Dialogues with the Viking Age: Narration and Representation in the Sagas of the Icelanders

282 Pages·14.164 MB·English

by  Vésteinn Ólason

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Vesteinn Olason
Dialogues with the
Viking Age
Narration and Representation
in the Sagas of the Icelanders
Translated by Andrew Wawn
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HEIMSKRINGLA
Mal og Menning Academic Division
Rey~avik1998
Contents
Preface 9
I. Introduction 15
Icelandic Sagas-Sagas of Icelanders-islendingasogur 17
What isaSaga? 17 - The islendingasogur 17 - Preservation and
Dating 18- Sagas and Oral Tradition 19 - The Sagas asMyth 21
Social and Historical Context 23
The Discovery and Settlement of Iceland 23- The Formation of a
New Society 24 - Social Structure 27 - The Economy 30- Com-
munication with the Outside World 31- Christianisation 32- Con-
centration of Power-The End of the Commonwealth 34-
Towards a Feudal System 35
38
The Cultural and Literary Background
The Oral Culture ofViking-Age Scandinavia and Iceland 38-
Oral Tradition in Iceland before the Advent ofWriting 41 - The
Age ofWriting 44 - Religious and "learned" Literature 46 - The
Beginnings of Historiography 48 - Historiography in the Early
Thirteenth Century 50- Snorri S~urluson 53- New Genres and
Subjects 60- The Writing of the Islendingasogur 61
II. Narratives and Narrative Art 63
65
Stories and Plots
Feuds and Conflict~ 65 - Types of Saga Plots 67 - Beyond the Plot
79 - Topography 82
84
Narrative Structure
Beginnings and Endings 84 - The Story within the Saga-Narrative
Element~ and Links 89 - Patterns ofAction 93
95
Telling the Tale
Time in the Saga 95- Rhythm 99 - Narrator and Narrative 101-
Point ofView and Focalisation 106
111
Verbal Artistry
Vocabulary and Style 111 - Words and Deeds 115
The Power of the Word 120
Words and Reputation 120- Prose and Versein the islendinga-
sogur 124
Retrospect 130
III. Saga Worlds 133
Actors and Actions 135
Dramatis pPTson{p135- Heroes-Perfect and Imperfect 138-
Female Roles 147- Heroism Reversed-Injustice and Evil 156-
Caricature 161
Ideology and Morality 166
Values and Norms 166- Honour and Vengeance-Gisli Sursson
167- Conflicting Fortunes-Fate and Action in Laxd{pla saga 173
After the Commonwealth 180
Chieftains and Power 180- Power Struggles asComedy 184-
Arrogance and Misfortune-Grettir 186
The Meeting of Two Worlds 191
Ancient and Modern Attitudes 191- The Status ofFarmer-Chief-
tains-Egill Skalla-Grfmsson 192- Great Oaks Must Fall-0aL~
saga 197
Retrospect 206
IV.The Sagas in the World 209
The Sagas in Literary History 211
Meaning and Interpretation 221
The islendingasoguras a Literary Genre 228
The Sagas and Posterity 238
Notes 249
Bibliography 271
Index 295
Preface
Kolskegg moved quickly and stepped towards him and struck him
on the thigh with his short-sword and cut off his leg, and then he
said, "Did that hit you or not?"
"This iswhat Iget," said Kol, "for not shielding myself," - and he
stood for awhile on his other leg and looked at the stump.
Kolskegg said, ''Youdon't need to look: it'sjust asyou think, the
leg isgone."
Then Kolfell down dead (ch. 63; iii 75).
There can be few instances anywhere in world literature of dia-
logue aspowerful and incisive as this exchange about the lossof a
legin Njdls saga. The present book argues that the islendingasogur
(or Family Sagas as they are often called) as a whole are also
dialogues about loss. They are about loss not of life or limb,
though there isno shortage of such moments, but rather the loss
of an entire world, albeit over a rather longer time than it took
KolrEgiIsson to lose his leg. In this book I attempt to analyse that
world and its loss.As for the islendingasogur being dialogues, this
book centres on twopropositions. Firstly,itargues that these sagas
are dialogues between the authors and their past, conversations
between the Middle Agesand the Age of the Vikings. Secondly,we
asreaders of the sagas conduct our own dialogue with the past.
Written in the years on either side of 1300, the islendingasogur
represent a conjunction of two ages-in both senses of the Old
Icelandic word old, which meant "people", and also "the age in
which people lived". It isof course a coincidence that the present
study has also been written at the end of a century, and will be
read, perhaps, for some years into the next century. Nevertheless
the book attempts to conduct its own dialogue with people from
two earlier ages-medieval and Viking. The time may be right for
this. The twentieth century has seen social upheavals which have
impacted profoundly on our world view and culture. In this re-
spect the late twentieth century has more in common with the
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historical turning points of the Saga Age at the end of the first
millennium and of the saga writing age around 1300A.D. than it
does with most other moments in Icelandic history. In their explo-
ration of what a turbulent past and present meant to saga-age
Icelanders these stories still have much to say to us as modern
readers.
