# II: The Flitting of the War-Arrow explained — The House of the Wolfings

> Chapter companion for The House of the Wolfings by William Morris.

## What happens

On a summer evening, the Wolfing folk hear the war-horn of the Elkings, signaling tidings of war. A young runner from the Hartings arrives bearing the war-arrow—a token burnt, bloodied, and split—and delivers the call to arms against a great host from the South. Thiodolf, the war-duke, blows the Wolfing war-horn three times, and the kindred prepare to depart for battle, leaving the Hall-Sun behind under the Roof.

## Themes in this chapter

### Ritual and Custom

The arrival of the war-arrow and the blowing of the war-horn are ritualized acts that bind the Wolfings to the call of war, following ancient custom.

### The Cycle of War and Return

Thiodolf's speech emphasizes the hope of returning to the homestead, framing war as a departure and anticipated homecoming.

### Tribal Identity and Kinship

The Wolfings gather as a kindred under the Roof, and the war-arrow unites them with neighboring tribes like the Elkings and Hartings.

## Character check-ins

### Thiodolf

The dark-haired chief of the Wolfings, deemed wisest and most dauntless; he receives the war-token, blows the war-horn, and commands the hosting.

### Hall-Sun

Thiodolf's foster-daughter, a fair young woman who sits under the lamp in the hall; she remains behind as the warriors prepare to depart.

### Elfric

The young runner from the Hartings who bears the war-arrow and delivers the summons to the Wolfings.

## Key lines

> Behold, O Wolves, the token and say if it be true! I bear the shaft of battle that is four-wise cloven through, And its each end dipped in the bloodstream, both the iron and the horn, And its midmost scathed with the fire;

The runner presents the war-arrow, split four ways, its ends stained with blood and its middle scorched by fire, as the undeniable token of war.

_The war-arrow is a physical symbol of the summons, its damage representing the urgency and violence of the coming conflict._

> Forth will we Wolfing children, and cast a sound abroad: The mouth of the sea-beast’s weapon shall speak the battle-word;

Thiodolf declares that the Wolfings will sound the war-horn, made from a whale's tusk, to spread the call to arms.

_The war-horn is personified as a 'sea-beast's weapon,' linking the tribe's martial identity to the natural world._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_house_of_the_wolfings_se/chapters/ii-the-flitting-of-the-war-arrow
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_house_of_the_wolfings_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_house_of_the_wolfings_se/chapters