inspiration, anyone reading what viggo has read? Options

[jbnorway]

I read in Sibley's book on the making of the trilogy that viggo brought with him 'the volsunga saga'. I really understand why. It's an excellent way to prepare for 'strider' or 'aragorn'. Anyone else who has read it? If not, it's hereby recommended!

Namarië

[PansyBolger]

Hi, jbnorway. I read the Volsunga Saga a few months ago because VM quoted a bit from it in his painting "Volsung" (Sign Language, p. 58). Some of us were discussing the words on VM's paintings in the Recurring Themes thread in the Art Forum. Actually, I'd had the book for awhile because I love Wagner's "Ring Cycle" operas which are partly inspired by the Volsunga Saga, but I hadn't gotten around to reading it until the discussion on this Board. Hope sometime to have time to read more Icelandic saga. Have you read any others? Any recommendations?

[jbnorway]

No, not yet, but I will. The library have many of the sagas. This is almost like being a student again (upper sec.)!
You've got a great name, by the way...

Namarië

[plaidweaver]

Sounds very interesting ..might have to find it and have a look..thanks for the tip's jbnorway and PansyBolger..what is the eact name of Authour and book please..am not sure??

[PansyBolger]

Hi, Plaidweaver. The book we're talking about is the Volsunga Saga, also sometimes called The Saga of the Volsungs. It's one of the Icelandic sagas, written (I think) in the 1100's or 1200's. The sagas chronicle Norse history/legend (not sure how much is history, how much legend). The Volsunga Saga was one source Tolkien drew on in writing The Hobbit and LOTR, and it was also one of the sources for Wagner's great "Ring Cycle" operas. I hope I'm not making it sound boring; it's really pretty interesting: intrigue, blood feuds, dragons, etc.

Viggo has said that when he was a child he read (or people read to him) the sagas and that although he hadn't yet read Tolkien when he took the Aragorn role, he identified with it because of his background in the sagas.

The English translation I have is a Penguin edition, translated by Jesse Byock. (This is the translation that Viggo quotes in his Volsung painting in Sign Language.) There's also an older (but more difficult to read) public domain English translation on the Sacred Texts web site. (The Sacred Texts site has translations of many other sagas too.)

Hope this helps and that I haven't led you astray with misinformation. Any Scandinavians on the Board can probably provide lots more (and more accurate) information.

JBNorway, I'm guessing from your screen name that you're Norwegian. What language did you read the Volsunga Saga in?

[jbnorway]

Hi Pansy!
Yes, your right, I am a Norwegian! And yes, I read it in Norwegian, the kind you hear in the Western part of my country. This 'dialect' is a lot closer to Norse than is the official language here. It's called 'New Norwegian' here! Once you get a hang of it, it adds a certain feel when reading this kind of literature!
I am half way reading it now. I like to use a long time to read. It makes me love what I read even more! How long time did it take you to read it? (I have used a fortnight already!)

Namarië

[jbnorway]

Hi again, Pansy!
I have finished reading  Volsunga Saga, and I think it's great, especially on the women around Sigurd. It brought tears to my eyes...
I have also read Váluspá (or Våluspå, as I write it!). I highly recommend this one. You will be surprised, everyone, which names you find here. I am not telling more.  :)

Namarië

[PansyBolger]

Congratulations on finishing Volsunga Saga, jbnorway. It's wonderful that you could read it in a language that is closer to the original.

I've read parts of Váluspá too--a few months ago when I was looking for information about the great tree Yggdrasil. (We were talking about Viggo's use of trees in his paintings--see the Recurring Themes thread in the Art Forum). I know exactly what you mean about those names!

[plaidweaver]

Thank you for the infor PansyBolger and jbnorway..I am married to a norweigian..I catually took Norweigian classes just after I was married..but no one about to chat to it in has made me forget all but a few phrases..very kewl language!  I hope I can find the book...it sound very interesting.
 :snk:  :lts:

[jbnorway]

Thanks, both of you! Please send me a mail, if you like to...  :bunny:
I have just started reading Hávamál, which contains advise on how to behave properly. I love this one, so I will use some time reading it. It's not very long, but I think it should take some time trying to understand. It's not something you read when it's late at night and you are going to bed. It takes a lot of consentration...  :love:

Have any of you been to Norway?

Namarië

[Miriel]

I got a copy for Christmas and haven't gotten to read it yet. Just finished Vidal's "Dreaming War" last night (from the Perceval Press recommended list). It is an incredible book. But getting back to Volsung, anyone on this thread who hasn't seen Viggo's Volsung canvas, be sure to check it out in Sign Language. Pansy let us know a while ago that if you go to Amazon.com you can find the book and open to the page (p.7?) that has the exact text that Viggo copied on his canvas.

