Kanerva, K.T.. Ógofa as an Emotion in Thirteenth-Century Iceland

• Author: Kanerva, K.T.
• Title: Ógofa as an Emotion in Thirteenth-Century Iceland
• Published in: Scandinavian Studies 84/1
• Year: 2012
• Pages: 1-26
• E-text: ProQuest
• Reference: Kanerva, K.T.. "Ógofa as an Emotion in Thirteenth-Century Iceland." Scandinavian Studies 84/1 (2012): 1-26.

---

• Key words:

Annotation

In this article, Kanerva aims to discuss how the Old Norse concept of ógæfa (“lucklessness”, “misfortune”) might have also had an emotional connotation. She examines the motivation behind the behavior of ógæfu-menn (sg. ógæfumaðr), such as Skarphéðinn from Njáls saga and Gísli Súrsson from Gísla saga Súrssonar, and concludes that the word ógæfa is not merely a state of affairs, but it could also imply a feeling of guilt. Even though the Old Norse language seems to lack a word expressing the modern concept of guilt, Kanerva shows that saga characters nevertheless occasionally display such emotion. For example, Þormóðr from Fóstbræðra saga feels physical pain after doing a wrong, which disappears the moment he admits his wrongdoing. Kanerva adds that killing one’s kin is a common cause for being an ógæfumaðr, while the term may also signify an emotion of “unfulfilled gratitude”, as exemplified by the guilt Skarphéðinn feels when transgressing the principles of gratitude towards his father, or by the feeling deriving from a failure in fol-lowing family obligations. Ógæfa, nevertheless, depends on a person’s character and on the recognition of one’s misdeed. Additionally, ógæfa involves feelings such as anxiety or fear and a lack of forgiveness from a person’s kin. Finally, Kanerva shows how ógæfa is connected both to a person’s conscience and emotional state, as well as to society and to a person’s obligation towards the society.

Lýsing

Texta vantar

References

Chapter 119: Og er þó maðurinn ógæfusamlegur : “and he [Skarphéðinn] starts taking part in the acts of vengeance that ultimately take him to Alþingi, where he is described as ógæfusamligr, ‚unlucky-looking‘. What is important here is that Skarphéðinn is not mentioned as ógæfusamligr until after the killing of his foster brother – after he has killed his own kin.” (p. 6)

Links

• Written by: Nikola Macháčková
• Icelandic/English translation: