''Balder Dead'' is a narrative poem with powerful tragic themes, first published in 1855 by

Matthew Arnold Matthew Arnold (24 December 1822 – 15 April 1888) was an English poet and cultural critic who worked as an inspector of schools. He was the son of Thomas Arnold, the celebrated headmaster of Rugby School, and brother to both Tom Arnold, lit ...

. This poem draws upon Norse mythology: retelling the story of the murder of Odin's son,

Balder Baldr (also Balder, Baldur) is a god in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, Baldr (Old Norse: ) is a son of the god Odin and the goddess Frigg, and has numerous brothers, such as Thor and Váli. In wider Germanic mythology, the god was kno ...

, as brought about by the wicked machinations of Loki, blood brother to Odin.

Synopsis

The evil Loki was quickly punished for murdering Balder by being exiled from

Asgard In Nordic mythology, Asgard (Old Norse: ''Ásgarðr'' ; "enclosure of the Æsir") is a location associated with the gods. It appears in a multitude of Old Norse sagas and mythological texts. It is described as the fortified home of the Æsir ...

. Still, it remains for the gods - the

Æsir The Æsir (Old Norse: ) are the gods of the principal pantheon in Norse religion. They include Odin, Frigg, Höðr, Thor, and Baldr. The second Norse pantheon is the Vanir. In Norse mythology, the two pantheons wage war against each other, ...

and the

Vanir In Norse mythology, the Vanir (; Old Norse: , singular Vanr ) are a group of gods associated with fertility, wisdom, and the ability to see the future. The Vanir are one of two groups of gods (the other being the Æsir) and are the namesake of the ...

dwelling in Asgard - to bury and to mourn their dead. Partly out of desperate grief - and partly in defiance of the harshness of the Norns or fates: Odin begs Hermod to ride his own steed, Sleipnir, down to Hell and beg

Hela HeLa (; also Hela or hela) is an immortalized cell line used in scientific research. It is the oldest and most commonly used human cell line. The line is derived from cervical cancer cells taken on February 8, 1951, named after Henrietta ...

to release Balder. Hermod executes the seemingly hopeless task: and receives from Hela the unexpected promise that she would release Balder should everything in the upper worlds mourn Balder's death. Before returning to Asgard, Hermod speaks with Balder's shade: Balder warns him that Hela's "promises" are never what they seem - and will only bear bitter fruit. Loki himself undertakes to frustrate the Æsir's hopes: appearing as an ugly hag in Middle Earth, he refuses to mourn for Balder - thus breaking Hela's stipulated conditions. Hermod returns to Hell to acquaint Balder with the gods' failure. Balder accepts what has happened without surprise, and they soon part: after Balder relates his vision of the end of the worlds in the approaching conflagration of Ragnarök.Arnold, Matthew. Poetic Works. London: Oxford University Press, 1950. pp. 95-ff.

References

External links

Balder Dead
- from the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

* 1855 poems Baldr Norse mythology in art and literature Poetry by Matthew Arnold {{poem-stub