Lāčplēsis kā pārejas laika varonis
Bearslayer as a Hero of a Transition Epoch

Summary/Abstract: Bearslayer is a composite character in Latvian cultural tradition. In folk tales and legends his equivalent names are also Bearears or Bearman. Thu national epic Bearslayer by Andrejs Pumpurs as well as the play Fire and Night written by Rainis have interpreted this character from a Romantic perspective. Bearslayer seems to have a threefold origin: the oldest hero or his protagonist most probably comes from Finno-Ugrian tribes residing in the territory of contemporary Latvia before the arrival of Indo-Europeans. This Bearslayer refers to the time when the structure of the matrilineal society was yielding to a patrilineal structure. The next impact came from the time when the transition to a feudal system took place in Latvia. These influences can be traced in other characters related to Bearslayer. The Romantic tradition in the story was introduced by A. Pumpurs and Rainis, yet in their interpretations they manage to preserve and show Bearslayer as a hero standing on a threshold of a new epoch.

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