Bearslayer

by Andrejs Pumpurs

This book is part of the TREDITION CLASSICS series. The creators of this series are united by passion for literature and driven by the intention of making all public domain books available in printed format again - worldwide. At tredition we believe that a great book never goes out of style. Several mostly non-profit literature projects provide content to tredition. To support their good work, tredition donates a portion of the proceeds from each sold copy. As a reader of a TREDITION CLASSICS book, you support our mission to save many of the amazing works of world literature from oblivion.

Genres: Classics, Fiction, Mythology, Fantasy, Poetry, 19th Century, Read For School

208 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1888

Reviews

[Inese Okonova · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pārlasīt rosināja ģimenes izbrauciens uz Lielvārdi un atskārsme, ka piemirsusies gan eposa ģeogrāfija, gan notikumu secība. Pārsteidzoši aizraujoši.

[Jānis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Šo nevar nedz novērtēt, nedz aprakstīt, bet vismaz reizi 20 gados vajadzētu pārlasīt. Mums ar dēlu ļoti patika. Grūtākais ir iestāstīt dēlam to, kas tad Lāčplēsis ir par simbolu un kāpēc viņš mūžīgi cīnās ar Melno bruņinieku. Nācām pie slēdziena, ka konkrētajā brīdī Lācplēsis atpūšas ar Laimdotu pilī, jo Melnais ir nedaudz nospiests uz ceļiem... Taču Kangari tikai vairojas, vai ne?

[Dagnija Lace-Ate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Iedvesmojos no Vairas Vīķes -Freibergas lekcijas LNMM par Baltijas simbolismu un lasīju epu.
Ar laika distanci var novērtēt sižeta saistību ar folkloru (nu, labi - pirmais dziedājums ir nočiepts no sengrieķiem...), kas attaisno tautas epa nosaukumu.
Kas interesanti - Pumpura sižetā visur figurē izglītošanās, it sevišķi augstās skolās. Lācplēsis un Koknesis vairākus gadus mācās pie Burtnieka, turpat arī Burtnieka meita Laimdota pēc tikušu jaunuvju kursiem pie Staburadzes študierē, vēlāk Koknesis Vāczemē visādas bruņinieku gudrības mācās, tāpat arī Kaupo. Un arī Spīdola ir savus augstākos kursus tumšajās zinībās beigusi. Škiet, tas iezīmē epa tapšanas laika aktualitāti - mācīties gribēšanu.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Lāčplēsis es atemporal. Nunca ha existido, pero siempre está, y sus hazañas se caracterizan por uno de los rasgos específicos del mito: lo que nunca sucedió, sin embargo, siempre sucede” (Zālīte, 1991)
Precioso, sin duda de mis libros favoritos.

[katrīna · Rating 3 out of 5]

grāmata man atgādināja, cik vienota spēj būt latviešu tauta, cik mums, kā Latvijai, ir paveicies būt brīvai valstij, un, protams, tā arī glaimoja mani ar tās valodu.

[Thehookah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was fed when i read the title.

[Linda Beldava]

Vai var novērtēt eposu?

[Phillip · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fascinating epic poem, set during the Northern Crusade and told from the pagan Latvian point of view where the Christian Germans are the evil invaders who want to enslave and forcible convert the noble, basically peaceful, living-in-harmony-with-nature Latvians. Especially today in the context of the US--where Christians continually pretend to be persecuted because they are increasingly expected to accept that people with other beliefs exist--it's fascinating to read a medieval European poem in which Christians are aligned with the Devil against the heroic pagans.