Though a brief preface such as this offers no opportunity for
detailed exposition of the present author's critical stance, it may
be appropriate to identify some of my main attitudes and even
prejudices. I believe strongly that literary criticism ought to be
historically based. The text is not an autonomous entity; it grows
out of other texts and within an historical framework, which any
interpretation must take into account. However, an interpreter
cannot so totally identify with the past that his reading represents
an uninterrupted monologue spoken bythe text-in this instance
a monologue in which we are addressed from the distant past
without an intermediary. Asan interpreter I am part of the inter-
pretation and must conduct the dialogue with the text in myown
terms, asking the questions that seem most interesting and appro-
priate. At the same time, I must surely accord the story or text a
measure of respect, listening carefully to its answers and trying as
far as possible to understand them in their own terms. Bullying
interviewers soon become tedious ifnot downright ridiculous.
The search for a hidden meaning, the story behind the story,is
sometimes the main priority ofthose who interpret literature, both
ancient and modern. As is the case with allegory, this is often a
fruitful and even necessary approach, but it can also lead to diffi-
culties. I do not believe that the islendingasogur should be read as
allegories. This does not mean, of course, that everything in the
sagas is straightforward and unambiguous. The texts invite and
require interpretation, like most literature worth talking about,
but my view is that the search for meaning has a visible path
marked out for itin the text, and myrole asinterpreter isto clarify
and deepen the meaning to be found there, and also to identify
ambiguities; it seems aworthless exercise to try to turn the appar-
ent meaning ofthe sagason itshead. The narrative material of the
islendingasogur issoarresting and distinctive in itselfthat efforts to
transform the sagas into something else, for example parables or
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moral tales, almost alwaysend up obfuscating what matters most
and diminishing the artistic and emotional impact of the works.
The evaluation of old and unfamiliar works isjust asdifficult as
their interpretation. From the time over two centuries ago when
romantic attitudes began to exercise an influence, the islendinga-
sogurhave been more highly valued than other forms of Icelandic
literature, and as a result other kinds of sagas have had to livein
their shadow. Happily in recent years this state of affairs has
changed and scholars have learnt to evaluate each narrative genre
in its own terms. In correcting an earlier bias, however, there has
been a tendency to viewallworks as of equal worth. Itwould be a
pity ifnewlyawakened interest in previously neglected workswere
to lead to the devaluation of acknowledged masterpieces. It isno
accident that the islendingasogur have generally been the most
highly esteemed ofold Icelandic narratives, and that afewofthese
have been regarded as classics. Praise for such works does not
imply criticism of other sagas.
Manymodern critics argue that "the work" and "the author" are
ideologically constructed concepts of relatively recent origin, and
that assuch they have no general validity.It maybe argued that the
islendingasogurare textswhich conform perfectly to such notions-
they are not ascribed to any single author; they are written in a
rather impersonal style; and the same characters, together with
their surroundings and social customs, are common to many sa-
gas.There isno wayof determining what proportion of each saga
derives from narratives which have passed from one teller to ano-
ther, or which elements can be traced back to other books, or what
features an author, or even a scribe, could have invented. In addi-
tion, the texts we read today are edited from manuscripts which
differ in varying degrees from some lost archetype. Despite these
problems, the present study discusses each saga as a "work", and
refers unblushingly to "authors" in full awareness that these con-
cepts can have a somewhat different meaning when applied to
sagas rather than to modern novels.
This present study isintended to be primarily awork of literary
criticism rather than of literary history, though asfar aspossible I
have tried to make full use of relevant available scholarship. The
islendingasogurrepresent livingliterature and invite our scrutiny as
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such, for all that they and the culture which informs them seem to
us in many waysremote and strange. In the firstchapter, therefore,
I have tried to assemble the kinds of contextualising knowledge
which we need in order to ensure that our conversations with the
sagas are free from misunderstandings. This chapter is intended
particularly for those who have no previous knowledge of the Ice-
landic sagas or of the period in which they were written. Experi-
enced scholars need not paymuch attention to itscontents, though
obviously there is a connection between the overview of general
and literary history offered there, and my understanding of the
literary genre itself. The second chapter discusses the sagas as
narrative art-it examines the kind ofstories they telland howsuch
talesare told. In the third chapter Itry to develop an understanding
ofthe world which the sagasdepict-the individuals who inhabit it,
the societythey create, the rules bywhich people live.At the same
time Iattempt to link that world to the one inwhich the sagawriters
live and write. How does it understand itself? How do saga and
societyconnect? Tosome extent these twocentral chapters maybe
seen asdiscussing on the one hand the form and on the other hand
the content ofthe sagas-their narrative artistry and philosophy of
life-yet no clear dividing line can be drawn between these two
elements. The final chapter draws the threads together, reflects on
the development of the genre and itsspecial importance for today.
