identity of a specific nation, represented by a conflict between the “good”, the ingroup, and the “bad”, the outgroup 26 . Simone de Beauvoir also made reference of this dichotomic representation in myths: “The duality between Self and Other can be found in the most primitive societies, in the most ancient mythologies […]” 27 . In this sense, the manner in which we represent our national group and the other groups with whom it interacts will provide interesting information about the values assigned. Furthermore, the information conveyed in this representation will directly influence the feelings and the images that we associate with them and us. Thus, we can say that films have a direct influence on the formation, spread and change of the images of a particular nation. 21 Wilke, Jürgen. (1989). Imagebildung durch Massenmedien. In: Bundeszenrale für politische Bildung (ed.) Völker und Nationen im Spiegel der Medien. Bonn, 11-21, 16. Spaniel (2002: 358). Spaniel (2004: 167). Thiele (2015: 50). 22 Wilke (1989: 16).Thiele (2015: 50). Schweinitz (2011: 4). Witte (2014: 39). 23 Hall, Stuart. (1977). Culture, the Media and the Ideological Effect. In: Curran/ James [et al.] (eds.) Mass Communication & Society. Beverly Hills: Sage Publications, 340-341. 24 Loscertales, Felicidad. (1999). Mitos, estereotipos y arquetipos de la educación en los medios. Comunicar 12, 15-18, 16. Sánchez-Alarcón, Felicidad. (1999). El cine, instrumento para el estudio y la enseñanza de la Historia. Comunicar 13, 159-164, 160. 25 Cristoffanini, Pablo Ronaldo. (2003). The Representation of ‘the Others’ as Strategies of Symbolic Construction. AalborgUniversitet: Aalborg Universitetsforlag. Arbejdspapirer : Institut for Sprog og Internationale Kulturstudier, 33, 1-27, 5. 26 Cristoffanini (2003: 13). 27 Beauvoir (1949: 26). The image of Germany in German films 89 90 Laura Arenas Since the 1970s, stereotypes have been used to analyse the stereotypical images of characters in films in order to study the images of the outgroup 28 . In fact, this application of stereotypes remains the main methodological approach of imagological studies in films to date 29 . Due to their stability, stereotypes work in films as “reference points” 30 in character construction in two directions: firstly, because they try to reflect a somewhat faithful image of a shared worldview, and secondly, because the way they are constructed also influences the audience’s imaginary 31 . In other words, our images affect the shaping of characters, but at the same time, the way characters are shaped affects our images. Analysis In order to observe the evolution of the image of Germany, we are going to compare the mythological characters of two film adaptations of Nibelungenlied, the first film adaption of the poem, Die Nibelungen, by Fritz Lang (1924) and the last adaption to date, Dark Kingdom, by Uli Edel (2004). In order to draw the comparison we have established the following criteria, which both films fulfil: 1. The space of production is Germany. 2. The language used by the characters is German. 3. The nationality of the characters is German. 4. The nationality of both directors is German. The image of Germany cannot be examined by just observing and describing the characters of German nationality. The information that is conveyed about the others also tells something about the way the producers of such image perceives themselves. This implies that, in order to analyse a certain national group, it is necessary to do it in relation to another group. As Okolie 32 says: “Identity has little meaning without the “other”. So, by defining itself, a group defines others”. Therefore, in this paper we have selected two representative groups consisting of members from different races: Group A, characters that represent the German nationality, and Group B, the Nibelungs: 28 Schweinitz, Jörg. (2010). Stereotypes and the Narratological Analysis of Film Characters. In: Eder, Johanna/ Jannidis, Fotis/ Schneider, Ralf. Characters in Fictional Worlds: Understanding Imaginary Beings in Literature, Film, and Other Media. Berlin: De Gruyter, 276-289, 277. 29 Schweinitz (2010: 277-278). Schweinitz (2011: 43). 30 Schweinitz (2011: 43). 31 Schweinitz (2011: 43). 32 Okolie, Andrew. (2003). Identity: Now You Don’t See It, Now you Do’. In: Identity: An International Journal of Theory and Research, 3: 1, 1-7, 2. Group A: German nationality Group B: The Nibelungs Siegfried Mime Krimhild Alberich Gunther Hagen Fig. 11 As mentioned before, stereotypes help in the identification of the Self and the Other. Based on the theoretical review on images and stereotypes presented so far, we have divided this process of identification into three steps: 1) comparison 2) categorization 3) assessment. We will examine the characters of both films focusing on these aspects of identification. Fritz Lang’s film Die Nibelungen Group A Siegfried 33 Krimhild 34 Gunther 35 Figs. 12, 13, 14. Siegfried, Krimhild and Gunther in Fritz Lang’s film Die Nibelungen (1924). 33 DVD (1): [43: 15] 34 DVD( 1): [40: 16] 35 DVD (1): [45: 01] The image of Germany in German films 91 92 Laura Arenas Group B Mime 36 Alberich 37 Hagen 38 Figs. 15, 16, 17. Mime, Alberich and Hagen in Fritz Lang’s film Die Nibelungen (1924). GROUP A GROUP B GROUP A GROUP B Physical traits Physical traits Psychological traits Psychological traits Fair skin Dark skin Hero Villain Blond hair Dark hair Kind Evil Young Old Civilized Uncivilized Human looking No human looking Individual development No development Clean Dirty Popular Unpopular Fair clothes Dark clothes Powerful Weak Fig. 18 In order to compare the characters of both groups, we have divided their traits into physical and psychological. As we can see in this table, the characters from Group A (Siegfried, Krimhild and Gunther) share a set of physical and psychological attributes. We can also observe this tendency in the three characters of Group B (Alberich, Mime and Hagen). In this way, they become stereotypical characters, since they arise “as schematic constructs recognizable by a select few pronounced attributes” 39 . That is to say, they are reduced to a limited and repeated 36 DVD (1): [4: 28] 37 DVD (1): [27: 25] 38 DVD (1): [1: 49: 56] 39 Schweinitz (2011: 45). set of outstanding characteristics that, “by the law of frequency” 40 prompts homogeneity within the same group. This leads to mental associations that will trigger a stereotype. Thus, the fact that all the characters in each group share a certain set of characteristic traits makes it easier to identify which character belongs to each of the groups. In addition to that, it also allows them to be perceived as prototypical individuals that reflect what seems to be a plausible representation of reality. Then, the “reduction of complexity together with repetition” 41 lets us recognize stereotypical constructions in the characters of the first film and serves as basis for comparison with other groups. Regarding the psychological characteristics, we can observe that the characters in Group A have a more complex psychological profile in comparison to those from Group B. This is more noticeable as events unfold, since they often interact not only with other characters but also with themselves. In this way, we can observe an intricate intellectual development that gives rise to feelings and conflicts that the viewer can empathize with. On the other side, in Group B we can find characters whose semantic and aesthetic complexity has been reduced. These are rapidly discernible in view of few singular psychological features, which we directly relate to the lack of individual development. As the narrative progresses, these characters are more difficult for the audience to connect and feel identified with. At first glance, this mode of characterization might seem aleatory; however, it is very likely that the specific properties attached to them fulfil a particular narrative function. Presenting characters in binary opposites makes it much more evident for the audience to recognize the attributes that define the groups and, at the same time, helps them to identify the members of each group without the explicit need to specify it. In other words, the discrepancy between them, to a great extent, influences the creation of two different representative entities. We must not forget that these mythical figures can be interpreted as a representation of a struggle between good and evil. In this respect, characterization undoubtedly helps to associate values and meanings 42 . In this way, all the attributes assigned to Group A are associated with what the myth presents as “good” and, on the contrary, the characteristics possessed by members of Group B will be automatically associated with “evil”. The process of categorization does not only apply to one group. This always occurs in relation to other groups by comparing the most outstanding and common features between them. The attribution of a certain trait as well as its recurrence makes more apparent the lack of such attribute in the counter group. This creates a border that behaves as a “mirror” 43 ; that is 40 Allport (1954: 279). 41 Schweinitz (2010: 284). 42 Schweinitz (2011), 49. 43 Cristoffanini (2003: 16). The image of Germany in German films 93 94 Laura Arenas to say, our own identity is build up based on what separates us from them 44 . In film analysis there are several mechanisms 45 that can be used in order to create and preserve a certain identity, although this is never explicitly recognised. In this analysis we have observed two in particular that are considerably recurrent. The first strategy is called fragmentation, which is directly related to the process of categorization and consists on making emphasis in the differences between groups, ignoring the similitudes. The second strategy that we have spotted is metonymy in the construction of the main character, Siegfried. All the characteristics that he shares with the members of his group, are representative of the German nationality, its essence and its origins. This reduction of complexity in the construction of the characters is not only necessary to understand and categorize the input received, but it also pursues to orientate the audience in the comprehension of the information. In this sense, the differences that stand out lead to the attribution of meanings and the emergence of certain feelings towards each group. Once the individuals are divided into inand outgroup, we will represent the group we belong to in a way that the same set of physical and psychological traits are highlighted, repeated and contrasted with the outgroup. “These identifications […] define the individual as similar to or different from, as “better” or “worse” than, members of other groups” 46 . The process of stereotyping aims to highlight and enhance the self-image and reinforce it as identity. “Real conflicts of group interests not only create antagonistic intergroup relations but also heighten identification with, and positive attachment to the in-group” 47 . This can be clearly recognized in the characters of Group A, since we find complex figures that share a common appearance and psychological profile that are based on the role they play and that represent all that is good, and whose attributes the audience will directly or indirectly associate with the German image. The subsequent transmission of this image through the media will contribute to the formation, establishment and diffusion of a German national identity. 44 Cristoffanini (2003: 16). 45 Cristffanini (2003), 16-17, mentions different strategies of symbolic construction to work with ideology. In his work he talks about: a) legitimization, b) dissimulation, which includes 1) displacement, 2) euphemism, 3) tropes (metonymy and metaphor), c) unification, d) fragmentation and e) reification. 46 Tajfel and Turner (2004: 281). 47 Tajfel and Turner (2004: 277). Uli Edel’s film Dark Kingdom Group A Siegfried 48 Krimhild 49 Gunther 50 Figs. 19, 20, 21. Siefried, Krimhild and Gunther in Uli Edel’s Dark Kingdom (2004). Group B Mime 51 Alberich 52 Hagen 53 Figs. 22, 23, 24. Mime, Alberich and Hagen in Uli Edel’s Dark Kingdom (2004). 48 DVD (1): [11: 50] 49 DVD (1): [1: 00: 16] 50 DVD (1): [1: 48: 50] 51 DVD (1): [13: 01] 52 DVD (1): [54: 26] 53 DVD (1): [1: 00: 04] The image of Germany in German films 95 96 Laura Arenas GROUP A GROUP B Physical traits Physical traits Siegfried Krimhild Gunther Alberich Mime Hagen Dark skin Fair skin Fair skin Fair skin Fair skin Fair skin Dark hair Red hair Blond hair Dark hair Grey hair Dark hair Young Young Young Old Old Young Human looking Human looking Human looking Human looking Human looking Human looking Dirty Clean Clean Dirty Clean Clean Dark clothes Fair clothes Dark clothes Dark clothes Fair clothes Dark clothes Fig. 25 If we now compare these characters, we observe that it is not possible to extract a table with clear common physical characteristics of the members of each group. For that reason, it has been necessary to show the individual attributes of each character. Both the physical and the psychological construction of the characters in Uli Edel’s version might be perceived as a reaction to the use of stereotypes as construction mechanism in Fritz Lang’s. On the one hand, in Dark Kingdom, in contrast to the Die Nibelungen characters of Group A, we cannot find a set of traits that enables a clear identification of each of the groups. In this sense, we move from the concept of homogeneity in the characterization, typical of Fritz Lang, to the concept of diversity. Using a greater variety of features is not the only mechanism used in this film to deconstruct a stereotype. If we look at the main character, Siegfried, we find a man with dark skin, dark hair and a dirty appearance, far from the white, blond, clean hero. In this film, characters are nothing like stereotyped representations. It presents a hero that breaks with the ancient aesthetic canons and whose evil personality has not been attributed to a concrete physical appearance. This rejects one of the Corco’s assumptions of Race Thinking, which says that “physical features are linked to behaviour, […] without foundation” 54 . This overview of the construction of characters could be an attempt to criticize Fritz Lang, proving that “some physical characteristics, 54 Corcos, Alain F. (1997). The myth of human races. East Lansing: Michigan State University Press, 4. and even less (if any) psychological characteristics, are unique to one or the other of the putative races” 55 . After having compared both groups, it may be difficult for the audience to identify or distinguish the representation of two different groups. In Dark Kingdom the characters seem to have been reshaped in “an attempt to uncover national stereotypes” 56 , which in contemporary times are totally undesirable. Dark Kingdom rejects this “stereotype as crystallization” 57 of the first Siegfried that contains negative connotations. In addition, this time the characters of Group A are neither constructed based on the outgroup’s lacking features nor do they embody all the positive physical and psychological features. They all have a human and similar appearance and it is almost impossible to find repeated traits that behave as representative of each group. “Reducing perceptions of group homogeneity is certainly an important aspect of stereotype reduction” 58 . In this way, we can see that stereotypes are not employed in this film, probably to make more evident the dissolution of group boundaries that were so conspicuous in Fritz Lang’s film. The increase in complexity and variety in the construction of characters makes it impossible for the audience to incline for a favourite group. In both adaptations, it is clear that Hagen plays the villain. Yet we do encounter examples where the role of the character is not so evident. That is the case of Mime, who we cannot locate in the group of villains, since his aesthetic construction does not allow the audience to relate him to this particular group. The breakout of the first two phases in which the comparison of the characters prevents them from being included in categories, makes it very difficult to attribute different values and meanings to the groups represented. This would result in a lack of sufficient evidence to support the construction of a new German national character. Furthermore, we observe that in Uli Edel’s film, we cannot even talk about a type of German, since we find a variety of individuals that do not act as representative of any nationality. Conclusion Films play an essential role in the conformation and subsequent spread of a certain national image. This image is strongly influenced and shaped by the use of national stereotypes. In the film adaptations of the medieval epic poem, we 55 Schneider, David J. (2004). The psychology of stereotyping. New York: Guilford Press, 453. 56 Schweinitz (2011: 44). 57 Schweinitz (2010: 11). 58 Schneider (2004: 410). The image of Germany in German films 97 98 Laura Arenas can observe the use of stereotypes as a mode of characterization of the figures. In Fritz Lang’s film Die Nibelungen, a German national identity is constructed through a clear representation of the Self and the Other based on the stereotype mechanism. This can be seen after the characters are analysed both aesthetically and psychologically. As a result, we find two differentiated groups whose members share a common construction that allows their easy identification. In addition, the identity that is given to each of the groups serves as staging of binary opposites. On one side, the ingroup possesses a positive self-image which renders even more negative the image of the outgroup. After analysing Uli Edel’s film, Dark Kingdom, we do not find this dichotomic representation of German identity. On the contrary, we find a Siegfried whose attributes suggest a rejection of the national character that Fritz Lang’s advocated for. Furthermore, we find a clear absence of stereotypes, which is recognizable in the lack of simplification and generalization in the characteristic traits that shape the individuals. To conclude, both films reflect in their construction of characters a differentiated image of Germany which shows how national stereotypes have evolved, changed and been modified in Germany. Nonetheless, this does not prevent these films to tell the myth faithfully and harmoniously. Artusmythos und Transtextualität in Monty Python and the Holy Grail Peio Gómez Larrambe Einleitung Eine Eigenschaft des Artusmythos ist die Anpassungsfähigkeit, dank derer er in verschiedenen politischen, historischen und kulturellen Kontexten neugeschrieben werden könnte. Dies zeigt sich in der beträchtlichen Anzahl von Artusromanen und -filmen. Der folgende Beitrag befasst sich mit „Monty Python and the Holy Grail“ (1975). Eine Untersuchung dieses Films bietet sich aufgrund seiner Subversion sowohl der Elemente des narrativen und semantischen Kerns des Mythos als auch der gegenwärtigen Repräsentationen des Mittelalters an. Das Ziel des Textes ist, die transtextuelle Beziehung zwischen Mythos und Film aufzuzeigen. Dafür werden die Transformationsprozesse von Elementen, die traditionell mit Artus und Lanzelot verbunden wurden, in zwei Fragmenten analysiert. Die gewählte theoretische Annäherung an den Mythos geht von dem von R. Barthes geprägten Begriff des „künstlichen Mythos“ aus 1 . Barthes betrachtet den Mythos nicht inhaltlich, sondern formal; er analysiert ihn aus einer Signifikant-Signifikat-Zeichen Perspektive, wobei Letzteres die Verbindung der Anderen darstellt 2 . Laut Barthes ist der Mythos ein sekundäres semiologisches System, das ein existentes Zeichen verschiebt. Ein künstlicher Mythos bildet also eine dritte semiologische Kette, einen Mythos auf zweiter Stufe, die den ersten ebenso verschiebt: „Die Macht des zweiten Mythos liegt darin, den ersten als betrachtete Naivität zu begründen“ 3 . Bei der Betrachtung von „Monty Python and the Holy Grail“ als künstlichem Mythos lassen sich drei Systeme unterscheiden. Das erste besteht aus den literarischen Artusromanen, in denen der Mythos sich entwickelt hat; das zweite 1 Barthes, Roland (2010). Mythen des Alltags. Berlin: Suhrkamp. Seiten 285—288. 2 Barthes (2010: 258). 3 Barthes (2010: 286). 100 Peio Gómez Larrambe entspricht dem Mythos selbst und seinen semantischen bzw. narrativen Einheiten; und das dritte macht den Film aus. Die Transformationsprozesse des Mythos werden mithilfe der Terminologie von G. Genette beschrieben 4 . Zum einen ist unter den Begriffen pragmatische und diegetische Transposition „die Modifikation des Handlungsverlaufs und seines instrumentalen Trägers“ 5 bzw. der Diegese, („die Welt, in der sich diese Geschichte ereignet“ 6 ) zu verstehen. Zum anderen werden die Transformationen, die die Handlungsmotivationen der agierenden Figuren semantisch umwerten, durch die Begriffe Motivation, Demotivation und Transmotivation beschrieben: Der erste ist positiv und besteht darin, ein Motiv dort anzubringen, wo der Hypotext keines aufwies oder zumindest keines erwähnte: […] Der zweite Aspekt ist rein negativ und besteht darin, eine ursprünglich vorhandene Motivation zu streichen oder auszulassen: […] Das dritte Verfahren setzt die vollständige Substitution ein, das heißt eine zweifache Bewegung der Demotivation und (Re)Motivation (durch eine Motivation). 7 Der Begriff Umwertung (zweifache Bewegung der Abwertung und Aufwertung) stellt jede „Operation axiologischer Art dar, die dem Wert gilt, der explizit oder implizit einer Handlung oder einer Reihe von Handlungen zugeschrieben wird“ 8 . Die Umwertung ist die Transformation, „in die oft alle anderen Operationen einmünden“ 9 . Demythisierung von Artus und Lanzelot Eine der ersten Szenen des Films zeigt die Begegnung von Artus, der Ritter für seine Tafelrunde sucht, und Dennis, einem anarchistischen Landarbeiter. Als der König dem Landarbeiter befiehlt, still zu sein, kommt es zu folgendem Gespräch 10 : 4 Genette, Gérard (1993). Palimpseste: Die Literatur auf zweiter Stufe. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp. 5 Genette (1993: 425). 6 Genette (1993: 404-405). 7 Genette (1993: 439-440). 8 Genette (1993: 464). 9 Genette (1993: 453). 10 Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones (Dir.) (1975). Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Python (Monty) Pictures. 10’ 47’’-11’ 16’’. Woman: Order, who does he think he is? Arthur: I am your king! Woman: I didn’t vote for you. Arthur: You don’t vote for kings. Woman: How did you become king, then? Arthur: The Lady of the Lake-… [angels sing] her arm clad in the purest shimmering samite, held aloft Excalibur from the bosom of the water to signify by Divine Providence that I, Arthur, was to carry Excalibur. [singing stops] That is why I am your king! Zunächst soll ein Aspekt in Bezug auf das mythische Schwert des Königs erläutert werden. Obwohl das Schwert in Werken wie dem walisischen „Kulhwch ac Olwen“ oder dem „Historia regnum Britanniae“ erschien, wo es „Kaledvwlch“ bzw. „Caliburna“ genannt wurde 11 , findet man die ersten Berichte seines Ursprungs in späteren Artusromanen. Hierbei lassen sich zwei Versionen unterscheiden. Die erste Version erschien zum ersten Mal im „Histoire de Merlin“ von Robert de Boron. Es lässt sich eine auffällige Parallelität zu „Die Saga von den Völsungen“ beobachten. In diesem Werk wurde beschrieben, wie während einer Hochzeit Odin das Siegesschwert in dem Kinderbaum stieß und sagte: „Wer dieses Schwert aus dem Stamme zieht, der soll es von mir als Geschenk erhalten“ 12 . Nachdem alle Adelsmänner versucht hatten, das Schwert herauszuziehen, konnte Sigmund, der Sohn des Königs, es aus dem Stamm befreien. Bei Robert de Boron wird beschrieben, wie am Weihnachtsabend ein Amboss mit einem Schwert von Gott erschaffen wurde. Nachdem zahlreiche Ritter und Adlige vergeblich versuchten, das Schwert herauszuziehen, gelang es schließlich Artus, dem Sohn des Königs. Beide narrative Sequenzen sind also ähnlich. Der Unterschied besteht darin, dass Artus in „Histoire de Merlin“ aufgrund dieser Handlung zum rechtmäßigen König wurde: Im Schwert war eingraviert, dass „whoever could draw the sword from the stone would be king by the choice of Jesus Christ“ 13 . Somit wird das Motiv der Legitimierung des Königs durch die göttliche Vorsehung, die mit dem Herausziehen des Schwertes symbolisiert wird, eingeführt. 11 Torres Asensio, Gloria (2003). Los orígenes de la literatura artúrica. Barcelona: Publicacions de la Universitat de Barcelona. 187. 12 Niedner, Felix (Übersetzer) (1923). Die Saga von den Völsungen. Abrufbar unter: http: / / www.manfrieds-trelleborg.de/ viewpage.php? page_id=215 (Stand: 08/ 12/ 2018). 13 Bryant, Nigel (Ed., Übersetzer.) (2001). Merlin and the Grail: Joseph of Arimathea, Merlin, Perceval: the Trilogy of Prose Romances Attributed to Robert de Boron. Cambridge: DS Brewer. Seite 107. Artusmythos und Transtextualität in Monty Python and the Holy Grail 101 102 Peio Gómez Larrambe Die zweite Version erscheint ca. 1240 in der „Suite du Merlin“, die zweite Weiterführung der „Histoire de Merlin“ 14 . Nachdem König Artus sein erstes Schwert in einer Schlacht zerschlagen hatte, wird ihm das mythische Schwert Excalibur von der Herrin vom See gegeben. In dem Gespräch zwischen Artus und Dennis lässt sich eine pragmatische Transformation des Mythos beobachten. Artus benachrichtigt Dennis darüber, dass er rechtmäßiger König sei, weil die Herrin vom See ihm das Schwert Excalibur gegeben habe - und nicht, weil er es aus dem Stein herausgezogen habe. Beide Varianten sind vermischt: Die Bedeutung der ersten wurde mit der narrativen Sequenz der zweiten Variante verbunden. Es handelt sich hierbei um keine zufällige Transformation: Der vorgetragene Grund für Artus’ Legitimierung zum König wirkt irrationell, da er aus dem Kontext gelöst wurde. Dieser Umstand ist Dennis bewusst. Er antwortet Folgendes: Dennis: Look, strange women lying on their backs in ponds handing out swords- … that’s no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony. Arthur: Be quiet! Dennis: You can’t expect to wield supreme executive power just ’cause some watery tart threw a sword at you! Arthur: Shut up! Dennis: I mean, if I went around saying I was an Emperor because some moistened bint had lobbed a scimitar at me, they’d put me away! 15 Ein anarchistischer Landarbeiter, der Artus widerspricht und sich über ihn lustig macht, stellt einen Anachronismus dar. Er verändert den raumzeitlichen Zusammenhang des Mythos. Die Handlung findet im Wesentlichen aber in keiner neuen Diegese statt. Vielmehr werden heterogene historische Zugehörigkeiten in einem satirischen System vermischt. Es handelt sich also um eine gemischte Vorgehensweise der diegetischen Transformation 16 , die weder homodiegetisch noch heterodiegetisch ist. Somit wird in dieser Szene ein Mythos, der eine pragmatische Transformation erlebt hat, von Artus erwähnt und durch den transdiegetischen Diskurs eines anarchischen Landarbeiters wiederlegt. Eine semantische Transformation der Figur des Artus findet statt, da die Begründung seiner Herrschaft transformiert 14 Rosalba Lendo (2000). El personaje de Merlín en la Suite du Merlin. Acta poética 21: 1. 121-151. Seite 127. 15 Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones (Dir.) (1975: 11’16’’-11’44’’). 16 Genette (1993: 422-423). wird. Die göttliche Vorsehung („Divine Providence“) wurde durch „some farcical aquatic ceremony“ ersetzt. Diese Operationen stellen eine Verschiebung des mythischen Zeichens dar. Die pragmatischen, diegetischen und semantischen Transformationen münden in eine axiologische Transformation des Mythos ein: Er erlebt eine Auswertung, eine Demythisierung. Das zweite Fragment spielt sich ab, als Artus und die Ritter der Tafelrunde sich bei der Suche des heiligen Grals trennen. Am Tag seiner arrangierten Hochzeit wird Prinz Herbert von seinem Vater im Turm des Sumpfschlosses eingesperrt. Er schießt einen Pfeil mit einer Notiz ab, der den Schildknappen von Lanzelot trifft. Lanzelot erhält den Hilferuf und macht sich auf den Weg, die gefährdete „Herrin“ zu retten. Durch seine Heldentat wird ein grausames Massaker auf der Hochzeit angerichtet. Er entdeckt, dass die vermutete Herrin eigentlich ein Prinz ist; er ist verwirrt. Herberts Vater erfährt dann, dass der Ritter Sir Lanzelot aus Camelot, einem „pretty good pig country“ 17 , ist. Er ermordet seinen Sohn und den Vater der Braut, um seine neue Tochter mit Lanzelot zu verheiraten. Am Ende der Szene kommt Herbert zurück und Lanzelot flieht. Die Handlung dieser Szene geht teilweise von den literarischen Vorbildern aus. Ausschließlich in „Lancelot ou Le Chevalier de la charrete“ von Chrétien de Troyes, dem ersten Auftritt dieser Figur in der Artusliteratur, findet sich der narrative Kern der Handlung. In diesem Werk wird u. a. die Entführung der Königin Guenièvre und die von Lanzelot durchgeführte heroische Rettung erzählt 18 . Diese Topoi wurden von späteren Autoren wie Thomas Malory übernommen und intensiv entwickelt. Der narrative Kern ist also bereits im Erwartungshorizont der Zuschauer vorhanden. Allerdings muss Lanzelot laut Neufeld „negotiate a reality that continually confounds both his and the audience’s aesthetic and narrative expectations” 19 . Auf der einen Seite werden ihre narrativen Erwartungen aufgrund einer pragmatischen Transformation enttäuscht: Die Figur, die Hilfe braucht, ist nicht mehr eine Herrin, sondern ein Herr. Diese Veränderung verschiebt die traditionell mit Lanzelot verbundene Spannung zwischen Minne und Ritterlichkeit, indem er bei der Entdeckung des Geschlechts Herberts seine Heldentat aufgibt 20 . Eine semantische Transformation findet somit statt. Das von Lanzelot 17 Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones (Dir.) (1975: 57’13’’-15’’). 18 Lupack, Alan. (2005: 89-91). 19 Neufeld, Christine. (2002). Coconuts in Camelot: Monty Python and the Holy Grail in the Arthurian Literature Course. Florilegium 19: 1, 127-147. Seite 136. 20 Es lässt sich anmerken, dass diese Episode in „Monty Python’s Spamalot“ wesentlich umgeschrieben wurde. In diesem von Eric Idle geschriebenen satirischen Musical, das auf dem Film basiert wurde, greift Lancelot ein, als der Vater mit einem Speer auf Herbert losgeht. Er outet sich und heiratet Herbert am Ende. Artusmythos und Transtextualität in Monty Python and the Holy Grail 103 104 Peio Gómez Larrambe angerichtete Massaker wird (im Sinne von Genette) demotiviert. Beide Operationen führen zu einer Demythisierung. Gorgiesvki weist bei der Analyse dieser „déconstruction parodique et désacralisant du mythe“ darauf hin, dass die britischen Komiker choissisent pour cible non seulement les invariants arthuriens bien connus de la culture anglo-saxonne, tels qu’ils ont été véhiculés par le mythe littéraire à travers les siècles, mais aussi les codes de représentation eux-mêmes 21 . Auf der anderen Seite werden also ihre ästhetischen Erwartungen dadurch enttäuscht, dass die filmische Repräsentationscodes in Monty Python and the Holy Grail dekonstruiert werden. Obwohl der Film „numerous film genres, including Ingmar Bergman’s films, slapstick, swashbuckling adventure, kung-fu films, the musical, documentary, and animation” 22 nachahmt, wird in diesem Fragment eine satirische Nachahmung von zwei Genres durchgeführt. Das Erste, das Musical, bildet einen Kontrast zu der dramatischen Situation. Herbert, der mehrmals zu singen versucht, wird ständig von seinem Vater unterbrochen. Als er aber nach dem versuchten Mord zurückkommt, singt er endlich in Begleitung der blutverschmierten Gäste. Das zweite Genre, der Mantel-und-Degen-Film, „est présent tout au long du film mais structure plus particulièrement le Conte de Lancelot, qui nous montre une sorte d’anti-héros au jeu de jambes et autres acrobaties toujours ratés“ 23 . Das Pastiche dieser Genres ist hier keine bloße Transstilisierung, bzw. keine „Transposition, deren einzige Funktion eine Veränderung des Stils ist“ 24 : Die satirische Nachahmung beeinflusst den Handlungsverlauf. Laut Gorgievski wird Lanzelot so dargestellt, dass „pris de folie furieuse, il ressemble plus à un fanatique qu’à un chevalier rendant justice, ce qui subvertit le code chevaleresque“ 25 . Neufeld führt an, dass […] the brutal and indiscriminate violence that characterizes Sir Launcelot in Monty Python and the Holy Grail is not an inappropriate commentary on the ubiquity of violence in Arthurian tradition and, more specifically, on the Sir Lancelot of literary tradition in particular 26 21 Gorgievski, Sandra (1995). Le mythe comme objet de déconstruction dans Monty Python and the Holy Grail. In: Costa de Beauregard, Raphäelle et al. (Hrgs.) Le cinéma et ses objects (objects in film). Poitiers: La licorne, 247-254. Seite 247. 