Wotan, Siegfried, and Brünnhilde . t, combat arose and swordsclashed; and after the battle back sped the war-goddesses, bearing before them upon their horsesthe heroes who had fallen, and singing through theclouds. And Wotan was the Walvater, thefather of war, and it is in this light that wemeet him oftenest in the sagas and tales of theVikings. Meanwhile that first plan, weighted with asmany consequences as the second, had also beenput to the proof. To earth went Wotan, disguisedas a wanderer, and in union with a mortal womanformed a new race—the race which he had seenprophetically as he ente
Wotan, Siegfried, and Brünnhilde . t, combat arose and swordsclashed; and after the battle back sped the war-goddesses, bearing before them upon their horsesthe heroes who had fallen, and singing through theclouds. And Wotan was the Walvater, thefather of war, and it is in this light that wemeet him oftenest in the sagas and tales of theVikings. Meanwhile that first plan, weighted with asmany consequences as the second, had also beenput to the proof. To earth went Wotan, disguisedas a wanderer, and in union with a mortal womanformed a new race—the race which he had seenprophetically as he entered Walhalla. Walse Wotan 19 was his name as a mortal, and his children werethe Walsungs (or Volsungs). A son and a daughter were born to him, demi-gods, and thus greater than mortals and strongerthan the ALsir. In accordance with his plot heseparated them and threw them both under theheavy shadow of misfortune. The Miswendemotif has a veritable load of trouble in its sound: m :&zf. W- cEz £?: lit :zz?zzt=E i Walsung Miswende (Misfortune) Motif. The girl (Sieglinde) was captured and weddedby force to a brutal warrior (Hunding). Duringthe wedding festival the god came to the hall ofthe warrior, in his disguise of Wanderer, and be-fore the guests assembled there thrust a sword intothe great ash which was Hundings sword he had determined should be Sieg- 20 Wotan munds heritage, and he declared aloud that itshould belong to any man strong enough to drawit forth. As he left the house he smiled upon hisdaughter, and the memory of that tender lookdwelt long in her thoughts. The years passed,and through days and nights of indignity and mis-ery, while warriors came and went striving to drawout the sword, she still carried the recollection ofthat strange smile, and felt it to have been a prom-ise of some coming compensation. Wotan under his title of Walse dwelt with hisson Siegmund in the woods, instilling in the boyhatred of law and order and of the gods thems
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectwagnerrichard1813188
