Hieatt, Constance B. Hrútr's voyage to Norway and the structure of Njála

• Author: Constance B. Hieatt
• Title: Hrútr's voyage to Norway and the structure of Njála
• Editor: John Tucker
• Published in: Sagas of the Icelanders
• Place, Publisher: New York & London, Garland Publishing Inc.
• Year: 1989
• Pages: 272-279
• E-text:
• Reference: Hieatt, Constance B. “Hrútr’s Voyage to Norway and the Structure of Njála.” Sagas of the Icelanders. Ed. John Tucker. New York & London: Garland Publishing Inc. 1989. 272-279

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• Key words:

marriage, voyage, travel pattern

Annotation

Hieatt claims that Hrútr’s voyage to Norway in the beginning of Njáls saga has been inadequately explained by scholars (most notably Richard F. Allen and Lars Lönnroth) in relation to the whole of the saga. Working from their theory that ‘digressive’ elements in sagas are keys to understanding the whole, he puts forth the idea that the voyage functions as a prologue which reveals the author’s intentions, sets in motion the central events of the plot, and establishes the main themes to be paralleled later in the saga. One of these themes is ‘bride-wooing’ and disastrous marriages, anticipating Gunnar’s marriage with Hallgerðr. Another theme is the voyages overseas, which serve as markers for significant developments of the plot and move the story into its next phase. Hieatt elaborates on further echoes of Hrútr’s voyage throughout the saga, demonstrating how the audience is given clues by this ‘prologue’ to the events and meaning of the story thereafter.

References

Chapter 5: nothing venture, nothing have: “The voyage, then, is a significant structural element throughout the saga. Its parallels and variants signal the stages of the over-all design, and, since that of Hrútr sets the basic pattern, it is fitting that it takes up as much space as it does.” (p. 277)

Links

• Written by: Jensen Scheuer
• Icelandic/English translation: