THE ERLKING
- An orcish comic by Ainur Elmgren -
To
each his own darkness. One is out to avenge his fallen kin. One seeks
her abducted child. This is a saga from the dark side, the tale of the
underdogs, the subhumans, the children of darkness.
Contents: Orc, foxy lady, forests, bloodshed, nudity, violence, artistic license, profanity (in several languages), some passages of solid text, devouring of human flesh, Finnish-speaking trappers, Elves, Elven hounds.
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ABOUT THE ERLKING
Who is the shadowy Erlking? Even humans, the numerous ones, the forest cutters and earth plowers, fear his grey host of hunters, and his pale, red-eared hounds. Rumours tell about his fair daughters and their lulling voices, and the King's misty gardens where one day means a century in the human world.
Mein Sohn, was birgst du bang dein Gesicht?- Siehst, Vater, du den Erlkönig nicht? Den Erlenkönig mit Kron' und Schweif?- Mein Sohn, es ist ein Nebelstreif.
J. W. von Goethe ***
Author's note:
I went
to junior high school in Hannover, Germany. As a part of our education
in the German language, we had to choose a poem of the Romantic period
and learn it by heart. I picked "Der Erlkönig", mainly
because it was the shortest, but I soon became interested in the ballad's
story. "Erlkönig" means King of the Elves. According to
German and Danish folklore, this supernatural being appears to someone
just about to die. Thus the sick boy in Goethe's poem is able to see the
Erlking and even his daughters and his realm, but his father merely sees
fog and willow trees. The Danes call the King "Ellerkonge" or
"Elverkonge", and some say that "Erl" is a corruption
of these words. Another elf king is Alberich from old German mythology.
However, in the Niebelungenlied he resembles a dwarf. More fascinating
tales about Germanic mythology can be found in Das
Schwarze Netz - recommended for fellow Germanophiles. (Note on the
side: German mythology has a bad reputation for obvious historical reasons.
However, I find that if we have to measure the probable 'fascistness'
of myths, Tolkien's world fits the Nazi ideals much better than the original
Niebelungenlied.)
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