22 Neufeld (2002: 129). 23 Gorgievski (1995: 248). 24 Genette (1993: 309). 25 Gorgievski (1995: 248). 26 Neufeld (2002: 137). Alles in allem stellt die Enttäuschung der narrativen und ästhetischen Erwartungen eine pragmatische und semantische Verschiebung des Artusmythos dar. Er wird durch einen Prozess von Demythisierung abgewertet: „audiences of Monty Python and the Holy Grail find their romantic expectations undermined, their myths dismantled“ 27 Schluss Bisher sind die Transformationsprozesse vom Mythos in „Monty Python and the Holy Grail“ diskutiert worden. Anschließend soll versucht werden, die transtextuelle Beziehung zwischen Film und Mythos anhand dieser Transformationen zu bestimmen. Mit dem Begriff Transtextualität bezeichnet G. Genette die „textuelle Transzendenz des Textes“, alles „was ihn in eine manifeste oder geheime Beziehung zu anderen Texten bringt“ 28 . Von den fünf Typen von Transtextualität, die er unterscheidet, werden hier drei verwendet. Genette versteht unter Intertextualität die „effektive Präsenz eines Textes in einem anderen Text“ 29 , beispielsweise in Zitaten, Plagiaten und Anspielungen; unter Architextualität „die Gesamtheit jener allgemeinen und übergreifenden Kategorien—Diskurstypen, Äußerungsmodi, literarische Gattungen usw.—, denen jeder einzelne Text angehört“ 30 ; und unter Hypertextualität „jede Beziehung zwischen einem Text B (den ich als Hypertext bezeichne) und einem Text A (den ich, wie zu erwarten, als Hypotext bezeichne), Text B Text A auf eine Art und Weise überlagert, die nicht die des Kommentars ist“ 31 . In den oben analysierten Fragmenten werden verschiedene Typen transtextueller Beziehungen sichtbar. Als Lanzelot seine Heldentat ausführt, wird eine narrative Sequenz transformiert, die im Erwartungshorizont der Zuschauer existiert. Der Architext wird also zum Hypotext. Dasselbe gilt, als Artus auf der Suche nach Rittern für seine Tafelrunde ist. Als er aber den Mythos von Excalibur erwähnt, ist die Präsenz des mythischen Architextes intertextuell. Diese Analyse übernimmt den Standpunkt, den J. Pardo bei der Analyse des Mythos von Don Quijote in Filmen, die keine bloße Adaptationen sind, entwickelt 32 . Pardo geht davon aus, dass jede Adaptation eine Art Hypertext ist. Er 27 Neufeld (2002: 141). 28 Genette (1993: 9). 29 Genette (1993: 10). 30 Genette (1993: 9). 31 Genette (1993: 14-15). 32 Pardo García, Pedro Javier (2011). Cine, literatura y mito: don Quijote en el cine, más allá de la adaptación. ARBOR Ciencia, Pensamiento, Cultura 187, 237-246. Artusmythos und Transtextualität in Monty Python and the Holy Grail 105 106 Peio Gómez Larrambe hält es für geeignet, den Begriff Architextualität für die Analyse filmliterarischer Beziehungen jenseits der Adaptation zu verwenden, da dieser die Übertragung in Film nicht nur von Texten, sondern auch von Mythen ermöglicht. Laut Pardo kann die Präsenz des mythischen Architexts hypertextuell und intertextuell sein. 33 Diese Ansicht entspricht den Transformationsprozessen im Film: „les auteurs se différencient d'une transposition à l’'écran des schémas narratifs de la légende à partir d'un modèle littéraire donné, et composent à partir d'archétypes“ 34 . Der Film geht also vor allem nicht von einzelnen Artusromanen aus, sondern von den narrativen und semantischen Einheiten, die in der Artusliteratur entwickelt wurden und die Teil des Erwartungshorizonts der Zuschauer geworden sind. Abschließend kann zusammengefasst werden: „Monty Python and the Holy Grail“ lässt sich als einen künstlichen Mythos betrachten, der eine Verschiebung und schließlich die Demythisierung des Artusmythos auslöst. 33 Pardo García (2011: 244). 34 Gorgievski (1955: 248). The Duality of Translation in Historical Television Series: Vikings Elena Castro García Introduction The TV Series Vikings, directed by Ciaran Donelly and Ken Girotti among others, is a historical television series which consists of six seasons and was released on television on 3 rd March 2013 1 . The main objective of Vikings creator and writer Michael Hirst is to portray the myths of Ragnar Lothbrok from a highly accurate historical viewpoint of Scandinavian culture, customs and mythology. This historical Scandinavian atmosphere is also brought back through its soundtrack, composed by Trevor Morris, who has also worked on the music of other prominent historical series such as The Tudors, The Borgias and The Pillars of the Earth. Due to the historical accuracy on which Vikings is based, its impact goes beyond the share numbers and popularity impact and thus becomes a matter of linguistic and cultural study. The Viking era was indeed turbulent because of their expansion and encounters with other civilisations, a fact that led to portray a new cultural and linguistic reality between Norsemen and Anglo-Saxons, as depicted in the series, and which has also occurred in its international reception, since Ragnar Lothbrok’s adventures have attracted the attention of most European countries and several English and Spanish speaking countries in other continents. Vikings is an audiovisual piece of Norse history that has broken knowledge barriers with the audience with only three tools: language, image and audio; therefore, the present chapter will focus on the analysis of the first two seasons of the English and Spanish version of Vikings, in which culture bound aspects, speech, multilingualism and translation strategies 2 will be highlighted. 1 Vikings (2013). IMDb, IMDb.com. Available under: www.imdb.com/ title/ tt2306299/ (Stand: 02/ 07/ 2019). 2 Hurtado Albir, Amparo and Lucía Molina (2002). Translation Techniques Revisited: A Dynamic and Functionalist Approach.- Meta: Journal Des Traducteurs- 47: 4, 501.- Érudit. 108 Elena Castro García Culture Bound Aspects Roland Barthes states that cultural codes “are conceptual systems which regulate the process whereby the denotative meaning of an element in a text acquires an extra connotative meaning.” 3 According to that definition, any religious belief or symbolic concept belongs to a cultural code. In Vikings, Norse mythology is shown in contrast with Christianity, which remarks the oral tradition of Norse people history and beliefs against Christian’s written tradition; therefore, the audience becomes part of Norse mythology by learning it through intersemiotic translation (i.e. the translation of image, sound or any other non-verbal code into words or vice versa 4 ) or the stories described. The way Odin is integrated in Vikings as part of the background knowledge with the only aid of visual and audio effects stands out as the most important example of intersemiotic translation. Odin is the main god of Norse mythology, the god of war, wisdom and death. He is known for his search of wisdom through the exchange of one of his eyes for drinking from the Well of Wisdom, as stated in the Poetic Edda 5 and by Sturluson 6 , which has been referenced by the figure of the raven, because in the sagas the ravens Huginn and Muninn are said to be Odin’s informers 7 . As it can be observed in Figure 26, the first time the god is presented is when Freya’s maidens, the Valkyries, are taking certain slain warriors to Valhalla 8 (see Fig. 26). The character of Odin with human appearance is infrequent and never has an active role, unlike his transmutation into a raven. Available under: http: / / id.erudit.org/ iderudit/ 008033ar (Stand: 07/ 01/ 2019). 3 Hatim, B. and I. Mason (1990). In: Discourse and the Translator. Longman, 70-71. 4 Munday, Jeremy (2008). Main Issues of translation studies.-Introducing Translation Studies: Theories and Applications. London: Routledge, 5. 5 The Poetic Edda. Völuspá, stanza 28. 6 Snorri Sturluson. The Prose Edda. Gylfaginning 15. 7 Lindemans, Micha F. (2005). Odin.- Encyclopedia Mythica. N.p. Available under: www. pantheon.org/ articles/ o/ odin.html (Stand: 09/ 06/ 2015). 8 Norse Mythology A to Z (2010).-In: Norse Mythology A to Z, by Kathleen N. Daly and Marian Rengel. Chelsea House Publishers, 105-106. Fig. 26. Odin’s blurred shape with ravens after a battle from where the Valkyries have taken Norse dead warriors to Valhalla. Thus, the analysis of the figure of the raven will contribute to clarify the extent of Odin’s presence in both the series and Norse customs. The raven shows some aspects of Norse mythology, for example that Odin owned all knowledge and the importance of the right eye using only intersemiotic translation. In Vikings, the seer of the Norse settlement is said to transmit pieces of information provided by the gods through the use of prophecies, and that information is always surrounded by the image of a raven (see Fig. 27). So ravens are not mere watchers, but a reminder to let the characters and the audience know that the gods are watching too. During close-up shots of a raven, its right eye is usually zoomed (see Fig. 28), a clear reference to the eye Odin sacrificed in order to own all knowledge, that way his lost eye became the raven. The Duality of Translation in Historical Television Series: Vikings 109 110 Elena Castro García Fig. 27. Raven observing a person the seer has been asked about. Fig. 28. Close-up shot of raven’s right eye observing a person through the glass. However, Norse mythology symbolism also comprehends abstract aspects as its representation through rites. For instance, they thanked and wished the gods for prosperity by the sacrifice of nine specimens of nine different species, including humans. This rite symbolises number nine, which in Norse mythology represents, for example, its cosmology, as they believed there were nine worlds 9 . It is also noticeable that Norse culture comprehends the same mythological background as other Germanic cultures 10 . Furthermore, there is an explicit reference (01x06; 38: 00) in which Ragnarok is described as “The twilight of the gods” (Götterdämmerung), the name of the opera that closes The Ring of the Nibelung by Richard Wagner 11 . This fact shows that the description of Ragnarok was not chosen by chance, but to reinforce the bonds Norse culture shares with other Germanic cultures by the mention of Wagner’s most prominent work. Multilingual Encounters. The Role of Phonetics Since this is an audiovisual work, its translation cannot be analysed as if it only were a written text, because the phonetic system is in permanent evolution, so a set of phonetic characteristics belongs to a specific time, place and culture 12 . The original English version establishes certain parameters about Norse characters speech, that is, adding archaistic features to Norse characters and using a more standardised 13 version of nowadays English with Anglo-Saxon characters, this way it is easier to differentiate who the characters are. The most general strategy of the original version is the emphasis in voiceless plosive phonemes (/ p/ , / t/ , / k/ ), which are typical of Germanic languages. But the most common feature was to turn the / d/ sound of words ending in -ed and -d into a / t/ sound. Phoneme Words ending in -d Verbs and adjectives ending in -ed that should end in / d/ / t/ good, land, dead, pretend, Gotland killed, saved, loved, slaughtered Fig. 29 9 Andren, Anders et al. (2006). Old Norse Religion in Long-Term Perspectives. Google Libros, Google. Lund: Nordic Academic Press. 35-36. 10 Polomé, Edgar Charles, and E.O.G. Turville-Petre (2019). Germanic Religion and Mythology. Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Available under: www. britannica.com/ topic/ Germanic-religion-and-mythology (Stand: 02/ 07/ 2019). 11 Götterdämmerung (2013). The Ring Cycle by Wagner. The Metropolitan Opera. Available under: http: / / ringcycle.metoperafamily.org/ operas/ Gotterdammerung (Stand: 02/ 05/ 2015). 12 The Role of Typology in Historical Phonology (2015). The Oxford Handbook of Historical Phonology, by Patrick Honeybone and Joe Salmons, Oxford University Press. 13 IPA Chart (2015). International Phonetic Association. Available under: www.internationalphoneticassociation.org/ sites/ default/ files/ IPA2005_1000px.png (Stand: 07/ 01/ 2019). The Duality of Translation in Historical Television Series: Vikings 111 112 Elena Castro García There is, however, a more peculiar shift in phonology, that is the phonemes used for the <r> written form. When <r> is pronounced in English, it would be transcribed as the phoneme / ɾ/ , which is always used by Anglo-Saxon characters, but Norsemen use it in addition to its Spanish allophone. Phoneme Examples of tap / ɾ/ closer to the Spanish allophone / r/ are, trust, every, Ragnar, Rollo Fig. 30 Old Norse, as a Germanic language, must have shared features with other Germanic languages, and an example of it is that the phoneme / f/ is used for <f> and usually for <v>, a common feature that is still preserved in languages as German. So this strategy reinforces the differences between Norse speech and Anglo-Saxons 14 . Phoneme Examples / f/ live, loved, give Fig. 31 The Spanish version, in contrast, does not use phonetic strategies to transmit the distance Norse and Anglo-Saxon speeches have shown in the original version, therefore, the lack of phonetic strategies may lower the impact of the dubbed work. The only measure related to pronunciation used was the addition of vowels in some names and borrowings because of the difficulty Spanish speakers have when pronouncing several consecutive consonants. Example Original oral version Dubbed oral version Knut / knʊt/ / kɒnʊt/ Skol / skɔl/ / eskɔl/ Fig. 32 14 Faarlund, Jan Terje, and Einar Haugen (2011). Scandinavian Languages. Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Available under: www.britannica.com/ topic/ Scandinavian-languages (Stand: 03/ 07/ 2019). Multilingualism and Diglossia The main linguistic situation that occurs along the television series is the multilingualism of Old Norse and Old English, meaning the coexistence of both languages without usage constraints, in addition to the language of the original or dubbed version, English or Spanish respectively. This complex situation in which the characters are implicitly talking in Old Norse or Old English but are actually talking in English or Spanish uses two different audiovisual modalities: dubbing and subtitling. While dubbing is used during the exchange of dialogs among people of the same language (only Norse or Anglo-Saxon speakers in scene), subtitling is restricted to scenes in which people from both cultures appear, as the audio has been recorded in the characters mother tongues, Old Norse and Old English respectively. These languages share part of their lexis and grammar 15 , so words as willkommen and König, which nowadays are part of German language, can be noticed because the three languages belong to the same family and are closely related. When the characters presented only speak Old Norse or Old English and there is a character that portrays the role of interpreter, subtitling is the only technique used, in order to remind the differences and distance between the cultures presented through that strangeness of languages, becoming a genuine audiovisual approach to Venuti’s concept of foreignisation 16 . In those cases, the interpreter only transmits the essence of the message instead of reproducing everything in the other language, but he is also shown as a cultural mediator between the parts so as to prevent a raw. Besides, diglossia, the use of different varieties of language for different functions inside the same community 17 , is frequent as well. Old English and Latin are the languages involved in this case of diglossia, since Latin is used only for praying, preaching and other related Christian acts. When Latin is used, the text is transcribed in order to linguistically and culturally maintain diglossia. This variety of linguistic situations, multilingualism and diglossia, portray the duality of translation by means of the coexistence of different cultures, and therefore, different languages, which is similar to the duality that takes place between the source and target versions of Vikings. 15 Durkin, Philip (n.d.). Old English-an Overview. Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford English Dictionary. Available under: http: / / public.oed.com/ aspects-of-english/ english-intime/ old-english-an-overview/ (Stand: 07/ 01/ 2019). 16 Munday (2008: 145-146). 17 Fishman, Joshua A. (1991). The Intergenerational Transmission of ‘Additional’ Languages for Special Purposes.- In: Reversing Language Shift: Theoretical and Empirical Foundations of Assistance to Threatened Languages. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters, 357-58. The Duality of Translation in Historical Television Series: Vikings 113 114 Elena Castro García Translation as a Play of Light and Shadow. Culture Transmission through Language Culture is a key pillar in Vikings, however, the fact of transferring cultural aspects to a foreign audience requires more creative solutions. Hence, this process will be depicted by some examples from Vikings, directed by Donnelly, Ciaran, et al. 18 , which share complex linguistic features, due to their culturale bond or because creative translation was required to some extent. The first category is about non-standardised sayings and fixed expressions that have been included in the television series. The first and second examples could have easily fallen into a literal translation, but they were modified and the result is more natural. The third case transmits the dramatic shade from the original by using an expression which is common in historical audiovisual and literary works, a shift that enriches the translation. The last case goes even further and omits part of the original dialog and expands the unit translated so that, besides being more idiomatic than its direct translation, the original and dubbed dialog have the same number of syllables, which fits its lip synchronization. Episode reference Original example Dubbed example 01x02; 03: 55 And tell no one that doesn’t need to know. Cuanta menos gente lo sepa, mejor. 01x06; 35: 28 Even if we don’t die, they will still shun us like a bad smell. Pero aunque no nos mate, nos rehuirán todos como a la peste. 02x01; 04: 09 But over there is your real brother, your own flesh and blood. Pero ahí está tu verdadero hermano, sangre de tu sangre. 02x06; 38: 53 -Where have you been? -Here and there. Up and down. -¿Dónde estabas? -Por aquí y por allá. Fig. 33 Challenging as it is, a few creative translation examples have been spotted. On the one hand, the first translation changes quick-silver for lagartija, which preserves the loving way the character uses when he talks about his daughter. It also maintains the original connotations of being agile, and the glow both elements have when reflecting light. On the other hand, blood eagle is a term of uncertain origin, because it has not been proved if it was the result of a mis- 18 Donnelly, Ciaran, et al., directors (2013-2014).- Vikings, Season One and Two, History Channel and TNT. translation of the sagas, as the writer Sigurd Towrie explains 19 . Blood eagle may be a literary invention of a method to torture and execute, and despite its translation is more related to Christianism, it does preserve the effect of the original. Episode reference Original example Dubbed example 02x01; 25: 45 You were so lively you could run as swiftly as the wind. You were like quick-silver. Eras tan ágil que corrías tanto como el viento. Eras como una lagartija. 02x07; 10: 49 Have you ever seen anyone being blood-eagled before? ¿Has visto a alguien sufrir el martirio del águila? Fig. 34 In the following chart there are some examples which depict the translation of culture bound aspects. The first case is a specification of the term paste; since in that scene a character mixes some plants and oils and applies the mix over the wounds to heal a person, the term is accurate and comprises the paralinguistic information provided. On the contrary, the second translation strategy is a generalization; although it can be supposed Sveland is a region from Scandinavia, its translation provides a diachronic shift by mentioning a country which hadn’t been born at that time. The translation of the last example was chosen by convention, because as he is a popular character from the sagas, his name’s translation has been standardised. Episode reference Original example Dubbed example 01x05; 17: 45 We make a paste to put on the wounds. Haremos un emplaste para las heridas. 01x05; 28: 45 Haraldson has confiscated the boat. His daughter is getting married to a man from Sveland. The boat is the dowry. Haraldson ha confiscado tu barco. Va a desposar a su hija con un hombre de Suecia, el barco es su dote. 02x03; 21: 39 Sigurd snake-in-the-eye. Sigurd Ojo de serpiente. Fig. 35 19 Towrie, Sigmund (2000). Torf-Einar and the Blood Eagle.- Orkneyjar. Available under: www.orkneyjar.com/ history/ vikingorkney/ bloodeagle.html (Stand: 07/ 01/ 2019). The Duality of Translation in Historical Television Series: Vikings 115 The fact that a successful translation is based on the cultural and linguistic knowledge of source and target cultures in addition to the context in which the source text takes place has been shown, which leads to next section. The Importance of Contextualization Once the role of culture and language within Vikings series has been stated, the context in which the action takes place must be established, because it is the main characteristic that is going to determine the accuracy of the series translation. At this point, context does not only refer to the historical and sociocultural framework, but also to aspects as the image, intention and register that surrounds the speech. Therefore, the constraints of translation in terms of paralinguistic and pragmatic information provided by the source project will be developed. In the following charts the most important examples that represent the variations in the dimensions of language as a result of the translation of Vikings are established. The dimensions of language are the diastratic, diaphasic, diatopic and diachronic dimensions 20 , which correspond with sociolects, register, geographical and temporal variations respectively (Hatim and Mason, 1990). However, the analysis shows that only the last three dimensions have been needed along the television series translation process: The diaphasic variation in the target text, that is, the choice of register, is usually adapted to the instructions provided by the client. Therefore this may be the reason why the first and third examples show how register is raised in the target text by avoiding colloquialisms. On the contrary, the second example lowers its register from neutral (quarrel) to a more colloquial register (riña) that does not correspond with the situation described, since is it is said to be very violent. 20 Elsig, Martin (2009). Introduction.- Grammatical Variation across Space and Time: The French Interrogative System. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Pub. 7. 116 Elena Castro García Dimension of language Episode reference Original version Dubbed version Diaphasic 01x01; 27: 00 Then don’t ever stick your nose in my face again. No quiero que vuelvas a contradecirme jamás. 01x04; 41: 33 There is a quarrel. There will be violence. Bones and skulls broken. I see that. Hay una riña. Habrá violencia. Huesos y cráneos rotos. Eso lo veo. 02x02; 43: 02 What on earth has caused you to bring your muddy boots into my bathhouse? ¿Qué ha podido llevarte a entrar en mi casa de baño con las botas embarradas? Fig. 36 However, the diatopic variations are directly linked with the locale or more likely in this case with the country the translators are from. In the first diatopic example eastlads is translated as levante, which indeed means east, but any Spanish speaker from Spain instantly associates this term specifically with the area of the east coast of Spain rather than east as a general geographical reference. The second example, on the contrary, shows a common expression used in Latin America but more unusual in Spain, so that the translator has used the own geographical variation instead of a neutral terminology. Dimension of language Episode reference Original version Dubbed version Diatopic 01x01; 24: 10 We will raid east again, to the eastlands, and into Russia. Iremos de nuevo hacia levante; a tierras bálticas y hasta Rusia. 02x07; 18: 00 Floki is angry with Ragnar. Floki está enojado con Ragnar. Fig. 37 The previous dimensions of language were determined by the client or the translators, but the following diachronic examples show a lack of research or consistency sheet, since the historical accuracy has not been contemplated in some cases. In the first case, cacique is a possible translation for chieftain, but unacceptable in this setting because the etymological information provided by the RAE 21 shows that its 21 Cacique, ca (n.d.). Def. 1.- Real Academia Española. Available under: http: / / dle.rae. es/ ? id=6ZP63uo (Stand: 07/ 01/ 2019). The Duality of Translation in Historical Television Series: Vikings 117 118 Elena Castro García origin is Caribbean, and that area was not discovered until the fifteenth century. Similarly to the first example, the second one changes a symbolic Norse reference for a Greek reference that is not relevant in Vikings and which mention does not highlight the piece of Norse culture in the target Spanish project. In the third case, a Spanish archaism for the translation of silver pouch is used, and despite its disuse, the context of the phrase leads the audience to a reference of money, the specific word the character avoids in both cases. Dimension of language Episode reference Original version Dubbed version Diachronic 01x01; 23: 05 These arm rings bind you in loyalty to me, your lord, your chieftain. Estos brazaletes os obligan a ser leales a mí, vuestro señor, y cacique. 02x07; 13: 19 He comes to me, but I don’t know where he is, in Valhalla or in Hel? Él viene a mí, pero no sé dónde está, si en el Valhala o en el Hades. 02x10; 09: 27 They chose you for the size of your-… silver pouch and nothing else. Te eligen por el tamaño de tu- … faltriquera y nada más. Fig. 38 The definition of a wide variety of paralinguistic and pragmatic features and the work on the different stages of a translation project (documentation, revision, etc.) have proved to be essential in order to accomplish the accurate contextualization and development of an audiovisual and historical translation project. Conclusions The collected data together with the performed analysis has led to the following conclusions regarding Norse myths in the audiovisual format given by the comparison of the English and Spanish versions of the Vikings series and the translation work that underlies it. Vikings series is doubly contextualised in terms of language, culture and context, but the extent of the double contextualisation is even wider: the series portrays the duality of translation between Norse and Anglo-Saxons when both cultures meet, but there is an additional duality when translating the series from the English source project to the Spanish target project; and so must be in its translation to any other language. The situations of multilingualism and diglossia are preserved in the English and Spanish versions, in which Old Norse, Old English and Latin plus English or Spanish respectively are mixed. These complex multilingual situations, in addition to the original aim of reproducing multicultural encounters, also results in involving the audience in a Norse culture learning process by means of explanations or subtitling. Multilingual environments show cultural differences between Norse and Anglo-Saxon cultures and between both of them and Spanish culture with which shares less common aspects (linguistic, cultural and historical) than with English; however, the audiovisual format does not reinforce those differences as much as it explains them; and those paralinguistic signs become more important in the target Spanish project because of the distance between Norse and Spanish cultures. In fact, most Norse myths are explained through image and with the aid of the soundtrack, which takes the audience back to ancient times of heroes, strange creatures and powerful forces that ruled humankind. Some of these examples are Ragnarok, the myths that surround the gods Odin, Freya and Thor, the role of the Valkyries and the meaning of the Yggdrasil, which are either orally outlined or only shown through paralinguistic signs. In order to accomplish an accurate translation, the translation process in isolation is not enough to transfer the source Norse mythology and culture to the target Spanish audience with the historical and linguistic accuracy Vikings is intended to. Therefore, this process comprehends other important tasks as researching, revising and, in this case, viewing in addition to translation itself. The phonetic archaistic features used in the source project have been domesticated and therefore were not transmitted to the target project, so that the dubbed version audio does not provide that diachronic resemblance. The fact of emphasising consonant sounds is a reminder of a diachronic distance in speech, since allophones are in constant evolution and suffer slight alterations through time, although this measure has not been applied in the resulting Spanish version, which suffered a general phonetic domestication. However, there is indeed a noticeable effort in both source and target projects about the highlight of the diachronic difference by using syntactical and lexical variations of language in order to meet the audience expectations. Our analysis shows that knowing the context aspects and source and target languages and cultures is the starting point that leads to an accurate translation, since each language linguistic heritage is intertwined with its cultural framework. The Duality of Translation in Historical Television Series: Vikings 119 3 Germanic Myths in Television, Videogames and Propaganda Posters Odin and Ragnar in the television series Vikings: Between myth and legend Ana Melendo Cruz Introduction If we consider that myths, as foundational elements of our civilisation, as Elena Galán suggests, “have been the structures on which we have consolidated the whole cultural, ideological and social system that has evolved over the centuries, whose legacy has continued down to our times,” 1 it is easy to understand why artists have always taken an interest, adopting different viewpoints, discourses and modes of representation, in interpreting and sharing the mythological thought and nature of humankind. In this sense, according to Román Gubern, “[…] cinema and television, because of their facility for mass seduction, have since their origins become the biggest amplifiers and disseminators of the great frameworks of mythical thought.” 