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23 - The Prose Edda

from Part VI - Compilations

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 February 2024

Heather O'Donoghue
Affiliation:
University of Oxford
Eleanor Parker
Affiliation:
University of Oxford
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Summary

This chapter focuses on Snorri Sturluson’s Prose Edda, providing a thorough introduction to this important text. It argues that few books have been as foundational to several fields of study as Snorri’s treatise has been for the investigation and appreciation of Norse myth, poetry and religion. The opening section of the chapter discusses the work’s title, structure and authorship, and describes the most significant manuscripts and modern translations of the text. It emphasizes the heterogenous character of the Edda, suggesting that the work’s variegated and intertextual nature has given rise to sharply divergent critical impressions of the text and competing theories about its origins and function. The most notable of these different perspectives are summarized, with a comparison of contrasting views on how the Edda came together and what its purpose may have been. Each section of the text is then considered in turn, discussing in detail its content, sources, form and purpose, and the relationship of each section to the compilation as a whole.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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