Swanhild asks the Wanderer when they will see him again. He falters, says that she is like Jorith, embraces her, kisses her, hurries off and is heard to weep.
When Swanhild lays the widow's curse on Ermanaric and invokes Wodan the Wanderer, the king's advisor, Sibicho, says:
"'She calls on her witchy ancestor? Suffer her not to live!'" (p. 445)
Exodus 22:18.
Yet another Biblical quotation embedded in an Anderson text.
1 comment:
One thing Poul does bring out is how frightened of witchcraft people were -- a belief that makes perfect sense, if you start with the idea that of course people can do that stuff.
I've lived in areas where curses and counter-curses are an omnipresent reality for most people, and it takes up a lot of time and nervous energy.
One reason Christian and Muslim missionaries have been so successful in Africa is that they both offer relief from this anxiety.
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