fandomhigh | World Mythology, Monday, Period 3

As students came in today, they'd find that Ghanima had set out carafes of hot chocolate and spiced cider, for the students to help themselves and get warmed up from the cold.

She was a desert creature, even after all these years. She HATED winter.

"Get comfortable," she said, waving them all in. "It's time for a story."

"The Nibelungenlied, translated as The Song of the Nibelungs, is an epic poem in Middle High German," she began once everyone got comfortable. "The story tells of dragon-slayer Siegfried at the court of the Burgundians, how he was murdered, and of his wife Kriemhild's revenge. The Nibelungenlied is based on pre-Christian Germanic heroic motifs known as the "Nibelungensaga", which include oral traditions and reports based on historic events and individuals of the 5th and 6th centuries. Old Norse parallels of the legend survive in the Völsunga saga, the Prose Edda, the Poetic Edda, the Legend of Norna-Gest, and the Þiðrekssaga."

"An early critic labeled it a German Iliad, arguing that, like the Greek epic, it goes back to the remotest times and unites the monumental fragments of half-forgotten myths and historical personages into a poem that is essentially national in character. However, others criticised the work for being inferior to the Greek classics and not worthy of the status of a national epic."

"Despite its many critics, imagery from the Nibelungelied was used in many poems, essays, posters and speeches at every stage in the development of German nationalism, from the Befreiungskriege (Wars of Liberation) to the period of Nazi rule, to less jingoistic interpretations and references today. For example, the faithfulness among the Burgundian king and his vassals, ranked higher than family bonds or life, is called Nibelungentreue. This expression was used in Germany, prior to World War I to describe the alliance between the German Empire and Austria-Hungary, as well as by Nazi propaganda, e.g. when referring to the Battle of Stalingrad."

"It is also very popular outside Germany, as it is one of the inspirations for King of the Bracelets."

"Today, since I'm sure some of you from this reality are distracted by the holiday coming up this week, we are going to watch a movie version of this story. We'll be viewing Dark Lands: The Dragon Lord, a made-for-television version that takes significant liberties with the myth, but is still entertaining. For those of you interested in reading the original Song of the Nibelungs, I suggest you make a visit to the library, as they may have a retelling in the language of your choice."

World Mythology, Monday, Period 3

OOC