The Blood of the Walsungs (Wälsungenblut in German) is a novella written by the German author Thomas Mann. Originally written in 1905 and set to be published in the January 1906 issue of Die Neue Rundschau, it was pulled from print because of its similarities to Mann's new wife and her family. The story was finally published in Germany in 1921 and has since remained one of Mann's most controversial works for its portrayal of anti-Semitism and incest.
The novella narrates an episode in the lives of the Aarenhold household and its youngest members, the twins Siegmund and Sieglinde, who spend most of their time together and love each other deeply to the point of committing incest. Mann drew artistic inspiration from Richard Wagner's 1870 opera Die Walküre (The Valkyrie) and the myth the Völsunga clan, famous in Nordic mythology.
Plot
Herr Aarenhold is a wealthy entrepreneur of Jewish origin. Born in small town in East Prussia, Herr Aarenhold becomes wealthy after engaging in large-scale mining schemes. He marries Frau Aarenhold, the daughter of a German tradesman, and becomes assimilated into German culture. All of Herr Aarenhold's adult children still live in the house while they pursue their professional careers. Kunz, the eldest son, is an active member of the military. Märit, the eldest daughter, possesses a strong character and studies law. The youngest members of the Aarenhold household are the twins, Siegmund and Sieglinde, named after the characters in Richard Wagner's Die Walküre. They are spoiled members of bourgeois society and love each other strongly; to the point of almost never seeing one without the other hand in hand.
One day at lunchtime, the Aarenholds sit around their mansion waiting for Beckerath – a government official who is soon to become Sieglinde's husband. Beckerath arrives late to the event and his tardiness is not very well-received by Herr Aarenhold and Sieglinde. During the course of the meal, Herr Aarenhold tells Beckerath of his origins and how he believes in absolute achievement. That no matter the conditions you have to endure, true achievement is defined by whether you overcome the obstacles presented to you and reach your goals without excuses. Contrary to the aestheticism and grandiose eloquence to which the Aarenholds ascribe, Beckerath is only an amateur in the arts and finds it hard to keep up the pace with their conversation. Beckerath's dullness renders him the target of the Aarenhold children's rhetorical attacks. Giving Beckerath a break, Siegmund asks for his permission to allow both Sieglinde and to attend the opera alone with him before their marriage. Moved by such request, Beckerath agrees to the request, and the twins are set to see Die Walküre that evening. It turns out that Siegmund is expecting the official to agree to his request since he had bought the tickets with long anticipation.
After the lunch is over, Siegmund starts getting ready for the function. He constantly shaves his facial hair and pampers himself with toilet waters as a way to purify himself from his Jewish origins. Already dressed and warning him of the carriage's arrival, Sieglinde joins her twin brother in his room and, in that private atmosphere, they share some caresses and a kiss. In company of their servant, Wendelin, the twins leave the mansion amid light snow. They shut themselves in the warmth of the carriage and find comfort in each other. Once they arrive at the opera, Siegmund and Sieglinde make themselves comfortable in their box and watch the characters whom they are named after. They see their image, fate, and experience reflected in the children of the Nordic gods. The twins, especially Siegmund, become exalted with the musical rendition of their operatic counterparts. So much so that, during the intermissions, they walk through the theater corridors in a trance-like state, indifferent of their surroundings.