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Der Erlkönig
Russian Book. Azbuka. 192. 2017. Paperback.
4 pages, Poem
First published January 1, 1782
5 people are currently reading
257 people want to read
About the author
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
13.3k books6,915 followersA master of poetry, drama, and the novel, German writer and scientist Johann Wolfgang von Goethe spent 50 years on his two-part dramatic poem
Faust
, published in 1808 and 1832, also conducted scientific research in various fields, notably botany, and held several governmental positions.
George Eliot called him "Germany's greatest man of letters... and the last true polymath to walk the earth." Works span the fields of literature, theology, and humanism.
People laud this magnum opus as one of the peaks of world literature. Other well-known literary works include his numerous poems, the Bildungsroman Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship and the epistolary novel The Sorrows of Young Werther .
With this key figure of German literature, the movement of Weimar classicism in the late 18th and early 19th centuries coincided with Enlightenment, sentimentality (Empfindsamkeit), Sturm und Drang, and Romanticism. The author of the scientific text Theory of Colours , he influenced Darwin with his focus on plant morphology. He also long served as the privy councilor ("Geheimrat") of the duchy of Weimar.
Goethe took great interest in the literatures of England, France, Italy, classical Greece, Persia, and Arabia and originated the concept of Weltliteratur ("world literature"). Despite his major, virtually immeasurable influence on German philosophy especially on the generation of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel and Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph von Schelling, he expressly and decidedly refrained from practicing philosophy in the rarefied sense.
Influence spread across Europe, and for the next century, his works inspired much music, drama, poetry and philosophy. Many persons consider Goethe the most important writer in the German language and one of the most important thinkers in western culture as well. Early in his career, however, he wondered about painting, perhaps his true vocation; late in his life, he expressed the expectation that people ultimately would remember his work in optics.
George Eliot called him "Germany's greatest man of letters... and the last true polymath to walk the earth." Works span the fields of literature, theology, and humanism.
People laud this magnum opus as one of the peaks of world literature. Other well-known literary works include his numerous poems, the Bildungsroman Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship and the epistolary novel The Sorrows of Young Werther .
With this key figure of German literature, the movement of Weimar classicism in the late 18th and early 19th centuries coincided with Enlightenment, sentimentality (Empfindsamkeit), Sturm und Drang, and Romanticism. The author of the scientific text Theory of Colours , he influenced Darwin with his focus on plant morphology. He also long served as the privy councilor ("Geheimrat") of the duchy of Weimar.
Goethe took great interest in the literatures of England, France, Italy, classical Greece, Persia, and Arabia and originated the concept of Weltliteratur ("world literature"). Despite his major, virtually immeasurable influence on German philosophy especially on the generation of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel and Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph von Schelling, he expressly and decidedly refrained from practicing philosophy in the rarefied sense.
Influence spread across Europe, and for the next century, his works inspired much music, drama, poetry and philosophy. Many persons consider Goethe the most important writer in the German language and one of the most important thinkers in western culture as well. Early in his career, however, he wondered about painting, perhaps his true vocation; late in his life, he expressed the expectation that people ultimately would remember his work in optics.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
June 22, 2018
I'm going to assume that writing a poem so short yet so terrifying is a talent of Goethe, because he does it a few times over his career, and Der Erlkönig is truly terrifying.
April 19, 2022
There is no happy ending in this poem.
The Eff King
Who rides so late through night and wind?
It is the father with his child;
He has the boy safe in his arms,
He holds him safe, he keeps him warm.
"My son, what do you fear to hide your face?"
"See you father, you the Erlkönig not?
The Erl King, with crown and cloak?"
"My son, it is a wisp of fog."
"You dear child, come, go with me!
Many nice games I will play with you;
Many colorful flowers are on the beach,
My mother has many golden robes."
"My father, my father, and thou hearest not,
What the Elf king quietly promises?"
"Be calm, stay calm, my child;
In the dry leaves rustling is the wind."
"Will you, dear boy, will you with me come?
My daughters shall wait upon you nicely;
My daughters do their nightly dance,
And rock and dance and sing to you."
