Disability in Medieval Iceland

Abstract

This chapter reviews and builds upon recent scholarship in order to discuss some of the key methodological concerns scholars must account for when exploring disability in the context of medieval Icelandic saga writing. It begins by introducing and considering the source value of the medieval sagas, including the modern generic distinctions that scholars have applied to the corpus. Next, the chapter addresses the vital role that attending closely to language and terminology plays in conceptualising disability in the medieval sagas. The final two sections focus on how medieval sagas offer insight on social attitudes toward atypical or nonconformist bodies and minds, on the one hand, and how such phenomena operate within medieval Iceland's narrative traditions, on the other. Overall, this chapter addresses the value of the medieval Icelandic sagas in helping us gain a better understanding of how physical, mental, and sensory differences were experienced, communicated, represented, and interpreted in medieval Iceland.