5.5.1 Iceland: The Sagas
Description
This article is from the Nordic countries FAQ, by Antti Lahelma and Johan Olofsson, with numerous contributions by others.
5.5.1 Iceland: The Sagas
The sagas are without doubt Iceland's most important contribution to world
literature. They are medieval prose narrative, abounding in paradox and
iron. Violence is abundant, but the style is subdued. Heroism is praised,
but moderation is more highly prized. Much is said of fate, but the complex
characters seem to control their own destinies. The world of the saga is
pagan, but its sentiment is humanitarian.
Among the more historical saga literature, based on both oral and written
sources, the best known are Ari Þorgilsson's Íslendingabók (a history of
Iceland), Snorri Sturluson's Heimskringla ('The Disc of the World', a
history of Swedish and Norwegian kings), and the anonymous Knytlinga Saga (a
history of Danish kings). An excellent example of the fictional saga
literature is Hrafnkels Saga, a short bildungsroman. The family sagas, such
as Egils Saga (the story of Iceland's greatest skald, Egill Skalla-
grímsson) and Njáls Saga, fall somewhere in between the fictional and
factual varieties of sagas.
Heimskringla is the most celebrated of the sagas, but the dramatic Egil's
Saga (c.1220) comes close. The more ornate Laxdæla Saga (c.1250) elaborates
tragic themes from the poems of the Edda. In Grettis Saga (c.1300), which
shares motifs with the Old English poem Beowulf, the hero succumbs to pagan
sorcery. Njáls Saga (c.1230-90) both glorifies and repudiates the Saga Age
(870-1050), and provides an important description of ancient Icelandic legal
system. The most important of the legendary sagas is Völsunga Saga (c.1250);
it was a major source for Wagner's operas, and retells parts of the Edda.
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