Children of the earth

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Children of the Earth is a six-volume novel cycle by the author Jean M. Auel about the heroine Ayla , whose first volume, Ayla and the Clan of the Bear , was published in 1980 .

Ayla, raised as an orphan by one of the isolated clans and trained as a healer, finds the seriously injured Jondalar. She saves his life and an erotic love story develops between the two of them.

With the publication of the second volume, the saga became a world bestseller and made the author world-famous almost overnight. The worldwide circulation was over 25 million copies. The Ayla novels have been translated into 29 languages. The frequent description of intercourse and sexuality has resulted in the American Library Association's list of the 100 most censored books between 1990 and 2000.

Volumes

Ayla and the Bear Clan

Ayla's clan is wiped out in an earthquake; she is the only one to survive. The “clan of the bears” ( Neanderthals , also called flat skulls) finds the orphaned child of the “others” ( Cro-Magnon people ) and takes them in. Iza, the clan's medicine woman, and her brother Creb, the clan's shaman called "Mog-ur", welcomes her to the hearth. Iza treats Ayla like a daughter, but is appalled by how big and ugly (in her eyes) Ayla becomes over time. Since she is convinced that the girl will never find a companion, she trains her in the art of healing. The knowledge about plants and their effects brings a very high reputation among the members of the clan.

Although most of the members of the clan like or at least tolerate Ayla, she remains an outsider. She tries to adapt, but her whole being is different, more spontaneous, more adventurous and less guided by tradition. She teaches herself to hunt with a slingshot; In the gendered society, women are actually forbidden with the death penalty. When her secret is discovered, she is only "banished" for a moon because she used her skill to save a clan child. She can return, however, and is permitted to use the slingshot as a "woman who hunts".

Hated and raped by the clan man Broud, she has a child of “mixed spirits”, which the clan leader Brun rejects as ill and deformed. Their son Durc is finally recognized in the clan and is allowed to stay with his mother. At a gathering of all the regional clans, Durc is promised a girl who was the result of rape by "someone else".

Three years later, Ayla is driven out by the new clan leader Broud for nullity. Durc is left alone.

At Auel's clan people are very traditional, especially because they pass on their memories; for example, the clan language is not learned, but “remembered”. It is a sign language supplemented by a few sounds.

This volume was made into a film in 1986 - see Ayla and the Bear Clan .

Ayla and the Valley of the Horses

After she was expelled by the bear clan, Ayla travels alone through the steppes in search of the "others" from whom she descends. She finally finds a cave in the "Valley of the Horses" where she wants to stay for a winter. When she kills a mare while hunting wild horses, she takes in the foal that has stayed behind. "Winnie" lives together with Ayla in the cave and will serve her well later in the hunt and the transport of the prey. A cave lion boy is overrun by a hunt , which Ayla also takes in and raises with all her love. "Baby" is also of great help to the woman later when hunting. Because of the animals, since Winnie is getting pregnant, Ayla hesitates to continue looking for other people. She stayed in the Valley of the Horses for a total of three years; During this time she also discovered that you can start a fire by beating pyrite and flint together .

At the same time as Ayla was expelled, Jondalar of the Zelandonii set out together with his brother Thonolan to follow the “great mother river” ( Danube ) from its source to the Black Sea . They overwinter with the Sharamudoi. Thonolan falls in love and marries a woman of this tribe. When she dies in childbed, Thonolan can no longer stand it there and wants to continue his journey to the Danube Delta. The worried Jondalar accompanies him, although he actually prefers to return to the Zelandonii. Thonolan is no longer afraid of death and almost deliberately puts himself in danger, only the brotherly love of Jondalar prevents him from dying. When Thonolan is in danger and his brother cannot help him, Mamutoi ( mammoth hunters ) find the two and save Thonolan. From the Danube Delta both go north to hunt a mammoth with other mammoth hunters. Thonolan is killed by Ayla's cave lion "Baby" and Jondalar is seriously injured. Ayla finds him and nurses him back to health. When Jondalar wakes up, he finds the beautiful Ayla helping a mare to give birth to her foal. Ayla cannot communicate with Jondalar. The two fall in love anyway. In order to find each other, however, they have to overcome their very different cultural backgrounds, in particular Jondalar has to understand that the flat-skull clan that Ayla raised are humans and not animals.

At the end of the book, Ayla and Jondalar leave the Valley of the Horses for an excursion lasting several days. On their journey through the ice age steppes they meet a people of Mamutoi, whom they join.

Ayla and the mammoth hunters

Ayla and Jondalar run into a group of mammoth hunters (Mamutoi), which they join.

