There are several good books out on the sociology and material culture of women in the viking age, but old norse womens poetry gives us a rare chance to hear. This is the first comprehensive and accessible survey in english of old norse. A history of old norse poetry and poetics by margaret clunies. Very little of this corpus has in fact been preserved in manuscripts solely devoted to the collection of skaldic verse, with the exception of some christian. This is the first comprehensive and accessible survey in english of old norse eddic poetry. Jan 04, 2005 a history of old norse poetry and poetics book. Later attempts concentrated on features such as repetition and rhyme, and emphasised the aesthetics which distinguish poetry from prose. This is the first book in english to deal with the twin subjects of old norse poetry and the various vernacular treatises on native poetry that were a conspicuous feature of medieval intellectual life in iceland and the orkneys from the midtwelfth. A history of old norse poetry and poetics by margaret. A history of old norse poetry and poetics the book merchant. Skaldic verse and the poetics of saga narrative is a study of the varying relationships between verse and prose in a series of old norse icelandic saga narratives.
The book begins with an introduction, followed by a prologue. Jan 20, 2015 building on the pioneering, but chronologically circumscribed, work of earlier scholars to whom tribute is paid in this book s acknowledgements, heather odonoghue offers the first book length survey of the influence of norse mythology across the whole history of poetry in english. Until now no one monograph has made the evolution of both poetry and poetics in the old norse vernacular its focus, and the present book aims to fill that gap. The old norse poetic translations of thomas percy by margaret. You can download a handbook to eddic poetry in pdf format. Handbook eddic poetry myths and legends early scandinavia. Prose edda project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. A history of old norse poetry and poetics margaret clunies.
Its also a window on to a much less familiar part of norse history. This is the first book in english to deal with the twin subjects of old norse poetry and the various vernacular treatises on native poetry that were a conspicuous feature of medieval intellectual life in iceland and the orkneys from the midtwelfth to the fourteenth centuries. It seems generally to have been a sort of praise poetry, meant to extol the virtues and sing the notable exploits of kings and other patrons. Runic love poetry for world poetry day vikings, books, etc. Margaret clunies ross held a grant from the australian research council from 1993 to 1995 for a related project on the norse muse in britain, 17501820. Margaret, clunies ross a history of old norse poetry and poetics cambridge d. Her main research areas are old norseicelandic studies and the history of. A history of old norse poetry and poetics pdf free download. In chapter 79 margaret clunies ross new book, i ross, in contrast to the. Also contains the original old norse text, side by side with english translations. Buy a history of old norse poetry and poetics reissue by margaret clunies ross isbn. The prose edda, also known as the younger edda, snorris edda icelandic. It is the fullest and most detailed source for modern knowledge of germanic mythology. Individual chapters describe the poetic corpus, analyze.
Margaret beryl clunies ross born 24 april 1942 is a medievalist who was until her retirement. The evolution of verse structure in old and middle english poetry. The work is often assumed to have been written, or at least compiled, by the icelandic scholar, lawspeaker, and historian snorri sturluson c. Snorra edda or simply edda, is an old norse work of literature written in iceland in the early th century. The poetic edda, also known as the elder edda, is a collection of thirtyfour icelandic poems, interwoven with prose, dating from the 9th century to the 12th. Straubhaar presents a wonderful book, sharing the actual verses composed by women in old norse. Scandinavica an intellectual and literary history that is rich in content and that takes account of the recent contributions of a wide range of scholars. The cambridge introduction to the old norseicelandic saga. The illustration to the right is from the section gylfaginning the tricking of gylfi, showing gylfi in a contest of wisdom with three. History of literaturepoetry wikibooks, open books for. A history of old norse poetry and poetics boydell and brewer. The work is often assumed to have been written, or at least compiled, by the icelandic scholar and historian snorri sturluson. Its aim is to give a clear description of the rich poetic tradition of early scandinavia, particularly in iceland.
Love poems were illegal in medieval iceland, and unsurprisingly one of the rare examples is strongly tinged with viking fatalism. Reading the runes in old english and old norse poetry is the first book length study to compare responses to runic heritage in the literature of anglosaxon england and medieval iceland. Most readers will find that this book provides them with the best introduction to old norse poetry and its literary and cultural contexts now available. Feb 14, 2017 love poems were illegal in medieval iceland, and unsurprisingly one of the rare examples is strongly tinged with viking fatalism. A history of old norse poetry and poetics paperback september 01, 2011 quantity add to cart sku. Among the prose old norse sources, the prose edda, or simply the edda, contains the greatest quantity of information concerning our topic. The prose edda was written by the icelandic chieftain, poet, and historian snorri sturluson, probably in 122223.
Icelandic literature, body of writings in icelandic, including those from old. This is the first book in english to deal with the twin subjects of old norse poetry and the various vernacular treatises on native poetry that were a conspicuous. The book of the icelanders, and the more detailed landnamabok. A companion to old norseicelandic literature, oxford. The book summarizes norse mythology necessary for the poet to understand the kennings, teaches the language of poetry, and presents examples of the various verse forms. History of literaturepoetry wikibooks, open books for an. The old norse poetic corpus what this book is about the subject of this book, old norse poetry and poetics, was one of particular importance to the viking age and medieval societies of scandinavia, and nowhere was it more significant than in iceland, from where the major part of our extant textual evidence derives. Together with the poetic edda, it comprises the major store of scandinavian mythology. The old norse poetic translations of thomas percy book. Department of scandinavian studies university of washington 318 raitt hall box 353420 seattle, wa 981953420.