I have tried to write this book in such a waythat it can serve to
introduce the world of the sagas to areader who has little previous
acquaintance with these works;Ihope, however,that there willalso
be something of interest for those who know the sagaswell.Ihave
tried to achieve this byfrequent use of examples; general conclu-
sions are based on analysis of particular sagas or sections from
sagas. I hope that myapproach willserve to lead readers into the
sagasstep bystep; first introducing them to the kinds of narrative
awaiting them and then gradually helping them to develop a
deeper understanding both of individual works and of the genre
as a whole. Myapproach is also based on the premise that form
and content ought not to be separated. The material of the sagas
had form before itwaswritten down, and their methods of narra-
tion cannot be separated from the attitudes to life and existence
which the works exhibit.
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Myoriginal intention wasto write a shorter book with relatively
few references to other scholarly works. As the work developed,
however,it became clear to me that many readers might find it
helpful tohave their attention drawn to the viewsof other scholars
on the same topics and texts, as expressed in works directly cited
and discussed here and also in other writings. My references to
such studies are, of course, far from exhaustive. Most of them are
confined to the notes and ought therefore not to distract those
readers with little interest in such scholarship.
Myfamiliarity with and love of the islendingasogur stretches back
over fiftyyears, but this present book has emerged over just two
years. The foundations were laid during my 1995-6 sabbatical
leave. For part of this period I was able to make use of the fine
facilities at the University of Edinburgh. Throughout the book's
preparation I have been the grateful recipient of help from many
sources. Grants from the Ranns6knasj6aur Hask61a islands and
the Aastoaarmannasj6aur have facilitated its progress. Armann
]akobsson, Bjarni Guanason, Davia Erlingsson and Gisli Siguras-
son have read over the work, in whole or in part, at various stages
and offered me valuable advice. Discussion of the English text with
Andrew Wawn, the translator, and with Robert Cook has helped
me greatly in clarifying the expression of my ideas. The Introduc-
tion (Chapter One) waswritten specially for inclusion in the Eng-
lish version and is much fuller than the equivalent section in the
Icelandic version. I am grateful to the staff at Mal og menning for
their help and co-operation, particularly Pall Valsson and 010£
Eldjarn. Mychief scholarly assistant has been l>6raur Ingi Guaj6ns-
son who has read through the entire work in both manuscript and
proof. He has also helped me in locating source materials, and has
played a major role in the preperation of the notes and biblio-
graphy. I am also grateful to Leifur Eiriksson hf. for permission to
quote from their newly published complete set of islendingasogur
translations. lowe direct and indirect debts of gratitude to many
more people than are mentioned here.
Reykjavik, December 1997
Visteinn Olason
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Translator's Note
Names of people, places and texts are given in normalised Old
Icelandic nominative caseforms: accordingly Iuse Njall, Gunnarr,
Guarun, and Oainn, rather than Njal, Gunnar, Gudrun and Odin.
Readers unfamiliar with the Icelandic alphabet willsoon become
accustomed to its distinctive forms: as a general rule of thumb, ()
p
and may be taken as respectively equivalent to the voiced and
unvoiced Modern English th;whilst Q is equivalent to the medial
vowelin "hall".
Where pronominal reference ismade to antecedent nouns such
as"the author", "the poet" or "the reader", the translation employs
the masculine form.
Allthe islendingasogurpassages cited in this book are taken from
ViOarHreinsson et aI., eds., The CompleteSagas ofIcelanders, 5 vols
(Reykjavik: Leifur Eirfksson Publishing, 1997). The modernised
forms of names and places are retained in all quotations.
A.w.
Icelandic Sagas-Sagas of
Icelanders-Islendingasogur
'Whatis a Saga?
MedievalIcelandic manuscripts preserve a substantial number of
prose narratives, some ofwhich are quite lengthy, and allofwhich
are called sagas. Within this broad category there are important
subdivisions-amongst them the kings' sagas, the bishops' sagas,
sagasabout legendary heroes of northern antiquity, sagas about
knights, sagasabout saints, aswellasthe so-called Sagasoflceland-
ersor islendingasogur. Allthese works can be classified asIcelandic
sagas.
The Icelandic word saga, pI. sogur, is a derivative of the verb
segja,"to speak", "to say",and means simply "a tale" or "a story",
long or short, old or new, true or fictitious. It is sometimes also
used to describe a sequence of events out of which a story could
be made. English and several other languages have borrowed the
word and tend to use it in the more technical sense of, as one
dictionary defines it, "a medieval story about Icelandic or Norwe-
gian heroes", or "a long eventful narrative about more than one
generation of a family". In this book it willbe used in the first of
these more technical English meanings and frequently asashorter
form of the narrower term islendingasogur.l
The Islendingasogur
Sagasabout Icelanders from a certain period and written byanon-
ymous authors are known as islendingasogur, "Sagasof Icelanders",
or, as they are frequently referred to in English, "Family Sagas",
albeit that this latter term is really only appropriate for a few of
them. As used in modern scholarship, even the term islendinga-
sogur fails to cover all the extant tales about Icelanders which are
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