Otto of the Silver Hand

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes descriptions of child abuse and graphic violence.

The Medieval Era is the most prominent motif in the story, and Pyle uses this historical setting to create a story that showcases The Dichotomy of Good and Evil and examines the nuanced motivations of the people who lived during this era. The story features a rivalry between two Castles during 13th-century Germany and the reign of Rudolph of Habsburg. Pyle describes it as “a great black gulf in human history, a gulf of ignorance, of superstition, of cruelty, and of wickedness” (1). Baron Conrad rules over his castle and supplies it by robbing from others. Aside from his wife, who tries to stay his hand, no one complains about the Baron’s methods for acquiring goods. Feuds are constant, and people often do not return; if they do, they are often badly injured. Health care was scarcely existent during this time frame, and the common methods of bloodletting and the use of leeches were ineffective at best and deadly at worst. 

Children during this time frame were viewed as more vulnerable than adults, but they were also seen as smaller adults who were expected to learn the ways of their households and to answer the call of war when it came. At the mere age of 12, Otto is captured, and his hand is cut off in an act of revenge against his father, showing that The Tension between Family Legacy and Personal Ethics could be a costly burden. During this era, most people died of disease or violence, rather than of old age, with the exception of people from the wealthiest ruling classes. The brutality that persisted during this era stands in direct contrast with the pacifistic moral framework that Otto is taught.