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Available
Call number
Genres
Collection
Publication
Penguin Classics (1999), Paperback, 160 pages
Description
The Saga of the Volsungs is an Icelandic epic of special interest to admirers of Richard Wagner, who drew heavily upon this Norse source in writing his Ring Cycle and a primary source for writers of fantasy such as J. R. R. Tolkien and romantics such as William Morris.A trove of traditional lore, it tells of love, jealousy, vengeance, war, and the mythic deeds of the dragonslayer, Sigurd the Volsung.Byock's comprehensive introduction explores the history, legends, and myths contained in the saga and traces the development of a narrative that reaches back to the period of the great folk migrations in Europe when the Roman Empire collapsed.
User reviews
LibraryThing member deslni01
The Saga of the Volsungs was written in the thirteenth century by an unknown Norse author. The story itself, however, is much older and parts are found throughout many Norse stories prior to this version. The story tells of Sigurd the dragonslayer, a man unlike any in the world, and unsurpassed in
The value of this saga on literature is enormous. It influenced the German Nibelungenlied, Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen, and Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and his recently published The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun, among others. Many aspects of the saga are reminiscent in literature - a ring of power; a broken sword that is reforged to perform a specific task; a group of kings and warriors attempting to pull a sword out of a tree with only one person succeeding; a horse descended from Odin's Sleipnir making it one of the best horses in the world; a dragon guarding a vast amount of gold and wealth.
As entertainment, The Saga of the Volsungs is up there, with a wonderful story. Of course, the writing is a bit different than most people are accustomed to, being several centuries old and written much differently than today. While some versions may prove a tad difficult and uninteresting to the casual reader, Jesse Byock does an excellent job making it accessible to the common reader while still staying relatively true to the original.
Aside from the entertainment value of the saga, it offers insight into the world of the Norse and Norse literature such as kennings, which replaced a noun with a circumlocution - "battle-sweat" instead of "blood", "sleep of the sword" instead of "death", "bane of wood" replacing "fire", etc. This specific translation of the saga maintains many of the kennings which liven up the saga and aid in its unique style. And, of course, it offers glimpses of Norse mythology as Odin plays many roles in the story, as do the norns and valkyries, as well as magic runes and Norse sorcery and, humorously, a senna - that is, a contest of insults including this zinger:
Sinfjotli replied: You probably do not remember clearly now when you were the witch on Varinsey and said that you wanted to marry a man and you chose me for the role of husband...I sired nine wolves on you at Laganess, and I was the father of them all. (As can be surmised, he is speaking to another man)
The Saga of the Volsungs is an entertaining read, and at roughly 110 pages is not very time consuming and offers a quick glimpse into what some of the Norse valued and how they perceived kingship, courtship, and war.
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any way. His familial heritage is recounted, as is his marriage with Gudrun and their children, and after his death, the fates of Gudrun, her brothers, children, and many others including Attila the Hun and Ermanaric, King of the Goths.The value of this saga on literature is enormous. It influenced the German Nibelungenlied, Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen, and Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and his recently published The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun, among others. Many aspects of the saga are reminiscent in literature - a ring of power; a broken sword that is reforged to perform a specific task; a group of kings and warriors attempting to pull a sword out of a tree with only one person succeeding; a horse descended from Odin's Sleipnir making it one of the best horses in the world; a dragon guarding a vast amount of gold and wealth.
As entertainment, The Saga of the Volsungs is up there, with a wonderful story. Of course, the writing is a bit different than most people are accustomed to, being several centuries old and written much differently than today. While some versions may prove a tad difficult and uninteresting to the casual reader, Jesse Byock does an excellent job making it accessible to the common reader while still staying relatively true to the original.
Aside from the entertainment value of the saga, it offers insight into the world of the Norse and Norse literature such as kennings, which replaced a noun with a circumlocution - "battle-sweat" instead of "blood", "sleep of the sword" instead of "death", "bane of wood" replacing "fire", etc. This specific translation of the saga maintains many of the kennings which liven up the saga and aid in its unique style. And, of course, it offers glimpses of Norse mythology as Odin plays many roles in the story, as do the norns and valkyries, as well as magic runes and Norse sorcery and, humorously, a senna - that is, a contest of insults including this zinger:
Sinfjotli replied: You probably do not remember clearly now when you were the witch on Varinsey and said that you wanted to marry a man and you chose me for the role of husband...I sired nine wolves on you at Laganess, and I was the father of them all. (As can be surmised, he is speaking to another man)
The Saga of the Volsungs is an entertaining read, and at roughly 110 pages is not very time consuming and offers a quick glimpse into what some of the Norse valued and how they perceived kingship, courtship, and war.
Show Less
LibraryThing member isabelx
Wave runes shall you make
If you desire to ward
Your sail-steeds on the sound.
On the stem shall they be cut
And on the steering blade
And burn them on the oar.
