Bibliotheca Arnamagnæana - 01.06.1981, Page 240

was minimal, especially when compared with the reception of the Norwe-
gian Tristrams saga in Iceland. The most remarkable offshoot is the Saga
af Tristram ok Isodd, that appears to be an intentional parody of the
Tristan legend and of Arthurian romance (see pp. 198-211). The popular-
ity of Tristrams saga in Iceland can best be gauged by recalling the perva-
sive presence of names, motifs, and situations in Icelandic romances that
derive with certainty from the tale of Tristan. Undoubtedly some ele-
ments reached the North through oral transmission, but sufficient evi-
dence exists - for example, similar phraseology in analogous episodes -
to suggest that the primary source of Tristan-related material in the
Icelandic romances was the Norwegian Tristrams saga. The impact of
Tristrams saga on medieval Icelandic literature has been discussed exten-
sively and in detail by Paul Schach in several publications, notably in his
essay, “The Influence of Tristrams saga on Old Icelandic Literature.”12
Schach reached the conclusion that “most of the Tristan reminiscences in
medieval and early Scandinavian song and story derive from Tristrams
saga and that Friar Robert’s translation of the Tristan romance of Tho-
mas of Brittany was among the best known and most influential works of
Old Norse prose literature” (p. 129).
The authors of late medieval Icelandic romances paid tribute to Tris-
trams saga and gave witness to its popularity by incorporating into their
compositions various motifs and situations from the legend. The depend-
ence of some of the romances on Brother Robert’s translations is especial-
ly striking in those works that contain a combination of several Tristan-
motifs. In both Rémundar saga keisarasonar and in Haraids saga Hrings-
bana major motif-complexes from the Tristan legend are found. In the
former an embedded sword fragment, a voyage for healing, and the
construction of a statue of the beloved are essential elements of the
narrative fabric.13 Haraids saga Hringsbana is constructed around a
proxy-wooing, a substituted bride, and a voyage for healing. The Saga of
Harald, the Slayer of Hring, changes the names but otherwise follows the
episodic structure of Tristrams saga.14 Margaret Schlauch thinks that this
12 Old Norse Literature and Mythology, ed. Edgar C. Polomé, Festschrift for Lee M.
Hollander (Austin & London: University of Texas Press, 1969), pp. 81-129.
13 See Paul Schach, “Some Observations on the Influence of Tristrams saga ok Isondar on
Old Icelandic Literature,” Old Norse Literature and Mythology, pp. 81-129.
14 Henry Goddard Leach and Gertrude Schoepperle, “Haraidssaga Hringsbana and the
Tristan and Svanhild Romances,” SS, 2 (1914-15), pp. 264-76; H. G. Leach, Angevin
Britain and Scandinavia, pp. 189-94.
226