Studia Islandica - 01.06.1993, Blaðsíða 285

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immaturity of the narrative style at the time of writing Heiðar-
vígasaga. Be that as it may, there can be little doubt that devi-
ations from a particular type of style are insufficient evidence
for establishing a reliable dating of a saga.
On the contrary, it is evident that both the structure and
particular incidents in Heiðarvígasaga bear witness to a highly
developed skill, so much so that scholars have even used the
terms oflist (excessive artifice) or tilgerð (affectation) to de-
scribe the saga, terms that usually refer to phenomena that
have developed through a long-standing literary tradition or
even one on the decline. Another point which should be
mentioned is that Heiðarvígasaga contains most aspects of the
narrative technique found in the sagas. Finally, it should be
noted that the account of events leading up to the fall of Gísli
at Gullteigur is contrived in a manner so literary and complex
that its equal is scarcely to be found in the sagas.
The present study mentions ten sagas that are assumed to
have made use of Heiðarvígasaga and thus form the terminus
ante quem of the saga. The author of Heiðarvígasaga in all
probability knew and made use of Þorvalds þáttr víðförla,
Guðmundar saga dýra, Ólafs saga helga by Snorri Sturluson
and, last but not least, Laxdæla, and these therefore form the
saga’s terminuspost quem. The relationship between Laxdæla
and Heiðarvígasaga is of particular interest as the characters,
subject matter and style reveal beyond doubt that there exist
direct links between the two sagas.
Eyrbyggja contains direct references to both Heiðarvíga-
saga and Laxdæla and scholars agree that Laxdæla was writ-
ten about the middle of the 13th century or a little later. As a
consequence, the age order of these three sagas is: Laxdæla
from 1255, Heiðarvígasaga from 1260 and Eyrbyggja from
1265, these dates being subject to a margin of error, of course.
Laxdæla is a heroic saga where the author writes of honour
and revenge and greatness radiates from almost every sen-
tence, while Heiðarvígasaga is written against the compulsion
of revenge inherent in the concept of honour, advocating
forgiveness and peace. Seen in this light, Heiðarvígasaga may