No broad breaker will fall
Nor waves of blue,
And you will come safe from the sea.
In the Saga of the Volsungs, revenge is the only thing that
I read the Penguin Classics edition of this saga. The introduction describing the origins of the saga in conflicts between the Huns, Burgundians and Goths in the fourth and fifth centuries during the migration period, which are replayed on a smaller scale in the saga as conflicts between families rather than tribes. There is also an interesting section about Wagner, and his use of parts of the Saga of the Volsungs in the Ring Cycle.
If you desire to ward
Your sail-steeds on the sound.
On the stem shall they be cut
And on the steering blade
And burn them on the oar.
No broad breaker will fall
Nor waves of blue,
And you will come safe from the sea.
In the Saga of the Volsungs, revenge is the only thing that
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matters and children are just pawns to be sacrificed without a second thought if it will help you in your quest for vengeance. It's eleven years since I first read it and I remembered quite a lot of what happens, as it's a memorable story taking place over two generations, with the story of twins Signy and Sigmund being followed by that of Sigmund's son, Sigurd the dragon slayer.I read the Penguin Classics edition of this saga. The introduction describing the origins of the saga in conflicts between the Huns, Burgundians and Goths in the fourth and fifth centuries during the migration period, which are replayed on a smaller scale in the saga as conflicts between families rather than tribes. There is also an interesting section about Wagner, and his use of parts of the Saga of the Volsungs in the Ring Cycle.
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LibraryThing member MaowangVater
Morris took the Völsunga saga, a late 13th century Icelandic prose mixture of heroic deeds, vendetta, court intrigue, the revenge of queens, dragon slaying and a cursed ring, and using this as his source turned it into a powerful and moving English epic poem. I enjoyed this far more than I thought
Morris made his Victorian adaptation sound more medieval by liberally sprinkling his modern English with archaic words, for example it’s always held instead of yard or courtyard, and dight instead of ordered, thee and thou instead of you, and clingeth instead of clings. However having access to the Oxford English Dictionary—Thank you to the Houston Public Library for making this available online—made it easy for me to decipher these.
This work greatly exceeded my expectations of it.
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I would. The characters are vivid. The dramatic tension at the center of the poem where the conflicting values of honor, political necessity, love and envy that lead to tragic conclusions is portrayed realistically in rhyming verse with the flavor of a bygone era.Morris made his Victorian adaptation sound more medieval by liberally sprinkling his modern English with archaic words, for example it’s always held instead of yard or courtyard, and dight instead of ordered, thee and thou instead of you, and clingeth instead of clings. However having access to the Oxford English Dictionary—Thank you to the Houston Public Library for making this available online—made it easy for me to decipher these.
This work greatly exceeded my expectations of it.
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LibraryThing member isabelx
Sea-runes good at need,
Learnt for ship's saving,
For the good health of the swimming horse;
On the stern cut them,
Cut them on the rudder-blade
And set flame to shaven oar:
Howso big be the sea-hills,
Howso blue beneath,
Hail from the main then comest thou home.
I am glad I listened to this audiobook after
Learnt for ship's saving,
For the good health of the swimming horse;
On the stern cut them,
Cut them on the rudder-blade
And set flame to shaven oar:
Howso big be the sea-hills,
Howso blue beneath,
Hail from the main then comest thou home.
I am glad I listened to this audiobook after
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reading the Penguin Classics version of this saga, as the language used in the translation by William Morris and Eiríkr Magnússon seems self-consciously archaic and it would have been hard to follow if I hadn't already known the plot. Show Less
LibraryThing member eyja
This is one of my favorite sagas. It has interesting themes, and great characters. I am particularly drawn to Signy, though I can't quite put my finger on why. This translation, however, is not one of my favorites. It doesn't scan as well as the Kaaren Grimstad translation but as the Grimstad book
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is harder to find, this is not a bad substitution. Show Less
LibraryThing member antiquary
I recall my father reciting the apparence of Odin in this "one-eyed, and seeming ancient, but in his hand a brand" --that may not be verbatim
LibraryThing member DinadansFriend
This version of the Nibelungenlied is very popular (perhaps because it's shorter?) than the German original. Byock's translation moves along nicely, but I prefer the Hatto translation of the Nibelungenlied or Stephen Grundy's modern redaction of the corpus.
LibraryThing member stillatim
Incest, murder, more murder, dragons, high level smithing, treason, revenge, and Attila the Hun. Also, short, pleasant to read, and not obsessed with silly details. What exactly is there not to like?
LibraryThing member BittyCornwell
The Saga Of The Volsungs follows several generations as they achieve great renown, and are killed by people jealous of their success. The following generations try to avenge their fallen ancestors. Filled with compelling elements such as: cursed gold, a ring with the name Andvaranaut, a broken
Revenge is what motivates the characters in this saga. What I find absolutely fascinating in this story, is the varying methods the Volsungs use to get their revenge. From one on one fights to training from a young age in the woods, the Volsungs seek and obtain justice for their murdered family.
