Otto of the Silver Hand

Baron Conrad is the deuteragonist of the story. He is a complex and multifaceted character who ostensibly appears to be just another brutal robber baron, but whose emotions of grief and guilt prove him to be just as human as anyone else. Baron Conrad and his wife Baroness Matilda rule over their castle, and the Baron supplies the castle with the wealth that he steals from others. The Baroness asks her husband to stop robbing others, and while he eventually abides by this, he does indulge in one last pillage that badly injures him. When the Baron is brought home, he appears to be dead, and the distress of this sight kills the Baroness. Their son, Otto, becomes all that is left of her memory.

The Baron attempts to uphold his wife’s wish for peace by sending Otto to be raised at the monastery, but then retrieves him again when he is 12 years old, hoping to erase the teachings that he considers weak and useless. As he tells his son, “Thou must get out of those foolish notions that the old monks have taught thee. Here in the world it is different from what it is at St. Michaelsburg; here a man must either slay or be slain” (67). This passage makes it clear that the Baron has embraced violence as a way of life, and he knows that his son is unlikely to survive unless he gains combat skills. In a way, his speech therefore represents a twisted form of concern for his son’s well-being. Eventually, however, the Baron realizes that his own violence is the direct cause of his son’s suffering. He reunites with his son, who is by then near death, and the sight of his son’s injuries makes him sob. The Baron attempts to avenge his son and absolve his own guilt by sacrificing himself in a fight against Baron Henry. His actions allow Otto to be safely taken to the monastery to heal. Otto’s complex relationship with his father revolves around The Tension between Family Legacy and Personal Ethics, but Otto’s determination not to follow in his father’s footsteps also stands as a prime example of Choosing Love over Violence.

One-eyed Hans is the most loyal member of Baron Conrad’s company. He is always at the Baron’s side and always stands ready to do his bidding without question. Hans is blind in one eye, but that disability does not stop him from seeing the world around him with cleverness that few others share. His other eye is described as “twinkled and gleamed like a spark under the penthouse of his brows” (9), and he is known to have the strength of 10 men despite his small stature. Hans is both respected and feared amongst the people of the castle. In the novel’s climactic scenes, he uses his wits to sneak into the Trutz-Drachen castle by disguising himself as a peddler and playing on the naiveté of the girls who live in the castle. He attacks a sentry but lets him go after the sentry does what is asked; Hans does as a way to honor Otto but later regrets this action. Hans manages to save Otto from the prison and return him to his father, and he is then responsible for ensuring that Otto reaches the monastery safely. Hans is therefore a character who represents The Dichotomy of Good and Evil, for although he is a brutal man who kills people and pillages townships, he is also fiercely loyal and attempts to understand young Otto’s values of peace and kindness.

Brother John is a flat character who appears in the introductory portion of the story, during which time Otto is raised in the monastery. Brother John helps to raise Otto from infancy and devoutly cares for him each day. He has an intellectual disability as the result of a childhood injury, and as such, he cannot read or write, but Otto still delights in hearing Brother John’s stories of his life. Brother John is deeply religious and often has visions of angels. He tells Otto of one such vision, in which the Angel Gabriel appeared with a hand that shone like silver. Gabriel told Brother John that “[n]othing that has lived shall ever die, and nothing that has died shall ever live” (47). The vision foreshadows Otto’s future as a man of peace and wisdom, in which he is respected by the whole of Germany. Brother John is one of the purest examples of Choosing Love over Violence. He has only known the monastic life, and he is always kind and gentle.

Abbot Otto is a secondary character who is defined by his kind, serious demeanor, his wisdom, and his ability to understand the bigger political picture in the world around him. Abbot Otto is the head of the monastery in which Otto is raised, and he is the one who agrees to take Otto in when the Baron brings the young boy there in a desperate attempt to save him from a violent life. Abbot Otto is also Otto’s great uncle, and Otto was named after him because Abbot Otto upholds values of peace and compassion. This is what the Baroness wanted for her son, which is why the Baron insists that Otto be raised at the monastery. Abbot Otto is “a gentle, patient, pale-faced old man; his white hands were soft and smooth, and no one would have thought that they could have known the harsh touch of sword-hilt and lance” (28). He has wisdom because he has previously experienced war, but he gave up his former violent ways to embrace a better life of study and sanctitude. Abbot Otto is a powerful example of Choosing Love over Violence, and he passes these values on to Otto as well.