2 This interest that mythology inspires in modes of representation, in this case in cinema and television, is associated not only with the need that humanity has felt, and continues to feel, to hear stories that convey a kind of knowledge and truth that seems to be embedded within the greatest depths of our being, but also with the fact that mythological themes themselves contain certain inherent characteristics capable of speaking to a broad audience, as will be explored below. Added to this is the capacity that the moving image—and particularly the television series—has to introduce new sociocultural concepts or reinforce existing ones in consumer societies. This, along with the critical acclaim for different television series and the current crisis in cinema, may explain the success that these products are enjoying today; perhaps, as Román Gubern notes, the transformations they propose are so important that “they provoke an evolution, especially in the spectators, who are 1 Galán Fajardo, Elena (2007). Mitología y cine. Las fuentes de la imaginación. Available at: https: / / www.monografias.com/ trabajos908/ mitologia-cine/ mitologia-cine.shtml (Stand: 03/ 6/ 2018). 2 Gubern, Roman (2002). Máscaras de la ficción. Barcelona: Anagrama, 20. 124 Ana Melendo Cruz attracted to the power of the image,” 3 an image that is sometimes more powerful than the word and has a very strong emotional impact. There are also suggestions of a third golden age of the television series, as to the observations above could be added a list of advantages that the small screen has over the cinema, including the fact, pointed out by Concepción Cascajosa, […] that its revenues are such that they recall those obtained during Hollywood’s classical era, in addition to the narrative aspect that both possess, which furnishes creators with a wide and ever-increasing range of possibilities as television offers all kinds of options for creating stories. 4 Another advantage is the fact that television series possess certain inherent features that make them especially attractive audiovisual products to spectators. Alberto García Martínez refers to this when he explains how directors and screenwriters […] seek to make the viewer sympathise at all times with one of the protagonists, thereby ensuring the renewal of the series for another season. To do this, they make use of three main strategies: victimisation, comparison with other characters, and family connections. 5 In addition, Amalia Martínez points out how “the mass media (especially television, being the most accessible media format) fulfil the function of perpetuating and propagating legends, sagas and fables, just as oral tradition once did.” 6 In this way, the television spectator, turned into an active protagonist, 7 benefits from all the possible genres and from a variety of themes that offer personal satisfaction and enjoyment. Of course, not every series is guaranteed of success, and it is therefore pertinent at this point to ask what elements, both formal and thematic, have made Vikings such an enduring, powerful and popular series. This article will explore this question by analysing one specific aspect: the presence of mythology in the series and its relationship, in this case, to one of 3 Gubern, Román (2007). Entrevista con Román Gubern. Con-Ciencia Social: Anuario de la geografía, la historia y las ciencias sociales 11: 89. 4 Cascajosa, Concepción (2005). Por un drama de calidad en televisión: la segunda edad dorada de la televisión norteamericana. Comunicar 25: 3. 5 García Martínez, Alberto (2014). El fenómeno de la serialidad en la tercera edad de oro de la televisión. In Fuster, Enrique (ed.). La figura del padre nella serialità televisiva. Rome: Ed. Edusc. Roma, 27-28. 6 Martínez, Amalia (1989). Televisión y narratividad. Valencia: Ed. Universidad Politécnica de Valencia. Servicio de Publicaciones, 15. 7 Television series and programs create profiles on social networks in order to establish direct communication with their followers. Such interactivity options are becoming increasingly dominant. its main protagonists: Ragnar Lothbrok. But before turning to this analysis, in the next section I will offer an outline of the methodological pillars on which this research is based. Theoretical assumptions Film adaptations of literary or historical texts have been the subject of a highly diverse range of studies by researchers who, from different theoretical perspectives, have analysed the strategies and mechanisms developed in filmmaking to turn raw material from literary sources into a cinematic document. All of these studies offer clear confirmation of the role played by literature as a source not only of stories but also of modes of storytelling. However, for many years cinematic discourse has been subjected to a hierarchical perspective that has viewed the film as the poor relation, if not the vile traitor, of the text on which it is based. 8 This idea is of special relevance to the case of Vikings, given that the series can be linked to a number of historical events, verifiable to varying degrees in written sources, but which have also been the subject of works of fiction. For this reason, and considering that my main purpose in this study is to identify the visual features and the modus operandi of Vikings (beyond the historical suppositions on which it is based) with reference to the presence of myth, it has been necessary to adopt a methodological approach based on film analysis, as previously suggested by Jacques Aumont and Michel Marie in their definition of any film as: An autonomous work of art, capable of engendering a text (textual analysis) that anchors its meanings on narrative structures (narratological analysis) and elements of sound and vision (iconic analysis), and that produces a particular effect on the spectator (psychoanalytical analysis). This artwork should also be studied in the context of the history and evolution of forms and styles. 9 Thus, to understand the cinematic discourse expressed in Vikings, we need to study it based on an understanding of the cinematic forms contained in this audiovisual product. This approach is difficult to conceptualise, yet despite being widely used in the study of other forms of artistic representation (such as painting) it “continues to be largely unexplored territory in relation to cinema” according to the French historian Michele Lagny. 10 In this respect, the neo-formalist approach proposed by David Bordwell takes on special relevance. In one of his earliest studies, Bordwell suggests that while 8 Bluestone, George (2003). Novels into Films. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press. 9 Aumont, Jacques and Marie, Michel (1988). L’analyse des films. Paris: Nathan, 8. 10 Langny, Michele (1997). Cine e Historia. Barcelona: Borch, 152. Odin and Ragnar in the television series Vikings : Between myth and legend 125 126 Ana Melendo Cruz the concept of narrative is fundamental for theorists of literature, the function-based formalist conception developed in studies of the form in art history should be more central to film studies. 11 Along these same lines, Jenaro Talens and Santos Zunzunegui observe: Works of art in general share the fact of being the products of specific sociocultural contexts and, at the same time, of possessing an obvious formal dimension […]. Thus, morphological studies, far from falling outside the historical domain, offer new viewpoints that can be explored (in the very specific territory of film history) by establishing bridges between works, eras and authors, for which merely evolutionary explanations are not capable of identifying meaningful connections. 12 Without overlooking some of the ideas contributed by Gombrich regarding the receptiveness of the work of art, Bordwell advocates the analysis of the level of expression. However, in the interests of also considering the content that these forms serve as the vehicle for in Vikings, I believe that Bordwell’s method needs to be complemented by other aspects associated with the realm of mythology, i.e. with the level of content, in order to explain how this complex textual space that ultimately becomes the television series assumes, transgresses and transforms the literary and historical forms on which it is based. I therefore believe it necessary to consider two functional universes, genetically related and connected through different narrative media. Studying both of them will offer some answers that may shed light on the components of expression and content that converge in Vikings with the result that, on the one hand, it can be considered by the spectator to be a cult series, and on the other, it may serve to affirm the importance of the television series, which is all too often deemed inferior to the cinema, without taking into account, as Amalia Martínez suggests, that: […] the stories of both differ only in the fragmentation imposed by the television medium as a consequence of advertising and the discourse conveyed through careful programming. It could therefore be argued that the importance of both media forms, as storytellers—and, I would add, generators of visual forms—is similar (1989: 40). In short, I will be paying close attention to the visual poetics, in the sense given to this expression by Zunzunegui, 13 contained in the text under study. 11 Bordwell, David (1983). Lowering the Stakes: Prospects for a Historical Poetics of Cinema. Etat de la Théorie. The Current State of Theory. Nouveaux objets. Nouvelles méthodes. Iris 1: 8. 12 Talens, Jenaro/ Zunzunegui, Santos (1998). Introducción por una verdadera historia del cine. En Talens, Jenaro/ Zunzunegui, Santos (Coords.). Historia General del Cine, Vol. 1. Madrid: Cátedra, 22. 13 Zunzunegui, Santos (1994). Paisajes de la forma. Madrid: Cátedra, 72. What is Vikings? If we had to offer a general definition of Vikings, we would very probably describe it as a historical series which, based on both historical documents and legends, attempts to explore the mysteries that have developed over time in relation to the charismatic and fascinating Viking culture, which left an indelible mark on Europe between the 8 th and 10 th centuries. However, from the perspective of this study, it would be too simplistic to label a series with the characteristics of Vikings solely based on genre, given that the plots, subplots, and different elements contained in the series are so complex that its historical nature is ultimately one of its least significant features. It would be a serious mistake to attempt to assess the series on the basis of the historical accuracies and inaccuracies it contains. Michael Hirst, creator of the series, refers to this idea like this: I’ve always said that the stories and the scripts begin with real events, with real people, with real things, but then I have to join them together; I have to make narrative roads as authentically and as logically as possible. 14 With these insightful words, Hirst makes it clear that we are dealing with a work of fiction. Documenting history is the duty of historians; but the objective, in this case of the screenwriter, but also of the director and producer, is not to recount a sequence of historical events as accurately as possible, nor would such an approach guarantee the success of the series. The creator is thus released from the pact of truth, however much the fiction, in its endeavour to create simulacra of reality, may prove effective in making the most incredible events seem believable. 15 This explains why Ragnar and Rollo are brothers in Vikings when according to the sagas they did not even live in the same historical period. Indeed, we cannot even be certain that Ragnar was a single person; rather, his figure appears to contain a combination of features of different individuals who came to shape the Ragnar myth. Nor is it true that the Viking incursions into Frankish lands took place in the year 845, because as early as 810 there is evidence that they had already begun sowing terror in Northern Europe. But time periods are compressed in the series for dramatic effect, disregarding the reality that the attacks actually occurred over an extended period. Nevertheless, the series seeks to position the spectator in a specific historical moment: the era of the Viking invasions, led by one man, the protagonist, Ragnar Lothbrok, who exhibits all the qualities necessary for the spectator to 14 See: Real Vikings. Episode 1, 02: 22. 15 See: Pozuelo Ivancos, José María (1993). Poética de la ficción. Madrid: Síntesis, 18. Odin and Ragnar in the television series Vikings : Between myth and legend 127 128 Ana Melendo Cruz sympathise with him and to ensure the development and especially the continuity of the main plotline. In this sense, the presence of mythology takes on a special significance because, although the protagonist essentially exhibits all the main hallmarks of the classical cinema hero (living an ordinary life that one day he must leave behind to face a series of adventures with a specific final goal), the subtext is intimately linked to elements that clearly depict Ragnar as an exceptional character and that are based on myth and on the supernatural. At the same time, Vikings contains other elements that are essential to ensuring audience acceptance of a series. These include the presence of action (which may or may not involve a considerable level of violence), sex scenes, and the appearance of elements that effectively disengage the characters from the world of reality. Nevertheless, the mythological dimension of the series translates into a constant that is conveyed to the spectator in numerous ways. In many cases it is the characters who, through their own stories, reflect the great deeds of their gods and the cast of characters that surround these mythological beings. But what I would argue is the most successful formula for cultivating this implicit pact of credibility between the creator and the spectator is the linking of the most important characters in the series to the most prominent gods of Norse mythology, such as Ragnar/ Odin, Floki/ Loky, or Freyja/ Lagertha, in such a way that the features of one or the other sometimes cross the thin line that apparently separates the divine world from the human in the series. As an example of the above, in the next section I will offer a comparison between the god Odin and the protagonist of the series, whose relationship is essentially founded on the formal organisation that determines the structure of Vikings. Odin/ Ragnar in Vikings The idea of identifying particular characters in Vikings with gods is hardly original, as many of the Norse myths include aspects taken from Scandinavia’s real history, and we know that the legends blend human traditions, remnants of history and fragments of actual events mixed with the stories of gods, elves, dragons and magic rings. These legends, known as sagas of ancient times or legendary sagas, function as a bridge between the myths and the non-supernatural world. 16 For this reason, although it might at first seem that Ragnar is associated entirely with the figure of Odin, it is also clear that he exhibits human traits that 16 Whittock, Martyn/ Whittock, Hannah (2018). Mitos y Leyendas nórdicos. Relatos vikingos sobre dioses y héroes. Madrid - Mexico City - Buenos Aires - Santiago: Edaf (eBook format). could be ascribed to historical figures described in the sagas. However, the beginning of the series is key to understanding the relationship depicted between Odin and Ragnar in subsequent episodes. The opening of the first episode relies heavily on visual spectacle. To this end, this episode dispenses with the usual intro 17 and moves at once to position the spectator in a particular historical period, as a black screen with a caption informs us of the geographical location and date of the action. A fade-in then presents a supernatural scene, presided over by Odin’s son Thor, almighty god of thunder, and always portrayed as a warrior. The camera, which makes its presence felt even in this opening scene, bears witness to the spectacular appearance of the god in the form of the deafening roar of thunder and a bolt of lightning that strikes at a tree whose grandeur reflects that of the divinity it embodies (F1). The tree’s dead branches are blurred against the stormy sky and on its roots lie the lifeless bodies of those who have fallen in battle. However, considering the camera’s slow pan immediately thereafter to link the image of the tree visually to Ragnar’s face (which is shown in an extreme close-up) and the sonic enjambment that foreshadows the presence of the protagonist through his laboured breathing, the bolt of lightning might be interpreted as a metaphorical representation of Odin, Hoenir and Lodur, the gods responsible for breathing life into ash and elm trees. Indeed, it is precisely the largest of these ash trees that becomes Yggdrasil. In either case, what is clear from this opening scene is the presence of myth and its connection to the protagonist of the series—a protagonist, incidentally, whose most outstanding features in this first image shown of him are his terrifying face, bloodied from the fierce battle, and, above all, his brilliant blue eyes, which, as we will see later, very clearly link him to Odin (F2). From this point, the camera engages in a relentless series of acts of enunciation. 18 Indeed, when the action begins and Ragnar makes his skill in warfare abundantly clear, rather than merely bearing witness to the events, the camera participates in them alongside the protagonist, through leaps in the axis of action, low and high angles, changes in scale and slow-motion shots, all accentuated by fast-paced editing, thus chopping, hacking and cutting bodies together with Ragnar Lothbrok’s executing arm. Death is thus put on display unabashedly, in contrast with the classical approaches, and the word, so essen- 17 This idea is significant in that it sets this audiovisual product apart from the films of classical Hollywood cinema. Indeed, the filmmaker feels the need to position the spectator in a time and place, but nevertheless does without the kind of information that could be provided by captions as the story unfolds. 18 One of the stylistic features that distinguishes classical cinema from other modes of representation like modern cinema is the enunciative gaze of the camera. Odin and Ragnar in the television series Vikings : Between myth and legend 129 130 Ana Melendo Cruz tial in Hollywood narratives as a vehicle for the action of the characters, takes a back seat to the image. This is when Odin really does appear once and for all. The god of wisdom and death descends to the human world and crosses the battlefield together with a murder of crows, which are caught by the camera at times picking apart the lifeless bodies of warriors who have not been chosen to go with the god to Valhalla. Ragnar, the chosen one of the Father of the Gods, 19 is in turn a witness to the Valkyries, aided by the camera (which is thus transformed into a Valkyrie itself), raising the bodies of the chosen (F3). These shots are alternated with other fleeting shots where the camera fuses with Odin’s gaze, represented through the eye of a crow expanding beyond the limits of the frame, and the gaze of Ragnar, who watches the scene in bewilderment (F4). In this way, from the very beginning of the series the supernatural is fused with the human by means of a visual form that transgresses the limits of classical narrative. However, this fusion operates as a guarantee of continuity, as we must keep in mind that from the very first scene the spectator, responsible for the continuation of the series and at the same time an actant in it, must make sense of these narrative codes that allow us to extricate the protagonist from the dimension of reality without upsetting the logic of the story. From this moment, Ragnar will be characterised as a man exceptional enough to achieve a meteoric rise from simple farmer to Viking monarch, with demonstrations of his heroism through his warrior’s strength, but above all through his great curiosity and intelligence, and also his humanity—features that clearly identify him with Odin. The protagonist himself is attributed with these traits on numerous occasions; for example, as he tells his son Björn: “I’m not satisfied with this. Odin gave his eye to acquire knowledge, but I would give far more.” In this way, we are reminded of the words of Odin found in the Poetic Edda, where we find a god who presents wisdom as a gift to humanity and who is therefore the originator and possessor of knowledge; it is a gift which, in Vikings, the god has clearly given to Ragnar. However, it is interesting to note how, in the interests of constructing a character that can endure over time, the series links Ragnar on the one hand to the supernatural and on the other to the real world as a way of using the characters themselves to create a bridge between myth and the world. To do this it refers to both the family sagas and the legendary sagas. In the case of Ragnar, there is an obvious connection with the Ynglinga Saga, which recounts the stories of Norse gods and kings. Curiously, the geography of this story was inspired by the 19 In the Ragnar saga, the episode referring to the last supper contains the following: “Let us honour our King Ragnar, son of the ever remembered Siguror Hringr, vanquisher of Brávellir. Blessed by Odin since birth […]” Velasco, Manuel (2018). Rey Ragnar. Madrid: Colección Territorio Vikingo (eBook format). knowledge of strange lands located to the east that had actually been explored by the traders of the Viking era. The Ynglinga Saga tells that the governor of the region that would subsequently become Norway and Iceland was Odin, but it describes this as if Odin had once been a real historical figure who was later considered divine. Odin was apparently made ruler of Asaland, and he is described as a famous warrior who travelled far and conquered other nations, winning every battle he ever fought. It almost seems as if this Odin were Ragnar himself. Moreover, some of these passages explain how when Odin went into battle, he always terrified his enemies and sent them into a panic, and when this happened their weapons were as useless as wooden sticks. His warriors never lost their nerve and were as wild as dogs or wolves. Odin also had shape-shifting abilities. When he changed shape, his body would appear to be sleeping or dead, but in reality he would adopt the shape of a bird, a fish or a snake and be transported instantly to far-off lands. In the series there is a kind of transduction 20 of these stories, while keeping the narrative logic intact: just when everyone believes that Ragnar (Odin) is dead, he is reborn, as if he were a reptile (this is translated into his gestures), bursting out of the coffin in which he is carried into the court of Paris, after having expressed his desire to convert to Christianity (F5). Among the numerous ways in which Ragnar is identified with Odin in the series, surely one of the most striking is the one related to a strange and mysterious tale known as the “The Prophecy of the Seeress”, found in the Poetic Edda. Although it is true that in the original story the poem is recited by a seeress (volvä) 21 while in the series this role is assumed by a man (the prophet to whom Ragnar and other characters in the series often turn for advice), what is significant here is that in both texts the characters go to this fortune teller in a quest for information about the future. There is thus a semantic-visual transduction that has no particular explanation. Nevertheless, the series maintains the identifying attributes of these seeresses, who were so greatly revered by the Scandinavian people. The prophet has the magic wand and dark blue or black cloak associated with a seeress, and, like her, he is an elder with no family ties who helps any who seek his magical assistance (F6). In any case, he represents another way of acquiring knowledge. “The Prophecy of the Seeress” apparently dates from the tenth century, when 20 This term was coined by Darío Villanueva in: Villanueva, Darío (2008). Autobiografía (Camilo José Cela) y Biografía (Ricardo Franco) de Pascual Duarte. In Poyato, Pedro (Ed.). El realismo y sus formas en el cine rural español. Córdoba: Ayuntamiento de Dos Torres & Diputación de Córdoba, 54. 21 The Volvür were seeresses who could see into both the past and the future (the latter in relation to the final destruction of Ragnarok). They were greatly revered by the Scandinavian people. However, men were not supposed to practise Seird magic. Odin and Ragnar in the television series Vikings : Between myth and legend 131 132 Ana Melendo Cruz the Nordic world was beginning its conversion to Christianity, and there are scholars who consider that the last section of the poem is evidence of a late Christian influence, given its reference to a Powerful Being who would come as a judge. The relationship of this last prophecy with Christ and the Final Judgement is obvious. This idea of the growing Christian influence becomes a central motif in the series, not only through the special relationship that develops between the protagonist and Athelstan, the monk captured by the Vikings in their first raid of Anglo-Saxon lands, but also through the religious doubts that torment Ragnar himself. Conclusions Any analysis of the Vikings series as an important factor for understanding the phenomenon and current resurgence of this mode of representation must necessarily include aspects that go beyond purely historical and literary data. The reflections in this article point to the conclusion that while the events narrated in the episodes of this series contain, from the spectator’s perspective, a significant component of authenticity, the series itself proposes a cinematic discourse that makes it necessary to examine the complexity of its visual elements. In this study, focusing on the mythological dimension has made it possible to show how the pact of credibility with the spectator is broken in the interests of constructing a fictional universe which, in the case of Vikings, goes beyond the limits of empirical reality to lead the spectator to places, situations and characters belonging to the world of the supernatural. This has been demonstrated by means of a comparison between Ragnar, the series’ protagonist, and the god Odin. In effect, the series aims to connect and fuse its most important characters with major figures of Norse mythology, adopting certain formal strategies that distinguish it from the classical model, thereby transgressing the norms of Hollywood cinema. Rewriting Germanic Myths in Video Games: The Witcher, Hellblade, God of War IV Irene Sanz Alonso 1 Introduction Myths have been defined in many different ways, but most definitions include the idea that they are “narratives which, in the society in which they are told, are considered to be truthful accounts of what happened in the remote past.” 2 Besides, Bascom comments that these narratives usually account for what is unknown, for example, “the origin of the world, of mankind, of death, or for the characteristics of birds, animals, geographical features, and the phenomena of nature.” 3 Therefore, mythology emerged to ease human concerns on all the events and circumstances that could not be explained otherwise. Then, when scientists started to give explanations about why the world functions the way it does, myths were relegated to the sphere of imagination and seen as naïve accounts of the complexity of natural processes. Nevertheless, mythology still plays an important part in our culture because myths help us understand how humans have conceived the world surrounding them throughout different historical periods. As a conclusion, artists from all centuries have found in myths an endless source of inspiration for their paintings, music scores, poems or novels, and this trend continues with more modern cultural representations in the audiovisual media such as comics, films and video games. Nowadays, the game industry represents one of the main sources of entertainment and its relevance can be seen in the growing numbers that it entails. For example, as a business the game industry has earned a prominent position as we can see in the $138 million dollars estimated to be spent on games around 1 This work has been possible thanks to the research project ACIS&GALATEA (REF. S2015/ HUM-3362), financed by the Autonomous Region of Madrid and the European Social Fund. 2 Bascom, William (1965). The Forms of Folklore: Prose Narratives. The Journal of American Folklore 78: 307, 3-20. Available under doi: 10.2307/ 538099. Emphasis in original. 3 Bascom (1965: 4). 134 Irene Sanz Alonso the world in 2018, which “represents a 13.3 percent increase year over year.” 4 Another interesting aspect of the evolution of the game industry in recent years is that gaming products are no longer consumed by a predominantly young male audience as The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) points out. In their 2018 Essential Facts About the Computer and Video Game Industry, released in April 2018, the ESA highlights that the average gamer in the USA is 34 years old and that “gamers age 18 or older represent more than 70 percent of the video game-playing population.” 5 Besides, more and more women find in video games their favorite form of entertainment, as we can infer from the facts that 39 percent of game purchasers are female and that in the US 45 percent of gamers are women. 6 Moreover, the gaming industry is becoming popular not only among entertainment consumers but also among critics since some recent video games are considered works of art, just as films are. In his article “Video games are an underrated art form” Tim Cross emphasizes the complex plots and the concept art behind some of the products of the industry. 7 The relevance of video games as art can also be noticed in the number of important figures in other artistic fields that have participated in the game industry: for example, Academy Award winner Gustavo Santaolalla composed the original score for the game The Last of Us (2013); and several actors, such as Kit Harington or Norman Reedus, have appeared characterized in games. Therefore, given their importance in our current society, video games can rewrite myths while allowing players to be part of the myths themselves. Rewriting myths in video games Mythology and gaming seem to enjoy a mutually beneficial relationship since myths represent an endless source of inspiration for video games, and video games make myths come alive and familiar to people that may otherwise ignore ancient mythology. Although the focus of this work is on Germanic mythology, there are some important references in the gaming industry worth mentioning regarding mythology. The previous installments of the God of War saga made 4 Ell, Kellie (2018). Video game industry is booming with continued revenue. Available under: www.cnbc.com/ 2018/ 07/ 18/ video-game-industry-is-booming-with-continued-revenue.html. (Stand: 09/ 01/ 2019). 5 The Entertainment Software Association (2018). Essential Facts About the Computer and Video Game Industry. Available under: www.theesa.com/ wp-content/ uploads/ 2018/ 05/ EF2018_FINAL.pdf, p. 4 (Stand: 09/ 01/ 2019). 