The other thing I did while reading this poem was basically played spot similarities. I was thinking primarily of other epic poems, especially those about human heroes like Bearslayer, but I also found some similarities to other texts, like Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty going over the falls at Reichenbach as a similar scene to when the Black Knight and Bearslayer go over the cliff and into the river at the end of the poem. But there are a ton of similarities here with other ancient and medieval epic poems, heroes, and characters--Beowulf, Gilgamesh and Enkidu, Samson, Odysseus, etc. I don't know that these are influences, and certainly Sherlock Holmes wasn't an influence on a 13th century Latvian folk narrative, but it's interesting to see links between epic and folk stories from different cultures.
https://youtu.be/dpfXSehE5lU

[Dakota · Rating 5 out of 5]

An epic tale. With deep and profound ideas.
My favorite idea being the mirror that evil can not stand against. Self-reflection.
I’m grateful for the translation, I don’t know if I will ever be able to read this in the original Latvian, but I can hope!

[Monta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Acc ļoti interesanti vnk grūti lasīt

[Annamariah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had never heard of this book before I did a library search for Latvian literature. I needed a book by a Baltic author for a reading challenge and was thrilled to find this one - what could be a better introduction to Latvian literature than their national epic? I read the Finnish translation by Edgar Vaalgamaa. The translation is more rhythmic prose than actual poetry, but apparently the original does not follow a strict metre, either.

It was impossible to read this without comparing it to Kalevala, the Finnish national epic. Pumpurs's epic is shorter than Kalevala and has a more cohesive plot, though it's not an entirely straightforward story. Some of the characters mentioned in the Latvian one are real historical figures, though fictionalised, and there are plenty of supernatural elements and a fascinating mixture of Christianity and old gods.

The title character, Karhunkaataja/Bearslayer/Lāčplēsis, is a Latvian hero who has superhuman strength and bear's ears. His fate is to defend Latvian people against the invading crusaders who use Christianity as an excuse for conquering new land. The bad guys (crusaders and witches) are in league with the devil, while the old Latvian gods help the hero and his friends. I liked the fact that one of the antagonists, a witch named Spiidala, is actually offered redemption. The story ends with the death of the hero, but his memory is forever cherished in the minds of the Latvian people.

[Lasma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ļoti skaists un latvisks garadarbs, kurš liek ielūkoties vairāk senajā ticībā un seno latviešu dzīvē, liek meklēt vel kādus darbus, kuros aprakstīta senlatviešu dzīve. Darbs, kas liek iedegties mazajai patriotisma liesmai katrā Latvieša dvēselē.

Ir vērts to pārlasīt vel un vēl.

[Asaria · Rating 2 out of 5]

1,5 -> 2

Reading the world - Latvia

Maybe it's just my mood or being overworked, but I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought would. Or possibly I should get used to that? I think Finnish Kalevala was much better than this.

[Inese Uljane · Rating 1 out of 5]

Read it fir school. Didn’t like at all.

[Ezītis · Rating 3 out of 5]

basically stāsts par to kā divi letiņi nevarēja sadalīt džusīti

[Øystein Brekke · Rating 3 out of 5]

An epic poem written in the late 19th century, intended as a national epic for Latvia, in the style of Kalevala in Finland and Kalevipoeg in Estonia. I gather it incorporates elements of legend and folk poetry, but in the main, this is an original poem, although it attempts to present itself as mythology.

It brings to my mind Neo-Gothic architecture of the 19th century: Using medieval elements, but too modern, streamlined, symmetrical compared to the weird, crooked, unruly Gothic originals. Bearslayer comes across very much as a 19th century national romantic impression of what mythology should be. But it's very clearly not mythology, it's too ordered, too logical, not _weird_ enough.

The poem starts with the Latvian pantheon gathered for a meeting, at the Latvian equivalent of Mt. Olympus (Olymps, I assume). All dignified and splendid, and nothing like the bickering, unpredictable deities of actually preserved pre-Christian pantheons. The authors tries to reconcile Christianity with the pagan gods, and this bit is quite interesting. The gods discuss the birth of Christ, whom they seem to recognize as a supreme deity. Then they foresee the arrival of German knights to Latvia, who will bring their Christian faith and enslave the people. This being written in Protestant Latvia, the Catholic faith that the Germans will bring is presented as a lot worse than paganism. The devil and his demons are very much on the side of the Germans, because their faith will give the devil many more souls than Latvian paganism has done.

