This is the first comprehensive and accessible survey in English of Old Norse eddic poetry: a remarkable body of literature rooted in the Viking Age, which is a critical source for the study of early Scandinavian myths, poetics, culture and society. Dramatically recreating the voices of the legendary past, eddic poems distil moments of high emotion as human heroes and supernatural beings alike grapple with betrayal, loyalty, mortality and love. These poems relate the most famous deeds of gods such as Óðinn and Þórr with their adversaries the giants; they bring to life the often fraught interactions between kings, queens and heroes as well as their encounters with valkyries, elves, dragons and dwarfs. Written by leading international scholars, the chapters in this volume showcase the poetic riches of the eddic corpus, and reveal its relevance to the history of poetics, gender studies, pre-Christian religions, art history and archaeology.
| ISBN: | 9781107135444 |
| Publication date: | 19th August 2016 |
| Author: | Carolyne (University of Oxford) Larrington |
| Publisher: | Cambridge University Press |
| Format: | Hardback |
| Pagination: | 424 pages |
| Genres: |
Biography, Literature and Literary studies Literature: history and criticism Literary studies: general Literary studies: ancient, classical and medieval |