Oberon (mythology)

Oberón enchanting Titania, illustration of W. Heath Robinson, 1914

Oberon is, in Celtic mythology and medieval legends, the king of the fairies; it is also said that he was a cousin of the king of men. He is famous as a character in William Shakespeare's play, A Midsummer Night's Dream.

History

The legend of Oberon would have had its literary beginning in the French Song of Deeds Les Prouesses et faitz du noble Huon de Bordeaux (first half of the century XIII). In this song the noble Huon, son of Seguin, Count of Bordeaux, kills a man who has been ambushed, who turns out to be Charlot, the Emperor's son. For this he is condemned, but he obtains a temporary suspension of punishment on the condition that he visit the court of the Emir of Babylon, return with a lock of his hair and four of his teeth, and there also murder the best of his knights and kiss in three times to his daughter Esclarmonde. With the help of the goblin Oberon, Huon achieves success after facing many adventures. Charles the Child, son of Charles the Bald, dies in 886 from wounds inflicted by Aubouin under similar circumstances. The real-life Seguin was a Count of Bordeaux under Louis Pius in 839, and died fighting the Normans six years later.

Thus, Oberon appears in a courtly fantasy from the XIII century based on a historical episode from the IX. He is given Celtic trappings, like a magic cup that will always be full for the virtuous (compare the Holy Grail): 'The magic cup provides his snack; but such is the virtue of him that he not only produces wine, but more solid sustenance when it is desired', and, according to Thomas Bulfinch, he was said to be the son of Morgana le Fay and Julius Caesar.

A manuscript of the romance in Turin contains a prologue in the form of a separate romance on Auberon, and four sequences. There are later French versions.

Shakespeare read or heard of Oberon, through the translation (ca 1540) of John Bourchier, Lord Berners, as Huon of Burdeuxe. In Philip Henslowe's diary there is a note about the rehearsal of a play, Hewen of Burdocize, on December 28, 1593.

"Oberon" as king of the elves is an older story, as Alberich (elbe reix, elves rex or "king of the elves"), a sorcerer in the legendary history of the Merovingian dynasty; he is the supernatural brother of Merowech, eponymous to the Merovingians. He won for his eldest son, Walbert, the hand of the princess of Constantinople. Like Alberich in The Song of the Nibelungs, he guards the treasure of the Nibelungs, but is defeated by Siegfried. In this way, the Burgundian myth of him evolves in a different direction and he ends up stealing the Rhine Gold (Rhinemaidens' gold) in Richard Wagner's opera.

Oberon, or the Prince of the Fairies (1616) is a work by Ben Jonson. Carl Maria von Weber's opera, Oberon, or the Ode to the Elf-King (based on a poem by Christoph Martin Wieland), debuted in Covent Garden, London, in 1826.

In popular culture

• In Hugo Pratt's comic The Maltese Choir, there is a chapter entitled "sleep of a winter morning", where Oberon makes his appearance at Stonehenge next to the Fauno Pit, Morgana and the magician Merlin.

• Oberón also appears as a fictitious character in the DC Universe, having been introduced by Neil Gaiman in his comic The Sandman, in the saga Country of Dreams, like the King of the Fairies, the husband of Titania, and friend of Morpheus, who would have commissioned Shakespeare the work in his honor.

• In the Argentine comic "Travesía por el laberinto", written by Eduardo Mazzitelli and drawn by Enrique Alcatena is one of the main characters.

• It also appears in the animated series Gárgolas as the father of supernatural creatures.

• In the Japanese animation series, Sword Art Online, the character Sugou Nobuyuki in the VRMMORPG ALfheim Online is called Oberón "The King of Fairies".

• It also appears in the Japanese animated series, Mahoutsukai no YomeAs a husband of Titania.

• Also in the video game Warframe He is a playable person with alusive abilities to this.

• In the video game The Sims 2 reference is made to several Shakespeare characters in the neighborhood Villa Verona being Oberón Deunanoche the sim based on Oberón. Also in the sequel The Sims 3: Supernatural Oberón Deunanoche appears, in this case it appears as a fairy (thing that does not occur in The Sims 2).

• The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke song by the English band Queen includes references to Oberón and his wife, Titania.

• In the podcast "Voces in the box" of cold Pizza productions. Oberón is mentioned at the end of the first season as the King of the "hadas" that is locked underground.

• Within the video game Fate/Grand Order is a Pretender class servant.