Then the hero, Bearslayer, enters the scene. He is semi-divine and has super-human strength. Very good. He performs heroic feats against evil powers.

Then the Germans arrive, and this is also quite original. Actual historical people on the German side are used as the opponents of the mythical heroes. The last of the six cantos is all about their battles. Bearslayer being the hero, he wins for a while, but in accordance with actual history, he has to die in the end, so that the Germans can win.

I found the poem more interesting as an example of generic European learned national romanticism of the 19th century than as an expression of anything purely Latvian. And as such, it's fairly interesting. However, I'm afraid I find it a pale imitation of real folk mythology.

[Hex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trudno mi ocenić poemat narodowy Łotyszów. Podejrzewam, że podobnie mogą mieć osoby obcojęzyczne próbujące czytać Pana Tadeusza. Nie są to łatwe książki i zazwyczaj jak nie trzeba ich czytać na zajęcia to się ich nie rusza.

Co do samego Laczplesisa wyłapałam kilka błędów edytorskich, brak dużych liter, czy liter w słowach. Bardzo interesujący wstęp tłumacza oraz posłowie, które w sumie lepiej podsumowuje książkę niż jakakolwiek recenzja. Spolszczanie wybaczone, inaczej książka byłaby nie do końca zrozumiała dla polskiego czytelnika. Na stronie wydawnictwa dostępny jest zresztą pdf do pobrania, gdyby ktoś był zainteresowany.

Dobrze jest mieć jakiekolwiek pojęcie na temat rysu historycznego tamtych ziem.

[Ance · Rating 1 out of 5]

I DID NOT LIKE IT. It was for school and my favourite part was the last page(I don’t remember what was in it though). I tried reading it and I just couldn’t understand or remember anything I read. Audiobook was great and I will always be grateful for this one lady who recorded it.

[Ieva Ieva]

Kā lai novērtē savas tautas eposu? Andrejs Pumpurs to rakstīja 8 gadus, un tad tu paņem un izlasi trijos vakaros un liec zvaigznītes? Man to vēl jāpārlasa desmitiem reižu, tagad tik zinu to, ka man patika.

[Ieva Artmane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Domāju: jāizlasa katram.

[orests prauliņš · Rating 2 out of 5]

pagājušajā gadā mēs taisījām īsfilmu par lāčplēsi literatūrai. es biju lāčplēsis ar rižiem matiem un spēļu zobenu

[katrina 🪐 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dievinu šo grāmatu!!! Ikvienam latvietim tā ir jāizlasa!!

[Rūta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Labai latviška Odisėja. Tas ir laiks.

[Gints Cauņa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Itshard to review, for it is a true epic, meaning characters are shallow Supermen and so the ending sis not too good, but it starts fell

[katrīne mēğina lasīt · Rating 3 out of 5]

labi, jā. tagad es jūtos tuvāka Latvijai un tās tradīcijām, bet kāpēc tik sasteigtas beigas? es tiešām gribēju izjust to cīņu un pašnāvību

[Emma Layla Henrickson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Skola lika izlasīt, un man ir bail teikt, ka es izbaudīju.

[a · Rating 3 out of 5]

visbeidzot!!

[Imants Gliemezis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

[mazars · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75

(izlasīju tagad, ieliku februārī, lai man ir achievement)

[AnnaCecylia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bardzo ciekawa lektura. Epos narodowy Łotyszy, napisany w XIX wieku, ale nawiązująca motywami i formą do średniowiecznych eposów. Ma w sobie cos z „Mistrza i Małgorzaty” oraz „Fausta” - dla każdej zainteresowanej wiedźmowo-diabelskimi motywami, a także z "Odysei" i "Pieśni o Rolandzie". Czytając bardzo często odnieść można wrażenie, że już się to kiedyś gdzieś czytało, ale jednocześnie całość ma tak uroczy wydźwięk i taką łotewską egzotykę, że kupuję to całym serduszkiem.