6 The Entertainment Software Association (2018: 4, 6). 7 Cross, Tim (2018b). Video games are an underrated art form. Available under: www.1843magazine.com/ culture/ look-closer/ video-games-are-an-underrated-art-form (Stand: 09/ 01/ 2019). Rewriting Germanic Myths in Video Games: The Witcher , Hellblade , God of War IV 135 a whole generation fight against Greek gods and goddesses by impersonating the character of Kratos. More recently, in 2017, Ubisfot resorted to Egyptian mythology for the penultimate instalment of their most well-known franchise Assassin’s Creed. In Assassin’s Creed: Origins 8 the player impersonates two Egyptian citizens who see themselves trapped in Egyptian and Roman politics while learning about Egyptian mythology and the rituals and traditions derived from it. Besides, this game offered a learning mode to explore Egyptian history and mythology using characters such as Cleopatra as guides. As we can see, myths continue being an important element in cultural representations, although their portrayal has evolved together with art. With video games gaining importance in the entertainment industry it is not surprising then to find games with myths as protagonists. In the case of Germanic myths, it seems that thanks to comics about Thor and their adaptation to films—Thor (2011), Thor: The Dark World (2013), Thor: Ragnarok (2017)—as well as popular TV series such as Vikings Germanic myths seem to be enjoying a period of rebirth. Another example, literary this time, is the recent publication of Neil Gaiman’s Norse Myths (2017), 9 which offers a more accessible and tale-like account of the stories included in The Prose Edda. Then, it is not surprising to highlight that the game industry is also reflecting this trend with games that revolve around Germanic myths in different ways. The purpose of this work is to explore how The Witcher, Hellblade and God of War IV represent Germanic myths using various strategies. The Witcher The Witcher is a game trilogy based on the novels about the witcher Geralt of Rivia by the Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski. Developed by CD Projekt RED STUDIO, The Witcher saga is a favorite among role-playing gamers. The last instalment of the saga, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, 10 was released in 2015 and it has been acclaimed by both players and critics, receiving over eight hundred awards, including several for Game of the Year. 11 The universe created by Sapkoswki in his novels, later represented in the games and currently being turned into a TV series by Netflix, encompasses different aspects from different mythologies, as well as some myths and creatures invented by the author himself. The game follows the adventures of Geralt of Rivia, one of the last witchers, humans 8 Assassins’s Creed: Origins (2017). Ubisoft. 9 Neil Gaiman (2017). Norse Mythology. London and New York: Bloomsbury. 10 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (2015). CD Projekt RED. 11 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Available under: https: / / thewitcher.com/ es/ witcher3/ (Stand: 09/ 01/ 2019). 136 Irene Sanz Alonso that undergo a series of mutations in order to enhance their physical attributes so that their job of killing monsters is easier. Although apparently a mercenary deprived of feelings after the mutation process, Geralt proves to have his own code of honor which forbids him from killing in certain circumstances despite the high payment he may receive. Using as inspiration different mythologies and bestiaries, Sapkowski creates a complex universe which the videogame portrays in detail. The different regions through which Geralt travels in the third installment of the saga are completely different from each other in terms of landscape and architecture, a uniqueness that is reinforced with the original score, which changes from land to land. Elements from Germanic mythology, for example, appear in different parts of the saga, but it is especially present in the Skellige islands—inspired by the Irish Skellig Islands. Skellige is portrayed as populated by a civilization that mixes Vikings and Celtic peoples, with a tribal organization, and because of this resemblance it is where most of the Germanic references appear. For example, in the novel The Tower of Swallows we witness the arrival of several ships named after elements from Germanic mythology: “‘Ringhorn is coming first,’ said one of the women. ‘Followed by Fenris- …’” 12 Ringhorn is the name of Baldr’s (or Balder’s) ship: “The Æsir took Baldr’s body and carried it to the sea. Baldr’s ship was called Ringhorn and it was the greatest of all ships.” 13 Fenris, in turn, refers to Fenrir or Fenriswolf, the wolf that was one of Loki’s children with the ogress Angrboda and who was tricked by the gods and fettered until he got free during Ragnarok. 14 The legends of the people from Skellige also reproduce some of the myths depicted in The Prose Edda. For example, they explain that one of the rocks of their landscape is called Hemdall’s Watchtower. In a clear reference to the mythical figure of Heimdall, it is explained: Hemdall is our mythical hero. Legend has it that with the coming of Tedd Deireadh, the Time of the End, the Time of White Frost and the Wolfish Blizzard. […] He will stand on the Rainbow Bridge and blow his horn to signal that it is time to take up arms and fall in to battle array. For Ragh nar Roog, the Last Battle, which will decide if night is to fall or dawn to break. 15 In The Prose Edda it is precisely Heimdall who blows his horn to warn the gods about the Ragnarok. 16 Therefore, even though the names are slightly altered, 12 Sapkowski, Andrzej (2016). The Tower of Swallows. New York: Orbit, 303. 13 Sturluson, Snorri (2005). The Prose Edda. London: Penguin Classics, p. 67. 14 Sturluson (2005: 39). 15 Sapkowski (2016: 312). 16 Sturluson (2005: 72). Rewriting Germanic Myths in Video Games: The Witcher , Hellblade , God of War IV 137 Sapkowski uses Germanic mythology to describe the cultural heritage of the inhabitants of Skellige. Although many of these elements do not appear as clearly in the game as in the novels, it is interesting how the author intertwines myth with his own creation. Another interesting Germanic myth that appears in the novel is that of the ship Naglfar: “It is made from the nails of dead men, and for this reason it is worth considering the warning that is a person dies with untrimmed nails he contributes crucial material to Naglfar, a ship that both gods and men would prefer not to see built.” 17 Sapkowski incorporates this myth as part of Skellige lore: “Naglfar is built from corpses’ fingernails. You wouldn’t believe it, Yennefer, but there are still people on Skellige who cut the nails for the dead before burial, so as not to supply the spectres of Morhögg with building materials.” 18 Although the previous references appear in the novels on which the games of The Witcher are based, the games also use elements from Germanic mythology. The cult of Freyja appears both in the games and in the novels, and the goddess is worshipped as a maternal deity. In the myth she is described as “the most splendid of the goddesses.” 19 In The Prose Edda it is specified that many people worship her because she “is easily approachable” and “it is good to call on her in matters of love.” 20 In the game the goddess is presented as the Great Mother, and there are temples in which she is represented with her magical necklace named Brisingamen. In the novel and in the games the statues of Nodron Freyja depict her in a maternal way: “a woman in flowing robes revealing her advanced state of pregnancy.” 21 Apart from the importance of Germanic myths in Skellige, the third installment of the games of the witcher use an element of mythology as an essential element in the plot: the Wild Hunt. In German and Celtic legends, the Wild Hunt is described as “a band of ghosts or spirits who would ride through the night” (Durrant and Bailey qtd. in Hutton 2014: 1). 22 Although in his article Hutton focuses on the Wild Hunt as related to witches, he points out the importance of this cavalcade of ghosts riding at night as part of Germanic mythology since ancient times. In The Witcher 3 the Wild Hunt is seen as a bad omen, and the protagonist needs to fight against them in one of the most important parts of the plot. In the game, the main rider of the Wild Hunt is Eredin, an elf. In the 17 Sturluson (2005: 72). 18 Sapkowski (2016: 312). 19 Sturluson (2005: 35). 20 Sturluson (2005: 35). 21 Sapkowski (2016: 313). 22 Hutton, R.E. (2014). The Wild Hunt and the Witches’ Sabbath. Folklore, 125: 2, 161—178. Available under DOI: 10.1080/ 0015587X.2014.896968 universe of the Witcher, the presence of elves is common, although most of them have migrated to another reality. This fact is interesting because it picks up on the idea of the different worlds linked by Yggdrasil, the Tree of the Worlds in Germanic mythology, according to which the light elves live in their own separate world, Alfheim. As we have seen, in the saga of The Witcher Germanic myths are part of a larger atmosphere for which the author uses several sources as well as his own imagination. In the case of Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice 23 Germanic myths are incorporated as an essential part of the game. Hellblade was developed by the studio Ninja Theory using a team of only twenty people and released for Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 4 in August 2017 and for Xbox One in April 2018. 24 Classified as an action-adventure game, the player follows Senua’s journey, a Celtic warrior who suffers from psychosis, through different challenges in order to retrieve the soul of her former lover, Dillon, from the Viking hell, Helheim. Senua is obsessed with facing Hela in order to get her lover back and she needs to fight against several creatures while she is guided by Druth, a voice that at certain milestones informs her of different aspects of Germanic myths. The most interesting aspect of the game is how Senua undergoes a personal journey accompanied by the multiple voices that she hears as part of her mental health problems. Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice In Hellblade, Germanic mythology is present from the beginning when we learn of Senua’s intention of going to Helheim, the region of Niflheim where Hel lives. According to myth, Hel is one of the three children Loki has with the ogress Angrboda—another one is the wolf Fenrir, mentioned previously, and the third one, the Midgard Serpent or Jörgmungandr, who will be referred to later—and as such she is considered an omen of evil according to prophecies. Nevertheless, her fate seems better than that of her siblings since Odin throws her to Niflheim and makes her ruler of the nine worlds: “She has the power to dole out lodgings and provisions to those who are sent to her, and they are the people who have died of disease or old age.” 25 Whereas soldiers and brave people dying at war go to Valhalla until Odin calls on them during Ragnarok, Hel claims the bodies of those who die when ill or old. Although she does not resemble her brothers—she 23 Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (2017b). Ninja Theory. 24 Mead, Fran (2018). 10 Things You Didn’t Know about Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice. Available under: https: / / news.xbox.com/ en-us/ 2018/ 12/ 19/ 10-things-hellblade-xbox-one/ (Stand: 9/ 1/ 2019). 25 Sturluson (2005: 39). 138 Irene Sanz Alonso is neither serpent nor wolf—the three of them are described as having an horrific appearance: “She is half black and half a lighter flesh colour and is easily recognized. Mostly she is gloomy and cruel.” 26 Throughout her journey Senua finds several monoliths with Viking iconography and with runes. When the player focuses on those stones, Senua hears the voice of her guide Druth who gives information to Senua and to players about Germanic myths. Being a Pict and not a Viking, Senua needs to learn these myths to reach Hela and ask her to give her back her lover’s soul while she carries his skull. In the game Senua learns that Hela—or Hel—is the only one who can resurrect people and so she has to face several creatures to get to her. One of the first creatures she fights against is Surt, who in the game is described as the god of fire. However, in The Prose Edda he is depicted as Musspell’s—land of fire—guardian, possibly a fire giant or demon. Another interesting aspect of Germanic myths with a significant role in the game is the sword Gram. In the game, the sword is called Gramr and Druth tells her that the weapon can kill gods and that it was forged by Odin and given to the warrior Sigmund. According to the Edda Gram was forged by the smith Regin and the sword “was so sharp that when Sigurd lowered it into running water it sliced through a tuft of wool carried by the current against the sword’s edge.” 27 Senua learns that the sword is shattered but that she can forge it again if she passes a series of tests. So, after successfully solving some puzzles she manages to get the sword back in one piece, and she enters the mountain even though she knows it will be very difficult to return. After facing several monsters in various combats Senua ends face to face with Hela, who appears depicted as a huge naked and bald woman with a rotting body, and that final combat results in a metaphor of her psychological fight against her fears. Germanic mythology is always present in Hellblade although Senua’s true journey is not through Helheim but through her own psychosis. The player does not know what is real and what is not, and all throughout the game we see how she faces mythological monsters as well as her own nightmares. At the end of the story, Hela seems to kill Senua with the sword Gramr, but it is actually an act of liberation through which Senua accepts her lover’s death as well as her mental problems, which offer her a different view of the world. Then, in this videogame the traditional hero journey facing myths and monsters is transformed into a more introspective journey using Germanic mythology as a metaphor. 26 Sturluson (2005: 39). 27 Sturluson (2005: 97). Rewriting Germanic Myths in Video Games: The Witcher , Hellblade , God of War IV 139 140 Irene Sanz Alonso God of War IV Finally, the third videogame analyzed in this chapter is the fourth installment of the God of War saga. In the previous games, Kratos, the protagonist, had to face the Greek gods and although he seemed to have died, in this fourth part he appears as a widower who has to fulfill his wife’s last will accompanying his son. Released in April 2018 after being developed by SCE Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment exclusively for PlayStation 4, God of War 4 28 is an action-adventure game which won the Game of the Year, the Best Game Direction and the Best Action/ Adventure Game in The Game Awards in December 2018. 29 The game follows Kratos through Northern lands while he tries to deposit his wife’s ashes on the summit of the highest mountain as part of her last will, accompanied by their son Atreus. The player sees how the relationship of father and son becomes stronger as they learn from each other in times of difficulty. In this game Germanic mythology is not only present in the background of the story but in the story itself since players discover at the end that Kratos’s wife was a giantess and that Atreus is Loki. Therefore, the game recreates Germanic myths while creating new ones through its characters. Germanic mythology is present even in the smallest details. For example, we have the option of increasing the level of health of the protagonist by collecting apples of Iðunn, which are described as the gods’ favorite food. According to the myth Iðunn keeps some apples in her private wooden box and these are the apples that gods bite into “when they begin to grow old” so that they become young again. 30 The protagonists come into contact with other numerous elements of Germanic mythology, as when they work with two dwarves that help them forge and improve weapons, Brok and Sindri—in The Prose Edda we find two brothers who are smiths and dwarves called Brokk and Eitri. 31 Another important character they encounter along their journey is the Midgard Serpent, Jörmungandr, and this is especially relevant because it helps them get some of the artifacts they need in order to reach the highest mountain, which is in the land of the giants, Jötunheim. In the game the Midgard Serpent appears represented as a friendly creature, which reinforces the negative portrayal of the gods in the game since mythology tells us of how the gods, especially Thor, despised the serpent and how the serpent was a horrible creature. 28 God of War 4 (2018c). SCE Santa Monica Studio. 29 The Game Awards. Available under: https: / / thegameawards.com/ news/ (Stand: 09/ 01/ 2019). 30 Sturluson (2005: 36). 31 Sturluson (2005: 92-93). Rewriting Germanic Myths in Video Games: The Witcher, Hellblade, God of War IV 141 Although the appearance of Germanic elements is abundant—for example, how they use the Bifrost to travel between worlds thanks to the connections provided by the tree Yggdrasil—the most interesting aspect of this game regarding mythology is how the it creates a Germanic mythology of its own. At the end of the game we learn that Atreus’s name among the giants is Loki, and that is the name his mother, Faye, wanted to give him. The very name Faye resembles the name of Loki’s mother in Germanic myths, Laufey, and both are described as giantesses. Atreus and Kratos come across different Germanic gods throughout the game, and one of the most complex relationships is that with the goddess Freya. When they meet her, she is trying to save a boar that Atreus has shot with his bow. 32 At first, she is introduced as a witch of the woods but afterwards, thanks to Mimir’s help, we learn that she is the goddess Freya. The Freya we find in the game is a mixture of two Germanic deities: Freyja—Frey’s sister, described as “the most splendid of the goddesses” 33 —and Frigg—who is Odin’s wife and thus she “is the foremost” 34 . Most of the game Freya appears as an ally, and she helps Kratos and Atreus reach several objectives, but, at the end of the game, when Kratos kills Baldur, she goes crazy and swears she will take revenge. In The Prose Edda Baldr—or Baldur—is Odin and Frigg’s son and he is portrayed as “the best”, as “so beautiful and so bright that light shines from him”, and as “the wisest of all the gods.” 35 Myth says that he was so beautiful and wise that in order to protect him, Frigg made all the creatures and substances in the world take an oath that they would never hurt him. However, mistletoe never took its oath because “it seemed too young.” 36 This decision resulted in Baldr’s death when Loki tricks another god into shooting mistletoe at Baldr’s. This story is completely transformed in the game since we see the Baldur from the game as a crazy and violent god who cannot be harmed—but who, as a consequence, is unable to feel anything because of Freya’s magic. By chance, Baldur loses his protection when he attacks Atreus, who carries a small piece of mistletoe in his clothes. Although at first Kratos decides to leave him alone, when Baldur takes revenge on his mother, Kratos intervenes and kills him, resulting in Freya going mad and wanting his death. Another way in which God of War 4 transforms mythology is with Thor’s sons Magni and Modi. In general, gods are portrayed in the game as narcissistic 32 The detail of the boar is significant since in the game she calls it her friend and according to the myth, Freyja’s brother, Frey, rides a chariot “drawn by the boar called Gold Bristle or Sheathed Tooth” (2005: 67). 33 Sturluson (2005: 35). 34 Sturluson (2005: 42). 35 Sturluson (2005: 33). 36 Sturluson (2005: 66). 142 Irene Sanz Alonso beings that only want their wishes fulfilled without taking into account humans or other creatures. Magni and Modi confront Kratos and Atreus several times and, in the end, both are killed. It is interesting to notice that in the myth these two gods are among the few survivors of Ragnarok: “To there [Idavoll, the place where Asgard was earlier] will come Thor’s sons Modi and Magni, and they will have Mjollnir with them.” 37 The only god with a positive portrayal—but opposite to the mythical one—in the game is Tyr, who is described in the Edda as “the boldest and the most courageous” although he is also called “wise.” 38 In the game, he is considered to have a good relationship with the giants, thus defying Odin and the other gods. Tyr is said to believe that it is better to have peace and to avoid war, which contrasts with what the Edda says of him: “men do not think of him as a peace maker.” 39 As we have seen, God of War 4 rewrites Germanic myths by changing the stories depicted in The Prose Edda by altering the nature of some of the gods and creatures of the lore. The game goes even further by creating a new Germanic mythology of its own when at the end of the game players discover, once they reach Jötunheim, that Atreus is Loki and that all the events of the game had already been known to the giants. Even though there is an evident problem of coherence with the traditional myth since Loki is the father of the Midgard Serpent and called a blood brother to Odin, followers of the saga find in the end of the game enough clues to expect another installment of the game following Atreus-Loki’s deeds. According to myth, Loki’s actions unchain the arrival of the Ragnarok and at the end of God of War 4—once Baldur has been killed—we can see the two dwarves Brokk and Eitri talking about the Fimbulvetr, the first sign that indicates the beginning of Ragnarok. 40 Conclusion Throughout this chapter we have noticed the importance of Germanic myths in the gaming industry. With video games being today one of the most popular cultural representations of our time, as well as one of the most profitable forms of entertainment, it is interesting to see how game developers have resorted to such a traditional source of artistic inspiration. Germanic myths are present in many games although this work has only focused on three of them—The Witcher, Hellblade and God of War 4—to show different ways in which these myths can be incorporated in the industry. In The Witcher saga—both novels and 37 Sturluson (2005: 77). 38 Sturluson (2005: 36). 39 Sturluson (2005: 36). 40 Sturluson (2005: 71). Rewriting Germanic Myths in Video Games: The Witcher, Hellblade, God of War IV 143 video games—mythological figures and stories are incorporated as part of the set of beliefs of a particular civilization portrayed, and, as such, they are only a fraction of the vast cultural lore established by the author Andrzej Sapkoswki. Hellblade incorporates a larger number of mythological elements by confronting Senua, the protagonist, to her lover’s death and to her own psychosis using Germanic myths as a metaphor. When she faces Surt or Hela herself in her descent to Helheim, she is actually reconciling herself to her past traumas and accepting the loss of her loved ones. The last game explored, God of War 4, is the most interesting one in its incorporation of Germanic mythology because it adapts it to a modern audience. In God of War players interact with Baldur, Freya, or Jörmungandr while travelling throughout some of the nine worlds depicted in Germanic mythology. The purpose of this analysis was to show how Germanic myths are enjoying a new period of splendor through films, literature and, especially, video games. Even though myths have always been present in artistic representations, video games provide something that other works of art cannot: they offer players the experience of becoming part of the myths themselves. Intersemiotic Analysis of Nazi Posters: Nordic Mythology at the Service of Arianism María Jesús Fernández-Gil Introduction While propaganda uses can be traced back to ancient Greek and Roman times, propaganda did not become an integral part of political life until the early years of the twentieth century 1 . It was then that the developments in the field of mass media (press, radio, television and film) were exploited by the leaders of the host of fascist movements that resulted from the specific circumstances of Europe after the First World War. All of them called for a unifying national vision capable of creating an overriding commitment and bond for community members. Differences existed, however, as regards the particulars of each project. In effect, the message put forward varied depending on whether the guiding ideological principle was shaped on considerations of race, class or religion. These idealized constructions of reality were combined with simple and repetitive messages, fashioned following an epic-heroic style so as to ensure their emotional impact. In addition, the messages sought to “cambiar las actitudes y el comportamiento humano, partiendo de lo irracional, para abarcar todos los aspectos del ser” [change attitudes and ultimately behaviour by relying on irrational techniques of persuasion, which were meant to encompass all aspects of human life] 2 . As regards the spark that initiated the mythopoetic process at the root of the National Socialist movement, it was triggered by increased attention to values such as family, race and Volk 3 and by the celebration of “Naturschutz 1 Gómez Espelosín, F. Javier (2001). Historia de Grecia Antigua. Madrid: Akal, 186. Jowett, Garth S./ O’Donnell, Victoria (2015). Propaganda and Persuasion. 6 th ed. Thousand Oaks: SAGE. 2 Pineda Cachero, Antonio (2007). Orígenes histórico-conceptuales de la teoría de la propaganda nazi. Historia y Comunicación Social 12, 151-176, 154. 3 Mouton, Michelle (2007). From Nurturing the Nation to Purifying the Volk: Weimar and Nazi Family Policy, 1918-1945. Cambridge/ New York: Cambridge University Press. 146 María Jesús Fernández-Gil ideals” 4 . The process also involved the “‘provincialization’ of literature in Germany and Austria” through the restriction of translation and the glorification of the nation’s real and legendary past, for which Nazis revived old Nordic myths and Germanic folklore 5 . The sum of this set of elements resulted in the Nazi Weltanschauung, a conceptual construction of reality, which, according to Eric Michaud and Janet Lloyd, “calls to mind the visions of mystics” 6 . Nazis, indeed, drew on the emotional appeal of mystical notions such as “blood”, “fatherland” or “master race” to impose the vision of a Volksgemeinschaft; that is, a racial community that would restore Germany to greatness. This is the reason why Nazis favoured culture rooted in values of nationalism, as can be clearly seen in the kind of art that dominated the cultural landscape of the Third Reich: art propaganda. In this paper, I will focus on one of the channels through which Nazi state-sponsored art was widely distributed: poster art. While it is true that posters did not play such a central role in World War II as in the Great War because by the 1930s, David Welch notes, “the print media no longer dominated but shared the field equally with radio, films, and newsreels” 7 , they still were an effective and efficient medium to disseminate propaganda. This was especially true for the National Socialist Movement, which “relied heavily on the visual image rather than the written word” 8 . Accordingly, the Nazis commissioned a number of artists to work on poster designs. The ultimate goal was to create a New Germany, pure of outside influences and overly populated with images that appealed to traditional German values and national pride. The process was part of the social Nazification ordered by Hitler, which involved the imposition—via communication practices heavily dependent upon semiotics—of the Nazi worldview on all aspects of life. The theoretical framework at the base of this paper is, therefore, semiotics. Attention will be drawn to the way in which the Nazis espoused the linguistic and the visual mode to put forward their ideological message. Living in a vis- 4 Lekan, Thomas (2005). “It Shall Be the Whole Landscape! ”: The Reich Nature Protection Law and Regional Planning in the Third Reich. In: Brüggemeier, Franz-Josef/ Zeller, Thomas/ Cioc, Mark (eds.) How Green Were the Nazis? : Nature, Environment, and Nation in the Third Reich. Athens, OH: Ohio University Press, 73-100, 91. 5 Sturge, Kate (2010). Translation in Nazi Germany. In: Rundle, Christopher/ Sturge, Kate (eds.) Translation under Fascism. Basignstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 51-83, 55. 6 Michaud, Eric/ Lloyd, Janet (2004). The Cult of Art in Nazi Germany. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 256. 7 Welch, David (2017). World War II Propaganda: Analyzing the Art of Persuasion during Wartime. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 33. 8 Collier, Martin/ Pedley, Philip (2005). Hitler and the Nazi State. London: Heinemann Publishing, 66-67. Intersemiotic Analysis of Nazi Posters: Nordic Mythology at the Service of Arianism 147 ually intensive society, in which we are constantly bombarded with a continuous stream of visual stimulation from all manner of media, it is high time to overcome the tendency to sacrifice the development of visual abilities to verbal abilities, as communication relies on both verbal and non-verbal signs (auditory, visual or tactile stimuli). More specifically, the development of effective visual literacy, by which Edmund B. Feldman refers to the capacity of critically understanding “the rhetoric, the persuasive devices, employed in visual communication” rather than simply the ability to act on images 9 , is advocated here as a counterveiling force against the manipulative and coercive methods that powerful groups might adopt in order to pursue their goals. In line with the global education policy climate, it is believed that examining the history of the Nazi crimes and the steps by which they were carried out “can heighten awareness of the potential danger for genocide in the contemporary world” 10 . This is directly relevant to present-day generations in the context of two phenomena that were placed onto the international agenda during the 2016 American presidential election: the alarming increase in the circulation of fake news on social media as well as the proliferation of hate and discriminatory messages. Nazi propaganda: posters and rewriting of myths World War I is commonly presented as “the birth of the political poster” 11 , for it was then that this propaganda tool started to be used to address the whole population of a country to communicate messages of an overtly political nature. The war was so ferocious in its magnitude, devastation and duration that governments needed to justify their actions, a need which posters satisfied. They proved to be an effective persuasive tactic in pushing society to action, gaining thereby a new place in politics. Although one of the most common uses of posters during the Great War was recruitment, they served many other purposes, as for example maintaining good morale in the ranks, cultivating esprit de corps to create a sense of community, launching bond campaigns to galvanize support for the war effort and providing the general public with spiritual reassurance that God was on their side. In addition to this, posters were also used to demonize the enemy, by exploiting ethnic, racial and cultural stereotypes. Some 9 Feldman, Edmund B. (1976). Visual Literacy. Journal of Aesthetic Education 10: 3/ 4, 195- 200, 195. 