Abstract
AbstractThis essay traces relations between Sneglu-Halli, an Icelandic poet, and King Haraldr “harðráði” Sigurðarson of Norway as realized in episodes ofSneglu-Halla þáttrdealing with the patronage, composition, performance, and reception of poetry, and their consequences for both king and poet, reciprocity and rulership. The king commands extemporaneous verse composition but is tolerant of scurrilous comments on his person if witty and well-crafted. The necessarily quick-thinking poet must often versify in a reactive mode but succeeds in bringing not only personal agency but criticism of royal rule to the fore. The short narrative also explores the concept oftvíræðior ambivalence in verse, where the insulting runs parallel to the innocuous.
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