The subject of this book, old norse poetry and poetics, was one of particular importance to the viking age and medieval societies of scandinavia, and nowhere was it more significant than in iceland, from where the major part of our extant textual evidence derives. A history of old norse poetry and poetics margaret. Translations from the danish and old norse, with original ballads, ed. The cambridge introduction to the old norseicelandic saga by.
Later attempts concentrated on features such as repetition and rhyme, and emphasised the. A history of old norse poetry and poetics margaret clunies ross on. A history of old norse poetry and poetics paperback september 01, 2011 quantity. In old norse and old english poetry 5 fashion of his country, force the words into some sort of rhythmical pattern, and by practice achieve some. Its aim is to give a clear description of the rich poetic tradition.
It shows how the interplay of skaldic verse, with its metrical intricacy and cryptic diction. A history of old norse poetry and poetics book, 2005. This book is a study of the various relationships between verse and prose in a series of old norseicelandic saga narratives. Many of the texts and topics taken up in these enlightening essays have been difficult to categorize and have consequently been overlooked or undervalued. Poetry and poetics department of scandinavian studies. Brewer 2005 harris, joseph genre and narrative structure in some scandinavian studies 44 1972 1 odonoghue, heather skaldic verse and the poetics of saga narrative oxford and new york oxford university press 2005. Old norse poetry encompasses a range of verse forms written in a number of nordic languages, embraced by the term old norse, during the period from the 8th century to as late as the far end of the th century. The anglosaxon runic script had already become the preserve of antiquarians at the time the majority of old english poetry was written down, and the icelanders recording the mythology associated with the script were at some remove from the centres of runic practice in medieval scandinavia. Old norse may be succinctly characterized as the language of the vikings. Eddic, skaldic, and beyond fordham university press. The poetic edda the elder edda download ebook pdf, epub.
Skaldic verse and the poetics of saga narrative heather. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. The book merchant jenkins a history of old norse poetry. Review of margaret clunies ross, a history of old norse poetry and. Russom, geoffrey, on the distribution of verse types in old english poetry in crawford, sally and hamerow, helena, form and order in the anglosaxon world, ad 6001100, anglosaxon studies in archaeology and history 16 oxford university school of archaeology, 2009, pp. In norse mythology, skaldskaparmal 1 tells the story of how odin brought poetry to asgard, which is an indicator of the significance of poetry within the contemporary scandinavian culture. Skaldic verse and the poetics of saga narrative is a study of the varying relationships between verse and prose in a series of old norseicelandic saga narratives. Straubhaar, distinguished senior lecturer of the university of texas at austin vikings. Another important genre in old norse was that of skaldic poetry. The subject of this book, old norse poetry and poetics, was one of particular importance to the viking age and medieval societies of scandinavia, and nowhere. Eddic, skaldic, and beyond shines light on traditional divisions of old norseicelandic poetry and awakens the reader to work that blurs these boundaries. It shows how the interplay of skaldic verse, with its metrical intricacy and cryptic diction, and saga prose, with its habitual spare clarity, can be used to achieve a wide variety of sophisticated stylistic and psychological effects. Tolkien readily acknowledged his debt to this source. The home of the eddic poems, with especial reference to the helgilays london.
Hattatal old icelandic list of verseforms 16 is the last section of the prose edda. Incorrect book the list contains an incorrect book please specify the title of the book. Old norseicelandic literature score a book s total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book. The poetic edda and our renewed relationship with norse myth. Skaldic verse and the poetics of saga narrative heather o. This was a highly wrought form of poetry well steeped in tradition. A history demonstrates how attitudes towards the pagan mythology of the north change over time, but reveals that poets have always recognized old norse myth as a vital part of the literary, political and historical legacy of the englishspeaking world.
Jul 21, 2011 buy a history of old norse poetry and poetics reissue by margaret clunies ross isbn. The section is composed by the icelandic poet, politician, and historian snorri sturluson. Review of margaret clunies ross, a history of old norse poetry and poetics. Book codex regius, and the most precious collection of old norse icelandic. A significant amount of old norse literature that survives was preserved in iceland. Jennyjochens a history of old norse poetry and poetics.
Skaldic verse and the poetics of saga narrative oxford. Faulkes in his english translation of the prose edda commented that this is unlikely, both in terms of linguistics and history since snorri was no longer living at oddi when he composed his work. I have been waiting for this book forever, and i was really excited to get a copy. Using, for the most part, his own compositions it exemplifies the types of verse forms used in old norse poetry. Edda, body of ancient icelandic literature contained in two thcentury books commonly distinguished as the prose, or younger, edda and the poetic, or elder, edda. Genres and subgenres of skaldic verse circumstances of recording and transmission old norse poetic aesthetics the impact of christianity on old norse poetry poetics and grammatica, 1. Old norse poetry is characterised by alliteration, a poetic vocabulary expanded by heiti, and use of kennings.
Reading the runes in old english and old norse poetry. Building on the pioneering, but chronologically circumscribed, work of earlier scholars to whom tribute is paid in this book s acknowledgements, heather odonoghue offers the first book length survey of the influence of norse mythology across the whole history of poetry in english. Early attempts to define poetry, such as aristotles poetics, focused on the uses of speech in rhetoric, drama, song and comedy. The old norse poetic corpus an indigenous typology of old norse poetry, 1.