"My father, my father, and you do not see there
Erlkönigs daughters in that dark place?"
"My son, my son, I see it enough:
It is the shining of the willows so gray."
"I love you, I'm charmed by your beautiful form;
And you're not willing, then I force."
"My father, my father, he seizes me!
Erlkönig has done harm to me!"-
The father shudders, he rides swiftly,
He holds in his arms the moaning child
He reaches the house with trouble and strife;
In his arms the child was dead.
The Eff King
Who rides so late through night and wind?
It is the father with his child;
He has the boy safe in his arms,
He holds him safe, he keeps him warm.
"My son, what do you fear to hide your face?"
"See you father, you the Erlkönig not?
The Erl King, with crown and cloak?"
"My son, it is a wisp of fog."
"You dear child, come, go with me!
Many nice games I will play with you;
Many colorful flowers are on the beach,
My mother has many golden robes."
"My father, my father, and thou hearest not,
What the Elf king quietly promises?"
"Be calm, stay calm, my child;
In the dry leaves rustling is the wind."
"Will you, dear boy, will you with me come?
My daughters shall wait upon you nicely;
My daughters do their nightly dance,
And rock and dance and sing to you."
"My father, my father, and you do not see there
Erlkönigs daughters in that dark place?"
"My son, my son, I see it enough:
It is the shining of the willows so gray."
"I love you, I'm charmed by your beautiful form;
And you're not willing, then I force."
"My father, my father, he seizes me!
Erlkönig has done harm to me!"-
The father shudders, he rides swiftly,
He holds in his arms the moaning child
He reaches the house with trouble and strife;
In his arms the child was dead.
July 15, 2024
Ik las Der Erlkönig voor het eerst op de middelbare school en sindsdien heb ik het heel vaak herlezen. Zo mooi, zo dieptriest. Schubert heeft het gedicht op muziek gezet en al lezend daar dan naar luisteren; genieten.
Diezelfde Schubert ging overigens met grote regelmaat naar sekswerkers en stierf aan syfilis - voor wie het interesseert. Dat soort feitjes onthoud ik dan weer.
Diezelfde Schubert ging overigens met grote regelmaat naar sekswerkers en stierf aan syfilis - voor wie het interesseert. Dat soort feitjes onthoud ik dan weer.
May 5, 2025
ja solid laht sich nöd viel sege ich frög mich für was es en metaphor isch oder öbs überhaupt irgend en gedanke dehinter het
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July 22, 2019Read it as a reference before starting Wintersong.
September 17, 2021
:sadge:
September 24, 2020
Music by franz Schubert https://youtu.be/JS91p-vmSf0
poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe :
Wer reitet so spät durch Nacht und Wind?
Es ist der Vater mit seinem Kind;
Er hat den Knaben wohl in dem Arm,
Er faßt ihn sicher, er hält ihn warm.
Mein Sohn, was birgst du so bang dein Gesicht? –
Siehst, Vater, du den Erlkönig nicht?
Den Erlenkönig mit Kron' und Schweif? –
Mein Sohn, es ist ein Nebelstreif.
"Du liebes Kind, komm, geh mit mir!
Gar schöne Spiele spiel' ich mit dir;
Manch' bunte Blumen sind an dem Strand,
Meine Mutter hat manch gülden Gewand." –
Mein Vater, mein Vater, und hörest du nicht,
Was Erlenkönig mir leise verspricht? –
Sei ruhig, bleibe ruhig, mein Kind;
In dürren Blättern säuselt der Wind. –
"Willst, feiner Knabe, du mit mir gehn?
Meine Töchter sollen dich warten schön;
Meine Töchter führen den nächtlichen Reihn,
Und wiegen und tanzen und singen dich ein." –
Mein Vater, mein Vater, und siehst du nicht dort
Erlkönigs Töchter am düstern Ort? –
Mein Sohn, mein Sohn, ich seh' es genau:
Es scheinen die alten Weiden so grau. –
"Ich liebe dich, mich reizt deine schöne Gestalt;
Und bist du nicht willig, so brauch' ich Gewalt." –
Mein Vater, mein Vater, jetzt faßt er mich an!
