Editiones Arnamagnæanæ. Series A - 01.10.2003, Page 42
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General introduction
sagaciously, “Whatever unity the story possesses is achieved ... by the
chronological arrangement of events and to a lesser degree by the
successive appearances and personality of Snorri the Priest.”66
The writer’s canvas is a broad one and he takes for his subject matter not
only the adventures of individuals, with their differing motives, their
scheming and fighting against one another, but the growth of communities,
the inevitable quarrels that arise, and the movements towards recon-
ciliation.
Such is the breadth of the canvas that at times he does indeed appear to
be struggling to control the subject matter; it is this that has led to criticism
of Eyrbyggja saga as a narrative. Yet the author is very much concemed
that his many episodes do not ‘take charge’. The temptation to let this
happen is all the greater because the writer is such a successful ‘teller of
tales’, an ability that reaches its height in episodes such as the death of
Arnkell, the fight on the ice of Vigrafjprðr, the combat - in love and magic
- between the wise women Geirríðr and Katla, the death of the berserks, the
sinister haunting of Þórólfr bægifótr - in human and animal form - and
above all, in the “pyrotechnic display of the supernatural” at Fróðá,67 dealt
with in detail by, in particular, Kjartan G. Ottósson.68 Such fascinating
diversions need keeping in their place; the serious business of history is the
estimate of human behaviour. Perhaps such an estimate can be fittingly
seen as an extension of the pastime of mannjafnaðr, so powerfully indulged
in in the incidents leading up to Arnkell’s death. In no area is this property
more skilfully displayed than in the exposition of the character of Snorri
goði. The author is fascinated both by what he had learnt of Snorri and by
what he drew out of his own mind - the outwitting of Bgrkr (his uncle and
stepfather), the plan by which Styrr brought about the death of the berserks,
as well as the slaying of Arnkell. The manipulation of men’s minds is what
most interested the author. (That he was interested in the manipulation of
their bodies too is evidenced from the account of Snorri goði’s surgical
activity after the fight at Vigrafjgrðr.)
The extent of the author’s imagination is matched by the complexity of
his sources. These are dealt with by Einar Ól. Sveinsson in his useful article
“Eyrbyggja sagas kilder”69 - skaldic verse (which gets the most detailed
66 Garmonsway 1937-45, p. 84.
67 Garmonsway 1937-45, p. 82. The theme of recently dead men engaging in speech is mentioned
in Jón Ámason 1862-4 (1954-61), vol. 1, pp. 226-8 (pp. 219-21), section headed “Um nýdauða
menn”.
68 Kjartan G. Ottósson 1983.
69 Einar Ól. Sveinsson 1968.