The Poetic Edda: Essays on Old Norse Mythology (Garland Medieval Casebooks)

First published 2002 by Routledge. This unique collection of essays applies significant critical approaches to the mythological poetry of the 'Poetic Edda', a principal source for Old Norse cosmography and the legends of Odin, Loki, and Thor. The volume also provides very useful introductions that sketch the critical history of the Eddas. By applying new theoretical approaches (feminist, structuralist, post-structuralist) to each of the major poems, this book yields a variety of powerful and convincing readings. Contributors to the collection are both young scholars and senior figures in the discipline, and are of varying nationalities (American, British, Australian, Scandinavian, and Icelandic), thus ensuring a range of interpretations from different corners of the scholarly community. The new translations included here make available for the first time to English-speaking students the intriguing methodologies that are currently developing in Scandinavia. An essential collection of scholarship for any Old Norse course, the 'Poetic Edda' will also be of interest to scholars of Indo-European myth, as well as those who study the theory of myth. Illustrations vii Preface ix Introduction: "Edda 2000" xi 1. The Founding of Miðgarðr ('Vo̜luspá 1-8') / Lars Lönnroth; tr. Paul Acker 1 2. Gunnlo̜ð and the Precious Mead ('Hávamál') / Svava Jakobsdóttir; tr. Katrina Attwood 27 3. 'Vafþrúðnismál' and 'Grímnismál': Cosmic History, Cosmic Geography / Carolyne Larrington 59 4. Cursing with the Thistle: 'Skírnismál' 31, 6-8 and OE Metrical Charm 9, 16-17 / Joseph Harris 79 5. 'Hárbarðsljóð' as Generic Farce / Carol Clover 95 6. Þorr's Fishing Expedition ('Hymiskviða') / Preben Meulengracht Sørensen; tr. Kirsten Williams 119 7. Form and Content in 'Lokasenna': A Re-evaluation / Philip N. Anderson 139 8. Loki's Mythological Function in the Tripartite System ('Lokasenna') / Jerold C. Frakes 159 9. Reading 'Þrymskviða' / Margaret Clunies Ross 177 10. The Context of 'Vo̜lundarkviða' / John McKinnell 195 11. Dwarf-lore in 'Alvíssmál' / Paul Acker 213 12. 'Rígsþula': Some Medieval Christian Analogues / Thomas D. Hill 229 13. Dialogue with a 'vo̜lva': 'Vo̜luspá', 'Baldrs draumar' and 'Hyndluljóð' / Judy Quinn 245 General Bibliography 275 Contributors 279 Index 283 This unique collection of essays applies significant critical approaches to the mythological poetry of the Poetic Edda, a principal source for Old Norse cosmography and the legends of Odin, Loki, and Thor. The volume also provides very useful introductions that sketch the critical history of the Eddas. By applying new theoretical approaches (feminist, structuralist, post-structuralist) to each of the major poems, this book yields a variety of powerful and convincing readings. Contributors to the collection are both young scholars and senior figures in the discipline, and are of varying nationalities (American, British, Australian, Scandinavian, and Icelandic), thus ensuring a range of interpretations from different corners of the scholarly community. The new translations included here make available for the first time to English speaking students the intriguing methodologies that are currently developing in Scandinavia. An essential collection of scholarship for any Old Norse course, The Poetic Edda will also be of interest to scholars of Indo-European myth, as well as those who study the theory of myth. Four of the essays in this collection, those by Carolyne Larrington, Margaret Clunies Ross, Paul Acker, and Judy Quinn, were written expressly for this volume.