Erlkönig hat mir ein Leids getan! –
Dem Vater grauset's; er reitet geschwind,
Er hält in Armen das ächzende Kind,
Erreicht den Hof mit Mühe und Not;
In seinen Armen das Kind war tot.
poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe :
Wer reitet so spät durch Nacht und Wind?
Es ist der Vater mit seinem Kind;
Er hat den Knaben wohl in dem Arm,
Er faßt ihn sicher, er hält ihn warm.
Mein Sohn, was birgst du so bang dein Gesicht? –
Siehst, Vater, du den Erlkönig nicht?
Den Erlenkönig mit Kron' und Schweif? –
Mein Sohn, es ist ein Nebelstreif.
"Du liebes Kind, komm, geh mit mir!
Gar schöne Spiele spiel' ich mit dir;
Manch' bunte Blumen sind an dem Strand,
Meine Mutter hat manch gülden Gewand." –
Mein Vater, mein Vater, und hörest du nicht,
Was Erlenkönig mir leise verspricht? –
Sei ruhig, bleibe ruhig, mein Kind;
In dürren Blättern säuselt der Wind. –
"Willst, feiner Knabe, du mit mir gehn?
Meine Töchter sollen dich warten schön;
Meine Töchter führen den nächtlichen Reihn,
Und wiegen und tanzen und singen dich ein." –
Mein Vater, mein Vater, und siehst du nicht dort
Erlkönigs Töchter am düstern Ort? –
Mein Sohn, mein Sohn, ich seh' es genau:
Es scheinen die alten Weiden so grau. –
"Ich liebe dich, mich reizt deine schöne Gestalt;
Und bist du nicht willig, so brauch' ich Gewalt." –
Mein Vater, mein Vater, jetzt faßt er mich an!
Erlkönig hat mir ein Leids getan! –
Dem Vater grauset's; er reitet geschwind,
Er hält in Armen das ächzende Kind,
Erreicht den Hof mit Mühe und Not;
In seinen Armen das Kind war tot.
January 9, 2022
Based on a Germanic legend, Der Erlkönig/The Erl-King/The Elf-King describes a father and son's flight through the Black Forest, pursued by the sinister Elf King, who attempts to lure the boy into his keeping. The mounting suspense in this literary work is almost tangible. Quite a brief poem, only eight stanzas, it nonetheless succeeds in frightening the reader and evincing horror at its conclusion. Terrifying is truly an accurate word for it.
I read a few English translations here: https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-e...
The first translation is superb, and is my favorite, though I don't find the translator listed. It is helpful to know that the Erl-King speaks alongside the boy and his father; he gets a full four lines of speech between each stanza featuring father/son. His words are not labelled as his and can be confused, initially, with the father's words. Sir Walter Scott's translation (literaryballadarchive.com), which is my second favorite rendition, does delineate the Elf's words.
After reading about Franz Schubert and listening to his Erlkönig opera, I had to track down this poem. I have so many questions and might have to research this legend further!
I read a few English translations here: https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-e...
The first translation is superb, and is my favorite, though I don't find the translator listed. It is helpful to know that the Erl-King speaks alongside the boy and his father; he gets a full four lines of speech between each stanza featuring father/son. His words are not labelled as his and can be confused, initially, with the father's words. Sir Walter Scott's translation (literaryballadarchive.com), which is my second favorite rendition, does delineate the Elf's words.
After reading about Franz Schubert and listening to his Erlkönig opera, I had to track down this poem. I have so many questions and might have to research this legend further!
October 24, 2025
“The Erlking” is Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s most famous ballad, and for good reason: it conveys a frantic, terrifying atmosphere and a chilling battle for a child’s soul in just eight short stanzas. Goethe’s mastery of vivid imagery and the creeping fear of the unknown are on full display here, where he combines the power of nature, folklore, and a parent’s love in his continuing fascination with the supernatural.