10 IHRA. Why Teach about the Holocaust? Available under: https: / / www.holocaustremembrance.com/ educational-materials/ why-teach-about-holocaust 11 Thompson, James (2017). Posters, Advertising and the First World War. In: Einhaus, Ann- Marie (ed.) Edinburgh Companion to the First World War and the Arts. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 166-182, 167. 148 María Jesús Fernández-Gil of the reasons why the posters triumphed in this context is that they offered, as noted by Jeffrey Schnapp, “an inexpensive, fast, and efficient conduit to the multitudes: multitudes who could not always be counted upon to read daily newspapers” 12 . High visibility, thus, played an important role in the success of this propaganda device: being part of the urban landscape, it was not possible to escape its influence. Aware that propagandistic graphics, in general, are an excellent means to communicate a message and cognizant that World War I horror and atrocity posters, in particular, had been enormously successful in connecting with “the primitive sentiments of the broad masses”, Hitler took, as noted by Stephen K. Eskilson 13 , a fervent interest in using posters to project his political theories during the Kampfzeit—the so-called “time of struggle” between 1925 and 1933, during which the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (NSDAP) tried to win power. In addition to their capacity to elicit emotional reactions, there are other reasons why Hitler relied very much on posters to raise the Nazi Party to power. This propaganda tool provided the Nazis with a cost-effective way of promulgating ideas. Compared to other forms of propaganda, posters were cheap to produce and portable; hence, a large audience—including uneducated people—could be reached with a relatively small investment. Furthermore, the formal characteristics of this medium, which require reducing messages to “one truly resonant image rather than a fluid cascade of images, one phrase rather than a protracted rhetorical text” 14 , made posters a useful conduit to articulate the main tenets of the Nazi ideology. Manipulative techniques entered a new phase when Hitler was appointed chancellor on 30 th January 1933, for control of the machinery of government allowed the Nazis to draw the reins of power into their hands and to extend, thereby, ideological command over virtually every form of expression—including the institutions of the state. This way, all competing voices were suppressed and a monopoly of ideology was constructed. The process of Gleichschaltung (legal measures taken to achieve the “coordination” or “streamlining” in every facet of life, including politics, culture and communication) played a crucial role in ensuring that much of what propaganda asserted was taken for granted rather than critically questioned. Interestingly, no one single propaganda medium was preferred in order to achieve rigid and total uniformity; rather the 12 Schnapp, Jeffrey T. (2009). Epilogue. In: James, Pearl (ed.) Picture This: World War I Posters and Visual Culture. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 369-375, 370. 13 Eskilson, Stephen K. (2019). Graphic Design: A New History. 3 rd ed. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 124. 14 O’Shaughnessy, Nicholas (2017). Marketing the Third Reich: Persuasion, Packaging and Propaganda. London: Routledge, 216. Intersemiotic Analysis of Nazi Posters: Nordic Mythology at the Service of Arianism 149 most appropriate instrument was selected in function of the particulars of each propaganda campaign. Posters, therefore, continued to be used after the seizure of power, contributing to Nazi success. While the adjustment of ideas, views, beliefs and actions through the Gleichschaltung campaign proved insufficient to win the war, there are scholars such as Robert Edwin Herzstein that argue that control of the population through propaganda was “The War that Hitler Won” 15 . More specifically, he notes that the success of the Nazi propaganda machine is “reflected in the continuation of the struggle by the German people into 1945” 16 . The extraordinary mobilizing capacity of Nazi propaganda owes much to its rhetorical “forcefulness, vision, and mesmerizing emotionalism” 17 , which set the operational formula of the Nazi Party clearly apart from the political speeches of other parties. A distinctive feature of Nazi propaganda offensives was precisely their dethronement of reason and their celebration of emotion, which means that the term “senso-propaganda” 18 , coined by Serge Chakhotin, applies here. The Nazis injected with emotional fervour everything they did so as to appeal “to what Hitler in an interview with Sefton Delmer described as man’s inner ‘Schweinehund’” 19 . In other words, the ultimate goal was to unleash the inner beast in man. Scholars such as Peter Viereck have traced the irrationalism of Nazism back to German Romanticism, a multifarious movement that emerged as a reaction against the Enlightenment faith in reason and that was united by a characteristic type of emotionality. 20 More specifically, this cultural phenomenon featured fantasy and folklore, promoting an emotional self-indulgence that resulted in a revival of medieval romances and mythology. It was characterized also by a deep fascination for the natural world and a surge of national pride. The Nazis exploited this environmental and mystical strain in German Romanticism through the “Blut und Boden” (blood and soil) myth, as its driving force shared a similar flavor and décor to the Romantic principles: 15 Herzstein, Robert Edwin (1978). The War that Hitler Won: The Most Infamous Propaganda Campaign in History. New York: G. P. Putnam. 16 Herzstein (1978: 22). 17 Hoffmann, Hilmar (1997). The Triumph of Propaganda: Film and National Socialism, 1933-1945, vi. Oxford: Berghahn Books. 18 Chakhotin, Serge (1939). Le Viol des foules par la propagande politique. Paris: Gallimard. 19 O’Shaughnessy (2017: 117). 20 Viereck, Peter (2004 [1941]). Metapolitics: From Wagner and the German Romantics to Hitler. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers. 150 María Jesús Fernández-Gil [I]t preached a return to a rural way of life and the maintenance of the purity of the “Nordic” or “Aryan” race, often found in association with the veneration of Germanic divinities and an anti-Christian and especially anti-Catholic stance 21 . By establishing an intimate connection with Germany’s medieval past, the Nazis sought to renew virtues (agrarian past, ancient traditions, paganism) that had been lost through civilization, including phenomena such as industrialization, materialism and urbanization. The rehabilitation of Germanic and Norse mythology, which was celebrated because it harked back to the mythical golden age of national greatness, formed part of this nostalgic rediscovery of the nation’s past—though this was not without its share of problems, as völkisch culture yearned for a pure German “folk soul”. J.R.R. Tolkien was among the first to take scholarly offense at the manner in which the Nazis distorted medieval legends and sagas. In a 1941 letter addressed to his son Michael he showed contempt for what he termed an appropriation process: I have in this War a burning private grudge […] against that ruddy little ignoramus Adolf Hitler. […] Ruining, perverting, misapplying, and making forever accursed, that noble northern spirit, a supreme contribution to Europe, which I have ever loved, and tried to present in its true light 22 . Shlomo G. Shoham illustrates the appropriation process denounced by Tolkien by resorting to the “blood and soil” slogan quoted above 23 . He sees some degree of resemblance to the Norse cosmogonic narrative in the sense that its two core elements underlie the story of creation, which was set in motion with the death of Ymir, the primeval creature. The Prose Edda tells how when this frost-giant was killed by his brothers, his body made the earth and his blood caused a flood, forming the oceans: They took Ymir and transported him into the middle of Ginnunga gap and made the earth from him: from his blood the sea and lakes; the earth was made from the flesh, and mountains from the bones, rocks and gravel from the teeth and molars that were broken-… 24 21 Blamires, Cyprian/ Jackson, Paul (2006). World Fascism: A-K. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC- CLIO, 92. 22 Carpenter, Humphrey (1977). J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography. London: George Allen & Unwin, 193. 23 Shoham, Shlomo G. (2010). To Test the Limits of Our Endurance. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 207. 24 Lindow, John (2002). Norse Mythology: A Guide to Gods, Heroes Rituals, and Beliefs. New York: Oxford University Press, 324. Intersemiotic Analysis of Nazi Posters: Nordic Mythology at the Service of Arianism 151 Nazis’ use of the mythical creation account shows deviation from the northern imagination, as the blood and soil imagery is obsessively exploited, Shoham notes, to manufacture an ethno-cultural construct. 25 In particular, völkisch ideologues relied on the mysteries of blood and earth to construct ethnic nationhood and state formation. Nazis’ obsession with blood purity and northern lands is also noticeable throughout Alfred Rosenberg’s The Myth of the Twentieth Century 26 , the most influential Nazi guidebook after Hitler’s Mein Kampf. Building on a pseudo-intellectual analysis, Rosenberg attributed a biomystical connotation to blood, as may be inferred from the blurb on the cover: “…-the Myth of Blood, which, under the sign of the Swastika, released the World Revolution. It is the Awakening of the Soul of the Race” 27 . As for the specific manner in which the German Folkisch soul was meant to renew itself, Rosenberg championed a racial interpretation of history in which the creation of a nation with a pure Nordic stock relied on imposing a “religion of the blood”: History and the task of the future no longer signify the struggle of class against class or the conflict between one church dogma and another, but the settlement between blood and blood, race and race, Folk and Folk. And that means: the struggle of spiritual values against each other 28 . The struggle was to be effected by discarding Lutheran and Catholic morals so as to establish a German Faith Community revolving around the idea of honour and freedom, in line with the motifs in the sagas of the Nordic peoples: In the search for a new spiritual link with the past, there are those among the present day movement for renewal in Germany who wish to go back to the Edda and the cycle of Germanic ideas related to it. It is thanks to them that, alongside that which is purely fabulous, the inner richness of our sagas and folkisch tales has again become visible from under the rubble and ashes left by the fires of the stake 29 . This passage illustrates Nazis’ use of the visceral power of a shared Teutonic myth to unite the German people around notions of the nobility of self-sacrifice, comradeship and heroic death in battle. While the use of Norse mythology to 25 Shoham (2010: 207). 26 Rosenberg, Alfred (1930). The Myth of the 20 th Century (Mythus des XX. Jahrhunderts): An Evaluation of the Spiritual-Intellectual Connotations of Our Age. Available under: http: / / www.nommeraadio.ee/ meedia/ pdf/ RRS/ Alfred%20Rosenberg%20-%20The%20 Myth%20of%20the%2020th%20Century.pdf 27 Rosenberg (1930: n.pag.). 28 Rosenberg (1930: 4). 29 Rosenberg (1930: 178). 152 María Jesús Fernández-Gil nurture a stereotyped image of the North Germanic peoples is not exclusive to Nazi posters, this instrument of propaganda provides a visual representation of the manner in which myths, symbols and rites were falsified to present simple and firm binaries and to trigger bias responses. Borrowing from the visual rhetoric of advertising, Nazi propaganda posters used a contrasting colour scheme to create a stark us-them dichotomy: a vibrant and distinct palette—almost completely dominated by a red-white-black combination—was employed to depict the Nazi world 30 ; opposition parties, on the other hand, were presented as crude phantasmagoria through colours with a sinister background, instilling the belief in viewers that Ragnarok was casting its shadow over the Third Reich. Language mixed with this two-colour pattern to intensify and deepen the binary opposition on which Nazis based Aryan and non-Aryan relations. The linguistic portrayal of this insider/ outsider division, which was identified through adversarial opposition (in-group pronouns [“we”, “us”, “ours”] vs. out-group pronouns [“they”, “them”, “theirs”]), patriotic vs. scapegoating rhetoric (“Deutsche”, “Volk”, “Reich” vs. “Feinden”, “Judentum”) and antonym constructions (“Vernichtung” vs. “Brot”), contributed to setting forth Nazis’ racial classification. Part of the appropriation process involved spreading the idea that the racial dichotomy which, in their opinion, divided society members bore some degree of resemblance to the two main groups of deities in Norse mythology: the Aesir (warlike gods) and the Vanir (the gods of fertility), who fought against each other for supremacy in the Aesir-Vanir War. Yet, unlike life under Hitler’s totalitarian regime, during which the nation was split up into two irreconcilable groups (Aryans and non-Aryans), the Norse gods reached a truce and exchanged hostages, so that “Gods of the Vanir, like the sister and brother Freya and Frey, live in Asgard with the Aesir” 31 . In contrast to these community-building efforts, Hitler’s territorial solution to the “Jewish question” was directed at total extermination of the Other. Posters reinforced such clear-cut division with regard to society members through the feelings conveyed by typefaces. As was the case with all other official publications, posters drew heavily on Fraktur letterforms in order to enhance nationalism. This runelike font dates from the sixteenth century, when Emperor Maximilian employed it in a series of books. As noted by Paul Shaw and Peter Bain, it has some culturally accrued meanings to do with “medievalism, Protestantism, Lutheran Pietism, German Romanticism, Authority of the State, Nationalism, Mysticism”, which is why Nazis considered it suitable to 30 It needs to be noted here that these were the colours of the Nazi flag. 31 Gaiman, Neil (2017). Norse Mythology. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, xiii. convey a strictly German national identity 32 . However, posters produced after 1941, as all other publications, switched from the ornate-looking appearance of this Gothic script to a Roman script (Antiqua), as it was found that the former was “associated with Judaism because of its connection to Schwabia” 33 . In what follows, I will use a case study to look into the manner in which Nazis built upon a restricted concept of Germanness through their reinterpretation in visual imagery of Nordic myths. The poster (see Figure 39), whose slogan reads “Hass und Vernichtung unseren Feinden; Freiheit, Recht und Brot unserem Volk” [Hate and Destruction for Our Enemies; Freedom, Justice, and Bread for Our Nation], is a representative example of one of the favourite themes of the Nazi propaganda machine: the evilness of world Jewry, Bolshevism, Capitalism and Plutokratie against the patriotic Nazi German. The bias corresponding to the “Us vs. Them” mentality is reinforced by the poster’s prominent diagonal arrangement, a compositional layout that contributes to devising two complementary narrative models. Fig. 39. “Hass und Vernichtung unseren Feinden; Freiheit, Recht und Brot unserem Volk”, included in the collection of the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg. The narrative in the foreground takes advantage of the heroic overtones of the Sigurd legend (the archetypal warrior of Norse and Germanic mythology) in order to rally the masses for war and eugenics as well as to create an environment 32 Fallwell, Lynne (2015). Modern German Midwifery, 1885-1960. London/ New York: Routledge, 172. 33 Fallwell (2015: 173). Intersemiotic Analysis of Nazi Posters: Nordic Mythology at the Service of Arianism 153 154 María Jesús Fernández-Gil that rejects any element that is different from the established paradigm, which is portrayed in an unpleasant light. The viewer’s attention is first directed at the Wehrmacht soldier, who occupies a central position. His demeanour while brandishing his sword triggers an association stimulus, connecting the soldier with the episode recounting Sigfurd’s fight with the dragon Fáfnir. In line with the mythical account, the poster shows the soldier as a God-like figure while the enemies against whom he is fighting are portrayed as inferior and vermin-like. The design of the poster—in particular colour contrasts and perspective—is crucial in attaining such aim. One cannot help but notice the white background behind the image of the soldier, almost giving him a halo. The underlying message is that the soldier’s bravery will save Germany from the black menace that threatens to destroy the country. In addition to this, the size of the soldier relative to its enemies is distorted, exaggerating thereby his moral and physical qualities. In short, the powers of this new dragon-slayer are adapted to the ideological mindset of the Nazis, as the flaws and contradictions of the hero are ignored in order to glorify racial purity and the pursuit of power. It needs to be noted that the visual layout reveals differences as regards the description included in the most important lays that tell the account of Sigurd’s dragon-fight: “Fáfnismál”, which is part of the Poetic Edda, the prose of the Volsunga Saga and the medieval German epic poem of the Nibelungenlied. While the poster image represents the myth’s central storyline as it is rendered in these three accounts, the underlying narrative departs from the oft-repeated description of the encounter between Sigurd and the monster Fáfnir 34 . The most significant difference is the fact that the soldier is dealing with four monsters rather than one. This way, the potential danger of the situation is exaggerated. Moreover, Germans are reminded of the four main enemies of the state against which Hitler was directing his hate policies, Mein Struggle. In addition to their reinterpretation of Sigurd, the Nazis twisted other elements of the Norse heritage, making them fit their fascist creed. For example, the salient position reserved for the lightning bolt symbol is indicative of their efforts to foster the idea of an Aryan race bound by common origins and outstanding physical attributes. The referent is not the Aesir god of thunder, Thor, but rather the runic alphabet, whose invention is attributed to Odin. According to the Poetic Edda, Odin sacrificed himself to himself moved by his thirst for 34 The demonic opponent takes the form of a dragon, which symbolizes ill fortune and wickedness in the Germanic mythopoetic tradition. In order to elicit the view that violence is looming at the center of the German society, the hero is dealing with four fiery creatures, not just one. Moreover, they are depicted as a winged, fire-breathing, quadruped reptilian rather than as a snake-like being; the representation, thus, draws on the Germanic word for “dragon”, wyrm, which can also mean “serpent” and “worm”. Intersemiotic Analysis of Nazi Posters: Nordic Mythology at the Service of Arianism 155 knowledge. He hung upside down nine days and nine nights from the great ash Yggdrasil. In doing so, he learnt the secret of runes. The poem “Havamal”, which translates literally as “Words of the one-eyed” or “Words of the high one”, is not the only text contained in the collection of eddic poems in which runes are presented as having a magical or mystical function. A further argument for the power attributed to this ideographic writing system is presented in “Sigrdrífumal”, where a catalogue of seven types of magic runes is described: You should carve victory-runes if you want to have victory. Carve some on the hilt of your sword, carve some on the middle of the blade also, some elsewhere on the sword, and name Tyr twice 35 . Believing that runes would aid them in accomplishing their macabre plan, the Nazis, who were obsessed with the occult and symbols of arcane power 36 , adopted these symbols as talismans, featuring them on helmets, weapons, banners, etc. This is the reason why the rune Sieg, which symbolizes “victory” and is thus seen as a desirable virtue in SS men, appears on the shield carried by the Sigurd-like soldier of the poster. Nazis also used runes to visibly identify themselves as part of a distinguished group. The “Us” narrative is set in the poster’s background, where four colourful columns of members of the Hitlerjugend, Hitler Youth, march victoriously in a military-style parade maneuver. The poster seeks to show the organization as a socializing agent aimed at instilling in members the idea of life as a struggle and as survival of the fittest. Inasmuch as Sigurd’s story was part of German ancestry, the mythological allusion proved particularly appropriate to conjure up the important sense of belonging to the organic Volksgemeinschaft and to attract, thereby, young people into this organized network, which was marketed as “a new source of promise and support for young people, a source that gave them hope for themselves and their state in the future” 37 . Being one of the greatest warriors in the Germanic tradition, Nazi propagandists also used the reference to depict a highly idealized idea of war. In addition, the imagery attached to the hero was used as a mythic symbol of “Aryan” superiority and hipermasculine warrior ideals. 35 Crawford, Jackson (2015). The Poetic Edda: Stories of the Norse Gods and Heroes. Indianapolis. In: Hackett Publishing, 254. 36 Roland, Paul (2018). The Nazis and the Occult: The Dark Forces Unleashed by the Third Reich. New York: Barnes & Noble. 37 Kater, Michael H. (2004). Hitler Youth. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 6. 156 María Jesús Fernández-Gil Furthermore, the “Us” narrative capitalizes on the emotional appeal of homogeneity and on the meanings attached to it: ideas like comradeship, honour and belonging. In visual terms, the poster relies on uniforms, colours and gestures to present the German Volk united under a monolithic state ideology: the notion of racial purity. First and foremost, homogeneity is evident in the stereotyped physical appearance of the entire group, whose members are representative of the Aryan race. They are all blond, tall and well-built, in line with the most typical representation of Sigurd. Blood brotherhood is reinforced through means other than uniformity of physical features. The movements of all the members of this youth cohort are perfectly coordinated. The individual is subordinated further to the group by wearing the Hitler Youth uniform, which consisted of “brown shorts with a brown shirt, a black kerchief, a leather belt, leather shoulder straps, white socks, brown shoes and a brown cap” 38 . The uniform also included swastika armbands, as visible from the outfit worn by the four members that lead the march. The fact that four Nazi flags, with the black swastika in the center, preside over this part of the poster is indicative of Nazis’ effort to construct this symbol of divinity—first mentioned in Vedic hymns—as a sign of the Aryan race. Through this kind of propaganda, Nazis overshadowed the swastika’s ancient origins, originally associated with notions of “holiness”, “well-being” and “good fortune”, transforming the sign, first, into an emblem of expansion and conquest and, eventually, of racial supremacy. Expounding on its use as a symbol of party, nation and race, Malcolm Quinn argues that the Nazi conceptualization of the swastika can be traced to the colonialist principle on which the Nazis based their foreign policy: Lebensraum (“living space”) 39 . In his view, the idea that Germany required Lebensraum instituted a perfidious logic according to which the ever-expanding Germanic zone, whose boundaries were marked by the Nazi flag and thus by the swastika therein, “was simultaneously inclusive (of new territories) and exclusive (of the non-German populations within them)”, in such way that the swastika was ultimately identified as a symbol of Aryan identity 40 . The roots of this process of cultural appropriation can be found in the work of August Wilhelm von Schlegel and Franz Bopp, who proved links between German and Sanskrit. Evidence of linguistic affinity offered additional ammunition to nineteenth century racists, who put forth the postulate that affiliation reached far beyond language, including biology. This way, they maneuvered an Aryan background for the Germans because Sanskrit was the language of 38 Pine, Lisa (2010). Education in Nazi Germany. Oxford/ New York: Berg, 104. 39 Quinn, Malcolm (2005). The Swastika: Constructing the Symbol. London/ New York: Routledge. 40 Quinn (2005: 15). Intersemiotic Analysis of Nazi Posters: Nordic Mythology at the Service of Arianism 157 the Aryans—a highly civilized people, endowed with great and noble qualities, who are believed to have influenced greatly the Indian culture. On account of a common parentage, the Nazis presented themselves as the direct descendants of this “master race”. This is represented visually by the colour scheme of this part of the poster, which identifies the members of this racially pure national community in colourful terms while the reality of those that do not belong to the zone within lacks colour. Conclusion In the Gospel of John 8: 32, Jesus said “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free”, highlighting that the possibility for deception is always present. Living in a world in which speed of reaction often takes precedence over cautious assessment, this possibility seems ever more threatening. As a matter of fact, it is increasingly common to privilege feelings more than evidence. In its definition of the post-truth phenomenon, Oxford Dictionaries draws attention to the perils derived from the current political environment: “objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief” 41 , to the point that actual facts are being replaced by “alternative facts”—or, in Donald Trump’s catch phrase, “fake news”. In the midst of growing digitalization and automation, attention needs to be drawn to the impact of these alternative facts, as they can now be created and spread by anyone. Indeed, social media not only allow users to read news but also provide new ways to engage in democratic participation, which include the possibility of manipulation. There are, therefore, lessons that might be learnt from previous propaganda uses. While the post-truth phenomenon has particularities of its own, it is possible to see some degree of parallelism between the post-truth culture and prior challenges to truth, as for example the rewriting practices undertaken by the Nazis in their propaganda campaigns. In this sense, the issues brought to the forefront in this paper have been an attempt to raise awareness about the need to remain vigilant concerning the undermining capacity of ideas built upon deep-seated prejudices—especially considering the fact that the current digital ecosystem has created the perfect conditions for fake news and hate speech to thrive. I would, therefore, like to conclude pointing out that one of the lessons that should be drawn from the impact Nazi propaganda had on ordinary Germans is the need to develop visual literacy, since the digital era favours flows of 41 Oxford Dictionaries (2016). Post-truth. Available under: https: / / en.oxforddictionaries. com/ definition/ post-truth 158 María Jesús Fernández-Gil information to be spread through images that include little commentary and/ or explanation. I am fully aware of the concern that using Nazis’ hate discourse for educational purposes may arise. Yet, I consider it is much more dangerous to remain ignorant of the memory of the Holocaust. In line with the message delivered by the United Nations Secretary-General, I insist on the need of remembering that the Holocaust was not “simply the result of the insanity of a group of criminal Nazis”; such a belief “would be a dangerous error”, as “the Holocaust was the culmination of millennia of hatred and discrimination targeting the Jews” 42 . In short, it seems reasonable to bear in mind the words of Primo Levi, “It happened, therefore it can happen again: this is the core of what we have to say” 43 . 42 Guterres, Antonio (2017). “Remarks at Observance of the International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust”. United Nations Secretary-General. Available under: https: / / www.un.org/ sg/ en/ content/ sg/ speeches/ 2017-01-27/ secretarygenerals-memory-victims-holocaust-remarks 43 Levi, Primo (1988). The Drowned and the Saved. New York: Summit Books, 199. 4 Ecocritical Use of Germanic Myths and Comparative Mythology How to Train Your Dragon: an Ecocritical Approach to Myth Criticism Lorena Silos Ribas Trends in Children’s Animation Books and films aimed at children frequently feature heroines or heroes who dare to question prevailing norms and traditions, thereby unmasking the inconsistencies of the most deeply rooted discourses in their society. If in traditional narratives these acts of rebellion are duly punished—see, among others, the fates of characters such as Hansel and Gretel as transmitted by the Brothers Grimm, Little Red Riding Hood in the version by Charles Perrault or the little mermaid in the story by Hans Christian Andersen—what is certain is that in recent years, the major animation studios have brought to our screens stories of rebellion and transgression in which the young protagonists challenge existing beliefs and attitudes, often based on myths and legends, but, importantly, are rewarded for doing so. This is the case in films such as Mulan (Walt Disney Pictures, 1998) or Brave (Walt Disney Studio/ Pixar Animation Studios, 2012), in which, not by chance, the main figures are women who challenge the tradition written by a patriarchal society that defines their destinies: Mulan, the young princess in the film of the same name, decides to take up arms to fight in a war, while Merida, the main figure in Brave, refuses to be queen consort and instead duels with those who want to ask for her hand in marriage and inherit her kingdom. Family audiences have also been receptive to stories in which mythological traditions are questioned in narratives of personal development that also ultimately benefit the community. One example thereof is Moana. This film, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios in 2016, is inspired by the figure of the demi-god Maui, as told in the mythology of the Pacific Islands. According to the Polynesian version of the myth 1 , Maui is a sort of Prometheus figure, responsible for stealing the secret of fire from the gods, giving it to humans and making the sun move 1 Haase, D. (2009). The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Folktales and Fairy Tales. Vol. 2. Westport: Greenwood Press, 719. 