Der Erlkönig Analysis

The tale of the child recorded in Der Erlkönig, while potentially not an exactly true account, is a generally accurate warning about against the dangers of Erlkings hidden in muggle folklore. We notice there are some partial discrepancies or vagaries, but these can (and will) be accounted for and do not hinder the overall meaning and truth of the piece. We know this to be a true account for a number of reasons. Some of the most basic reasons include the prevailing theme of the “elf king’s” voice only reaching the child and not being heard by the father and the feeling of temptation that is insinuated.

One of the most obvious similarities between the dark, evil “Elf King” mentioned in the work and real Erklings is the fact that father in the
Magical children are often educated from a young age in the dangers of Erklings and their call, but yet the cackle is still tempting. This is portrayed --though slightly more romantically—in Der Erlkönig through the creature-king’s honeyed words. He calls to the boy and offers him promises and sweet words in multiple instances such as: “I love you, your comeliness charms me, boy” and “come along with me… my daughters shall care for you tenderly”. This temptation is a clear echo of the lure of the Erkling’s
Additionally, this poem seems to very easily mesh with the idea that Muggles are introduced to ideas about and allowed to produce literature on the topic of magic (creatures, spells, plants and more) when it is deemed necessary or dangerous enough. In this case, I believe that this poem was requested to be allowed through simply because of a rising problem with Erklings, specifically Bavarian ones, among the Muggle population in Germany. Perhaps they hoped that by arming Muggles with rudimentary knowledge they may be able to save Muggle lives as well as make their job of secrecy (per the ISOS) easier due to having to cover up fewer