What do they talk about “in fair words” in Old Norse-Icelandic literature?
https://doi.org/10.22394/2412-9410-2024-10-2-234-255
Abstract
The paper analyses the use of the paroemia at mæla fagrt ok hyggja flátt (to speak fairly and to think falsely) in the Old Norse-Icelandic literary corpus, focusing both on the paroemia and its derivative — the representation of the characters’ eloquence by the formula that they are speaking in “fair words” (mæla með fögrum orðum). At the heart of the research lies the obscure use of the paroemia in one of the sagas of Icelanders, Bjarnar saga hítdælakappa, where the paroemia’s function is difficult to interpret if it is read only against the general context of the saga. While often in the Old Norse-Icelandic corpus the paroemia is followed by deceit and the immediate death of the character who has been spoken to fairly, in Bjarnar saga the paroemia leads only to an unsuccessfull winter stay at the main antagonist’s farmhouse. Our commentary to this part draws upon the analysis of the use of the paroemia and its variants in the wider corpus of Old Norse-Icelandic texts. This approach allows one not only to look at the case of non-standard paroemical usage in sagas and discover several narrative strategies connected to this particular paroemia in the Old Norse-Icelandic literature but also to start a discussion about the attitude towards eloquence in Medieval Iceland.
About the Author
D. S. Glebova
HSE University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Daria S. Glebova, Cand. Sci. (Philology), Senior Lecturer
School of Philological Sciences
105066; Staraya Basmannaya Str., 21/4; Moscow
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Review
For citations:
Glebova D.S. What do they talk about “in fair words” in Old Norse-Icelandic literature? Shagi / Steps. 2024;10(2):234-255. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.22394/2412-9410-2024-10-2-234-255
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