Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Collection
Publication
Penguin Classics (1977), Paperback, 256 pages
Description
Egil's Saga tells the story of the long and brutal life of tenth-century warrior-poet and farmer Egil Skallagrimsson- a morally ambiguous character who was at once the composer of intricately beautiful poetry, and a physical grotesque capable of staggering brutality. The saga recounts Egil's progression from youthful savagery to mature wisdom as he struggles to avenge his father's exile from Norway, defend his honour against the Norwegian King Erik Bloodaxe, and fight for the English King Athelstan in his battles against Scotland. Exploring issues as diverse as the question of loyalty, the power of poetry, and the relationship between two brothers who love the same woman, Egil's Saga is a fascinating depiction of a deeply human character.
User reviews
LibraryThing member eyja
Egil's Saga is one of the most popular and well known of the Icelandic Sagas. It is also one of the longer sagas. This is a fairly good translation and I do enjoy this saga, being in my top five favorite sagas, but probably not my absolute favorite.
LibraryThing member isabelx
Although the chronology is a bit skewed, this is a saga that includes historical characters (such as the kings of Norway & England) and the events that happen are realistic. The Norsemen are not just violent and barbaric Viking raiders; the same men who spend some summers on Viking raids across
There is a strong tradition of hospitality in the sagas. Norwegians emigrating to Iceland often turn up at the farm of a settler (whom they may not even have met before) in the autumn and are invited to spend the winter there along with all their followers, before setting up farms of their own in the spring. There are settlers from Scandinavia on all the islands of the North Atlantic. Iceland, the Faeroes, Shetland, the Orkneys, the Hebrides, Scotland, Dublin in Ireland, northern England and the Isle of Man (where a Viking parliament, the Tynwald, still meets after more than 1000 years!) were linked together by ties of blood and trade.
Interestingly, when the pagan Thorulf and Egil go to England as mercenaries for the Christian King Athelstan, they are given preliminary baptism. The saga says that this allows them to mix with both Christians and heathens, but that they can still follow whatever beliefs they like. I have never heard of this practice before, but it's a very pragmatic way of going about things. Apparently it was common for viking merchants and mercenaries to undergo this preliminary baptism, as it allowed the Christians to salve their consciences about trading with heathens.
It occurred to me while reading Egil's Saga, that Queen Gunnhild would make a fantastic Evil Overlord. If she had James Bond in her clutches she wouldn't make any of the classic mistakes that allow him to escape every time.
When Egil is shipwrecked in Northumberland, only to find that his enemies King Eirik Bloodaxe and Queen Gunnhild (the former rulers of Norway) are now in charge there, his blood-brother Arinbjorn (a close friend of the king's) takes him to the court to plead for his life. Queen Gunnhild's reaction to Arinbjorn's suggestion that Egil be allowed to compose a poem in honour of the king is to the point: "We don't want to hear his words of praise. Have him taken out and killed, Eirik. I don't want to hear him or see him". If only all Evil Overlords were so decisive!
Unfortunately, in order to succeed as an Evil Overlord, the first thing she would have to do is get rid of her husband. King Eirik agrees with Arinbjorn that killing Egil at night would be murder (?) so he tells him to come back the next day for judgment. Overnight Egil composes a long poem in honour of the king, and when he recites it the king is won over and lets Egil go (while reserving the right to take revenge if he ever sets eyes on him again), which must have infuriated the queen. I'm with Gunnhild on this; if someone had killed my son, foster-son and brother-in-law as well as many of my courtiers and servants, I wouldn't let him go just because he wrote a flattering poem about me!
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Europe, spend other summers on respectable trading expeditions and yet others as mercenaries for foreign kings, whose territories they may well have raided previously. Viking raids and trading expeditions are summer activities, with winters being spent at home on their farms, or staying with friends. In the Vinland Sagas, some of the traders spent the summers on trading expeditions and alternate winters in Iceland and Norway.There is a strong tradition of hospitality in the sagas. Norwegians emigrating to Iceland often turn up at the farm of a settler (whom they may not even have met before) in the autumn and are invited to spend the winter there along with all their followers, before setting up farms of their own in the spring. There are settlers from Scandinavia on all the islands of the North Atlantic. Iceland, the Faeroes, Shetland, the Orkneys, the Hebrides, Scotland, Dublin in Ireland, northern England and the Isle of Man (where a Viking parliament, the Tynwald, still meets after more than 1000 years!) were linked together by ties of blood and trade.