[plaidweaver]

Ok I did write down the nameof the book..but what is authors name?  or did I miss read something ???
No I have not been to Norway..but my bestfriend has..she loved it!
 :lts:

[jbnorway]

I've already finished reading Hávamál!!! It didn't take a long time to read, after all. I'm not quite sure what to read now, but it will definitely be some saga. Does any of you have any recommentations?  :bunny:

Namarië

[PansyBolger]

Jbnorway, have you read Kormak's saga? Viggo has a painting in Sign Language called Kormak, with a big section of the saga written out (I think in Danish). Then there's a second painting on the same page called Kormak in New York, with "11th Sept. 2001" written on it. I've always been curious about this but haven't had time to read the Kormak saga yet.

Plaidweaver, there really isn't an "author" for Volsunga Saga or any of the Icelandic sagas. I think they're traditional handed-down Norse legend that was eventually written down in Iceland. If you go to a library, a good bookstore or Amazon and look for Icelandic sagas you'll find a lot of them. The English translator of the currently available "Saga of the Volsungs" is Jesse Byock, so you'll probably find him listed as author in bookstores. It's published by Penguin. (Penguin has published other sagas too, as well as a huge book that is a collection of other Icelandic sagas which I own but haven't had time to read.)

[plaidweaver]

Thanks very much PansyBolger..I did look when i was in Edmonton..but I could not find it..or a match for the name so hopefully this will help   here is hoping!

[PansyBolger]

Hi, Plaidweaver. Good luck finding the Volsunga Saga. Unfortunately, Icelandic saga isn't hugely popular, so you'll probably only find it in a very good bookstore or perhaps a university bookstore. Here's a link to the Amazon.com entry for Saga of the Volsungs. The ISBN number is 0140447385. Hope this helps.

Are you from the Edmonton area? I visited Alberta many years ago (Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper). It is probably the most spectacularly beautiful area I've ever been to.

[jbnorway]

Jbnorway, have you read Kormak's saga? Viggo has a painting in Sign Language called Kormak, with a big section of the saga written out (I think in Danish). Then there's a second painting on the same page called Kormak in New York, with "11th Sept. 2001" written on it. I've always been curious about this but haven't had time to read the Kormak saga yet.

[QUOTE]

I don't know any saga by that name, and my local library doesn't either! Anyone else who knows anything about it?

Namarië

[Delphica]

JBNorway, Kormak' saga is an Icelandic saga.  I believe that you can find it on the net and someone has posted the website in another thread although I cannot remember exactly where.  Some years ago I bought a Penguin classics book called Sagas of Warrior Poets and it is in there too.  The ISBN is 0-14-044771-7.
I must admit though that I was not too impressed with these Icelandic sagas.  I find them a little repetitive, but there are also many interesting things in them, such as images of the way of life at the time, and the ways the heroes make poems and use them as a kind of weapon

Delphica

[Narcuelië]

wow, those sagas sounds interesting, gonna have to read them! hope I can find them in my library, I've seen a lot of icelandic sagas there. love the icelandic language, I did my practical occupational experience at an icelandichorse stable with an icelandic owner, it's so beautiful. want to learn a little so I can talk to my little Flipi frá Uxahrygg  
thanks for the tip!!!

[jbnorway]

Thanks for the info., Delphica! I hope I will find it somewhere!

Namarië

[jbnorway]

I'm not at all sure if Viggo has read this one:
THE FRIDTJOF SAGA
but it is very good to read to understand Aragorn vs. Arwen and the different things they had to endure - before the happy end...

Namarië

[olianna]

jbnorway: You seem to know a lot about Norse sagas! I haven't read that much of it, but I would really like to. Maybe I'll go to the library to see if I can find any there.

I have been reading Håvamål though, the one I got from you for my birthday. Thank you so much! I love it! I have read some of it before, but not the whole book. So many true and wise words in there.

I usually read a lot of Norwegian Folk-tales, about trolls and stuff. LOVE IT! I wish I could meet a troll, too bad they doesn't exists....

[jbnorway]

olianna!
There are some bad witches in this one, so maybe you'll like it. It is only around 70 pages, so it won't take long!!! Good reading (and yes, they will most likely have it in your library, too).

Namarië

[jbnorway]

I still haven't found the Kormak saga, but I noticed something similar in Tolkien's 'The Book of Lost Tales 1':
Kortirion (or Koromas), chief town of Alalminórë in Tol Eressëa (or Lonely Island).

So I think we can assume that Tolkien must have read the saga we're looking for! Maybe Viggo has read every Tolkien book, too...

Namarië

PS! Yes, folks, I have started reading 'The History of Middle-Earth again!!!

[jbnorway]

I just found out about Kormak: I will have to buy it! I can't borrow the book from any library here in my country!

Namarië