On a dark, windy night, a father rides through a forest holding his young son. The son begins telling his father that the Erlking, the dark king of the fairies, is riding behind them and calling out to him, but the father insists that the son is simply imagining it. The Erlking tries to tempt the boy with promises of a beautiful fairy realm, lavish gifts, and the attentions of his mother and daughters. When the father continues riding and the boy refuses his offers, the Erlking becomes angry and claims that he will take the boy by force.
“The Erlking” is, of course, translated from Goethe’s German masterpiece “Erlkönig,” which has been a fascination for musicians, songwriters, and opera-penners. The Erlking character actually comes from European folklore, originating in German and Danish ballads as the tree-like king of the elves who stalks and kills children who linger in the woods with a single touch. “The Erlking” could be set in any land, any time period, and that ambiguity only adds to the spooky contrast between reality and illusion. Goethe’s dark, windy landscape (which I have always assumed to be wintertime, even though Goethe never says that explicitly) is the perfect backdrop for the chilling imagery of the forest and the Erlking himself. Some of the dialogue can be a bit confusing since Goethe deigns not to use dialogue tags, but I find it interesting that Goethe still manages to make the voices distinct from one another. His eight stanzas rely on quick rhymes and vivid natural and supernatural imagery to set the suspenseful, uneasy tone.
The warm love between the father and son stands in stark contrast to the wickedness of the Erlking, who tempts the boy with pleasures before flying into a rage and stealing him by force. All the things the Erlking offers — a flowered meadow, clothes of fine gold, the joy of sisterly and motherly company — all seem to represent things that the boy lacks in life, but Goethe makes it clear that these are nothing more than pretty lies compared to the genuine love shared by the father and his son. The fae realm of the Erlking is undoubtedly one of darkness and horrors, as evidenced by his eventual cruelty. Where the father represents love and reason, the Erlking represents vicious allurement, the kind that almost every culture warns about in some sort of fae-stealing-children narrative. “The Erlking” is a literal manifestation of the symbolic battle for a child’s soul, whether from their own imagination, wicked foes, or death itself.
Interestingly, Goethe toys with the notion that perhaps the Erlking is not really chasing the father and son, or that he is simply a symbol for something else in the boy’s imagination. At first glance, the father seems to be in denial, refusing to acknowledge the danger of the Erlking, but perhaps he is simply trying to calm his son’s fears as well as his own. The father presents natural explanations for what the boy is hearing — the heavy mist, the wind through the leaves, the willow trees — not because he does not believe in the Erlking, but perhaps because he knows all too well what happens when the Erlking lays claim to a soul. His flight, then, is one of hopeless desperation, a panicked journey to save what he loves most in the world from the devil’s grasp.
Goethe’s battle between civilization and wilderness, reason and danger, home and the unknown is as philosophical as it is heartbreaking, as much a horror tale as a cautionary fantasy. I’ve always read this poem with a bit of a chill up my spine — it seems to tap into a world that’s not quite distant enough from reality for my taste.
On a dark, windy night, a father rides through a forest holding his young son. The son begins telling his father that the Erlking, the dark king of the fairies, is riding behind them and calling out to him, but the father insists that the son is simply imagining it. The Erlking tries to tempt the boy with promises of a beautiful fairy realm, lavish gifts, and the attentions of his mother and daughters. When the father continues riding and the boy refuses his offers, the Erlking becomes angry and claims that he will take the boy by force.
“Look, father, the Erlking is close by our side! Dost see not the Erlking, with crown and with train?”
“My son, ‘tis the mist rising over the plain.”
“The Erlking” is, of course, translated from Goethe’s German masterpiece “Erlkönig,” which has been a fascination for musicians, songwriters, and opera-penners. The Erlking character actually comes from European folklore, originating in German and Danish ballads as the tree-like king of the elves who stalks and kills children who linger in the woods with a single touch. “The Erlking” could be set in any land, any time period, and that ambiguity only adds to the spooky contrast between reality and illusion. Goethe’s dark, windy landscape (which I have always assumed to be wintertime, even though Goethe never says that explicitly) is the perfect backdrop for the chilling imagery of the forest and the Erlking himself. Some of the dialogue can be a bit confusing since Goethe deigns not to use dialogue tags, but I find it interesting that Goethe still manages to make the voices distinct from one another. His eight stanzas rely on quick rhymes and vivid natural and supernatural imagery to set the suspenseful, uneasy tone.
