Symbolic Significance of the Sword in the Hero’s Hand: Beowulf, The Nibelungenlied, El Poema de Mio Cid, Volsunga Saga, and Njál’s Saga

Abstract

Abstract The medieval hero cannot be imagined without a significant sword. Swords often have names and a mysterious identity. Beowulf cannot kill Grendel’s mother with his own sword, but has to resort to some of the ancient weapons lying in her lair. In the Nibelungenlied, Siegfried’s sword gets into the hand of his nemesis, Hagen, after he has murdered him. Siegfried’s widow, Kriemhild, finally takes it from Hagen and decapitates him. This, however, means her own death. In the Old Spanish El Poema de Mio Cid, the protagonist conquers two most valuable swords, and he passes them on to his sons-in-law, although they prove to be unworthy of those gifts. In the final court trial, Rodrigo Diaz demands those two swords back from the villains, and he triumphs over them. Once he has the swords back in his possession, he can proceed and destroy his enemies in this trial. Swords are not simply weapons; they are synecdoches of the hero himself, and they have the power to sing before or during battle, which is often commented on in the Old Norse sagas. This article will examine how heroic poets treated the sword as a pars pro toto of the hero and hence as agents of superpower, exacting justice and providing honor.