I enjoyed reading this saga, and only wish it was longer. I recommend reading this book if you are new to the sagas. It is an excellent one to start with. It follows many of the typical themes in the sagas without completely overwhelming a new reader with a lot of different terms.
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sword to be reforged, fights with dragons, dwarves, shapeshifters, magic, and epic battles it is a story you will not want to miss.Revenge is what motivates the characters in this saga. What I find absolutely fascinating in this story, is the varying methods the Volsungs use to get their revenge. From one on one fights to training from a young age in the woods, the Volsungs seek and obtain justice for their murdered family.
I enjoyed reading this saga, and only wish it was longer. I recommend reading this book if you are new to the sagas. It is an excellent one to start with. It follows many of the typical themes in the sagas without completely overwhelming a new reader with a lot of different terms.
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LibraryThing member Mags_Standi
I plan on re-reading this now that I'm more interested in this mythology.
LibraryThing member meandmybooks
Wow. Well, this was certainly action packed! Magic rings, swords in trees (like swords in anvils, only different), and nearly endless duplicitous in-laws. Loads of good stuff, and loads of weird stuff, too. The ending seemed rather abrupt, but that might just have been because it ended as soon as
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everyone was dead. The notes are good, and the translation is modern and very readable. I enjoyed this, but I have to say that I can't remember ever reading Anything before in which the cast of characters was so consistently bloodthirsty! Show Less
LibraryThing member Helenliz
If you ever want to rebut the idea that in the past people were nice, read a saga. There's an awful lot of violence in here, all described in a bvery matter of fact manner. The saga is in esence the family lineage of the Volsungs, the deeds of great daring that one of their number commits and how
It's fun, it's fast and it is fascinating. The short poetic sections were the best elements of this.
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the family line comes to an end. The saga finishes when everyone is dead (pretty much!). This is a modern translation of the surviving manuscript that was recorded in the 13th Century. It is almost certainly based on a much older oral tradition. The introduction spends time discussing the transition in the saga between myth and relative fact, such that there is a folk memory at work here. Once we move from myth there is less incest and child killing, but not a lot less violence. The number of times someone is killed by the in-laws makes you wonder why get married at all! It's fun, it's fast and it is fascinating. The short poetic sections were the best elements of this.
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LibraryThing member octoberdad
William Morris may be a good writer, but I dislike his translation skills. Working through the language of the translation is a task in and of itself. (My commented to my friend Dave while reading it: "This Volsunga translation is truly f***ing awful.")
That said, the story is quite enjoyable once
Tolkien's [b:The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun] is a reboot of part of the Volsungasaga, and well worth a read in tandem with this book. Apparently, he quite liked the translation, and he knows more about languages than I do, so take that for what it's worth.
That said, the story is quite enjoyable once
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you get past the awfulness of the translation. I don't why ancient epics always have such a penchant for nefarious things like incest and gratuitously horrific murder, but they do make for a good tale.Tolkien's [b:The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun] is a reboot of part of the Volsungasaga, and well worth a read in tandem with this book. Apparently, he quite liked the translation, and he knows more about languages than I do, so take that for what it's worth.
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LibraryThing member mkfs
Spoiler! Everybody dies.
This is a fine saga, as sagas go, certainly less focussed on number-of-cattle-owned than Njal's Saga.
Very clearly the product of multiple retellings: events such as the Sigurd/Brynhild meeting are retold a few times, with some hasty back-filling to call one or the other a
This is a fine saga, as sagas go, certainly less focussed on number-of-cattle-owned than Njal's Saga.
Very clearly the product of multiple retellings: events such as the Sigurd/Brynhild meeting are retold a few times, with some hasty back-filling to call one or the other a
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dream (no doubt in response to some plaintive "Grandpa, you told us they got married last week!" cries), and there is quite a bit of "stay tuned for next week's campfire" prophecy going on. Show Less
LibraryThing member SkjaldOfBorea
The extant heroic literary core of all things Nordic.
It catalysed Wagner’s Gesamtkunst - which may however have failed the test of modernity - & Tolkien’s ultimately equivalent, but freer, notion of “sub-creation” (=worldbuilding), which today is exploding beyond his wildest dreams.
NB: The
It catalysed Wagner’s Gesamtkunst - which may however have failed the test of modernity - & Tolkien’s ultimately equivalent, but freer, notion of “sub-creation” (=worldbuilding), which today is exploding beyond his wildest dreams.
NB: The
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Penguin Classics edition features excellent intro, notes, & glossary by the (younger back then) grand old man of Icelandic & Norse studies, Jesse Byock. Show Less
Language
Original language
Old Norse
Original publication date
1270 ca. [1270] [1270, 1270] (original manuscript)
1990 (Byock edition)
Physical description
160 p.; 7.94 inches
ISBN
0140447385 / 9780140447385