♪Hey soul sister, ain't that mister mister on the radio, stereo...♫

I love that song, but I have to admit that I have no idea what it means! Hmmm... well, let's string some random words together and make a really cheery, chipper song. Okay! I fell for it anyway ☺

I found this really cool aspect of blogger that I have been using rather incessantly. It's a tool that let's me see where the people are from who are looking at my blog. Mainly, I've got US followers, but I have also had several people pop by from Germany and other places (like Slovenia, the UK, Denmark, Canada, Japan, etc.). So I thought I would do a little shout-out and try to feature more poetry from other countries. I like to think that I have been fairly good at diversifying my selections, but I am the first to admit that I have a LOT to learn. Anyway, while doing a search for famous German poets and poetry, I came across a piece that I was actually already familiar with and quite enjoyed. It is Der Erlkönig (or, in English, The Erl-King) by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. The first time I came across it was in one of my college music classes because it was set to music by Franz Shubert. It really is the most lovely piece!

I will attempt to brief in my mini-bio of von Goethe. An interesting fact I found was that von Goethe did not much appreciate Franz Schubert's achievements. I guess I am insulting the poet's sensibilities by forever linking the poet to that composer! Von Goethe's main work, which he spent most of his lifetime writing, was the two-part piece Faust. This piece apparently was what influenced many works ranging from The Picture of Dorian Grey (Oscar Wilde), The Devil to Pay (Dorothy L. Sayers), to Don Juan/Don Giovanni (the best known operatic version of this being by Lorenzo Ponte and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart). Von Goethe himself seems to have been highly eclectic in his interests. He appeared to be involved in everything from law to alchemy to philosophy and plant life. Clearly, I need to spend more time researching since I know so very little. In an effort to maintain brevity in the lengths of my posts, I will stop flaunting my ignorance on von Goethe and simply publish the poem of his that first caught my interest: The Erl-King. P.S. I hope this translation is accurate, but not speaking any German, I have to rely on the power of search engines. That's a scary thought!

The Erl-King

WHO rides there so late through the night dark and drear?
The father it is, with his infant so dear;
He holdeth the boy tightly clasp'd in his arm,
He holdeth him safely, he keepeth him warm.

"My son, wherefore seek'st thou thy face thus to hide?"
"Look, father, the Erl-King is close by our side!
Dost see not the Erl-King, with crown and with train?"
"My son, 'tis the mist rising over the plain."

"Oh, come, thou dear infant! oh come thou with me!
Full many a game I will play there with thee;
On my strand, lovely flowers their blossoms unfold,
My mother shall grace thee with garments of gold."

"My father, my father, and dost thou not hear
The words that the Erl-King now breathes in mine ear?"
"Be calm, dearest child, 'tis thy fancy deceives;
'Tis the sad wind that sighs through the withering leaves."

"Wilt go, then, dear infant, wilt go with me there?
My daughters shall tend thee with sisterly care
My daughters by night their glad festival keep,
They'll dance thee, and rock thee, and sing thee to sleep."

"My father, my father, and dost thou not see,
How the Erl-King his daughters has brought here for me?"
"My darling, my darling, I see it aright,
'Tis the aged grey willows deceiving thy sight."

"I love thee, I'm charm'd by thy beauty, dear boy!
And if thou'rt unwilling, then force I'll employ."
"My father, my father, he seizes me fast,
Full sorely the Erl-King has hurt me at last."

The father now gallops, with terror half wild,
He grasps in his arms the poor shuddering child;
He reaches his courtyard with toil and with dread,--
The child in his arms finds he motionless, dead.