Interestingly, when the pagan Thorulf and Egil go to England as mercenaries for the Christian King Athelstan, they are given preliminary baptism. The saga says that this allows them to mix with both Christians and heathens, but that they can still follow whatever beliefs they like. I have never heard of this practice before, but it's a very pragmatic way of going about things. Apparently it was common for viking merchants and mercenaries to undergo this preliminary baptism, as it allowed the Christians to salve their consciences about trading with heathens.
It occurred to me while reading Egil's Saga, that Queen Gunnhild would make a fantastic Evil Overlord. If she had James Bond in her clutches she wouldn't make any of the classic mistakes that allow him to escape every time.
When Egil is shipwrecked in Northumberland, only to find that his enemies King Eirik Bloodaxe and Queen Gunnhild (the former rulers of Norway) are now in charge there, his blood-brother Arinbjorn (a close friend of the king's) takes him to the court to plead for his life. Queen Gunnhild's reaction to Arinbjorn's suggestion that Egil be allowed to compose a poem in honour of the king is to the point: "We don't want to hear his words of praise. Have him taken out and killed, Eirik. I don't want to hear him or see him". If only all Evil Overlords were so decisive!
Unfortunately, in order to succeed as an Evil Overlord, the first thing she would have to do is get rid of her husband. King Eirik agrees with Arinbjorn that killing Egil at night would be murder (?) so he tells him to come back the next day for judgment. Overnight Egil composes a long poem in honour of the king, and when he recites it the king is won over and lets Egil go (while reserving the right to take revenge if he ever sets eyes on him again), which must have infuriated the queen. I'm with Gunnhild on this; if someone had killed my son, foster-son and brother-in-law as well as many of my courtiers and servants, I wouldn't let him go just because he wrote a flattering poem about me!
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LibraryThing member DinadansFriend
Egil Skallagrimsson was an Icelandic Poet, whose biography sets the adventurous side of Viking life, firmly in our minds. From his adolescent homicides to his death Egil seems to wring every last ounce of fun from what was a difficult life. He was an outlaw, and a confidant (in his opinion) of
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kings. It is a setting for his poetry, and unlike the "Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini", the reader is left liking the subject. Sturlsson was a good biographer, and Palsson an excellent translator of the work. The date of the original work has been placed at the 1230's. Show Less
LibraryThing member John_Thorne
Excellent translation of one of the better known Icelandic sagas. Very readable and enjoyable.
LibraryThing member TheDivineOomba
I was quite excited to find this volume at my a local used book sale - I've been trying to read more of the myths and sagas written before the introduction of Christianity. While this set of stories is written some years after Egil, this saga certainly fits the bill.
By the time Snorri Sturluson
These stories are both brutal and beautiful. This is a time of brutality. Where death is both casual and done at at a whim. Egil spends part of his time raiding in other places, often killing people just because they were in his way. However, he had his moments. He is regarded as a great poet, and his poetry is renowned across Iceland and Sweden.
Highly recommended. Its a great read, full of adventure, but also sheds light into the Viking world.
By the time Snorri Sturluson
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wrote them, he was using stories that have been passed down through the centuries, so while Egil is a real person, and he was an important historical figure, what we know about him is a mix of truth, hyperbole, and completely false. This doesn't detract from the story.These stories are both brutal and beautiful. This is a time of brutality. Where death is both casual and done at at a whim. Egil spends part of his time raiding in other places, often killing people just because they were in his way. However, he had his moments. He is regarded as a great poet, and his poetry is renowned across Iceland and Sweden.
Highly recommended. Its a great read, full of adventure, but also sheds light into the Viking world.
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Subjects
Language
Original language
Old Norse
Original publication date
1240
1997 (English: Scudder)
Physical description
256 p.; 7.76 inches
ISBN
0140443215 / 9780140443219