The purpose of a myth is to promote an ideology and establish norms for society. In this way, according to Bidney, myth is the source of morality and religion (Myth, Symbolism, and Truth 22). This would explain the various connections between Christianity and Germanic and Norse mythology. For example, the story of creation is parallel: the universe begins in darkness and emptiness, a single entity is responsible for the first creation, and smaller beings complete the design of the world(s). Additionally, one could discuss the similarity between the apple of northern life and the biblical forbidden fruit, which is usually translated as apple, in the Garden of Eden. The Germanic epic poem Das Nibelungenlied, based on rulers and historical events of the 5th and 6th centuries, also draws parallels with Christian elements. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Perhaps these comparisons exist because all the myths were written following Christianization, and the Nibelungen in particular was not written until the 13th century. Due to the strong Christian sentiment of the 18th century, when the text was rediscovered there was an inner conflict with the pagan way of life depicted and as such appreciation of the text focused on the elements magic of the epic (Krause 195). . This orientation remained until the beginning of the 20th century, when Fritz Lang made his two-part silent film Die Nibelungen. In the film, Lang avoided mentioning Germanic and Norse gods and instead retained magical elements such as the dragon, the invisibility cloak and the heroes' superpowers; invincibility and strength. In the context of the Nibelungenlied and the Nibelungen, not only is an underlying message of Christianity conveyed, but also a deviation from the Norse-Germanic gods and towards magic is noticeably present. The Nibelungenlied is a heroic epic in Middle High German. The epic deals with the dragon slayer Siegfried and the Burgundian people, Siegfried's ultimate murder, and his wife Kriemhild's revenge after his death. The poem was written by an anonymous poet with references to Germanic mythology as well as Christian elements interspersed. The Nibelungenlied also contains historical events and people, such as the Hunnish king Attila, but the poem alone is a creation of history. It is for this reason that the Nibelungenlied aroused a sense of national identity after its rediscovery in the 18th century, even if certain traits of Germanic heroism were abused and combined with racism (Krause, “In Romanticism”). Whether the anonymous poet deliberately incorporated Christian elements remains a question for mythologists, but some aspects between the epic and the Bible are too similar to neglect. Siegfried, the hero of the story, serves as the "intermediary" between the human world and the magical world, just as Jesus was the mediator between humanity and God. The dragon's blood, in which Siegfried bathes, gives him invincibility and immortalizes him to a certain extent, with the exception of the Achilles spot on his back. On this point, Kriemhild naively sews a cross, an important Christian symbol, onto the back of Siegfried's tunic. Some might consider it sacrilege to directly compare Siegfried to Jesus, but distinct parallels exist regarding the subject of sacrifice and the meaning of blood. The film Die Nibelungen by Fritz Lang shows the deviation from the religious aspects of Germanic mythology towards purely magical elements. These magical attributes in Die Nibelungen include the. 2010.