The Chronicles of Prydain

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The Chronicles of Prydain are five children's fantasy novels by the American writer Lloyd Alexander . The actions take place in the fantasy world Prydain ( Welsh for Great Britain ) and contain elements from Welsh sagas, myths and legends, in particular the Mabinogion . According to the author, some of the names of the protagonists come from Welsh mythology .

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The focus of the plot is the foundling Taran. As a swineherd he lives on the farm of the old and wise magician Dallben, and tends the oracle pig Hen Wen. When the latter flees from Arawn, the evil ruler of the land of Annuvin, and his servant, the Horned King , Taran finds himself in the world of the mighty and magical. He makes friends in Prince Gwydion , the young sorceress Eilonwy , the bard Fflewddur Fflam and Gurgi . Together they face various dangers, and in the course of the series they are drawn deeper and deeper into the conflict between good and evil over control of Prydain.

Characters

  • Taran : Taran von Caer Dallben, assistant pigkeeper on the farm of the sorcerer Dallben, grows up in the care of him and the warrior Coll (son of Collfrewr). Half a child at the beginning of pentalogy, his greatest desire is to endure adventure and become a hero similar to Prince Gwydion, whom he deeply admires. However, when he is suddenly drawn into adventure and becomes Gwydion's comrade in arms, he has to admit that surviving adventures is firstly very exhausting and secondly does not necessarily mean heroic deeds. Taran is characterized, especially at the beginning, by his stubbornness and lack of control. However, the more adventures he endures, the more he matures into a real adult who no longer sees war as a fun, exciting experience, especially since he loses quite a few acquaintances and friends in the process, etc. a. also Coll.
  • Eilonwy : The last princess and sorceress of Llyr is Taran's age. With Taran, she has his thick skull, but without having his constant exuberance. Eilonwy talks all the time, which Taran often drives to the edge of despair; She is also addicted to adventure, but almost never loses track of what is happening and is able to judge neutrally. In this respect, she is often the one who prevents Taran from doing more harm than good. Raised by the sinister sorceress Achren, Eilonwy possesses certain magical abilities, which she ultimately renounces by choosing to become Taran's wife instead of leaving Prydain with all the other representatives of the supernatural, as her destiny would have been. Until then, she has owned the golden Pelydryn, an indestructible sphere that lights up at her request.
  • Fflewddur Fflam : He is king of a tiny "empire" whose inhabitants can do very well without him. Therefore, and also out of wanderlust, he prefers to wander through Prydain as a bard and have adventures. In his stories he tends to portray his own role a little more brilliantly than it corresponds to reality. His most important possession is his magic harp, which has two excellent properties: First, it plays almost by itself, which is why Fflewddur's extremely moderate musical abilities remain hidden; second, their strings break with every untruth. To his chagrin, this often collides with his tendency to exaggerate.
    Despite his carefree, almost careless way of life, Fflewddur is a brave companion Taran can rely on. Much more important, however, is that he has a heart of gold and would never let his friends down despite his constant reservations and concerns. In the course of the story he comes into "possession" of an unusual mount, an oversized wild cat named Llyan, although she took possession of him because she loves his harp: Fflewddur rarely plays a really central role in the story, but it is he is a permanent member of the group traveling with Taran through Prydain.
  • Gurgi : A half-human (it is not clear whether he is just a feral human or perhaps a mixture of human and animal) who originally lived in the forests of Prydain until he came to Taran. Although he was initially very negative towards him, the boy soon recognized Gurgi as a loyal and loyal companion and friend. Despite his often whiny and timid demeanor, Gurgi can become a fierce and enthusiastic fighter if necessary. He also has the peculiar talent of always finding something that is of life-saving importance to the companions on their adventures.
  • Doli : Originally this member of the Underground People (in effect he is a dwarf ) was assigned to Taran and his companions only as guides. On the outside it is rough, but it has a soft core. He has a good knowledge of the wilderness guide and is an excellent fighter with an ax. His biggest flaw is - by his own admission - his inability to make himself invisible, which the other members of his family seem to be able to do. In the course of the action, however, he still acquires this gift and, although it has the unpleasant side effect of ringing in the ears for him, often uses it for his companions. Doli plays an important supporting role in the entire pentalogy as a liaison to the underground.
  • Dallben : The wise and powerful magician is over 300 years old and lives very modestly on a small farm, together with the old warrior Coll and the boulder Taran. The heart of its power is the 'Book of Three', which contains the secrets of the past, present and future. In the stories, Dallben only appears at the beginning and partly at the end of the plot. He acts as Taran's teacher, who gives them food for thought.
  • Prince Gwydion : A high-ranking and noble war leader of the House of Don in Prydain. He appears very often in line, as he and Dallben and his allies have to constantly forge measures against Arawn's plans. Again and again he has to moderate Taran's impatience, but he nonetheless sees him as a very equal comrade and friend.
  • Coll : A former hero and warrior who, however, tired of the craft of war, retired as a farmer to Caer Dallben. In Taran's youth he played the role of the moderate, loving father for Taran, although his slightly obscure advice - in which he often used parables about fieldwork - initially didn't work for the boy.
  • Arawn : The Prince of Death in Prydain and the main antagonist of the series, but who never appears personally until the very end, and even then his true appearance is kept hidden. One of the black arts within his power is the ability to transform into any living being of his choice.
  • Achren : A black sorceress and former consort of Arawn, from whom she was rejected. Although she herself strives for power and wants to take revenge on Arawn, her main interest lies in gaining the affection of Prince Gwydion. Even after he, Taran, and their companions break their power, it is their affection for him that ultimately moves them to fight Arawn at his side.
  • Orddu, Orwen and Orgoch : three centuries old witches who live in the Morva marshes. They had once taken in and raised Dallben as a baby. Although they appear very eccentric, they play a much deeper, if not further explained, role throughout the story. They are quite comparable to the Nordic Norns and the Greek Moirs .

filming

In 1985, a Disney film adaptation of the first two books appeared under the title " Taran and the magic cauldron " (English "The Black Cauldron"). However, since it is a relatively dark film by Disney standards (the Horned King in particular can be scary to younger children), at around $ 21 million it didn't even bring in the production costs of around $ 25 million. Lloyd Alexander described the film as "entertaining", but said it was more similar to his book.

There are plans for real film adaptations of the Chronicles of Prydain .

The books

  • Taran und das Zauberschwein or Das Buch der Drei ( The Book of Three , 1964)
  • The Black Cauldron and The Black shell (Engl. The Black Cauldron , 1965)
  • Taran and the Magic Cat or The Princess of Llyr ( The Castle of Llyr , 1966)
  • Taran and the Magic Mirror or The Mirror of Llunet (English Taran Wanderer , 1967)
  • Taran and the magic sword or The Lord of Death (Engl. The High King , 1968) - winner of the Newbery Medal , 1969
  • The Foundling and other stories from Prydain (engl. The Foundling , 1973) - collection of short stories

Trivia

The first two volumes of the pentalogy were translated into German by Otfried Preussler . The third and fourth volumes were translated by Ronald Vocke (the fourth together with Ulrike Killer) and the fifth volume by Ulrike Killer alone.

See also

Web links