The adventures of the Röde Orm
The Adventures of Röde Orm is a novel by the Swedish writer Frans G. Bengtsson . The original Röde Orm was published in two parts of two books each in 1941 and 1945 in Sweden under the titles Sjöfarare i västerled (seafarers in the west) and Hemma och i österled (home and in the east). A complete German edition was first published in 1951 by Heimeran Verlag . The translation by Elsa Carlberg is authoritative up to the latest editions (as of 2015).
content
The novel follows the life story of the young farmer's son Röde Orm (the name “Orm” means “snake”, cf. German worm, and “Röde” means “the red one” or “the redhead”). From a Scandinavian point of view, Europe at the end of the 10th century forms the political framework.
first book
Orm is the youngest son of the wealthy Scanian farmer Toste. Every summer Toste sets out for Ireland with his ship to support other Vikings in their raids. Orm is too young to go, but through an attack on his home he becomes part of the Viking chief Krok, who is plundering three ships in the Baltic Sea. Due to the lack of success, this military voyage is relocated to Western Europe, where the Vikings quickly gain prey, but lose everything again due to a Moorish attack. Orm and a few others are captured by the Andalusian ruler Almanzur , who later takes them into his service. After a few years, rich in treasures and stories, they begin their return journey. They end up at the court of the Danish King Harald Blauzahn , where they celebrate Jul (Christmas). There Orm meets his future bride Ylva, but loses the favor of King Harald through a friend, so that he cannot return to his court to fetch her. Instead, he starts his journey home and, after arriving in Skåne, inherits his father's farm, as neither his father nor his older brothers have returned from Ireland.
second book
Orm does not suffer from lovesickness for long, because Harald Blauzahn is driven from his farm in Jelling by his son Sven Gabelbart and soon dies in exile. Orm's problem now is to find the former court of King Harald, to which Ylva was a member. Since he cannot stand it at home, he equips a ship and moves in the wake of Thorkel the High to England to plunder there. The famous Battle of Maldon takes place there , which ends with the defeat of the English defenders. The English king Ethelred is now forced to pay Danegeld to the Vikings . For Orm, happiness turns in two ways. In Maldon he meets the monk Brother Willibald again, who knows the whereabouts of Ylva. The new happiness leads Orm to the Christian faith and he decides to become a Christian. In London he meets Ylva again and is baptized. On the way back home, Orm attracts the wrath of the pagan Sven Gabelbart, so that he has to give up the home courtyard and move to Göinge .
Third book
Orm is building a new farm in Göinge and even building a church. The new neighbors do not welcome Orm as Christians, and all attempts by Brother Willibald to convert them to Christianity fail. It was only at the baptism of Orm's first son Harald and the festival that followed that it was possible to persuade some to convert. At one thing Orm tries to buy some of the monks captured by the Smålanders free and in turn meets with rejection and hatred for the new faith. Orm also makes a name for himself as a wise speaker and makes some influential political friends on the Thing.
Fourth book
After the year 1000 has passed without Jesus returning to earth to hold the Last Judgment , a brother Orms, believed to be dead, comes to the court. He tells of his service in the bodyguard of the Byzantine emperor in Miklagård ( Constantinople ) and how he got a great treasure but also lost his son. He asks Orm to retrieve the treasure, and so the latter equips a ship again and goes to Russia with some followers. The recovery of the treasure turns out to be very difficult, and on the return journey Orm finds his farm devastated. He finds the perpetrators and confronts them. He marries his children appropriately.
style
Bengtsson uses a special style for his novel that sets him apart from other Swedish writers. He does n't even want the Röde Orm to be called a “novel”, but instead uses the word “Berättelse” (story, report). He avoids what he calls the “psychological analysis” of the main characters that is so common in modern novels. That means, he only reports what happens and what is said, without psychologically breaking down the novel hero and without writing down what he thinks. Nevertheless, a good insight into the world of thoughts, values and conceptions of the world of many characters succeeds and thus makes behavior appear realistic. For such a style he is based on the ancient author Titus Petronius and the Icelandic sagas .
Bengtsson keeps the language of the novel simple and free of archaisms , although a historical theme often leads to the use of forms and words as old as possible. An exception is the strict use of the verb forms in the past tense, which were drawn from the Swedish writing usage in the 1940s (from "vi gingo" for "we went" was "vi gick" and thus no longer differed from the singular form "han gick" - “He went”, as if you were to say “he went” and “we went” in German). Bengtsson gave his novel an ancient sound without having to resort to archaisms that would only have made it difficult for the reader to understand.
Another stylistic feature is the equality of noun and verb without the frequent use of adjectives . Bengtsson sees adjectives as largely superfluous and therefore keeps an eye out for them with a “vaksamt öga” (watchful eye).
Bengtsson also achieved a remarkable historical accuracy in the description of events and people, but also of customs and traditions. In addition, the sometimes deliberately reserved style and the colorful characters in their often carefree behavior ensure numerous comic moments.
Aftermath in the children's book
The Swedish author Runer Jonsson was inspired by Bengtsson's novel for his children's book series about Wickie and the strong men .
filming
The 1963 film Raubzug der Vikings (Original title: The Long Ships ) borrows some motifs from Bengtsson's novel. The title of the English film The Long Ships follows the title of the English translation by Röde Orm . However, since the plot of the film and the book show more differences than similarities, one can hardly speak of a film adaptation of the novel. A new film version is planned, which should clear up these shortcomings as well as a few mistakes about the Vikings.
literature
- Frans G. Bengtsson: Röde Orm . Norstedt & Söner, Stockholm 2005
- German edition: Frans G. Bengtsson: The adventures of the Röde Orm . From the Swedish by Elsa Carlberg, unabridged edition, dtv , Munich 2009 24 , ISBN 978-3-423-20055-4
- Frans G. Bengtsson: Hur Röde Orm blev till . In: Folk som sjöng, Norstedt & Söner, Stockholm 1955
Remarks
- ^ Vicke Viking i EWK-galleriet , press release Arbetets Museum Norrköping, June 20, 2011; accessed January 3, 2015.
- ^ Geoffrey Macnab: Swedes set up 'ultimate Viking movie' , The Independent , August 5, 2011; accessed January 4, 2015.