Phantastes · Chapter
XXI explained
The narrator and his two brothers prepare for battle against three giants.
What happens
The narrator and his two brothers prepare for battle against three giants. They arm themselves and sing a ballad before the giants attack. In the ensuing fight, the narrator kills his giant with a rapier and sabre, but both brothers die in combat. The narrator frees prisoners from the giants' castle, returns the bodies of the princes to their father the king, and is knighted. He later leaves the court to visit the city of the elder prince's beloved, but the task is spared him by a strange event.
Themes in this chapter
The Heroic Journey and Self-Sacrifice
The brothers sacrifice their lives in battle, and the narrator reflects on their glory and his own survival.
Death and Rebirth
The death of the brothers and the narrator's survival lead to a new phase of his journey, including knighthood and departure.
Good and Evil
The battle against the giants represents the struggle between good and evil, with the giants as monstrous foes.
Characters to notice
- Anodos
Narrator and protagonist; survives the battle with the giants and is knighted by the king.
- The Knight
Elder brother; dies in combat with a giant, buried his battle-axe in the foe.
- Some Hero
Younger brother; dies after hewing off a giant's leg and stabbing him in the throat.
- The Ash
The Shadow; reappears after the battle, haunting the narrator.
- The Speaker
The king; father of the two brothers, knights the narrator and mourns his sons.
Key passages
“Oh, well for him who breaks his dream / With the blow that ends the strife; / And, waking, knows the peace that flows / Around the pain of life!”
It is fortunate for the one who ends his illusion with a decisive action and awakens to find tranquility amidst life's suffering.
The narrator sings this ballad before the battle, reflecting on the peace that comes from facing death.
“I was inferior in strength to both my brothers, but a little more agile than either; and upon this agility, joined to precision in hitting with the point of my weapon, I grounded my hopes of success in the ensuing combat.”
The narrator was weaker than his brothers but relied on his speed and accuracy with a sword to win the fight.
Highlights the narrator's strategy and self-awareness before the battle.
“I, the least worthy, remained the sole survivor in the lists.”
The narrator, feeling unworthy, was the only one left alive after the battle.
Expresses the narrator's humility and grief at surviving while his brothers died.