Abstracts Category : Other

A Case of an Odd Saga: Structure in Bjarnar saga Htdlakappa

by Daria 1993- Glebova

The discussion of Bjarnar saga Htdlakappa structure has resulted in Bjarnar saga being described either as a clumsily made saga (Sigurur Nordal 1938, lxxix, Bjarni Gunason 1994, 71) or as an odd, non-mainstream saga (Finlay 2003, 87). It has been called loose, especially in the part of the exchange of insults and violence between the poets. However, a scholastic attempt to find the narrative strategy behind the veil of clumsiness has shown that the seemingly loosely constructed narrative of the Icelandic part appears to be planned in a rather sophisticated and artistic way (Finlay 1990-1993).However, it did not solve all of the Bjarnar sagas structural puzzles. It was also argued that the looseness of the Icelandic part contrasts with the tightness of the Norwegian beginning (Finlay 2000, xxxiv). The contrast between the parts can be supported by further research on the narrators guidance in the saga. In this work the contrasts, and also repetitions, in the Norwegian beginning and the Icelandic part of Bjarnar saga are considered as the indications of the bipartite structure, which often can be found in medieval European and Scandinavian literature (Clover 1982). The analysis builds upon research on structure and narrative strategy in Bjarnar saga, as well as previous structural and narratological research in the field of saga studies. Special attention is paid to the so far overlooked architecture of the Norwegian part and its connection to the Icelandic narrative in order to determine its place in the overall structure of Bjarnar saga. Skoanir frimanna byggingu Bjarnar saga Htdlakappa hafa veri a sagan s illa saman sett (Sigurur Nordal 1938, lxxix, Bjarni Gunason 1994, 71) ea venjuleg (Finlay 2003, 87). Lausatk hafa veri samningu hennar, ekki sst eim hluta sgunnar ar sem skldin na hvort anna ea berjast. Frileg athugun fyrirtlun sgumanns sem er ltin lta t eins og klaufaskapur leiir ljs a slenski hluti sgunnar virist hafa veri skipulagur af listfengi rtt fyrir a hn virist fremur losaraleg (Finlay 1990-1993).En ekki hefur tekist a svara llum spurningum um byggingu Bjarnar sgu. Frimenn hafa einnig haldi v fram a lausatkin slenska hlutanum su mtsgn vi tta frsgn norska upphafsins (Finlay 2000, xxxiv). Munurinn hlutum sgunnar m styja frekar me rannsknum v hvernig sgumaurinn leibeinir sgunni. essari rannskn eru mismunurinn og endurtekningarnar milli norska upphafsins og slenska hluta sgunnar skoaar sem vsbendingar um tvskipta byggingu Bjarnar sgu, lkt og vi um fjlmargar sgur bkmenntum evrpskra og norrnna mialda (Clover 1982). Greiningin byggir rannsknum formger og frsagnaraferum sgunni, en einnig fyrri rannsknum frsagnarfri fornsagna. Svokallaur norski hluti sgunnar er athugaur srstaklega, einkum samband hans vi slenska sguhlutann, til a varpa ljsi stu hans heildarbyggingu Bjarnar sgu.