Clunies Ross, Margaret. A Tale of Two Poets

• Author: Clunies Ross, Margaret
• Title: A tale of two poets: Egill Skallagrímsson and Einarr skálaglamm
• Published in: Arkiv för nordisk filologi 120
• Place, Publisher: n/a
• Year: 2005
• Pages: 69-82
• E-text:
• Reference: Clunies Ross, Margaret. "A tale of two poets: Egill Skallagrímsson and Einarr skálaglamm." Arkiv för nordisk filologi 120 (2005): 69-82.

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• Key words:

Annotation

Two verses by Einar skálaglamm are preserved in Egils saga, but only the A-version (Möðruvallabók) preserves them both, neither is preserved in the B-version and one in the C-version. It is generally believed that these verses are taken from some version of Jómsvíkinga saga. The purpose of this article is to consider why Egils saga includes material on Einar skálaglamm and why his verses were added to the saga. Clunies Ross goes trough the relations between Egill and Einar in Egils saga and adds information on Einar from Jómsvíkinga saga. She believes that their dealings in the saga have a certain literary purpose. When Einar is brought into the saga, the narrative pace is slow and it is the perfect opportunity to give Egill a chance to stand out as a great poet in comparison with Einar.

Lýsing

Tvær vísur eftir Einar skálaglamm eru varðveittar í Egils sögu, þó aðeins í A–gerð sögunnar (Möðruvallabók), hvorug þeirra er í B–gerð en önnur vísnanna í C–gerð. Almennt er talið að vísurnar séu teknar upp eftir einhverri gerð Jómsvíkinga sögu. Tilgangur greinarinnar er að varpa ljósi á hvers vegna efni um Einar og vísurnar hans hafi þótt nauðsynlegar í sögu Egils. Clunies Ross rekur samskipti Einars og Egils í sögunni og bætir við upplýsingum um Einar úr Jómsvíkinga sögu. Telur hún að lýsingunni á samskiptum Einars og Egils sé ætlað að gefa Agli tækifæri til þess að rísa sem stórkostlegt skáld á þeim tímapunkti í sögunni þar sem hefur hægst á atburðarásinni.

References

Chapter 59: Hér set eg upp níðstöng: "The poet’s mastery of runic magic can also be seen as having its parallel in the miracle-working powers of saints, and it is in this sphere, as well as in his níð-verses directed against the tyrannous Eiríkr bloodaxe, that Egill uses his poetic gifts for positive good" (p. ???).

Links

• Written by: Þórdís Edda Jóhannesdóttir
• English translation: Þórdís Edda Jóhannesdóttir