162 Lorena Silos Ribas more slowly to lengthen the days. In the film, which has a strong eco-critical dimension, the young Moana, heir to the throne of Motunui’s tribe, is terrified by how her tribe’s survival is being threatened: the land is no longer fertile and the sea no longer produces enough fish to feed the population. Moana decides to try to remedy the situation, but to do so she must disregard Maui’s commands and advice and also rebel against her father, the chief of the tribe, who has forbidden her to cross the coral reef that surrounds her island. Although their ancestors had once been sea people, after losing many lives in a storm, the tribe transformed into a sedentary community, which subsisted thanks to agriculture and any fishing they obtained in the lagoon, safely inside the reef. Moana ultimately decides to defy tradition, disobey authority—both in the figure of her father and the cultural authority that Maui embodies—and go out to sea. This defiance, which would have been punished in traditional narratives, proves to be a boon for both the young woman and for her community, as she displays the kind of traits that make her a worthy leader and she repairs the fractured relationship between her people and Mother Nature. The film examined in this paper How to Train Your Dragon shares certain similarities with Moana: on the one hand, both productions echo the debate about the sustainability of the planet and, on the other, both are stories of personal development, a sort of Bildungsroman, because here, too, we find a young man who decides to challenge established authority, both hierarchical and cultural, and to question his position in society and the models of behaviour that have been prescribed for him. How to Train Your Dragon is an animated movie aimed at children and young people and is directed by former Disney employees Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois for rival studio Dreamworks 2 . The film premiered in the US in 2010 and soon became a commercial success, being compared to Avatar 3 for its similarly breath-taking 3D cinematography and flight sequences as well as to Old Yeller 4 , The Black Stallion 5 and E.T. 6 for its heart-warming tale of inter-species friendship. It was also critically acclaimed, winning numerous awards, as well as receiving two Academy Award nominations. A sequel to the 2 Sanders and DeBlois were no strangers to this type of narrative, having directed the aforementioned Mulan, as well as Lilo & Stitch, a movie in which a child also befriends a strange and indeed dangerous creature. 3 Corliss, R. (2010). “Dreaming up How to Train Your Dragon.” Time. http: / / content.time. com/ time/ magazine/ article/ 0,9171,1975321,00.html 4 Gleiberman, O. (2010). “Review: How to Train Your Dragon.” Entertainment Weekly. https: / / ew.com/ article/ 2010/ 03/ 24/ how-train-your-dragon-2/ 5 Mondello, B. (2010). “No, actually, dragons are a (Viking) boy’s best friend.” NPR. www. npr.org/ templates/ story/ story.php? storyId=125019435 6 Corliss, R. (2010). “Dreaming up How to Train Your Dragon.” Time. http: / / content.time. com/ time/ magazine/ article/ 0,9171,1975321,00.html How to Train Your Dragon: an Ecocritical Approach to Myth Criticism 163 film followed in 2014, with 2019 witnessing the release of the final chapter of the trilogy. The film is inspired by a series of novels by British author Cressida Cowell that began in 2003 and now amounts to more than twenty volumes. The film, however, differs greatly from these narratives, particularly in points that are of interest to the subject of this paper: the dragon protagonist of Cowell’s novels is smaller in size and far from scary; indeed, it is an almost comical character. In contrast, his cinematographic counterpart is the most feared of all the dragons, a Night Fury, fast, strong and intelligent, for whose creation the animation technicians were inspired by one of the most sinister animals in the jungle, namely the black panther, with which the main dragon shares movements and gestures. However, despite his initial eeriness, the dragon does not prove to be a cruel or scary being, but instead inspires tenderness. How to train your dragon? Contesting the Myth The film is set in the small Viking village of Berk, which stands on a steep fjord on a fictitious coastline that may well correspond to Norway because of its characteristic orography, even if the adult Vikings are curiously voiced by Scottish actors whilst the youngsters speak with North American accents. The inhabitants are continuously threatened by attacks from dragons who steal the fruits of their labours, namely the livestock they raise and the fish they catch. Thus, young and old, for their own survival, are trained in the killing of these beasts, which, especially at the beginning of the film, involve some of the most fearsome images of the mythological creature that fiction has given us 7 . Hiccup, the protagonist, is a young Viking, son of the village chief, Stoick, whose destiny is to become a dragon hunter, like his father and all the warriors of the tribe. In spite of his poor physical condition—he is a sickly, skinny young man—at the beginning of the movie, Hiccup follows the path that has been mapped out for him, and his main desire is to kill a dragon in order to win his father’s approval and to be considered a true Viking by the other members of the tribe who think of him as “a talking fish bone” (00: 08: 39) and a “toothpick” (00: 02: 25). The weight of tradition is one of the film’s most relevant themes. Hiccup wants to belong to the tribe, to become what his father—and the rest of his community—expect of him: a new Sigurd/ Siegfried, the hero of Norse mythology. This attitude is revealed on numerous occasions throughout the movie, for example, in Hiccup’s first encounter with the dragon, he states: “I am going to kill you, dragon. I am going to cut out your heart and take it to my father. I am a Viking. I AM A 7 Midkiff, E. (2009). “Dragons are tricksy: The uncanny dragons of children’s literature”. Fafnir - Nordic Journal of Science Fiction and Fantasy Research, 41-54,50. VIKING” (00: 13: 00). Since time immemorial, the Vikings of the small village of Berk have fought against the dragons; indeed, killing dragons has become so much a part of who they are that their entire environment is steeped in dragon iconography, with their ships, their homes, their shields and their clothes all adorned with images of dragons and dragon slayers. This ever-present imagery, the war-tales told by elders like the blacksmith, Gobber, and the handbook featuring all the information that the tribe knows about dragons all serve to ensure that the tribe’s culture is passed down from generation to generation. This is also echoed in the words of Hiccup’s father, “When you carry this ax, you carry all of us with you” (0: 16: 24). He says this when endowing his son with a weapon, in a scene which echoes a similar one in which Moana's father offers her a stone, as if it were a transfer of powers. However, just as Hiccup does not have the physicality of a warrior, nor does he have the mentality of one, but rather that of an engineer. For that reason, he builds objects designed to attack the winged beasts, preferably from a distance. Thus, at the beginning of the film, Hiccup, in the middle of an attack, manages to seriously injure a Night Fury with one of his ingenious inventions. Once he locates the animal that is wounded and cannot fly, he realizes that he is not capable of killing it, because, as he himself admits towards the end of the film, he identifies with it: “I looked at him and I saw myself” (01: 09: 03). This first moment of connection between Hiccup and the dragon, which he calls Toothless because of its ability to retract its sharp teeth, seems to condense the ideas that John Berger presented in his essay “Why Look at Animals? ” (1980), in which he invites us to look at animals and try to be aware of our similarities and differences, in order to establish what type of relationship exists between us and them 8 . My contention here corresponds to what I understand is one of the most relevant reflections in the film, namely that the knowledge we have about animals gives us power over them, but does not benefit our relationship with them or our ecosystem. In order for Hiccup to assume the role that society has given him—that is, to be responsible for the fate of his people—he must actually oppose tradition and also question the mythological substratum on which it is based, namely one which states that the dragon is a voracious predator, the enemy of man to be defeated. Essentially, the myth of Siegfried, which has been perpetuated since its genesis in the Eddas, must be questioned and transformed. Although the dragon is a recurrent figure in almost all cultural traditions, from China to Wales 9 and has multiple forms depending on its origin, in the 8 Cf. Berger, J. (1980): “Why look at animals? ”. In Berger, J. About Looking. London: Penguin. 9 Cf. Langer, J. (2015). Na trilha dos vinkings. Estudos de religiosidade nórdica. Paraiba: UFPB. 164 Lorena Silos Ribas popular imagination the image of the dragon is that of a quadruped creature with wings, which is capable of exhaling fire through its mouth. In order to analyze the figure of the dragon in How to Train Your Dragon, this article will focus on the type of dragon created in the Nordic tradition, more specifically in the Eddas and sagas 10 . In Nordic mythology, dragons are represented in the form of a snake, with a head and jaw similar to a large reptile, although they are directly linked to the family of annelids. As is known, annelids—larvae or worms—are related to soil and putrefaction, to disease and, for this reason, there is a fear, an atavistic animosity to this animal, as a cause of ailments and infections. In Egypt, for example, the god Apepi is a snake that symbolizes the world of darkness, while in western culture, there are many representations of saints and martyrs that are accompanied by a dragon or snake as a symbol of sin. The most famous of these are the text of the Genesis, in which the devil takes the form of a snake, or the legend of St. George and the dragon. Among all the mythical narratives about dragons of pan-Germanic origin, none has experienced the popularity of the figure of Sigurd/ Siegfried and his fight against this creature. According to Langer 11 , “Sigurd’s adventures are considered one of the first creations of the Germanic imagination” and their origin is established in the Poetic Edda, although they also appear in the Volsunga saga and in the medieval German epic poem of the Nibelungenlied. According to the Völsunga saga, Fáfnir kills his father in order to steal the gold that Odin had given him after Loki killed one of his sons. However, the gold has a curse, and, soon after, Fáfnir becomes a dragon imprisoned by greed and flees into the woods. Odin then sends Sigurd to kill him. It is not the aim of this paper to review the origin of Sigurd nor to examine his extensive influence on Germanic and Nordic cultural heritage. We are simply interested in what he means for 10 The figure of the dragon and the parallels between Sigurd/ Siegfried and Hiccup are not the only allusions that How to Train Your Dragon makes to Nordic mythology. References to the god Thor are recurrent: the film begins with a violent storm; on numerous occasions the main characters invoke the name Thor alongside Odin; Stoick, Hiccup’s father, advises his son to take the hammer, the attribute of the god Thor, instead of the dagger to fight the dragon; and, finally, an image of Stoick with his hammer aloft is a clear allusion to the most frequent representations of the god. The film also refers to places from Nordic mythology. The objective of the Viking tribe and especially of Hiccup’s father is to locate the nest of dragons and eliminate them all. Thus, on board his drakkar, Stoick orders his men to cross the gates of the Helheim and, when they finally arrive at the dragon’s nest, it is located inside a mountain (00: 57: 29), which has obvious similarities with the well or spring of Hvergelmir. According to mythological accounts, this spring is in the Nilfheim, the world of cold and darkness and is inhabited by an uncountable number of snakes. Likewise, in the film, the dragons take shelter inside the mountain, slithering around the entrance and covering its walls and ceiling. 11 Langer (2015: 191). How to Train Your Dragon: an Ecocritical Approach to Myth Criticism 165 this analysis in terms of his role as an iconic warrior and as the epitome of a dragon slayer, as someone who the protagonists of the film try to emulate and who corresponds to the social model that Hiccup must assume. Although his name is not mentioned in the film, the figure of Sigurd/ Siegfried can be seen as an alter-ego for Hiccup, even if, as it turns out, it is exactly the Siegfried myth that he ultimately subverts or, in any case, re-invents. The subsequent analysis will show the parallels between the two figures, and also the contrasts, which serve to reinforce our hypothesis. In addition to their both being forced to fight a dragon, Sigurd and Hiccup also show similarities that are relevant to the study, beginning with their backgrounds. Sigurd is raised by Regin, Fafnir’s brother, and a blacksmith by profession. Regin is Sigurd’s adoptive father and mentor, his teacher, and also the one who on his anvil forges the sword with which Sigurd will kill the dragon Fafnir. Echoing this story, Hiccup also has his mentor in Gobber, the village blacksmith. He works with him in the forge as an apprentice (see Fig. 40), and it is Gobber who receives the order from Hiccup’s father to train him to kill dragons. Thus, in both cases, the hero receives from a blacksmith the necessary tools or resources to carry out his mission. Fig. 40. Hiccup forging a sword in How to train your dragon (00: 04: 05, Dreamworks, 2010). Moreover, just as Siegfried in the Nibelungenlied has a cloak that makes him invisible, his alter ego Hiccup possesses the capacity to always “disappear”; he is never where he is expected to be and he is continuously hiding: from his father, from Gobber, from his friend Astrid and, naturally, at the beginning from Toothless, the dragon. Likewise, just as Sigurd, according to the Volsunga saga, is able to understand the language of the birds, Hiccup is able to communicate 166 Lorena Silos Ribas with the dragons and also like the mythological hero, Hiccup also ultimately kills a dragon, one which, like Fafnir, Sigurd’s victim, stands out for its greed, as we shall see later. Although How to Train Your Dragon displays elements that appear to be derived from the original Nordic tradition and the genesis of Siegfried’s figure therein, the parallels do not stop there. The movie also shares similarities with the way Siegfried’s story has previously been brought to the screen, specifically in the portrayal of his encounter with the dragon in the first part of Fritz Lang’s Die Nibelungen (1924). It would appear that the producers of How to Train Your Dragon found inspiration in the staging of this scene, since the environment in which both the heroes encounter the dragons offers great similarities: both approach the dragon through a leafy forest of rocks and tall trees, making their way through nature, and find the animal next to a lake, isolated and surrounded by an almost impenetrable landscape (00: 11: 45). Fig. 41. Hiccup approaching Toothless and emulating Siegfried with his tiny dagger in How to train your dragon (00: 12: 09, Dreamworks 2010). How to Train Your Dragon: an Ecocritical Approach to Myth Criticism 167 Fig. 42. Siegfried fighting the dragon as staged by Fritz Lang (1924) However, this is where the similarities between the two protagonists end. Although Sigurd/ Siegfried approaches the dragon with the sole aim of exterminating it and does so unrepentantly, Hiccup cannot bring himself to kill the creature, despite (or perhaps because of) its being an easy prey, as it lies, injured and vulnerable, tied up by the bolas that he shot at it from his catapult. Moreover, unlike, Lang’s Siegfried, who when the dragon stares at him stabs it in the eye, Hiccup, as noted above, looks back into the creature’s eye and sees himself 12 . He sees the same fear and vulnerability that he is only too familiar with and his empathy means that he spares the dragon’s life. Thereafter, Hiccup adopts an attitude in which intellectual interest prevails: he is the scientist, an engineer who observes the movements and behaviour of the dragon and experiments with it with the aim of getting to know it better 13 . Here we once more 12 The similarities between the two are stressed even further at the end of film when Hiccup is badly injured in battle and awakes to find he has lost his foot, just as Toothless lost his tailfin earlier in the movie. 13 Wilhite, C.J., C. Wilhite & W.L. Williams (2010). “Dragon training and changing culture. A review of Dreamworks’ How to Train Your Dragon.” The Behaviour Analyst, 33: 2, 239-242. https: / / doi.org/ 10.1007/ BF03392225 168 Lorena Silos Ribas take up John Berger’s thesis, according to which “what we know about them [animals] is an index of our power, and thus an index of what separates us from them. The more we know, the further away they are” 14 . And so, throughout the film, Hiccup must disassociate himself from all the erroneous information he has acquired in the so-called “Dragon Manual”, in which everything a Viking must know about his adversaries is recorded (00: 21: 27) and which establishes, in broad strokes and through drawings and descriptions, that these are violent and cruel animals, ready to fight and with no capacity to relate to human beings. This notion is hit home in Hiccup’s voiceover as he leafs through the manual, with him repeating his culture’s knowledge of, and method of dealing with, the various species, namely “[e]xtremely dangerous. Extremely dangerous. Kill on sight. Kill on sight. Kill on sight” (00: 23: 18). All species are listed in this manual, with the exception of the Night Fury—the species to which Toothless belongs— which no one except Hiccup has had the pleasure of encountering. The only advice available is to “hide and pray it does not find you” (00: 23: 36). However, this ignorance is very useful for the young protagonist, because it endows the relationship with space and the necessary freedom: Hiccup will have to learn about the dragon, and use that knowledge, not to kill it, but rather to re-establish balance in the ecosystem. Through his observation and intellectual relationship with Toothless, Hiccup introduces an important variant in the relationship between humans and dragons: he observes them and warns others that all current beliefs about them are false or at least arguable. And in doing so, he demolishes the myth of Siegfried, rejects tradition, because he can no longer recognize himself in it and instead reinvents a new relationship with the animal world, and specifically with the dragon. Sustainable Speciesism This newfound relationship between both species is strengthened because everyone—both human and dragon alike—will have to fight a common enemy, namely a dragon of enormous dimensions, which lives inside a mountain, which resembles the mythological well or spring of Hvergelmir and which it never leaves. It is instead fed by the rest of the dragons on the fish that they have stolen from the Vikings. Thus, the fight is truly one of life or death, because the dragons, exploited by the dictatorial dragon, are leaving Berk’s population without sustenance. The Vikings and dragons must unite to fight this common enemy, a despot who takes advantage of its physical strength to enslave the dragons and at the same time deplete the sources of natural wealth that feed 14 Berger (1980: 14). How to Train Your Dragon: an Ecocritical Approach to Myth Criticism 169 both Vikings and dragons, since the latter also eat fish. Chief Stoick is, thus, not exaggerating when he comments desperately after a dragon attack that winter is approaching and that he has nothing to feed his people. The gravity of the situation also becomes clear to Hiccup when he sees how the dragons throw the fish that is their food into the bottomless pit that is the fiercest dragon’s stomach (00: 55: 45). As in many contemporary tales addressed to children 15 , the message in favour of sustainability is clear and is also underlined, at least in part, by the emotional dimension of the relationship between Hiccup and Toothless. Thanks to the animal, Hiccup discovers that he does not know everything about dragons and that he can still write many pages in the dragon manual after observing and understanding these beings. The relationship between the citizens of Berk and the dragons changes as a result of the assault on the dragons’ nest, as both are freed from the common enemy and the dragons, already domesticated, are put at the service of the Vikings. It is undoubtedly a utilitarian relationship, in which man benefits from the beast and is further underlined by the representation of the “good” dragons as pets, sometimes comic and sometimes cute, and particularly by Toothless’ physical evolution throughout the film. While at the beginning he appears ferocious and by no means benign, he develops into a more amicable creature, which adheres to the anthropomorphic representation of animals as established by Garrard in his typology. According to Garrard, “anthropomorphic animal narratives are generally denigrated as ‘childish’” 16 and would make Toothless fall in to the category of a “disnified” figure 17 , that is, an animal characterized with the typical traits associated with infant humans and animals: large eyes, a big head relative to the body, short limbs and a generally rounded configuration (Baker 1993). This characterization of Toothless as “neoteny” 18 underlines the newly forged relationship between dragons and humans as being somewhat utilitarian and exploitative, yet promoting the well-being of society—both animal and human—and the ecosystem through mutual collaboration. This ending, which is ecological in character, can however be seen to constitute a new reinterpretation of the Sigurd/ myth. On the one hand, Hiccup kills a dragon that, like Fafnir, is characterized by its extreme greed and threatens the well-being of the community. On the other hand, he is able to exert control 15 Cf. Buell, L. (2014). “Environmental Writing for Children: A Selected Reconnaissance of Heritages, Emphases, Horizons”. In: The Oxford Handbook of Ecocriticism. Ed. Greg Garrard. Oxford: OUP 408-422. 16 Garrard, G. (2012). Ecocriticism. London: Routledge, 154. 17 Cf. Baker, S. (1993). Picturing the Beast: Animals, Identity and Representation. Manchester: Manchester University Press. 18 Garrard (2012: 154). 170 Lorena Silos Ribas over the dragons and in a metaphorical way, exterminate—metaphorically—the beast in them. As noted at the beginning of the paper, the film shares the characteristics of a Bildungsroman; Hiccup experiences a personal evolution but ends up returning to the bosom of his community: not only because he is now accepted as a hero by the citizens of Berk, but because he himself internalizes the cultural codes of his society, even if they have been updated to echo the environmentalist discourse. How to Train Your Dragon: an Ecocritical Approach to Myth Criticism 171 In the beginning was Crow: Reinventing and Subverting the Creation Myth Lorraine Kerslake Young The word myth comes from the ancient Greek word mythos, meaning story. So, broadly defined, a myth is a traditional story that has been handed down from generation to generation and keeps being retold. It is a collective narrative that belongs to a community and helps human beings make sense of themselves and their relation with the world. In the case of Ted Hughes, one of the leading poets and writers of English Literature in the twentieth century, a myth is a mediation between the inner and outer worlds, between the material and spiritual dimensions. According to Hughes, myths are “blueprints for our imagination” 1 and contain cathartic healing properties that are able to restore the balance between our inner and outer worlds. Myths then, for Hughes, are stories that reconcile contradictions, and in line with the belief that Hughes had in the healing power of stories, great myths are those that have the power to heal. This chapter will look at Hughes’s own understanding of mythology and explore the connection he makes between myth and literature. Through an ecocritical analysis my discussion will consider Hughes’s uneasy relationship with Christian religion and looks at how Hughes subverts the creation myth by turning the Genesis account of creation upside down. I will also look explore the parallels between the poetic universe of Crow and that of Hughes’s creation tales in the sphere of his children’s writing. Hughes reinvents myths by using his knowledge of primitive cultures and anthropology. He also draws upon Anglo-Saxon and Norse mythology as well as the Biblical myth. A clear example of this can be seen in the figure of Crow. Crows, together with ravens are members of the genus Corvus. For the Vikings the raven acted as a guide. They carried ravens with them in cages during their sea voyages and set them free to determine if there was land ahead. In Norse mythology Odin’s ravens, Hugin and Munin are his spiritual guides and appear as messengers who tell Odin everything they see and hear. Like Hughes’s Crow 1 Hughes, Ted (1994). Winter Pollen. London: Faber and Faber, 151. they are also mediators between life and death. For Hughes the crow is a shape shifter, a prototype of creation which he subverts and deconstructs. Crow holds a unique place in Hughes’s-poetic universe.-Conceived as an epic folk-tale it was written in the wake of Sylvia Plath’s suicide. It was Hughes’s friend the artist Leonard Baskin who, in 1967, first invited him to write some poems to accompany some engravings of crows. Hughes immediately recognized the mythic potentialities of the crow, as both a trickster figure and a quest hero, embodying the themes that were most urgent to him at that time. Hughes himself described the work as his masterpiece 2 , although he later said that publishing the book was a mistake, and that publication “aborts the gestation process” 3 . Indeed, The Life and Songs of the Crow would have been one of Hughes’s greatest works had it not been aborted in 1969, partly as the result of the second tragedy of the poet’s life, when Assia Wevill took her life, in what was a horrifying copy of Sylvia Plath’s suicide, taking with her their daughter Shura. In a private letter which Hughes wrote to Baskin, shortly after their deaths, Hughes reflects the enormous pain he was going through at the time and the way it influenced his writing: Dear Leonard, After all this time, greetings again. How is life going? Mine has been up and down lately, mainly down, though I’m well enough and now and again productive in a fashion. Crow has dragged my life into its vortex and the quicker I get it finished the better-… but everything tries to frustrate it. […] If I can get to the end I hope the end will redeem the rest somehow. 4 It is interesting that Hughes should use the verb ‘redeem’ here, given that in Crow, redemption is never fully attainable or complete. Following the form of the traditional quest narrative, it reads as an experimental folk epic and depicts Crow’s birth, his interference with creation and his journey through the universe in search of his creator. Crow ends with the hero emerging from the darkness of his crimes and sufferings. Once conceived, Crow became a new poetic project, following the death of Plath, that completely possessed Hughes, to the point that it could be easily argued that its unhappy ending was due to Hughes’s own tragic personal experience and reflects the depression that he had sunk into at the time. 2 Letter dated 16 July 1969, Hughes, Ted. ‘To Leonard Baskin’. Add MS 83684 (40), The British Library. 3 Letter dated 17 May 1993, Hughes, Ted. Emory MSS 644, Box 54 ff.1. 4 Letter dated 16 July 1969, Hughes, Ted. ‘To Leonard Baskin’. Add MS 83684 (40), The British Library. 174 Lorraine Kerslake Young Crow is probably Hughes’s most controversial work. As critic Neil Roberts puts it, Crow is “a stylistic experiment which abandoned many of the attractive features of his earlier work, and an ideological challenge to both Christianity and humanism” 5 . Certainly, from an early age, Hughes held strong views about religion. The Bible, especially the Old Testament, is one of the main sources of Hughes’s imagery. In 1957 he wrote to his sister Olwyn that the Bible was his “favourite book” 6 . Hughes’s ideas on religion have been described as “Anti-Christian” by Joanny Moulin, who has said that Hughes “considers Christianity and rationalism as a dark period of the religious history of mankind, to be overcome as soon as possible” 7 . Indeed, many have found Hughes’s sense of theology confusing, and even distasteful. Hughes’s Crow is a creature of imagination which takes on mythical proportions. It is the poet’s distorted biblical creation myth in which he turns the Genesis account of creation upside down. Organised Christianity for Hughes was a mere invention meant to explain to humanity the meaning of life. Crow’s quest to find his creator is also symbolic of human’s alienation from nature. However, to anybody who has read Crow, it quickly becomes clear that Hughes had no use for the traditional Christian concept of God. Hughes uses the Bible, as a narrative framework which is familiar to the reader. However, it is the poet’s resource to myth and folklore that allow him to mock God’s creation and deconstruct the Christian creation myth in order to reconstruct his own personal myth. In Hughes’s poetic universe Crow challenges Christianity and follows Lynn White’s belief that our failure to respond to the degradation of the natural world has its roots in Judeo-Christian religion. In the words of Karl Heinz Göller: God cannot be the only principle at work. There must be an opposing force outside of God. But in contrast to the literary philosophers of the 18 th century, Hughes does not stoop to a justification of this world, or to the claim that this world is good without reservation. Nor does he simply view the Devil as the principle of Evil, since for him nature is what the Devil is to Christianity. Thus he conceives a mythology of his own in which Crow becomes an antagonist of God 8 . 5 Roberts, Neil (2016). Notes on “Crow”. Available at: http: / / thetedhughessociety.org/ crow/ (Accessed 12/ 03/ 2018). 6 Reid, Christopher (ed.), (2007). Letters of Ted Hughes. London: Faber and Faber, 100. 7 Moulin, Joanny (1995) ‘History and Reason in the Work of Ted Hughes’, in Hoda Gindi (ed.), History in Literature. Department of English, University of Cairo, Egypt, 67. 8 Göller, Karl Heinz (1990) ‘Towards a New Mythology: The Poetry of Ted Hughes, English Poet Laureate’, Zeszyty Naukowe Uniwersytetu Jagielloriskiego. Krakow, 102. In the beginning was Crow : Reinventing and Subverting the Creation Myth 175 176 Lorraine Kerslake Young According to Daniel O’Connor, Crow is “the Christ of the unconscious” 9 but he is also a cartoon-like character, playing shadow to God’s psyche. Crow is “stripped to its bones, but what survives are the factors that allowed Hughes to create a new mythology from them: the essential props of mankind, God and nature” 10 . In a reading of-Crow, Hughes claimed that “The Crow is another word, of course, for the entrails, lungs, heart, etcetera — everything extracted from a beast when it is gutted. The Crow of a man, in other words, is the essential man only minus his human looking vehicle, his bones and muscles” 11 .