Das Nibelungenlied: Song of the Nibelungs

Description

No poem in German literature is so well known and studied in Germany and Europe as the 800-year-old Das Nibelungenlied. In the English-speaking world, however, the poem has remained little known, languishing without an adequate translation. This wonderful new translation by eminent translator Burton Raffel brings the epic poem to life in English for the first time, rendering it in verse that does full justice to the original High Middle German. His translation underscores the formal aspects of the poem and preserves its haunting beauty. Often called the German lliad, Das Nibelungenlied is a heroic epic both national in character and sweeping in scope. The poem moves inexorably from romance through tragedy to holocaust. It portrays the existential struggles and downfall of an entire people, the Burgundians, in a military conflict with the Huns and their king. In his foreword to the book, Michael Dirda observes that the story “could be easily updated to describe the downfall of a Mafia crime family, something like The Godfather, with swords.” The tremendous appeal of Das Nibelungenlied throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries is reflected in such works as Richard Wagner’s opera tetralogy Der Ring des Nibelungen, Fritz Lang’s two-part film Die Nibelungen, and, more recently, J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings.   CONTENTS FOREWORD INTRODUCTION TO THE READER DAS NIBELUNGENLIED The Principal Characters Adventure 1. Krimhild’s Childhood at the Burgundian Court Adventure 2. About Sifried Adventure 3. How Sifried Came to Wurms Adventure 4. He Fights against the Saxons Adventure 5. Sifried’s First Sight of Krimhild Adventure 6. Gunter Goes to Iceland, in Search of Brunhild Adventure 7. How Gunter Won Brunhild Adventure 8. How Sifried Brings His Men to Iceland Adventure 9. Sifried Is Sent to Wurms Adventure 10. Brunhild’s Welcome to Wurms Adventure 11. How Sifried Went Home with His Wife Adventure 12. How Gunter Invited Sifried to a Celebration Adventure 13. Sifried and His Wife Come to the Celebration Adventure 14. How the Queens Attacked Each Other Adventure 15. How Sifried Was Betrayed Adventure 16. How Sifried Was Killed Adventure 17. How Krimhild Mourned Her Husband, and How He Was Buried Adventure 18. How Sigemund Went Home Adventure 19. How the Nibelungen Treasure Was Brought to Wurms Adventure 20. King Etzel Sends a Messenger to Krimhild Adventure 21. Krimhild’s Journey to the Land of the Huns Adventure 22. How Etzel Welcomed His Bride Adventure 23. How Krimhild’s Sorrows Lead Her to Seek Revenge Adventure 24. How Warbel and Swemmeline Brought Their Messages Adventure 25. How the Nibelungen* Came to the Huns Adventure 26. How Dancwart Killed Gelpfrat Adventure 27. How They Came to Bechalaren Adventure 28. How the Burgundians Came to the Huns Adventure 29. How Krimhild Accuses Hagen, Who Treats Her Disrespectfully Adventure 30. How Hagen and Volker Stood Guard Adventure 31. How They Went to Church Adventure 32. How Bloedelin Was Killed Adventure 33. How the Men of Burgundy Fought with the Huns Adventure 34. How the Dead Are Thrown from the Hall Adventure 35. How Irinc Was Killed Adventure 36. How the Queen Burned Down the Hall Adventure 37. How Count Rudiger Was Killed Adventure 38. How Hundreds of Warriors Died Adventure 39. How Gunter, Hagen, and Krimhild Were Killed TRANSLATOR’S NOTES