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Category: Ramblings | Posted: Sun Nov 04, 2007 7:11 pm

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We've got lots of written stories from when the vikings were still roaming the seas. The man who did most of the work, Snorre Sturlasson (1178-1241), was from Iceland. He started writing down stories that had been orally handed down from about 900 onwards, so we're not certain of his facts although his time line is more or less correct. What we do know, is that all the stories are shorn of embellishment, crisp and to the point. I'll give you an example.

In Flatoyrboka we find this story: «A herdsman stood resting, his head hanging. Torgeir Håvarsson struck him down with his sword. When asked why, he said: «He stood in a good position for a stroke.» His father deemed it an ill deed, but his mother thought he had the makings of a great king.»

Not exactly your normal bed time story.

The people in Snorre's stories are defined by what they do and how they act. We do not know how they think. Their spoken words are few and to the point. Of course it's mostly about men. The women are just accessories and rarely act. And the winning party is very honest and well-behaved, while the losers are dirty, sneaky characters.

Snorre himself used other peoples' work as sources. There were monasteries in Scandinavia and the monks were busy writing down the stories. They, of course, wrote it the way the Church wanted the story to be told. And Snorre probably twisted it a little too.

Also, in the story of Harald Fairhair, we sense the influence from «Tristan and Isolde», the Celtic love story. I can't bring myself to believe that Harald decided to gather all of Norway under one king just because he wanted to marry a beautiful girl. Marriages at the time were not from love but from what would be convenient to your family.

The stories also tell about lots of comings and goings from east to west, north and south, and we come to realize that the people of the middle ages actually had quite a big play ground.


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CritterPainter wrote on Mon Nov 05, 2007 7:01 pm:

Then there's always Anent the Giant who Did Not Have His Heart About Him. One of my favorite childhood books was in Grandma's attic, The Norwegian Fairy Book. I'd completely forgotten it, thanks for reminding me! It's over 70 years old and quite fragile, but a great way to pass a rainy afternoon!

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