Text: Yvain
The Herdsman in Iwein, a Middle High German retelling of the tale
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| http://library.kiwix.org/wikipedia_de_all_05_2012/A/Waldmensch.html | |
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Descriptive Excerpt from the Text:
I saw sitting upon a stump, with a great club in his hand, a rustic
lout, as black as a mulberry, indescribably big and hideous; indeed, so passing
ugly was the creature that no word of mouth could do him justice. On drawing
near to this fellow, I saw that his head was bigger than that of a horse or of
any other beast; that his hair was in tufts, leaving his forehead bare for a
width of more than two spans; that his ears were big and mossy, just like those
of an elephant; his eyebrows were heavy and his face was flat; his eyes were
those of an owl, and his nose was like a cat's; his jowls were split like a
wolf, and his teeth were sharp and yellow like a wild boar's; his beard was black
and his whiskers twisted; his chin merged into his chest and his backbone was
long, but twisted and hunched. There he stood, leaning upon his club and
accoutred in a strange garb, consisting not of cotton or wool, but rather of
the hides recently flayed from two bulls or two beeves: these he wore hanging
from his neck. The fellow leaped up straightway when he saw me drawing near. I
do not know whether he was going to strike me or what he intended to do, but I
was prepared to stand him off, until I saw him stop and stand stock-still upon
a tree trunk, where he stood full seventeen feet in height. Then he gazed at me
but spoke not a word, any more than a beast would have done. And I supposed
that he had not his senses or was drunk. However, I made bold to say to him:
`Come, let me know whether thou art a creature of good or not.' And he replied:
`I am a man.' …`What dost thou here?' `I was here, tending these cattle in this
wood.' … And now thou must tell me in turn what kind of a man thou art, and
what thou seekest here.' `I am, as thou seest, a knight seeking for what I
cannot find; long have I sought without success.' `And what is this thou fain
wouldst find?' `Some adventure whereby to test my prowess and my bravery. Now I
beg and urgently request thee to give me some counsel, if possible, concerning
some adventure or marvellous thing.' Says he: `Thou wilt have to do without,
for I know nothing of adventure, nor did I ever hear tell of such.
Literary Context:
The herdsman is probably the most ambiguous creature on the human-beast spectrum. The text is clear in describing him as a physical beast. However, he has:
It is especially telling to contrast the herdsman against Yvain in his madness. Though Yvain is more genetically human and he has a stolen bow as a tool, he lacks the other tenets of humanity that the herdsman displays. Yvain, however has the privilege of being outwardly human that allows him to pass back into courtly society in a way that the herdsman will never be able to.
Where does the herdsman fall on the human-beast spectrum? It is a question that opens the inner-self/outer appearance dichotomy that governs discourse on human nature and unanswerable here. Human or not, the herdsman serves as a reminder that there is an entire society outside of The Round Table, that has to support an economy through labor and (later) trade. Suffice to say he could be considered a living marvel, though not one that would be welcomed into King Arthur's court.
Modern Representation
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| Harry Potter's Hagrid, due to his human/giant hybridity is also a figure who blurs the line on human status and also labours in animal care |
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