-Bearing this in mind, Crow can be seen as an image of humanity’s potential stripped of its ego-centred personality. On a personal level, however, Hughes appears to have used-Crow-as a way to come to terms with his feelings of guilt after Sylvia Plath’s suicide. Written in a mixture of deliberate crudity and absurdity and set halfway between apocalypse and surrealism, Crow draws strongly on myth and folklore. Crow is employed by Hughes as a trickster figure: a mythological figure that can change shape within animal or human embodiment and which has long appeared in stories of creation and recreation. According to Lewis Hyde the “trickster is a boundary-crosser” 12 , meaning that he often appears in the form of a traveller and is able to cross both physical and social boundaries. Anthropologist Paul Radin defines the North American Indian trickster as follows: Trickster is at one and the same time creator and destroyer, giver and negator, he who dupes others and who is always duped himself. He wills nothing consciously. At all times he is constrained to behave as he does from impulses over which he has no control. He knows neither good nor evil yet he is responsible for both. He possesses no values, moral or social, is at the mercy of his passions and appetites, yet through his actions all values come into being. 13 Perhaps not all mythologists, or even Hughes, would agree with Radin in saying that tricksters “will nothing consciously” and have “no control”, however it is true that the trickster has a certain flexibility of mind and spirit and in his role as a boundary-crosser is able to defy authority and break social rules. In the case of Hughes, it would appear that he uses Crow as a trickster figure to blur the sense of right and wrong, and as a way of asking questions through 9 O’Connor, Daniel (2010) ‘“The Horror of Creation”: Ted Hughes’s Rewriting of Genesis in Crow’, Peer English, 5, 50. 10 O’ Connor (2010: 57-58). 11 Hughes, Ted-(1997) Crow. Faber-Penguin Audio Books. 12 Hyde, Lewis (1998) Trickster Makes This World: Mischief, Myth, and Art. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 7. 13 Radin, Paul (1956) The Trickster. London: Routledge, xxiii. In the beginning was Crow : Reinventing and Subverting the Creation Myth 177 different narratives about moral and human values found in Western society. Crow wears different masks, mediating between the dualities of Hughes’s creative and destructive universes or the male/ female, adult/ child binary. Perhaps this is best illustrated in one of Hughes’s most unique poems, originally titled ‘Defeat of Crow’: In the little girl’s angel gaze Crow lost every feather In the little boy’s wondering eyes Crow’s bones splintered In the little girl’s passion Crow’s bowels fell in the dust In the little boy’s rosy cheeks Crow became an unrecognisable rag Crow got under the brambles, capitulated To nothingness eyes closed Let those infant feel pound through the Universe. 14 It is significant that it is only through the uncorrupted spirit of a child that the malevolent trickster Crow can finally be defeated, and so it is the Blakean sense of innocence of childhood that finally triumphs over Crow defeating corruption and evil. Alongside Crow, Hughes’s Creation Tales are set in the same context, a world where Hughes subverts the narrative of Genesis, and where Hughes’s Biblical God resembles an imperfect fatherly figure who manufactures the creatures of the world in his workshop. Although Hughes began writing these children’s tales before Crow, around the age of 26, he continued to draft and write his ‘animal fables’ about how the world and its creature came into being, throughout his life. The first of his animal fables ‘How the Donkey Became’ was actually written in Spain, when Plath and Hughes visited Benidorm, which at the time was a small fishing village, as a newlywed couple. How the Whale Became, Hughes’s first collection of stories, was written and published by Faber & Faber in 1963 and consists of eleven prose fables, explaining the origins of different animals and how the creatures acquired their present forms. According to Hughes, they “were all written with a moral purpose, in Aesop style” 15 . The tales are also reminiscent of Kipling’s Just So Stories in so far that Hughes uses animals to portray human vices, such as selfishness, laziness or vanity, amongst others. Whilst Kipling’s tales have a precise underlying 14 Hughes, Ted (2003) Collected Poems. London: Faber and Faber, 267. 15 Hughes, Ted (1992) ‘The Interpretation of Parables’, Signal Approaches to Children’s Books, 69: 147. geographical reference (Africa, the Far East, America and ancient Europe) and were written with the didactic intention of educating the reader into the politics behind the Empire, Hughes’s tales lack any particular geographical reference. Other than that, they share few other similarities. Perhaps the most interesting difference is that God plays no explicit part in Kipling’s creation tales, but appears as a central figure in Hughes’s tales. Hughes’s God is depicted as being a very human kind of God, one who is prone to human weaknesses such as tiredness, lack of concentration or being absent-minded, and who alongside his successes often gets things wrong and makes a few mistakes along the way. Hughes’s creation tales also stress that everything is interconnected and review the relationship of humans and the environment. This can be seen in the opening pages, when Hughes begins the tales with his own particular version of Genesis and takes us back to the early days of the world, when animals had not yet taken their true form and narrates how God creates the different creatures: Long ago when the world was brand new, before animals or birds, the sun rose into the sky and brought the first day. The flowers jumped up and stared around astonished. Then from every side, from under leaves and from behind rocks, creatures began to appear. In those days the colours were much better than they are now, much brighter. And the air sparkled because it had never been used. 16 One of the most interesting tales from the collection is ‘How The Bee Became’. In retrospective the bee was to become an important creature for both Hughes and Plath, not only, in their poetry, but to the point that in 1962 Plath undertook beekeeping as a hobby 17 . 16 Hughes, Ted (2008) How the Whale Became. London, Faber and Faber, 10. 17 In the summer of 1962, after having moved with Hughes to Devon in September 1961, Plath began keeping bees, as related in Plath’s famous 5 bee poems that appear in Ariel (‘The Bee Meeting’, ‘The Arrival of the Bees’, ‘Stings’, ‘The Swarm’, and ‘Wintering’). The poems were conceived as a sequence in less than a week in October 1962, only months before her death in February 1963. However, it was not Hughes but Plath’s midwife who had introduced her to keeping bees in Devon. For Plath beekeeping became an analogy for the writing of poetry. According to Joanne Feit Diehl, Plath’s bee poems ‘testify to the function of ritual to preserve contact with nature and retain a requisite control over life beyond the self’ (1990: 131). For Plath, this was more than a hobby, her fascination with bees can also be seen as a reflection of her obsession with her father, professor of entomology at Boston University and a well-known authority on bumblebees. Indeed, while her marriage to Hughes dissolved, Plath finds herself caught in a trap of post-war expectations of domesticity, which can be seen both personally and poetically by looking at her metaphoric bee poems and the relationship depicted between the speaker of her poems and the world she lives in, identifying the poet with the queen bee in the cycle of life, death and rebirth. 178 Lorraine Kerslake Young In Hughes’s evocative tale we learn that Bee is made through the precious gems and tears of a demon, and as a result must fly from flower to flower, in search of sweetness to overcome the bitter demon that runs through his veins. What is curious here is the fact that Hughes does not explicitly describe the demon as evil, but instead makes the reader feel almost sorry for him, depicting him as a sad and lonely creature, one who is jealous of God and who wants to “make something which will be far more beautiful than any of God’s creatures” 18 . The irony is that he succeeds in doing so. Recalling Hughes’s own remarks in his essay ‘Myth and Education’, the tale depicts the Christian myth in which “Christianity is suppressing the devil and in fact suppresses imagination and suppresses vital natural life” 19 . Hughes’s remarks are clearly intended as a criticism of Reformed Christianity. So, in an ironic way, Hughes is playing with the Christian idea of God being a superior and ‘divine’ being, when, in fact, the devil tricks God, by playing to his vanity: “I could never breathe life into it. If you had made it, it would be alive. As it is, it is beautiful, but dead” 20 . Here God is gullible to flattery. Not only is Hughes’s God not the creator of the bee, but furthermore he is tricked by the demon with flattery to breathe life into the creature. So, the underlying paradox of the tale is that the devil is closer to nature than God. By confronting the idealistic Christian belief that God is benevolent and omnipotent Hughes’s own ideas appear to be very much in line here with Lynn White’s claim that the Bible is partly at fault for granting “dominion over the whole earth” 21 . Both characterize Christianity as being anthropocentric and argue that it desanctifies nature, and thus see it as being significantly responsible for our ecological crisis. The next collection of fables, Tales of the Early World, have a more developed cast of characters, together with a more imaginative and witty sense of humour. Whilst How the Whale Became, with the exception of God, lacks human characters, in Hughes’s second collection, both Man and God feature as being central to the tales. Moreover, Hughes introduces other, more complex, female characters such as Man’s wife, Woman, and God’s Mother, who is a central figure to his creation myths. One of the most memorable tales of the collection and perhaps the one which best examines the complexity of these relationships is ‘The Guardian’, in which 18 Hughes, Ted (2008: 58). 19 Hughes, Ted (1970) ‘Myth and Education’ in-Children’s Literature in Education-I, March, 66. 20 Hughes, Ted (2008: 60). 21 White, Lynn, Jr., (1967) ‘The Historical Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis’, Science, 155, 1203- 1207. In the beginning was Crow : Reinventing and Subverting the Creation Myth 179 the characters of Man and Woman are also strongly reminiscent of Crow. As in the narrative backstory to Crow, God’s most ambitious project is to create man and woman. Man appears as a simple creature: “Man was easy to create. God simply shaped the clay, breathed life into it, and up jumped Man, ready to go. God smiled. “Now,” he said, “I’ll make your better half. Then you’ll be complete”” 22 . Woman on the other hand is clearly superior, much more complex, and far more difficult to create: “God shaped Woman. He took great care, and she turned out perfect. God was pleased. But when he tried to breathe life into her—nothing happened. He tried again, breathing the life in very gently. She just lay there, lifeless clay. He shook her slightly and frowned” 23 . In the end it is the figure of God’s mother who finally brings him help and saves the day. In his creation tales nearly all the creatures share a similar preoccupation: how to deal with the challenge of becoming. They are all displaced creatures seeking the divine as part of God’s creation, in a world where God enacts only their Genesis, by transforming them from nothingness and endowing them with life. Despite the fact that the tales are playfully subversive they also give insight to Hughes’s empathy towards nature and his concern for the natural world, creating a sense of wonder and respect in the reader. God’s blunders and fallibility also make him much closer to human beings. Read as a collection, Hughes’s creation tales also disclose some revealing and rather puzzling facts. Hughes’s choice of employing the creation myth as a narrative technique allowed him to rewrite characters and offer parallel readings though different accounts of the same story as regards some of the characters or their creation. These ‘inconsistencies’ refer mainly to conflicting narratives regarding the creation of Man and Woman, the human child or other creatures, such as the figure of the snake. However, despite the apparent contradiction, there appears to be a reason behind Hughes’s choice of rewriting inconsistent and even ambiguous accounts. As a storyteller it gave him the freedom to adapt a certain tale to particular circumstances, situation or audience and the possibility to retell the same tale. So, by offering different accounts of the same narrative, by presenting conflicting tales about the creation of different characters, Hughes was trying to stimulate the reader’s imagination as well as enacting his own creative myth. Despite having similar underlying concerns to Crow’s creative universe, it would appear that, like Kipling, Hughes seems to have felt free to explore a more playful side in his children’s writing, revealing a more intimate side of his personality, one that often remains masked in harsher adult works, like 22 Hughes, Ted (1988) Tales of the Early World. London, Faber and Faber, 16. 23 Hughes, Ted (1988: 16). 180 Lorraine Kerslake Young Crow. In the same way it is interesting to note that many of the Crow poems also present different accounts of the same events, such as Crow’s creation. Like Crow, the creation tales are set in the same context, a world where Hughes subverts the narrative of Genesis, where in the words of Hughes, “Christianity is just another provisional myth of man’s relationship with the creator and the world of spirit” 24 . Hughes children’s writing is dedicated to this ongoing process of recovery and renewal of the imagination of the new child, extending his underlying idea that children have the chance to recover the lost sense of awareness and wonder. His creation tales explore the wounds that have alienated human begins from nature and read as an attempt to restore the link between humankind and nature. The therapeutic function of healing which Hughes attributes in his work to nature is also closely linked to environmental education and its importance in early childhood. For, in the end, we are all simple players in the same fragile web of life on which our future depends. 24 Faas, Egbert (1980) The Unaccommodated Universe. Santa Barbara, CA: Black Sparrow Press, 205. In the beginning was Crow : Reinventing and Subverting the Creation Myth 181 Norse Mythology and Chinese Mythology in Comparison: The Origin of the Cosmos, Time and Space Yue Wen Introduction Norse mythology, an important tributary of Germanic mythology, refers to the myths in Scandinavia back in the pre-Christian era. Chinese mythology dates back to primitive days even earlier than the first dynasty Xia (established prior to BC 2029). In Norse and Chinese mythologies, shocking similarities and connections are conspicuous in the idea of “unity of opposites”, the image of giants, as well as the view toward time and space. All these let us wonder if it is just a matter of sheer coincidence or, otherwise, a certain anthropological origin exists that transcends geographic and historical boundaries. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to analyze the confluences between these two mythologies, in order to assess a cultural and anthropological origin that generates analogies. The paper is made up of three parts. First of all, the attention is focused on the origin of the cosmos and the figure of the giant in both Norse and Chinese mythologies, which will build the frame for the following considerations. Next the discussion goes to the subject “time” and, exemplifying this crucial phenomenon, the relationship between origin and death. Finally, the study explores the “space” dimension, which reaches great importance in both the Norse and Chinese worlds, as the sacred trees Yggdrasil and Fu Sang attest. The Origin of the Cosmos Opposing forces are the core elements running through the overall structure of both Norse and Chinese mythologies. In Norse mythology, the world grew out of the confrontation of the two opposing forces: Ginnungagap, or the gaping abyss described in The Elder Edda, which was situated between Niflheim, “World of Mist” in the north and Muspelheim, “Realm of Fire” in the south. 184 Yue Wen Of old was the age | when Ymir lived; Sea nor cool waves | nor sand there were; Earth had not been | nor heaven above; But a yawning gap | and grass nowhere. 1 Chill and heat met in Ginnungagap. Then from the confrontation and fusion rose the first breath of life, Ymir the Giant, who fed himself on the milk from Auðumbla the Cow. Auðumbla licked ice-blocks for subsistence, and gave manifestation to the first god Bure, who later married the female giant and gave birth to three sons, Odin, Vili and Ve. In Chinese mythology, according to Three Five Historic Records, a Chinese historical text which is the earliest record of the origin of the cosmos and of Pangu, the primordial cosmos was in pitch-dark chaos as if dwelling in a huge egg. The clear went up and the murky went down, and from the cosmic egg emerged the first giant Pangu who grew in such a rapid way that soon the egg burst. Pangu separated Yin from Yang with a swing of his giant axe, creating the Earth (murky Yin) and the Sky (clear Yang). Thus, the world came into existence. Fig. 43. Ymir. Attribution: Painting of Nicolai Abraham Abildgaard, 1790 (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons, retrievable: https: / / commons.wikimedia.org/ wiki/ File: Ymir.jpg (Stand: 01/ 03/ 2019). 1 The Poetic Edda (1936). Translated from the Icelandic with an introduction and notes by Henry Adams Bellows. New York: Princeton University Press: Princeton American Scandinavian Foundation, 18. Fig. 44. Pangu. Attribution: Painting of San Cai Tu Hui (An important encyclopaedia of Ming Dynasty). Author: WANG Qi and WANG Siyi, 1609. San Cai Tu Hui (Public domain), via digital Biblioteca, retrievable: https: / / shuge.org/ ebook/ san-cai-tuhui/ (Stand: 01/ 03/ 2019) 2 Norse Ymir was vitalized through the collision between ice and fire, while Chinese Pangu emerged from the fusion of the clear and the murky. In both stories, the world was given life through the encounter and confrontation of two opposing forces, with the giant being the incarnation. It is worth mentioning that opposing forces remain the cores of both mythologies. In Norse one, gods had always united to fight giants, the evil opposing force, until the advent of the Ragnarök. 3 The master god Odin, however, was given birth through the marriage of god and giant, the good and the evil. The Universe is conceived on the basis of forces permanently confronting each other. And Völuspá, which narrates the complete cosmic process, is a succession of confrontations, major or minor, that lead to the great battle. 4 Therefore, the Norse world originated in opposition, and it ended in a similar state. It is stated in Dao De Jing (Tao Te Ching), the classic work of Taoism, that: 2 Ymir: Attribution: Painting of Nicolai Abraham Abildgaard, 1790 (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons, retrievable: https: / / commons.wikimedia.org/ wiki/ File: Ymir.jpg (Stand: 01/ 03/ 2019) Pangu: Attribution: Painting of San Cai Tu Hui (An important encyclopaedia of Ming Dynasty). Author: WANG Qi and WANG Siyi, 1609 (Public domain), via Digital Biblioteca, retrievable: https: / / shuge.org/ ebook/ san-cai-tu-hui/ (Stand: 01/ 03/ 2019) 3 A term from Norse mythology, which means “destiny of the gods”. 4 Lanceros, Patxi (2001). El destino de los dioses. Interpretación de la mitología nórdica. Madrid: Trotta, 31. All original texts in Spanish and Chinese have been translated by the author of this article. Norse Mythology and Chinese Mythology in Comparison 185 186 Yue Wen The Tao gave birth to unity, Unity gave birth to duality, Duality gave birth to trinity, Trinity gave birth to the myriad creatures. The myriad creatures bear yin on their backs and embrace yang in their bosoms. 5 As the source of the cosmos, Tao refers to the initial state of chaos. The Tao gave birth to unity, unity gave birth to duality; here, “duality” does not indicate two concrete things, but the binary and opposite relationship derived from the Tao. Tao scholars refer to the clear as Yang, the murky as Yin; Yin and Yang are opposing yet unified, from where came the Tao philosophy and also a principle that has permeated Chinese conceptual world for the past millennia. Yin and Yang, source of the myriad creatures, the outward manifestation of Tao, are the primary forces that keep the world in operation. From the viewpoint of Lao Tse 6 (father of philosophical Taoism), Yin and Yang are not only present in all things, but their mutual influence generates an innate sense of harmony. Taoist representative Chuang Tse said: Chaos is divided into two: heaven and earth. The pure yin gas rises from the ground, and the pure yang gas falls from the sky. The combination of yin and yang is the result of all things. 7 For Taoists, all things and all creatures, like the sun and the moon, the male and the female and the day and the night, are forces that oppose each other yet co-exist and eventually form a harmonious unified whole. In both Norse and Chinese mythic edifices, we cannot afford to minimize the importance of giants, who, emerging from the confrontation and unity of two opposing forces, were the first living beings of the cosmos; their emergence signified cosmic origin, since all subsequent beings derived their physical bodies from giants. Gods brought Ymir’s dead body to the center of Ginnungagap where his flesh turned into the earth, his blood oceans and rivers, his hair into 5 WANG Wei (Commentator) (2008): Dao De Jing of Lao Tse and its notes. Beijing: Zhonghua Shuju, vol. 42, 117. (In the Chinese original: 《老子道德经注校释》 (2008). 北京： 中华书局 , 第四十二章 , 117 页 .) Translated by Victor H. Mair (1990). Available under: https: / / terebess.hu/ english/ tao/ mair.html#Kap42 (Stand: 01/ 03/ 2019). East Asian names are written according to a usual convention: surname is highlighted with capital letters, e.g. Yue WEN. The confusion between given name and family name (surname) is avoided by this way. 6 Lao Tse, Lao—tse or Lao Tzu are some of the historical transliterations for the famous Chinese philosopher. Due to its widespread use, Lao Tse is the form chosen in this paper, instead of the modern official transcription in the pinyin system “Lao Zi”. 7 FANG Yong (Commentator) (2015): Chuang Tse. Beijing: Zhonghua Shuju, 211. (In the Chinese original: 《庄子》 (2015). 北京：中华书局 ,211 页 .) stretches of forests. Likewise, in Chinese mythology, when Pangu died, his hair turned into forests, blood into rivers, and the two eyes, one into the sun, the other into the moon. So the next question is: Why in both mythologies was the world shaped from the corpses of giants? In his work Eternal Return, Mircea Eliade expounded the reason behind this outlook on cosmos: the world never grows from nothingness; quite to the contrary, it emerges out of sacrifice, living creatures and souled motions. As the outward and secular representation of mythology, the origin of the world indicates the sacrifice made for its creation. 8 In other words, nothing can be held together without soul or life. In mythology, natural world is viewed in a different way from today’s scientific beliefs: the cosmos was not a combination of lifeless pure matters, but a living organic body endowed with soul, life and energy. Therefore, giants emerged from opposing forces such as sacrifice and life; it is so-called the “cosmic macroanthropos”, because all other gods and creatures gained their life through the existence of the giants. Consequently, as the Italian scholar Puledda pointed out: “man is the soul and origin of the cosmos, while the cosmos is the outward body of man and life.” 9 This view has also been confirmed in the work of the mythologist Joseph Campbell. When the author discusses the relationship between the Eastern and Western religious cultures, and between man and the cosmos, he quotes the words of the famous Japanese philosopher and Zen scholar Daisetsu Teitaro SUZUKI: Nature is the bosom from which we come and to which we return[…]nature produces man from his own inside, and man can not be outside of nature[…]I am in nature and nature is in me. 10 In fact, thoughts of Eliade and Japanese scholars Suzuki can be traced in the ancient Chinese Taoist doctrine. Since Lao Tse, Taoists regard nature and the universe in general as an object of philosophical research. This research exhibits two aspects: first, it analyzes the origin, generation, and development of the universe, and consequently constructs a natural philosophical system of cosmos; second, it explains the relationship between heaven and man by law of Tao, explores the movement of nature, and seeks the value and significance in life. Following that, Chuang Tse inherited this second aspect of Lao Tse’s research, developed Taoist thoughts and put forward the concept of nature and worldview of “ 天人合一 ”(read as: tian ren he yi, “the unity between man and 8 Eliade, Mircea (2001). El mito del eterno retorno. Arquetipos y repetición. Buenos Aires: Emecé, 17. 9 Puledda, Salvatore (1996). Interpretaciones del Humanismo. Madrid: Plaza y Valdés, 33. 10 Cited by Campbell, Joseph (2014). Los Mitos. Su impacto en el mundo actual. Barcelona: Kairós, 143. Norse Mythology and Chinese Mythology in Comparison 187 188 Yue Wen nature”). Everything in man, heaven and earth is based on the Tao. Actually, the universe and nature are huge cosmos, and man is a tiny cosmos. In the words of the Norse mythologist Heinrich Niedner: “In the universe, there is an intimate unity between spirit and material. There is no independent life or action.” 11 Therefore, human beings and nature are integrated and coexist in symbiosis, for which they should abide by the Tao. In Norse mythology, the giant Ymir was born in the collision of ice and fire, and Pangu emerged from the clear and the murky of the original chaos. The two giants created the world out of their own bodies. Thus, the unity of man and nature is not only a philosophical idea, but also a state. Mythological Time: Death and Origin. Confrontation of opposing forces was also manifested in the views toward time, life and death. Norse gods having gone through battles against giants and ferocious beasts at length, were doomed for the advent of Ragnarök. Yggdrasil shakes | and shiver on high; The ancient limbs | and the giant is loose; To the head of Mim | does Othin give heed; But the kinsman of Surt | shall slay him soon. 12 With the endless winter and cold, the world finally came to an end. Earthquakes and floods destroyed everything. Evil beasts, ghosts, monsters and giants showed up. Gods struggled and fought against them, but in the end failed to avert the ill fortune. In the Ragnarök, a final confrontation took place between forces of order and those of chaos, which had been always in constant conflict and equilibrium: the entire Norse mythology is take this struggle as a pivotal point. 13 Odin and the other gods would all depart this world, and the world, torn to pieces in the confrontation, should collapse as well. Nevertheless, in the years to come, a new generation of gods would appear, ushering in a brand new cosmos. That is to say, gods did not live out their days in a one-way, eternal style. Instead, they must go through an incessant life—death—resurrection cycle. Then fields unsowed | bear ripened fruit, All ills grow better | and Baldr comes back; Baldr and Hoth dwell | in Hropt’s battle-hall, And the mighty gods: | would you know yet more? 14 11 Niedner, Heirich (1997). Mitología nórdica. Barcelona: Edicomunicación, 47. 12 The Poetic Edda (1936: 20). 13 Bernárdez, Enrique (2002). Los mitos germánicos. Madrid: Alianza, 299. 14 The Poetic Edda (1936: 25). Gods are perceived by the Norse people as great and extremely powerful, but neither omnipotent, nor eternal; life and death must go hand in hand. In Chinese mythology, death serves as the prerequisite for another life. Consequently, death was not viewed by the ancient people as a shadow over holiness, but as a touch of humanness, life wisdom and beauty; it did not only signify end and start, but also yearning for regeneration and return in illo tempore. For the Norse people, the courage to face death matters more than to welcome it. The Nordics measured their lives by heroic standards. For many centuries until the appearance of Christian missionaries, they had been satisfied with heroism. 15 Life can not be repaired, but only recreated by a return to the origin. 16 Following death, time will return to the very beginning, and the world will start all over again, which, for all living beings, is also a regeneration. In both Norse and Chinese mythologies, ancient people imitated the origin of the cosmos, derailed time from one-way development and endowed each ending point with the sense of the starting point, returning time to the origin and the periodic regeneration; thus, concrete time was successfully transformed into mythic time. This time is not only sacred but also has the central symbolic meaning. So, it is worth mentioning that not only in Norse and Chinese mythologies, but also the early myths of various other cultures, death is not the end of life, but the transition of regeneration. This cycle of life—death—resurrection, in addition to the viewpoint of Eliade, is that it is a symbolic imitation of the birth of the cosmos and return to the origin, what more does it indicate? In his book An essay on Man, the German philosopher Ernst Cassirer made an in-depth analysis on the religious view and the outlook on life and death in the primitive times. Primitive man deeply believes that there is a basic indelible solidarity of life that communicates a variety of individual life forms. That is, primitive men do not consider themselves to be in a unique privileged position in the world. This makes them believe that death is only a temporary transition, and this “living” state will not end. Every life will return to the original state and can start again. The life of man has no definite limits in space or time. It extends over the whole realm of nature and over the whole of man’s history. For the people, the real “end” is the “start.” 17 15 Hamilton, Edith (2008). Mitología: Todos los relatos griegos, latinos y nórdicos. Madrid: Turner Publicaciones, 388. 16 Eliade, Mircea (1983). Mito y realidad. Barcelona: Labor, 37. 