Both are very popular in the lion camp. Because of her profound knowledge as a healer, Ayla is adopted by the Mamutoi. The dark-skinned Ranec is especially after Ayla. The talented ivory carver woos the young, blonde woman, and he succeeds in winning over her more and more. The trigger for this is a misunderstanding between Ayla and Jondalar, which is maintained practically throughout the entire book: Jondalar is not sure whether his love is unconditional. He is afraid to stand by Ayla and her “clan” past, because the “flat skulls” are considered to be animals in most peoples, and mixed breeds of flat skulls and humans are considered hideous freaks. Due to her clan background, Ayla does not understand Jondalar's problems and cannot approach him. Auel leaves no doubt that the two are still in love, but their happiness is prevented by communication difficulties and their different cultural backgrounds. The two constantly live past each other until Jondalar decides to move back to his homeland, while Ayla agrees to become Ranec's wife without loving him as much as Jondalar. Immediately before Ayla and Ranec married, Jondalar fled the Mamutoi camp - mentally shattered. Ayla follows him at the last second; The book ends with a happy ending, as Ayla and Jondalar make their way to the Zelandonii, Jondalar's people.

Ayla and the valley of the great mother

Ayla and Jondalar have left the mammoth hunters to return to Jondalar's clan. The journey goes over a thousand pages along the Danube and over the glacier-covered Black Forest until the two finally arrive at their destination. For a short time they visit some of the tribes living along the way, who are often initially afraid of their animal companions, the horses Winnie and Renner and the wolf. Among other things, they also visit the Sharamudoi, with whom Jondalar and his brother Thonolan lived for three years.

The long journey is not without danger, especially when they move on in autumn and winter instead of hibernating with one of the tribes. At the end of winter, Jondalar falls into the clutches of the Amazon tribe of S'Armunai, where men are caught and treated like slaves. Ayla frees Jondalar, and together they later manage to kill the leader Attaroa; with their death, the S'Armunai return to the previously common equality of men and women.

Because of the S'Armunai incident, Ayla and Jondalar lost a lot of time; they managed to cross the glacier just in time. The rest of the trip is easy. Shortly before arriving at Jondalar's tribe, Ayla discovers that she is pregnant, as is her mare, Winnie.

Ayla and the stone of fire

Ayla and Jondalar now live with his people, the Zelandonii. Jondalar is greeted with joy after his long journey and quickly settles in again, while Ayla - once again - is the outsider. But because of its extraordinary healing skills, it is also quickly accepted and accepted. At the summer meeting of the Zelandonii, Ayla and Jondalar connect with each other. The following winter, Ayla gives birth to her daughter Jonayla - named after mother and father. Winnie also gets her foal, which is christened "gray" because of its color. Ayla defends herself against the pressure of the Zelandoni to join the circle of priests (which also includes the artists). At the end it is implied that she gives in to the urge.

Ayla and the song of the caves

Ayla has become the helper of the first among whom the Doni (the great earth mother) serve. She begins her training, during which she travels a lot and has to submit to many restrictions (renouncing food, water, sleep or sexual intercourse). As a result, she inevitably neglects Jondalar and her daughter Jonayla. Jondalar then begins a secret affair with a former lover. When Ayla finds this out by accident, their relationship is in danger. She throws herself into her duties as Zelandoni and takes a great risk. When she falls into a coma-like state from a mind-altering drug , only Jondalar can save her and the two find their love again.

English editions

German editions

  • Jean M. Auel: Ayla and the clan of the bear. Heyne Verlag , Munich 2002, ISBN 3-453-21525-7 . (Paperback)
  • Jean M. Auel: Ayla and the valley of the horses. Heyne Verlag, Munich 2002, ISBN 3-453-21522-2 . (Paperback)
  • Jean M. Auel: Ayla and the mammoth hunters. Heyne Verlag, Munich 2002, ISBN 3-453-21524-9 . (Paperback)
  • Jean M. Auel: Ayla and the valley of the great mother. Heyne Verlag, Munich 2002, ISBN 3-453-21523-0 . (Paperback)
  • Jean M. Auel: Ayla and the stone of fire. Heyne Verlag, Munich 2003, ISBN 3-453-86945-1 . (Paperback)
  • Jean M. Auel: Ayla and the song of the caves. Heyne Verlag, Munich 2011, ISBN 978-3-453-26543-1 . (Hardback edition)

Historical background

In these novels, archaeological excavation finds form the (pre-) historical points of contact around which the author unfolds her story. Flint and bone tools can be seen in many European museums; Female figures such as the Venus von Willendorf or a mammoth preserved in the ice sheet of the tundra are rarer or unique evidence. In order to clarify the connection, each of the volumes of the novel contains a map of Stone Age Europe with the fictional travel routes of the main characters and the real locations of prehistoric artifacts .

Footnotes

  1. ↑ List of Most Censored Books by the American Library Association
  2. ^ Page 45, Book 1, Heyne edition 2004: "Where they came from, these strangers, was incomprehensible to him."