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Difference between revisions of "Der Erlkönig"
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'''"''Der Erlkönig''"''' (eng.: Erlking or | '''"''Der Erlkönig''"''' (eng.: Erlking, Alderking or Earlie-king (Scott)<nowiki><ref name="Scott"/></nowiki>) is arguably the most famous German ballad. Goethe describes a nightly ride on horseback. A father tries to reach his home, his feverish child in his arms. The story of the ''Erlkönig'' derives from the traditional Danish ballad Elveskud: Goethe's poem was inspired by Johann Gottfried Herder's translation of a variant of the ballad.<ref name="Wiki"/> The poem was originally written by Goethe as part of a 1782 Singspiel, ''Die Fischerin'' (The [female] Fisher). It has been set to music many times. Best known is the version by [[Franz Schubert]].<p><ref name="Wiki"/> | ||
The poem is not only gripping for its dire theme (a sick child who dies in the end, the sudden end a depiction of the emptiness and horror the father must feel. The son's and the father's view of the world occur at the same time; the father's assurance that his sons' visions are just fantasies and cannot hurt him are demonstrably not true.<p> | The poem is not only gripping for its dire theme (a sick child who dies in the end, the sudden end a depiction of the emptiness and horror the father must feel. The son's and the father's view of the world occur at the same time; the father's assurance that his sons' visions are just fantasies and cannot hurt him are demonstrably not true.<p> | ||
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