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Researching the Things that I Think are Significant in Eckbert the Fair

Eckbert

The definition of fair

  • means "in accordance with the rules and standards; legitimate."  It also means light-haired.
  • so... on the surface, Eckbert is fair because he has "short ash-blond hair" (Tieck 16).  But on a deeper level and concealed within the story, Eckbert is the legitimate child of his parents, versus the illegitimacy of his sister/wife Bertha.

Harz Mountains

Birch trees

  • in Celtic culture, the birch is related to growth and stability and adaptability because of its hardiness.
    • need citation other than Wikipedia
  • Gaelic folklore: death, fairies, returning from the grave
    • need citation other than Wikipedia
  • other than a deeper understanding of the text, the birch could be related to the witch but how I connect those ideas and for what purpose I'm not really sure.
Spinning Wheel
Nightingale 
  • the nightingale's song is associated with regret, especially for the romantics (so... fits)
    • citation:
      • Doggett, Frank (1974), "Romanticism's Singing Bird", SEL: Studies in English Literature 1500–1900, Rice University, XIV (4): 547–561.
  • the bird became known as a poet himself, inspired poetry, and was a muse for poets
    • citation:
      • Walker, Stuart (2012). "The Object of Nightingales: Design Values for a Meaningful Material Culture". Design and Culture. 4(2): 149–170. 
  • the people reading the story at the point in time it was written, would have known these things.  The nightingale appears at the point in the story where Bertha is taken in by the witch. Could reflect her regret at leaving her farm family.  Other than that... I'm shooting blanks.
Walther
  • rule, brightness, army, warrior
  • I don't think there's a connection other than the traits Walther is supposed to have
Strohmian
Hugo
  • means mind, spirit
    • probably of no use to me

Citation I found that I want to research later:

  • Castein, Hanne "Ludwig Tieck – King of the Romantics" in Weir (2004) pp. 29–32.
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