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OverviewAn examination of what dialogues and direct speech in Old Norse literature can convey and mean, beyond their immediate face-value. The vast and diverse corpus of Old Norse literature preserves the language spoken not only by the Vikings, kings, and heroes of medieval Scandinavia but also by outlaws, missionaries, and farmers. Scholars have long recognized that the wealth of verbal exchanges in Old Norse sagas presents the modern reader with the opportunity to speak face-to-face, as it were, with these great voices of the past. However, despite the importance of verbal exchanges in the sagas, there has been no book-length study of discourse in Old Norse literature since 1935. This book meets the need for such a study by offering a literary analysis based on the adjacent field of pragmatic linguistics, which recognizes that speakers often rely upon cultural, situational, and interpersonal context to communicate their meaning. The resulting, context-dependent meaning often deviates from the base semantic and syntactical components of an utterance: speakers hedge, imply, deflect to save face, or obscure meaning to damage an opponent's self-worth. Saga writers, this book argues, were masters of this type of indirectness in speech. It aims therefore to unlock the depth and subtlety of discourse in Old Norse literature and to leave readers with an understanding of how principles of pragmatics were employed throughout the sagas. A wide body of Old Norse materials is examined, including some of the best examples of Islendingasoegur (sagas of Icelanders), such as Brennu-Njals saga, Laxdoela saga, and Gisla saga Surssonar, while also giving due attention to Konungasoegur (kings' sagas), fornaldarsoegur (legendary sagas), and other literature from the medieval North. Full Product DetailsAuthor: Eric Shane Bryan (Author) , Sif Rikhardsdottir , Carolyne Larrington , Carolyne LarringtonPublisher: Boydell & Brewer Ltd Imprint: D.S. Brewer Dimensions: Width: 15.60cm , Height: 2.00cm , Length: 23.40cm Weight: 0.001kg ISBN: 9781843845973ISBN 10: 1843845970 Pages: 276 Publication Date: 19 June 2021 Audience: Professional and scholarly , College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Professional & Vocational , Tertiary & Higher Education Format: Hardback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: In Print  This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us. Table of ContentsReviewsIn this remarkable volume, Bryan has laid down a challenge for the Old Norsiverse: we who are less familiar with the concepts of historical pragmatics should welcome the challenge and embrace the toolkit he offers. Our field will be the stronger for it. -- Journal of the Australian Early Medieval Assoc. Author InformationERIC SHANE BRYAN is Associate Professor of English at Missouri University of Science and Technology. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |
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