“My father, my father, and dost thou not hear the words that the Erlking now breathes in mine ear?”
“Be calm, dearest child, ‘tis thy fancy deceives; ‘tis the sad wind that sighs through the withering leaves.”
The warm love between the father and son stands in stark contrast to the wickedness of the Erlking, who tempts the boy with pleasures before flying into a rage and stealing him by force. All the things the Erlking offers — a flowered meadow, clothes of fine gold, the joy of sisterly and motherly company — all seem to represent things that the boy lacks in life, but Goethe makes it clear that these are nothing more than pretty lies compared to the genuine love shared by the father and his son. The fae realm of the Erlking is undoubtedly one of darkness and horrors, as evidenced by his eventual cruelty. Where the father represents love and reason, the Erlking represents vicious allurement, the kind that almost every culture warns about in some sort of fae-stealing-children narrative. “The Erlking” is a literal manifestation of the symbolic battle for a child’s soul, whether from their own imagination, wicked foes, or death itself.
“My father, my father, and dost thou not see, how the Erlking his daughters has brought here for me?”
“My darling, my darling, I see it aright, ‘tis the aged grey willows deceiving thy sight.”
Interestingly, Goethe toys with the notion that perhaps the Erlking is not really chasing the father and son, or that he is simply a symbol for something else in the boy’s imagination. At first glance, the father seems to be in denial, refusing to acknowledge the danger of the Erlking, but perhaps he is simply trying to calm his son’s fears as well as his own. The father presents natural explanations for what the boy is hearing — the heavy mist, the wind through the leaves, the willow trees — not because he does not believe in the Erlking, but perhaps because he knows all too well what happens when the Erlking lays claim to a soul. His flight, then, is one of hopeless desperation, a panicked journey to save what he loves most in the world from the devil’s grasp.
“I love thee, I’m charm’d by thy beauty, dear boy! And if thou’rt unwilling, then force I’ll employ.”
“My father, my father, he seizes me fast, full sorely the Erlking has hurt me at last.”
Goethe’s battle between civilization and wilderness, reason and danger, home and the unknown is as philosophical as it is heartbreaking, as much a horror tale as a cautionary fantasy. I’ve always read this poem with a bit of a chill up my spine — it seems to tap into a world that’s not quite distant enough from reality for my taste.
December 6, 2022
OH MEIN GOTT!!!
GOETHE!!! (Natürlich mit Schuberts Musikwiedergabe)
BITTE!!!
Der Erlkönig ist meine persönliche Lieblingsballade aller Zeiten <3
GOETHE!!! (Natürlich mit Schuberts Musikwiedergabe)
BITTE!!!
Der Erlkönig ist meine persönliche Lieblingsballade aller Zeiten <3
February 24, 2020
Человек слаб, куда и как он не иди. Человек — раб, могущества в нём не ищи. Создание природы, обязан вернуться назад. Возвышались и раньше народы, но следовал спад. В ничто человек обращался, ничтожеством представая в итоге. Он обязательно унижался, хотя и унижал других вроде. Всё временно в мире, проблем не явится свыше покуда. Смотреть нужно шире, не замыкаясь образом круга. Выйти за пределы понимания, забыть о человеческом… Разве трудно к тому приложить старания? Пусть и живя в Земли лоне отеческом. И пока человек остаётся природы созданием, боится могущества неясных сил, до той поры познакомимся ещё не с одним преданием, подобие чего Гёте сложил.
(c) Trounin
(c) Trounin
November 16, 2023
Ела с мен, момченце, във моите гори!
Там с теб ще играем чудесни игри
След прочита на Тайните убежища, нямаше как да не прочета и тази страхотна балада.