17 Cassirer, Ernst (1944). An Essay on Man: An Introduction to a Philosophy of Human Culture. New York: Yale & New Haven, 109—111. Norse Mythology and Chinese Mythology in Comparison 189 190 Yue Wen Yggdrasil and Fu Sang: Center of the Cosmic Space Deliberations and imaginations over space are another subject worth analysis in the Norse and Chinese mythologies. In Norse mythology, after Ymir’s death, to separate the Heaven from the Earth, gods put four dwarfs into four positions which they later designated as the North, the South, the West and the East; while in Chinese mythology, Nüwa cut off the legs of the great turtle to set them up as the four pillars against the azure sky. As a result, it can be seen that ever since the ancient time people had begun using the four directions. What’s more significant, each direction in Chinese mythology has a corresponding ruling god with the supreme Emperor Huang at the center. The primitive man, when repeating the cosmogony in a zone, not only establishes a horizontal opposition inside—outside, near—far, but also a vertical one: the heights and the depths. The place of the hierophany is where the three cosmic levels are connected: heaven, earth and hell. 18 Therefore, if we analyze the world of mythology vertically, we can also see the imagination of space. It is known that there are altogether nine worlds in the Norse cosmos: Asaheim at the top, home to all gods; Midgard, home of humans; Muspelheim, a world of fire; Álfheimr, the home of the Light Elves; Niðavellir, the home of the Dark Elves; Hel, the home of the dishonorable dead; Jötunheimr, the home of the Giants; Vanaheim, the home of the Vanir and Niflheim at the bottom, a world of ice and snow. A cosmic ash tree, Yggdrasil, lies at the center of the Norse cosmos, bridging the gap among the nine worlds and dividing them into three layers, Asaheim the crown, Midgard the trunk and Niflheim the root. In Chinese mythology, the cosmos is formed by three parts: the holy sky, the secular earth and the ghostly underworld; the heaven is again divided into nine parts. Similar to Yggdrasil, the cosmic tree in Chinese mythology, Fu Sang, is the axis of the world. Situated at the center, Fu Sang and Yggdrasil are both bonds connecting various parts of the cosmos as well as representations of life, youth, eternity and wisdom. Entering the center equals to entering a consecration and an initiation. Nine worlds I knew | the nine in the tree; With mighty roots | beneath the mold. 19 The sacred tree of Germanic mythology is not only center. It is a symbol or element of union in an eminent sense. 20 In both cases, the sacred tree not only serves to connect different worlds; it also links space and time. In Norse mythol- 18 Mesa, Lucas Risoto (2014). ¨Lo sagrado en Mircea Eliade”. Claridades. Revista de Filosofía. 6: 33—48. 19 The Poetic Edda (1936: 3). 20 Lanceros (2001: 123). ogy, Yggdrasil is the center of the world as well as the symbol of time. Growth of the tree represents peace and happiness; nevertheless, when the snake Nidhogg bites the root through, the end of the cosmos will come. This giant tree is the embodiment of time in the Norse world. In Chinese mythology, according to the Classic of Mountains and Seas 21 , there are altogether 10 suns on the divine tree Fu Sang, one on the top and the others at the bottom, taking turns to fulfill their duty. A day will pass if one sun finishes its duty on that tree, and therefore, in Chinese, “day” ( 天 , read as “tian”) is synonymous with “sun” ( 日 , read as “ri”), and Fu Sang serves as the carrier of time in Chinese mythology. Fig. 45. Yggdrasil. Attribution: Oluf Bagge, Danish printmaker, for the English translation of the Prose Edda (Northern Antiquities, 1847) (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons, retrievable: https: / / es.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Archivo: Yggdrasil. jpg (Stand: 01/ 03/ 2019) 21 Classic of Mountains and Seas (read as: Shan Hai Jing, in Chinese: 《山海经》 ) is a Chinese classic text and a compilation of mythic geography and myth (4 th century BC). It is a fabulous geographical and cultural account of China as well as a collection of Chinese mythology. Norse Mythology and Chinese Mythology in Comparison 191 192 Yue Wen Fig. 46. Fu Sang. Attribution: Painting of SUN Jiankun (commentator), CHEN Siyu (painter), 2015, Classic of Mountains and Seas: Commentary and Explication. Beijing: Qinghua University Press, retrievable (painter’s website): https: / / mobile.zcool. com.cn/ work/ ZMTY2NTM4OTI=.html (Stand: 01/ 03/ 2019) 22 As analyzed above, the earth-born human beings never confine themselves to the land; rather, they hold an all-time aspiration for the sky beyond their reach. It is stated in The Sacred and the Profane that “the heaven reveals, by its own way of being, transcendence, power, eternity. It exists in an absolute way, because it is high, infinite, eternal and powerful.” 23 Human beings long for communications with the other world, making it so that shaman came into being. Those who yearned to depart the secular world, ascend the sky and possess magical powers, Fu Sang or Yggdrasil just opened 22 Yggdrasil: Attribution: Oluf Bagge, Danish printmaker, for the English translation of the Prose Edda (Northern Antiquities, 1847, Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons, retrievable: https: / / es.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Archivo: Yggdrasil.jpg (Stand: 01/ 03/ 2019) Fu Sang: Attribution: Painting of SUN Jiankun (commentator), CHEN Siyu (painter), 2015, Classic of Mountains and Seas: Commentary and Explication. Beijing: Qinghua University Press, retrievable (painter’s website): https: / / mobile.zcool.com.cn/ work/ ZMTY2NT- M4OTI=.html (Stand: 01/ 03/ 2019) 23 Eliade, Mircea (1998). Lo sagrado y lo profano. Barcelona: Paidós, 89. up that possibility. Gods in Norse mythology dwell in the uppermost part of Yggdrasil, the crown, while the venomous serpent coils around and nibbles at the root. In Chinese mythology, the sun deity Xi He and her son Jin Wu (the “Three-legged Crow”) would ride in a carriage and leave from under the Fu Sang, which serves as the door connecting the worlds of gods, human beings and the evil. However, when the hero Hou Yi later stood on the Fu Sang tree to shoot down the suns, the tree broke under his weight, and the three worlds lost contact thereafter. In feudal China, emperors were referred to as the “Son of Heaven”, for only those endowed with divine power by the heaven were entitled to rule over the country. Therefore, the sacred tree symbolizes the entire universe and it is the tree of Existence. We can explain better with the T-shaped silk painting found in the grave of the famous Lady Dai, wife of Li Cang, Marquis of Dai of Western Han dynasty in ancient China. 24 The whole painting is divided into three parts: heaven, human world and underworld. In the top part, there is a strange bird whose shape resembles that of an owl called “Fei Lian”. According to Classic of Mountains and Seas, it is a phoenix that signifies rebirth and resurrection. It is used here to lead the soul of Lady Dai to heaven. Under the foot of the bird is the well-dressed old lady who is holding a cane and walking forward. The two men on the left are handing out food with the accompaniment of the three slaves on the right. Such a scene symbolizes that the soul of the woman is entering the heaven. 24 Lady Dai’s tomb was discovered in 1972 inside a hill named Mawangdui, in Changsha, Hunan, China. Inside the tomb, her exceptionally well preserved remains were discovered alongside hundreds of valuable artifacts and documents that show in a comprehensive way everyday life in the Han dynasty. It is not only a genuine record of ancient Chinese funeral customs, but also a reflection of great value for ancient myths and legends. And the T-shaped painting up to 2 meters long is one of the most valuable artworks among funerary items. Norse Mythology and Chinese Mythology in Comparison 193 194 Yue Wen Fig. 47. T-shaped silk painting. Discovered in 1972, China, (Public domain), via digital Changchou Biblioteca (China), retrievable: http: / / www.czmuseum.com/ default. php? do=detail&mod=article&tid=4777 (Stand: 01/ 03/ 2019) 25 Therefore, it is revealed by the silk painting that the ancient Chinese ancestors had a longing for the heaven. This not only comes from the pursuit of the sacred land and a higher spiritual world, but also manifests what we have previously mentioned, the realm of harmony between man and nature( 天人合一 , “the unity of man and heaven”). Men hope to join the heaven for a rebirth and coexist harmoniously with nature and the universe. In addition, in both mythologies, the mythic tree does not only possess a connecting function but also serves as the axis mundi; it provides a solid foundation for connection among various beings in the cosmos as well as a sense of security for the ancient people. The tree is rooted in the earth and nourishes the earth, while human beings belong to the earth. The relationship between the three is inseparable. Ancient people’s love of the earth and return to the Mother Earth can be found in various cultures. Mother Earth is not only a token for fertility and abundance, but also bears significant symbolic meaning for the ancient people. 25 T-shaped silk painting: discovered in 1972, China. (Public domain), via digital Changchou Biblioteca, retrievable: http: / / www.czmuseum.com/ default.php? do=detail&mod=article&tid=4777 (Stand: 01/ 03/ 2019) Due to their corporality, human beings are doomed to return to the earth, and due to the limitations of the earth, human beings long for the sky. The sky and the earth, co-existing opposing forces, are the outward manifestation of the Tao, the essence of Taoism. And the opposition and unity of the sky and the earth are realized by the cosmic tree. As stated in Dao De Jing: Man takes his law from the Earth; The Earth takes its law from Heaven; Heaven takes its law from the Tao. The law of the Tao is being what it is. 26 Conclusions As a conclusion, it can arguably be affirmed that such an array of coincidences between Norse and Chinese mythologies cannot be a matter of chance. Under highly different geographic and historical conditions, the two mythologies share similar prototypes, as shown in the analysed explanations on the origin of the world, as well as in the views toward time and space. As the incarnation of the divine sacrifice, Norse giant Ymir was born as ice and fire clashed. Chinese Pangu emerged from a chaos, which brimmed with clear and dark. The unity arises from these apparent antagonisms and it was expounded by the initial taoist text Dao De Jing: the opposing Yin and Yang are not only inherent to all things, but combine to form a harmonious unity. Furthermore, for the people of former ages, the sacred Norse tree Yggdrasil and Chinese Fu Sang represent the connection among heaven, earth and the underworld, symbolizing the center of the world. In both visions, it is noted that there is a strong desire to return to the origin. According to Eliade, all construction rituals repeat the primordial act of cosmogonic construction. That is, the myths of the origin of the world and the longing for the sky and the center, all this reflects the need to imitate and repeat the origin of the universe: the creation of the cosmos. The world is born from a living soul and was maintained by two opposing forces. The regeneration of time and the longing of heaven symbolize the inception of cosmos. This eternal return to the origin is not only a repetition and imitation of the cosmogonic act, but it is the way of understanding the reality of primitive people. The reality is acquired exclusively by the repetition, or this participation. Therefore, in both Norse and Chinese mythologies there is strong yearning for and quest of origin and birth; a new start, or a new life is always reborn from an initiatory death or a symbolic 26 Dao De Jing of Lao Tse and its notes cited by WANG Wei (2008: 162). Norse Mythology and Chinese Mythology in Comparison 195 196 Yue Wen end; yearning for the heaven and the earth reflects human beings’ pursuit and affection for the primal state. Just as the ancient Indian classic adage goes: “we must do what the gods did at the beginning, so did the gods, so do men.” Contributors Laura Arenas , PhD Student of the Universidad de Alcalá (Spain), currently a visiting student at the University of Aarhus (Denmark). She researches on the image of Germany in Spain and the role of national stereotypes in intercultural communication. She has teaching experience in secondary education in Germany and higher education, having lectured in several courses in Spain (Universidad Rey Juan Carlos and Universidad de Alcalá) and in History of the Spanish Educational System at Universität Mannheim. She has taken part in the funded research project ACIS&GALATEA and is currently a member of the research group RECEPTION. Prior to her current research, she completed a BA in Modern Languages and Translation from the Universidad de Alcalá and holds a MA in Teaching Spanish as a Foreign Language. She also coordinates the section of academic articles for the journal EntreLíneas. E-mail address: l.arenas@edu.uah.es Elena Castro García works as English into Spanish freelance translator, proofreader, videogame localiser and copywriter. She graduated in the Degree in Modern Languages and Translation at the University of Alcalá in 2015 and has specialised in marketing translation and transcreation by completing several courses in marketing (University of Edinburgh), digital marketing (IAB Spain) and advertising translation (Trágora formación) since 2017 and by carrying out projects for worldwide recognised brands. Creative translation is her field of expertise, which is combined with more technical oriented fields, as videogame localisation and manuals technical translation. Currently, she combines her translation projects with her work as secretary of the MA in Conference Interpreting for Business at the University of Alcalá. In her free time, and as a member of Asetrad (Asociación Española de Traductores, Correctores e Intérpretes), she shares her experience with other translation professionals and students. E-mail address: elenacgtrad@gmail.com María Jesús Fernández-Gil , PhD, is currently an Associate Professor at the Universidad de Alcalá, where she has been teaching translation theory and practice both at the graduate and post-graduate levels since 2014. She has qualifications in English Studies (BA from Universidad de Salamanca) and in Translation Studies (BA in Translation and Interpretation from Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and MA in Translation and Intercultural Mediation from Universidad de Salamanca). She completed her PhD in 2011 at the Universidad de Salamanca with a dissertation entitled “Towards a Poetics of Memory: Charlotte Delbo’s and Cynthia Ozick’s Representation of the Holocaust Experience”, which was awarded the summa cum laude distinction and a Special Prize Award (2012). Her doctoral dissertation was later revised and published as El papel (est)ético de la literatura en la conmemoración del Holocausto (Dykinson, 2013). She is also the author of Traducir el horror: la intersección de la ética, la ideología y el poder en la memoria del Holocausto (Peter Lang, 2013) and of a number of articles and book chapters on Holocaust representation, the ideological implications of translation decisions, translation and censorship and translation of administrative texts. As part of her research activity, she has been a visiting scholar at the University of Leicester (2010) and at the University of Minnesota (2017). She has been a co-investigator in three nationally-funded projects and has worked with three research groups: FITISpos, RECEPTION and MIDEL. She has worked in the professional translation industry, specializing in the fields of technical and literary translation. E-mail address: mj.fernandezg@uah.es Peio Gómez Larrambe , Graduate in Romance Philology and in Translation and Interpreting at the University of Salamanca (USAL). Currently working in a publishing house and as freelance translator. E-mail address: peiogomez@usal.es Heidi Grünewald , PhD, is Assistant Professor of German at the University of Barcelona (Estudis Germànics). PhD in Modern Languages and Literatures from the Universitat de Barcelona, with a dissertation on the reception of Goethe, Novalis and Nietzsche in the work of the Catalan poet Joan Maragall. She has been a DAAD scholarship holder at the Goethe University Frankfurt and at Konstanz University. Her research focus on German-language literature and culture 18 th through the 21 st century, including topics as romantic/ neoromantic aesthetics, reception of myths and mytocritics, literature and film, as well as literature and politics, particularly German-language literature written in exile, migration, discourses on identity, studies on utopia. Recent publications include: “Kleist in Spanien und Südamerika” (Kleist-Handbuch, Metzler 2009). “Heinrich Füssli: Die Inszenierung der Sinne im Abgrund” (figurationen. gender-literatur-kultur, vol. 11/ 1, 2010). “Das Leben (wieder)beleben: Ricarda Huch“ (Wortkulturen, Tonwelten, tectum 2014). She co-edited Rückkehr/ Retornos. Der Erste Weltkrieg im deutsch-spanischen Kontext (V&R unipress 2015, with A. Montané and Th. Schneider). „Die Präsenz des Mythos Quijote im Film Don Quichotte von G.W. 198 Contributors Pabst“ (Cervantes en los siglos XX y XXI, Peter Lang 2018). Other major publications feature Siegfried Karacauer: “Utopische Entwürfe in Siegfried Kracauers exterritorialem Denken” (Utopie im Exil, transcript 2017); “Lo ajeno como paradigma epistemológico y de autoconstrucción: el exilio de Siegfried Kracauer” (Ex-patria, Icaria 2018). E-mail address: grunewald@ub.edu Lorraine Kerslake Young , PhD. She holds a PhD in children’s literature and ecocriticism and teaches English Language and Literature at Alicante University, Spain, where she is also a member of the Research Institute for Gender Studies. She has worked as a translator of literary criticism, poetry and art and published widely on children’s literature and ecocriticism. She is a member of the Spanish research group on ecocriticism, GIECO (CCHH2006/ R02), and is-managing editor of the journal of ecocriticism Ecozon@ (European Journal of Literature, Culture and Environment): http: / / www.ecozona.eu/ . In 2013 she co-edited a special edition of the journal Feminismo/ s (CEM), on Ecofeminism: Women and Nature. Her most recent publications include The Voice of Nature in Ted Hughes’s Writing for Children (Routledge, 2018); “Hughes’s Collaboration with Artists” in Contexts of Ted Hughes (Cambridge, 2018) edited by Terry Gifford. "Constructing and Deconstructing the Complexities of Orpheus in Ted Hughes's Healing Quest" in The Politics of Traumatic Literature, Önder Cakirtas et al eds. (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2018), “From Aesop to Wonderland: raising ecocritical awareness through talking animals in children’s literature” in Transatlantic Landscapes: Environmental Awareness, Literature and the Arts (2016). She has been a member of the research projects,- Acis & Galatea- Ref. S2015/ HUM-3362 (CAM/ FSE), funded by the Comunidad de Madrid and the European Social Fund, and-HUAMECO: Stories for Change Ref: HAR2015-67472- C2-2-R (MINECO/ FEDER), funded by the Ministry of Economy, Industry, and Competitiveness of Spain and the European Regional Development Fund. Her current research interests include zoocriticism, children’s and YA literature, ecofeminism and ecocriticism. E-mail address: kerslake@ua.es Ana Melendo Cruz, PhD , is currently Associate Professor of the Universidad de Córdoba (Spain) at the Department of the History of Art, Archaeology and Music. Her research interests are Cinema’s History, Theory and Analysis, with a focus on the Documentary Films and Cinematographic Modernity. Her most recent publications include “Las voces narrativas en la obra documental agraria de José Neches”, Signa: Revista de la Asociación Española de Semiótica, pp. 1057-1088; “Visibles pero diferentes: la mujer en la obra documental agraria Contributors 199 de José Neches”, Anales de historia del arte, Nº 28, 2018, pp. 315-338; “Vestidos para después de una guerra. La mujer y la moda en el archivo histórico no-do durante el periodo autárquico”. Revista de antropología experimental, Nº Extra 18, 2018, pp. 61-78; "Río de Janeiro. Un paseo cinematográfico por la ciudad maravillosa", García Gómez, F. y Pavés, G. (Eds.), Ciudades de cine. Madrid, Cátedra, 2014, pp. 299-311. E-mail address: aa1mecra@uco.es Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina, PhD, is Associate Professor of German at the University of Alcalá in Madrid and founder and Leader of the Research Group RECEPTION, Reception Studies, https: / / reception.group/ . She holds a BA in German and she completed a PhD (special honours) in Musicology at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid with a dissertation entitled “La Recepción de la obra de Richard Wagner en Madrid (1900-1915)” [The Reception of Richard Wagner’s works in Madrid (1900-1915)]. Since 1997 she has been Professor at the Universidad de Alcalá, where she teaches courses in German Language, Culture and Translation. She also lectures in the MA on Literary and Cultural Spanish Studies (with a course about “Richard Wagner's Reception in the Spanish Literature"), in the MA on Research on Contemporary Spanish Literature ("Reception Theory") at the Universidad de Alcalá and in the MA on Composition for Audio-visual Products ("Film Aesthetics") at the Escuela Superior de Música Katarina Gurska. Her research mainly focuses on Spanish-German cultural reception—most specifically on the musical reception of the composers Richard Wagner, Roberto Gerhard and Arnold Schönberg—and on the reception of Germanic Myths in Opera and Cinema (Fritz Lang, German Expressionism). She has authored and edited numerous volumes (Arnold Schönberg und Roberto Gerhard. Briefwechsel, Peter Lang 2019; Cervantes en los siglos XX y XXI. La recepción actual del mito del ‚Quijote‘ (Peter Lang 2018), articles and research papers („La ruptura de la tonalidad tras la Primera Guerra Mundial en Austria y en España“ en Extreme, Georg Pichler (ed), Peter Lang 2017) and has been invited to partake in a great number of conferences, round-tables, interviews and radio programmes, both in Spain and abroad. E-mail address: paloma.urbina@uah.es Jesús Pérez-García , PhD, is Associate Professor at the University of Valladolid (Spain) since 1993. He obtained his doctoral diploma with a dissertation on the social and oral/ written background underlying the composition of the German medieval epic Nibelungenlied. He cooperates regularly with German, Chinese and Japanese universities, which has enabled him a research with an enhanced perspective into both media analysis and intercultural topics, with 200 Contributors particular emphasis on Western-Far Eastern relations. His analysis is enriched with direct access to sources in Chinese and Japanese language. Some of his recent published papers on such topics are: Die orientalischen Religionen. Der Orientalismusdiskurs um 1905 (2013); La ‘leyenda negra’ y su evolución en el siglo XVIII, con especial atención a su desarrollo en el espacio alemán (2014); El homo narrans visto por románticos y romanciers (2014); Una continuidad evolutiva en el discurso feminista contemporáneo, desde sus orígenes recientes hasta una posmodernidad poliédrica (2015); Deutsche Kriegsgefangene in Japan (1914-1920). Viereinhalb Jahre interkulturellen Austausches (2015); Insel Felsenburg. Die deutsche Utopie und die Reformgedanken in Ostasien um 1900 (2017); Die japanische Wechselwirkung von innen-außen (uchi-soto) im interkulturellen Zusammenhang Veranschaulicht an Yoko TAWADAS Opium für Ovid (2018). E-mail address: jesus@fyl.uva.es Magda Polo Pujadas, PhD, is currently Associate Professor in the Department of History of Music and Aesthetics in the Art History department in the UB. She received her doctorate in Philosophy in 1997 from the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Barcelona (UB) for her thesis about the music of the Romanticism. For her work she was given an FPI (Personal Research) grant from the Autonomous Government of Catalonia, and she spent time at various research and document centres in Germany, Italy and the United States. She has been a professor at the Autonomous University of Madrid, the University of Valencia, Autonomous University of Barcelona, University of Carabobo (Venezuela), University of Cantabria and the Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Ramon Llull University and the Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya (ESMUC). She is part of different research groups and has collaborated on many different chapters of books and articles about music, literature and thought. She is the author of the books,-L’estètica de la música- (2007),-Historia de la música- (First edition 2010, Second edition 2012 and third edition 2014),-La música de los sentimientos. Filosofía de la música de la Ilustración- ( First edition 2010, Second edition 2012),-Música pura i música programàtica al Romanticisme-(2010),-Música pura y música programàtica en el Romanticismo- (2011), Les Vienes de Wittgenstein-(2011),-Filosofía de la música del futuro, (2011), Estética (2012),-Pensamiento y música a cuatro manos-(2014), Pensament i música a quatre mans-(2014), Pure and Programme music in the Romanticism (2016), El cuerpo incalculable (2018), Gris alma (2019), A contratemps (2019) y Pensamiento musical (2019). Her creative path has led her to create different interdisciplinary performances such as-Babilònia, Scriptum, Ad Libitum, Antídot, Quartet en sol major per a violoncel sol-and-Volaverunt. E-mail address: magda.polo@ub.edu Contributors 201 Miguel Salmerón Infante, PhD , is Associate Professor of Aesthetics and Art theory in the Faculty of Arts and Humanities (Filosofía y Letras) at the Universidad Autónoma of Madrid (UAM). He teaches in the Degrees of Philosophy, Art History and History and Music Sciences of this University. He made two research stays: one of two years at the Julius-Maximiliams Universität (Würzburg), another two and a half months at the Universität Konstanz, and two of teaching: at the Industrial University of Santander in Bucaramanga (Colombia) and at Friedrich Schiller-Universität of Jena. He holds a degree and PhD in Philosophy from the Autonomous University of Madrid and is a Senior Translator in German Language from the Complutense University of Madrid. He has excelled in the realization of editions of literature classics (Goethe, Hölderlin, Kafka, Hessel) and of thought (Rosenkranz, Weber, Koselleck, Bloch) in the German language and is an Expert in University Teaching from the Autonomous University of Madrid. His lines of research are Aesthetics, Aesthetics of Music, new media and audiovisual formats, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Richard Wagner E-mail address: miguel.salmeron@uam.es Irene Sanz Alonso, PhD, finished her dissertation in 2014 on ecofeminism and science fiction. She is currently working as a secondary school teacher and as a part-time instructor at the University of Alcalá. She is a member of the research group GIECO (Ecocriticism) and she has participated in several national and international conferences. She is member of the Advisory Board of EASLCE (European Association for the Study of Literature, Culture and the Environment) and she is the secretary of the electronic journal Ecozon@. Her main fields of research are ecofeminism, ecocriticism, animal studies, science fiction and fantasy literature, and videogames. E-Mail: irene.sanza@uah.es Lorena Silos Ribas , PhD, is an Associate Professor at the Universidad de Alcalá, where she teaches courses on German language and translation. She was awarded a PhD in Swiss studies and has lectured at the Otto-Friedrich Universität Bamberg, at Queen Mary, University of London and at the Universidad de Barcelona. Her main research areas are Swiss literature, reception studies and the literary construction of identity. She has published extensively and has contributed to numerous conferences and workshops, both in Spain and abroad in the fields of literature and reception studies. E-mail address: lorena.silos@uah.es 202 Contributors Wen Yue , ( 温玥 ), PhD Student . She majored in Spanish Language and Literature Studies in Jilin University and studied as an exchange student at University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain (2013-2014). Wen received two Master degrees: one in Literature and Theatre Studies from the University of Alcalá and the other in Spanish Language and Literature Studies from Jilin University. During the academic years, she has extensively explored the world of Spanish literature and has conducted in-depth researches on Spanish women's literature, literature of Latin America and related literary theories. Among a large number of papers published in China, Wen’s master's thesis finished in Jilin University, “Analysis of the Novel Aura by Carlos Fuentes under Bajtin's Theory of Dialogism” was rated as “Excellent” and received a national scholarship from the Ministry of Education in China. Out of the interest in and exploration of literature and ancient legends, Wen continued to pursue a doctoral degree at University of Alcalá with the theme “Comparative Analysis of the Nordic and Chinese Cosmogonic Myths and Their Functions in Modern Society”, which will be part of a Acis & Galatea research project funded by the Community of Madrid. In addition, Wen has participated in several academic conferences as a speaker and collaborator of the Technical Organization Committee. Currently, Wen also works as a Chinese and Spanish teacher at the Qiuzhi Chinese School of Madrid. E-mail address: yue.wen@edu.uah.es Contributors 203 Bibliography 205 Bibliography Allport, Gordon (1954). The nature of prejudice. 4th ed. Reading: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company. Andren, Anders et al. (2006). Old Norse Religion in Long-Term Perspectives. Google Libros, Google. Lund: Nordic Academic Press. Assassins’s Creed: Origins (2017). Ubisoft. Assmann, Aleida (1999). Erinnerungsräume. 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Rezeptionsgeschichtliches Lexikon zur nordischen Mythologie und Heldensage. Heidelberg: Winter. Zunzunegui, Santos (1994). Paisajes de la forma. Madrid: Cátedra, 72. 218 Bibliography Popular Fiction Studies edited by Eva Parra-Membrives and Albrecht Classen Bisher sind erschienen: Frühere Bände finden Sie unter: http: / / narr-starter.de 1 Eva Parra Membrives, Albrecht Classen (Hrsg.) Literatur am Rand/ Literature on the Margin Perspektiven der Trivialliteratur vom Mittelalter bis zum 21. Jahrhundert/ Perspectives of Trivial Literature from the Middle Ages to the 21st Century 2013, 304 Seiten €[D] 68,00,- ISBN 978-3-8233-6764-2 2 Albrecht Classen, Eva Parra-Membrives (Hrsg.) Bestseller gestern und heute / Bestseller - Yesterday and Today Ein Blick vom Rand zum Zentrum der Literaturwissenschaft / A Look from the Margin to the Center of Literary Studies 2016, 230 Seiten €[D] 68,00,- ISBN 978-3-8233-6938-7 3 Eva Parra-Membrives, Wolfgang Brylla (Hrsg.) Facetten des Kriminalromans Ein Genre zwischen Tradition und Innovation 2015, 240 Seiten €[D] 78,00,- ISBN 978-3-8233-6946-2 4 Albrecht Classen, Wolfgang Brylla, Andrey Kotin (Hrsg.) Eros und Logos Literarische Formen des sinnlichen Begehrens in der (deutschsprachigen) Literatur vom Mittelalter bis zur Gegenwart 2018, 342 Seiten €[D] 78,00,- ISBN 978-3-8233-8123-5 5 Paloma Ortiz-de-Urbina (Hrsg.) Germanic Myths in the Audiovisual Culture 2020, 218 Seiten €[D] 78,00,- ISBN 978-3-8233-8300-0 Germanic mythology is currently experiencing a significant boom in audiovisual media, especially among younger audiences. Heroes such as Thor, Odin and Siegfried populate television and comic series, films, and video games. When and why did this interest in Germanic mythology emerge in the media? Starting from the interpretation of the myths used by Richard Wagner in ‘The Ring of the Nibelung’ at the end of the 19 th century, the contributions in this volume examine the reception of Germanic myths in audiovisual media in the course of the 20 th and 21 st century. ISBN 978-3-8233-8300-0 Popular Fiction Studies 5