Философский диспут vs cостязание в навыках: к методам интерпретации латинской агиографии в древнеисландской «Саге о Клименте»

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The Clemens saga is a biography of St. Clement of Rome, compiled in the 1220s from translations of two Latin hagiographical works, the Recogniciones and the Passio Sancti Climentis. The Old Norse author made the translation in accordance with the peculiarities of the “saga” style: he changed the narrative modus, added didactic comments on Latin book culture, and used motifs and elements from Scandinavian folk literature. In addition, the Clemens saga is almost devoid of the philosophical and dogmatic Christian discourses that characterize the Recollections. One of such episodes altered in content is the philosophical contest between Faustinianus and his three sons - Aquila, Nikita and Clement, touching upon important questions of being from a Christian position and refuting epistemological views. In the Clemens saga this plot takes the form of a contest in the Seven Liberal Arts between Faustinianus and Clement, caused by a misunderstanding of the consubstantial nature of the almighty God. Despite the fact that a contest in skills or a duel is a frequent plot in Scandinavian sagas and poetry, comparing their structure and literary motifs with the Clemens saga, we can conclude that the author, interpreting the original, does not rely on examples from his own popular culture. Instead, he turns to Latin secular literature, turning the philosophical disputation into a contest in the Seven Liberal Arts, which are rarely found in the saga corpus. By combining methods of interpretation with reliance on Latin secular and religious or Scandinavian folk literature, the scribe not only influences the structure and style of the text, but also its content.