Не знам дали е алегория на съзряването, описва болно дете или Горският цар е символ на сексуалното насилие, но това са част от тълкуванията.
За мен е една кратка, но много жестока история, която ме кара да настръхвам!
April 17, 2022
I had to read this for my German class but oh my god this was such a good poem. I started reading it with dread because I had to learn the poem by heart, but I fell in love more and more everytime i re-read the verses. The pure heartbreak of the father and the fear of the child really keep you on edge and make you feel empathetic for the father. Erlkönig himself gave off such an eery vibe which made this poem 100 times better. 10/10 would recommend to a friend!
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October 15, 2023Just putting this here as I’ve been reading a lot of short stories for classes / essays.
Der Erlkonig - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Morella - Edgar Allan Poe
Lenore - Edgar Allan Poe
The Fall of the House of Usher - Poe (reread)
Ulalume - Edgar Allan Poe
The Philosophy of Composition - Edgar Allan Poe
Annabel Lee - Edgar Allan Poe
The Oval Portrait - Edgar Allan Poe
The Vane Sisters - Vladimir Nabokov
Lilith - Vladimir Nabokov
Der Erlkonig - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Morella - Edgar Allan Poe
Lenore - Edgar Allan Poe
The Fall of the House of Usher - Poe (reread)
Ulalume - Edgar Allan Poe
The Philosophy of Composition - Edgar Allan Poe
Annabel Lee - Edgar Allan Poe
The Oval Portrait - Edgar Allan Poe
The Vane Sisters - Vladimir Nabokov
Lilith - Vladimir Nabokov
August 30, 2023
Ich habe diese Gedicht für meines Deutschklasse ins Hochschule gelesen - Aua. Es hat mir gefallen so, auch es hat mich seitdem verfolgt.
I had to read this for German class in high school, and it's probably one of my favorite pieces ever. It's haunting, and I enjoyed it, even though it's sad and painful, it's still a great read.
I had to read this for German class in high school, and it's probably one of my favorite pieces ever. It's haunting, and I enjoyed it, even though it's sad and painful, it's still a great read.
October 22, 2024
Кто ищет канон лирических стихотворений, найдет их в достатке у Гёте. Увлечение Иоганна персидскими мотивами и структурой мне не приглянулось. Одноименное стихотворение «Лесной Царь» увлекательно и полно трагизма, но до безобразия коротко, а могла бы быть вещь!
Единственное, несмотря на старания переводчиков, всю глубину мастерства поэта можно оценить только в оригинале. Но не с моим немецким )
Единственное, несмотря на старания переводчиков, всю глубину мастерства поэта можно оценить только в оригинале. Но не с моим немецким )
October 23, 2020
Spare, startling, and surprising in a twisted way. While short, this poem offers up much to ponder and a great deal to imagine.
February 11, 2021
A terrifying but brilliant poem that I've had to read for school. Goethe's writing is great, yet terrifying and even though it's just a short poem, it's quite gripping.
September 13, 2022
Short but epic poem
February 4, 2023
Absolutnie przepiękna, bardzo często wracam do niej myślami.
March 12, 2023
Četla jsem kvůli němčině (v německém originále), velmi silná a smutná báseň
August 22, 2023
Complete w/ *chef'skiss* Tsvetaeva commentary.
December 15, 2023
gdyby to mnie wołał król olch to bym posluchała…
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September 26, 2024Just listened to Schubert's opera of this and it was like a medieval horror radio play.
October 13, 2024
besteleri dinlerken operada gibiydim sanki
December 30, 2024
unsettling… 😅
February 23, 2025
Interesting poem by Goethe.
March 26, 2025
ორ გვერდში ჩაატიო ისეთი სიუჟეტი, რომელიც ბევრნაირად შეიძლება გაიგო, უამრავი ემოცია შეაგრძნობინო მკითხველს და ასეთი დაძაბული გარემო შექმნა… ნამდვილად დიდ ნიჭს მოითხოვს.
მორიგი მასტერკლასი გოეთესგან!
მორიგი მასტერკლასი გოეთესგან!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews